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Sorry, kids. “Cyrus” isn’t a Disney biopic about how Miley rose to stardom.
No, “Cyrus,” is the latest perceptive indie from the Duplass Brothers (“The Puffy Chair”), and it gives Oscar nominee John C. Reilly one of the best roles of his career. He plays John, a guy who’s been lost since his ex (Catherine Keener) divorced him seven years ago. John’s life changes when he meets Molly (Marisa Tomei), but her son Cyrus (Jonah Hill) stands in the way of John and Molly's blossoming relationship.
Reilly says writers-directors Mark and Jay Duplass told him they didn’t want to make the movie if he didn’t want to do it. Good thing he did; the largely improvised film is a great showcase for Reilly’s ability to find humor and sweetness in human discomfort, while bringing the actor back to the more grounded roles he played before the broad comedy hits “Step Brothers” and “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.”
Your character in “Cyrus” is self-deprecating, comparing himself to Shrek. Speaking of your appearance: Your IMDb mini-bio says your “unruly mop of curly hair is tailor-made for off-beat character work.”
That’s the worst! I don’t know how they pick who gets to write those bios on IMDb.
It also says, “He has defied the odds by drawing in the ladies with his touching ‘common man’ portrayals of lovable, good-natured schlepps.” What do you think of that?
From an objective point of view, that’s true. A lot of my characters—thinking like “Magnolia” and in the musical “Chicago”—it was kind of like [the] lovable loser.
Yet you’ve said people who don’t look like Brad Pitt often don’t have their stories told. Why?
’Cause people like to have Brad Pitt tell their story. It’s just a thing of the way society is. I think it changes. We might be going through a little bit of a change right now, like where people are a little tired of the pre-packaged, very slick, idealized versions of life. I think that’s one of the great qualities about this movie is that the story is somewhat conventional. You’ve definitely heard stories about a woman who’s got a son already and then the competition between [him] and her husband. But I think we tell it in a really honest way. I think the emotional resonance of the movie feels really true. It really feels like this isn’t some story crafted to make us feel a certain way. This is just the way it happened for these people, and there’s something really touching about it.
The Duplass brothers have a romantic spirit, and you’ve said you see yourself that way. What’s the most extreme thing you’ve done in terms of romanticism?
Most extreme thing I’ve done … I don’t know. I think being romantic is just your worldview. Being more hopeful and believing that people are basically good and in their heart of hearts everyone’s a good person. Kind of an optimistic point of view. Romantic? I don’t know. I’m married for 18 years now.
Why do you think Molly is attracted to John?
Um, because he’s a romantic. [Laughs] They’re both of an age that they’ve kind of been through [all the usual illusions that people put up] and they’re both looking for honesty and vulnerability and openness.
What’s something you guys improvised that you wish made it into the movie but didn’t?
Oh, God, I can’t remember. We do a take and they’ll say, “Oh, you know when you said …” and I’m like, “No, I don’t. I don’t remember that at all!” When you kind of open up your stream of consciousness and you just start sayin’ stuff, a lot of times I can’t even remember. It’s been a while since I made this movie. A lot of the best stuff got in, let’s put it this way.
Finish this joke: John C. Reilly and Will Ferrell walk into a bar …
I’m terrible at jokes. That’s why I improvise. ’Cause I can’t tell jokes. I don’t know. Got nothin’.
You’ve played a porn star, a rock star, a racecar driver and a vampire. If needed, which of those could you actually be day-to-day?
I could not be any of those things on a day-to-day basis. [Laughs] Rock star. Rock star would be all right. It’s kind of the closest thing to my life, with all the traveling and stuff. I would pick rock star.
When can we expect your album to be out?
I don’t know. That’s something I’ve been talking about for a long time.
Really?
Yeah! A lot of people ask, “Why don’t you do that?” I love playing music and I do it a lot. Play music live a lot, but there’s no money in records right now.
If you did put out an album, what would it be?
I have a lot of different musical interests. I’m really into roots kind of music, like folk music and bluegrass and that kind of stuff. I’m really into standards, older standards. And I love show tunes. I grew up doing musicals, so maybe I’d be like a hybrid of those three things. I love Irish music. Traditional Irish music.
Look for local showtimes for "Cyrus" or see when it's scheduled to open in your area.
