Hey everyone. Capone here. I can't exactly explain why (I'm sure some of you have your theories), but one of my most anticipated interviews at Comic-Con was with Dakota Fanning. The girl can act and she's gone head to head with some of the greatest actors in my lifetime--Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington, Sean Penn, Tom Cruise, Glenn Close, just to name a few. In a strange way, her playing a "watcher" (someone who can see into the future) in PUSH opposite actors who are a little closer to her age (although she's still the youngest member of the cast) is kind of strange and cool. In the clip from PUSH that was shown during the panel, he authoritative stance opposite Chris Evans made her seen like a teenage Prof. Xavier. I can't remember what the last movie I saw her in was, but it's been fun watching her grow up (all her teeth are in too!). Because of a massive traffic jam on the main interstate between Los Angeles and San Diego, Fanning missed the PUSH panel, but apparently she came out just as the cast was leaving the stage to say Hi to everyone. Still, she seemed slightly exhausted from her journey. And then she gets tossed into a series of interviews with the likes of me. Poor girl. Still, I got five minutes with her, so don't look for too much depth here folks; our time was limited. She's clearly an intelligent young woman who has a long career ahead of her. If I'd gotten enough time for maybe two more questions, I was going to ask you about her thoughts on Amy Poehler's "Dakota Fanning Show" from "Saturday Night Live." Alas. Here's Dakota…
Capone: So you were one of the unfortunates who got caught in the massive traffic jam today.
Dakota Fanning: Seven hours in the car.
Capone: So clearly you drove from L.A.
DF: Yeah. We left at 7a.m. to get here at 9:30, and then 9:30 came and went, 11:30 came and went, 1:30 came and went [laughs]
Capone: In the clip that was shown with you and Chris in Hong Kong, it almost looks like you're an authority figure almost, or at least you do a great job of appearing authoritative.
DF: Thank you. My character, I think she thinks she's an authority, and she's very confident and sarcastic, but she's also still a 14-year-old girl, so she's trying to deal with this extraordinary power that she has. And she's trying to use it to save a family member. She's kind of trying to find a balance between that. But, yeah, she's definitely an authority.
Capone: Your power is?
DF: I'm a watch, I can see into the future.
Capone: For someone so young, that's got to be a really heavy and daunting ability. You can see when people are going to die.
DF: Exactly, I think it is for Cassie. She's trying to change it, change the future.
Capone: Can she do that? Can she see something and then change it before it happens?
DF: Well, that's what that they try to do. But even when you see a future and then somebody makes a decision, it all changes. She's trying to beat her power in a way.
Capone: I also like that you're not always right with your predictions.
DF: Definitely not always accurate.
Capone: Can you talk a bit about the rag-tag family that is formed by these young people in Hong Kong?
DF: Hong kong almost plays a role in the movie in a way. The city and the look and the feeling. We were all experiencing Hong Kong for the first time, and our characters were as well. We could relate to them on that level. It also brought the cast members closer together. We were always discovering thing together. I loved it, I absolutely loved it. I thought it was so much fun, and I'd love to go back. I want to go back so bad.
Capone: You mentioned the sights and sounds of Hong Kong. Chris remembered the smells.
DF: Yes, for sure. We would smell something and go, "Okay we're going to go that way now." It was absolutely an incredible city to be in, and the views of the two different islands you could be on were amazing. It's incredible to think that it's some people's home.
Capone: You've dabbled in genre stuff over the years--WAR OF THE WORLDS being the obvious example--but you haven't done too much. Do you enjoy watching those kinds of films?
DF: Yeah, I do. And I enjoy doing all different kinds of movie and not just sticking to one particular kind. I think that's the best thing you can do as an actress is to be able to play in all different kinds of genres and characters. That's what I live for.
Capone: What about just watching them? Do you have any favorites?
DF: I love drama, serious dramas, but it's always fun to go see a movie like THE DARK KNIGHT or INDIANA JONES. I really love those kinds of movies too, and I've seen them both. I think I have an appreciation for all of them because I've been in films like them. [laughs]
Capone: With PUSH, can you talk about the persecution aspect of the plot? These kids are not heroes; they are trying hard not to be victims.
DF: That's what I liked about the movie. The characters have that relationship with each other, and there's a definite story. It's not just action sequence after action sequence for this film. I think that's what drew me to it, and what I enjoyed about it and am very happy I was apart of.
Capone: Well thank you. It was a pleasure meeting you.
DK: Thank you, thank you. Nice to meet you as well.
-Capone
capone@aintitcoolmail.com
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