Q&A WithAndy Garcia

Q&A With…Andy Garcia

By Susan L. Hornik

Andy Garcia

By Susan L. Hornik

The star of Modigliani reveals the key to living life passionately—and craziest thing he’s ever done in the name of love.

	In your latest movie you play Amedeo Modigliani, a painter who lived for love. What’s the craziest, most romantic thing you’ve ever done for love?
	I proposed to my wife the first day I met her. She said yes, right then and there!

	You had incredible chemistry with your leading lady, actress Elsa Zylberstein. How did you make that happen?
	It’s such a delicate thing. How many times have you seen a married couple in the movies, and they have absolutely no chemistry whatsoever? They might have good chemistry in real life, but in the movie, it’s like watching paint dry! Maybe the secret is to be completely available and generous to them, giving them your full and complete attention. When you have that, there is an energy between you. When you are self-involved or narcissistic in your performance, then you are really alone, and the audience picks up on that.

	Modigliani seemed to have a very destructive relationship with his wife. Do you understand the allure of this type of dynamic?
	There was a beautiful madness to their love. There are certain people who live life differently than most of us. It’s classic: You are attracted to the one thing that will destroy you. A lot of people end up in relationships like that. And one can ask, Why is this woman or man with this person? You have to be a psychologist to begin to decipher why people get into those situations.

	For you, what was the key to playing such a passionate role—and working with such passion?
	I tried to live as fully, freely and deeply as possible in the material. As a golfer, the terminology is you leave nothing in the bag—and when I walked away from this role, I knew I had done that.

Susan L. Hornik is an entertainment journalist in Los Angeles.


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