GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE:
INTERVIEW WITH BRENDAN FRASER

 

by: Prairie Miller

 

Brendan Fraser goes native this time around for his role in George of the Jungle. The former Encino Man and Airhead talked about doing some major alterations on his movie image to try his hand at tropical acrobatics, while reinventing a TV character who reigned on the small screen from 1967 to 1971.

PRAIRIE MILLER: Did you take on this role because of some special bond you feel with George?

BRENDAN FRASER: Well, George did reach the height of his popularity in 1968, which happens to be the year of my birth, as well as the Year of the Monkey.

PM: How did you set about bringing George back to life in the nineties?

BF: I became reacquainted with George in the interests of preparing for this light action feature by watching the old cartoons. I wanted to really get familiar with the subversive quality that the humor in the cartoons always had, while at the same time being very funny and only eleven minutes long. And borrowing from those elements to apply them to a live action feature was pretty much the task at hand.

PM: Why do Tarzan type of guys continue to charm audiences?

BF: I don't know, I've always myself been a fan of Tarzan films and Edgar Rice Burroughs' Legend Of The White Ape.  And I think there are endearing qualities to that character. This isn't the first time we've seen him, and it certainly won't be the last, I'm sure of that..

I was always struck by the animated shorts that had a social agenda beneath the material, and that most kids didn't pick up on. And of course added to that, the essence of the buffoonery of it all was always what kept kids interested. And definitely the cleverness, the quality of the writing and the voice talent, the Borscht Belt comedians and actors who populated the George of the Jungle series.

Bill Scott in particular, the original voice of George is really a favorite of mine. I learned that his inspiration for George's cadences and patterns of speech were as simple as him reading a telegram, [Brendan momentarily lapses into his George persona for us]....which gave George that sort of simple way of speaking but always got point across. Good. Hmmmm....I was always impressed by that, and to find a way to translate those elements that we borrowed from an animated feature into live action definitely informed the quality of the humor. I think those subversive qualities in the humor are clearly there. When the convention of the narrator speaks to the characters and to the audience, the ability to make these broad acting choices that are supported by the production values allows us to suspend our disbelief.

PM: How was the chemistry between you and those jungle animals?

BF: I'm so hard pressed to pick out a favorite moment, but I had so much fun working with the animals, to tell you the truth. Of course you never know what they're going to do, which personally I like. I like being kept on my toes, it keeps you fresh. You never know if they're going to throw something at you, stick their tongue in your ear, or nearly trample you.

Which actually was almost the case with Tai the elephant early in production. We were laying side by side in a kind of boy and his dog shot. It was actually the first day that I met Tai. I learned that elephants are really quite delicate creatures, and as we all know, very intelligent. A bird was flown over her head, she flinched and her hoof came and whacked me on the shoulder. I flew like a rag doll out of a cannon and I saw stars, it was very George. I came back and asked her not to do it again, and she apologized to me, I swear she did! That big, wet, smelly snotty trunk blew in my ear and we were friends again. I had to bribe her with a fistful of gummy bears, but we got on great. I think the best friendships start off that way.

PM: What's the next destination for you after this jungle fling?

BF: I've definitely moved on. I'm now playing an ex-marine in my next movie. I'm working with Sir Ian McKellan and Lyn Redgrave in a drama called Gods And Monsters. It's based on the novel Father Frankenstein and it's to be directed by Bill Scott. I'm playing the dark muse, a wanderer who's invited into a studio to be drawn and painted, much in the same way that I think the spider does to the fly. So I'm looking forward to starting this very soon.

Copyright 1997 by Prairie Miller