He was a British spy, a Soviet soldier, an English king, an American major, a safecracker, a robot from the future, and the Pope. He is a participant in almost the most high-profile sex scandal of the century, a regular hero of the tabloids, a father of many children and … a newlywed. And so Jude Law has something to say about the different roles we have to play in life.
The first thing I notice when he sits across from me at the table at the restaurant at the Beaumont Hotel in Mayfair, London, is his unusually clear, transparent eyes. A complex color — either green or blue … No, aqua. I don’t know why I didn’t pay attention to this before. Probably because I always saw Jude Law in the role, and in the role — we all know, he is one of the most gifted actors of our time — it was not quite Jude Law.
That is not Jude Law at all. Not Jude Law, who now sat in the chair in front of me, with his smiling and seriousness, relaxation and concentration … With his direct, frank look in the eyes of clear sea water. With the look of a person who does not intend to play, is not going to play any role. He came to answer my questions.
It has a purely British directness and simplicity of reactions. He is surprised — and then raises his eyebrows. My question seems funny to him and he laughs out loud. And if it irritates, it frowns. Lowe doesn’t feel the need to hide how he feels. And it is completely incomprehensible how he manages to maintain this property in his circumstances — when he is a movie star and yellow press, one of the most interesting men on our planet and, in the end, the father of five children from three women.
But anyway, I’m going to take advantage of his directness. And so I begin with an apology.
Psychologies: Sorry for the question…
יוד לאו: ??
No, really, I’m going to ask a very personal question… Baldhead. Hair loss in a man at a certain age. A sign of approaching old age, loss of attractiveness … I ask you because I saw your relatively recent photos in a hat, as if you were trying to hide losses. And then they took and cut their hair very short. And they earned praise from men’s magazines in the nomination «balding with dignity.» Have you come to terms with age-related changes? And in general, how does a person of your appearance, exceptional, as you know, treat them?
In short: enthusiastic. Age is no less capital than appearance. But I never understood it as capital. Although there is no doubt that she helped me a lot in my career. But she interfered with me, limited. In general, I thought about her role in the life of a man just before filming in The Young Pope: Paolo (director of the series Paolo Sorrentino. — Ed.) honestly told me that the factor of the hero’s appearance has a certain meaning in the film.
This is a handsome man who has decided to become a monk. Renounce all the pleasures that appearance could provide him. This is what you need to have arrogance! I’m serious: arrogance — to say that you are higher than human … But, to be honest, I was characterized by something of the same kind — not of that degree, but of the same analysis. I was maniacally afraid that external data would stamp me — that I would get the roles of handsome men, because, you see, I am handsome.
When we all get together — father, mother, sister Natasha with three children, her husband, my children — I feel: this is real happiness.
And behind my face no one will bother to see what I can do as an actor. I was determined to fight — not to accept such a job anymore. And, for example, he stubbornly refused the role of a handsome and seductive, heir to a huge fortune in The Talented Mr. Ripley, for which he later received an Oscar nomination. Anthony (director Anthony Minghella. — Ed.) invited me three times.
The last time I said that this role does not coincide with my idea of career development and roles. To which Anthony barked: “Yes, you don’t have any career yet! Just star in this film, and then you can at least play Quasimodo for the rest of your life, you idiot!” And then I realized what a really pathetic sight it is: a young man who is trying his best to jump out of his own body, because he sees himself as someone else.
But I always knew that appearance is a bad ally in the important business of life. It was always clear to me that someday it would end, and I don’t worry about it. And he was filming in a hat because photographers could not come to terms with my bald head. «Gloss» is generally difficult to cope with the aging of his hero. And now it’s easy for me — I continue to work, I get roles that I didn’t even dream of in my youth, the children are growing up, and some have already hoo-hoo.
I also want to ask about them. Your eldest son is already an adult, 22 years old. The other two are teenagers. And there are little girls. How do you deal with the situation?
Yes, I can not cope — there is no situation! They are simply the most important thing in my life. And it always has been. When Rafferty was born, I was only 23, then I began to actively act, I managed to play something interesting that I liked myself, I felt that success was possible, but I considered my son to be my main achievement.
I have always liked the idea of fatherhood, I wanted to be a father — and as many children as possible! Don’t laugh, it’s true. In general, I believe that the only thing worth living for is family. Noise, uproar, quarrels, tears of reconciliation, general laughter at dinner, bonds that cannot be canceled because they are blood. That’s why I love visiting my parents, they live in France.
When we all get together — father, mother, sister Natasha with three children, her husband, my children — I feel: this is real happiness. There can’t be anything more real.
But your first marriage ended in divorce…
Yes… And for me, this is how an era ended. You see, the 90s we have in Britain … I then had this unique feeling — that everything is possible. There was an unusual, transparent air in London. I had a son. I was deadly in love with Sadie
I had really high-quality and noticeable roles in the theater. I did The Talented Mr. Ripley. And finally there was money. British cinema, British pop have made a fantastic breakthrough. Tony Blair at the head of the country invites filmmakers and rock musicians to Downing Street, as if asking: what do you want from me, what should I do? ..
I think this is why marriages break up: people lose the similarity of goals, the sense of a common route in life.
