Day 9 - September 9
Keepin' the Faith

An interfaith movie that gives you faith in movies, Keeping the Faith is both actor Edward Norton's directing debut and a fine two hours' worth of comic yet thoughtful entertainment. Norton stars as a Catholic priest opposite Ben Stiller, who plays his best friend, a rabbi.

God and the screenplay move in mysterious ways when Anna (Jenna Elfman), the Gentile girl they both hung out with in 8th grade, moves back to Manhattan 16 years later. Stiller is up for a promotion at his synagogue, but his congregation expects him to find a nice Jewish girl and get married. Norton, in keeping with tradition in his line of work, has taken a vow of celibacy. Never heavy-handed and frequently laugh-out-loud funny, this is an old-fashioned movie in the best sense of the word.

Along with two other films at this year's festival - Two Family House and Liberty Heights - it's also a movie that tackles issues of race and religion in an appealing humanistic context.

Norton has had an enviable career from the very start. Asked whether the Actors Studio "Method" has been part of his approach to his roles in Primal Fear, The People vs Larry Flynt, Rounders, Everyone Says I Love You or this, Norton admits, "I auditioned for te Actors Studio twice and I was rejected both times. Dustin Hoffman told me that he auditioned for them SEVEN times and was rejected. But after he made The Graduate, the Actors Studio called him up and invited him to join. And he said, 'F--k off - I don't need you anymore.'"

Even if Norton doesn't employ the Method, some Method molecules are probably glomming on to him by osmosis during his current filming with Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando. "It's been wonderful so far," says Norton. "It's a thriller. It's not a very profound piece. But with people like that you often do it just for the poster. It's a heist movie. Bob and I are thieves and Brando is the fence."

Norton says he's a big fan of French cinema, particulalry Truffaut's Jules and Jim. "I've seen most of Truffaut's films and most of Godard's films. I loved Jean-Paul Belmondo in Le Doulos. When you're in college, Belmondo is ultra-cool."

Speaking of ultra-cool, the final tribute of this year's fest was this evening's salute to Samuel L. Jackson. Director Regis Wargnier (Indochine, East-West) pulled out all the stops in his presentation speech. "When I first heard of Samuel L. Jackson, I thought he was a member of The Jackson Family: Michael, Janet, Samuel. But I realized my mistake because those Jacksons, as they get older, get whiter. Not you - thank God. You struggled through all sorts of jobs and acted off off Broadway, waiting for your talent to be recognized. Two major encounters were crucial. Spike Lee, who case you in Do the Right Thing, Mo' Better Blues and Jungle Fever, and Quentin Tarantino who cast you in Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown." Wargnier then shared some of his favorite racy lines of dialogue from The Long Kiss Goodnight.

After musing about what the "L" in Jackson's name might stand for, Wargnier settled on "Leroy," which, he pointed out "is a French word. It means 'The King.' So welcome, Samuel The King Jackson!"

Jackson took the stage wearing his trademark beret and a huge smile and ordained the crowd with, "Que la force soit avec vous" ("May the Force be with you" in French.)

"I used to call my agent all the time to ask if Hollywood had called and she'd say no," Jackson recounted. "Then one day I phoned and she said yes, they had called. Hollywood had finally called. And that was because they heard a Best Supporting Actor Award had been created for me at the Cannes Film Festival. That was in 1991, when I played Gator in Do the Right Thing. The phone started ringing and I started getting the kinds of parts I'd dreamed of. That was thanks to you: The French."

John Singleton, the director of Shaft, added "Actually, I, too, got my start here in France. Boyz 'n the Hood was in Cannes, in Un certain Regard. I was in the audience when Mr. Jackson got his award. I was amazed at his performance - it was phenomenal. And just nine years later, I had the honor and pleasure of directing him. I've wanted to be a director ever since I was 9 years old. Like Francois Truffaut, the cinema has kept me out of delinquency."

The jury will render its verdicts tomorrow. But for now the "verdict" seems to be that French festival programmers and filmgoers have a knack for speeding up the talent recognition process. Que la Force soit avec eux! (May the Force be with them).

Wilma Radar