A fantasy land filled with strange people and creatures just sounds like the inside of Tim Burton’s mind, doesn’t it? Tim Burton admits he’s a little peculiar, but hey, aren’t we all? His new movie teaches us to embrace the things that make us different, and Deco’s Chris Van Vliet was in New York City, Tuesday, where he got weird with Tim and the cast.
Eva Green (as Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine): “We’re what’s known in common parlance as peculiar.”
Peculiar is another word for strange, and in Tim Burton’s new movie, “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,” he shows us why that’s a good thing.
Eva Green (as Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine): “Because our abilities don’t fit in the outside world, we live in places like this.”
The film is based on the best-selling book and follows a boy named Jake, played by Asa Butterfield, whose grandfather leaves behind clues about a magical world.
Chris Van Vliet: “You’ve both worked with some great directors, and I want to know, what it’s like working with Tim Burton from an actual directing standpoint.”
Asa Butterfield: “You feel very involved in the process as an actor. He’s always sharing his ideas with you. He always wants you to have a really clear understanding of his vision.”
Asa Butterfield (as Jake): “But I’m just ordinary.”
Ella Purnell (as Emma Bloom): “No, you’re not. You were born to protect us.”
The director tells me everything about this movie is a little peculiar.
Tim Burton: “Well, just making a film is peculiar, you know? And working with the people, if you’ve ever been on a film set, it’s not only the cast, it’s the crew who are weird as well, so it’s like a weird, big dysfunctional family.”
The family in the movie is led by Eva Green’s Miss Peregrine, who they referred to on set as “Scary Poppins.”
Eva Green: “Tim came up with ‘Scary Poppins.’ He said, ‘I see her as a scary Poppins because she’s quite tough.’ She’s a bit hard with her children because she loves them so much.”
But the twist in this movie — and there’s always a twist, right? — is, Miss Peregrine’s children are being hunted for their abilities. The leader of those hunters is played by Samuel L. Jackson.
Chris Van Vliet: “Is it easier to feel like you’re in character when you have the hair, the eyes, the teeth, in a role like this?”
Samuel L. Jackson: “In a role like this, yeah, particularly, yeah. I mean, when you look in the mirror, you know, OK, this is gonna work, and you gauge a performance accordingly.”
Eva Green (as Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine): “Promise me one thing. Look after them, Jake.”
Asa Butterfield (as Jake): “I promise.”
“Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” opens in theaters on Friday, Sept. 30.
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