It was a time of hope — my 20+. And in 30+ things were quite different. The era of hope, youth is over. Everything settled down and went its own way. Sadie and I were together for a long time, raised wonderful children, but we became more and more different people, what brought us together 5 years ago became thinner, evaporated … I think marriages break up for this very reason: people lose the similarity of goals, the feeling of a common route in life. And we broke up.
But this does not mean that we have ceased to be a family. The children lived a week with me, a week with Sadie. But when they lived with Sadie, it was my duty to pick them up from school — it was opposite my house. Yes, I would generally prefer not to part with them — with none of them.
But the younger daughters live with their mothers — apart from you …
But always present in my life. And if there is a break in this, then in thoughts. I always think about them. Sophia is 9, and this is a difficult age, when a person begins to realize his true character and cannot always cope with it … Ada is 4, I worry about her — she’s very small, and I’m not around all the time … I have a lot from my father : from the love of three-piece suits, he is also a teacher, to the constant fruitless desire to shield children from the hardships of life.
Barren?
Well, of course. You can teach them to cross the street only on the green light, but you can’t save them from disappointments, bitter experiences, this is all just parental conceit. But you can show that you are always there and on their side.
I had to apologize for the connection on the side
And never judge, no matter what they do?
Well… always try to understand your child. After all, they are really a continuation of us with all our mistakes and parental achievements. And when you understand, you are already, as they say, by default on the side of the child.
The elders — Rafferty and Iris — seem to be following in your footsteps: so far on the podium, but perhaps the movie is just around the corner. Are you somehow involved in this process?
Well, Raffi … In my opinion, the podium for him is more of a way to earn extra money. I remember myself at 18 with the first money after the first role — it was a feeling of unlimited freedom and independence. For him, his own money, earned by himself, is a new quality of existence and self-awareness. He sees himself as a musician, plays four instruments including piano and guitar, graduated college with excellent results and is trying to develop his own music label. And Iris…
Look, she and Rudy, my youngest son, are still, by and large, teenagers. And teenagers are going through a hellish period — they are trying to find themselves and their place among others. It’s complicated. The people closest to them are the first to feel it — and in the most dramatic way. But when a teenager comes out of his hell, and you are around, he suddenly realizes that you are not at all such a monster as he thought.
So, I humbly wait for the end of this period. If one of the children wants to become an actor, I will express my opinion — simply because I have experience in this matter. But only if they ask me. I generally answer now only the questions asked. Will they listen to the answer? Is not a fact. But this is also their right. We all have the right to be stupid, after all. And in general, be stupid.
But there is something that parents should teach their children, besides the rules of conduct at the table, is not it?
You know… Well, of course, you know — about that period in my life when I had to apologize for my connection on the side and fight with the media. Well, yes, the same story: the tabloids of the Rupert Murdoch Corporation illegally tapped the phones of stars, in particular mine. Then it led to litigation and the approval of new standards in journalism regarding sources of information.
But then I had a connection with the nanny of my children, wiretapping helped the paparazzi find out about it, the Murdoch media published a sensation, and I had to apologize to Sienna … (British actress and model Sienna Miller, to whom Lowe was engaged in 2004. — Note ed.). Yes, I have been living in a glass house for a long time — my life is viewed better than the lives of others.
I even told the children that there are actually two Jude Laws — the one in the beams of spotlights, and the other — their father, and I earnestly ask you not to confuse them. But that story made me … a fanatical guardian of personal space. And this is what I tell the children: living in a world with Facebook (an extremist organization banned in Russia), with Instagram (an extremist organization banned in Russia), with Youtube, it is important to leave at least a little bit of yourself only for yourself and the most loved ones. Man is, of course, a social being. And I need creatures native.
And your new marriage speaks of this after so many years of living as a bachelor with many children?
Yes! And now it even seems to me that I chose Philippa (Philippa Coan became the wife of Jude Law in May of this year. — Approx. Ed.) Not only because I am in love with her, but also because I am confident in her — that’s it that she is mine and only mine. Yes, as a business psychologist she leads an active social life, but there is a part of her that is given only to me… And besides… I am also a Facebook reader! (an extremist organization banned in Russia) Some of the authors there amaze me: it seems that they do not leave a single thought, a single meeting, a single party undescribed … Their own value for the world seems to them limitless! To me this is extremely strange. I do not have that.
But how can you be an actor, a star, and not be a little bit of a narcissist?
Well, you know … you can be, for example, a cactus. I like their flowers even more.
Jude Law’s three favorite looks
אַנגקאָר וואַט
“I appeared there for the first time in the mid-90s. There weren’t so many hotels yet, and we lived in a very modest hotel,” says Lowe about the Hindu temple complex of Angkor Wat. — From it a view of the temple opened, from the window I saw eternity. This is some kind of religious feeling — understanding how small you are. But also pride for their own kind, for people who were able to create such beauty and power.
דוי
“Perhaps the best view from the window is from my house,” Lowe admits. — There is a small garden, a low fence with a hedge. And one tall tree. Sycamore. When Sophie plays with Ada underneath it, I can watch them endlessly, it seems. My kids. My house. My city».
איסלאנד
“A small island in Thailand, far from civilization. Very simple little hotel. And nature is 5 stars! — the actor recalls with delight. — Virgin, untouched by man. Endless ocean, endless beach. Endless sky. The main view is the horizon. There I felt acutely: we are not dying. We dissolve into infinite freedom.»