Pre-Release THE HUMAN STAIN discussion

I went to a screening of this film last night.

It features some really good performances from Anthony Hopkins, Nicole Kidman, Ed Harris and Gary Sinise, as well as the supporting cast.

After the film, the young man who played Hopkins' character Coleman Silk (circa 1940s) was there for a Q&A with the audience. His name is Wentworth Miller (some of you may recognize him as Dr. Adam from Underworld) and he informed us that he himself is multiracial and extremely proud of his background. Born in the UK, but raised in Brooklyn, he was educated at Princeton and though he graduated with a degree in English Literature, he said that the stage always "called to him". He moved out to LA and worked behind-the-scenes before taking the plunge and starting to act. Eight years later, here he is.

He also told us about how he trained for the boxing scenes in the film with the same guy who trained Denzel Washington for The Hurricane. He said he met with the guy about 5 days a week for 4-5 hours. That included his general boxing training, running, sit-ups, push-ups, etc. Then, the last month was dedicated the choreography, as he informed us that none of the face punches actually make contact, though there are some punches in the mid-section that do. He laughed and said he spent 4 months training, 13 hours filming and the boxing scene only ended up being about 30 seconds in the movie.

He gave an excellent performance in the film and was extremely well-spoken and fielded the audience's questions with good, intelligent answers (even the dumb ones like, "Was it just my hearing or did the director tell Nicole Kidman to speak softly in the film, because I couldn't understand her?" or the final question, "This film takes place in New England, right? I just wanted to let you know there a North Carolina license plate on Hopkins' Volvo." When most of the audience began yelling that it wasn't an NC tag, but a Massachusetts one, Miller laughed heartily and said "Noted!")

I recommend you check out this film, as it tells a very interesting story about racism, betrayal and loneliness.

7.8 out of 10

Here's a synopsis:
The movie based on the 2000 novel of the same title by Philip Roth, which concluded his American Trilogy, which started with American Pastoral and I Married a Communist.

One of the questions asked of Wentworth Miller at the Q&A was how much input Philip Roth had with the movie. He answered that it was his understanding that Roth signed off on the movie rights and had no involvement, though he did visit the set of the film.

I think it's rather ironic that the title is The Human Stain, considering the time at which it takes place, along with Lewinsky and the famous Gap dress. But, the title has nothing to do with that.

Having seen the film, I am guessing that it has more to do with how bad events in your life can leave a stain on one's conscience as the characters that Hopkins and Kidman play are both heavily scarred by their pasts. Harris and Sinise's characters also have troubled pasts. The rest I will leave up to your own interpretation, as this film takes on a rather heavy subject.