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Maixiac
Movies
A star is born
Well, at least a princess, as Amy Adams
plays her first starring role in Enchanted. _
BY JEFFREY RESSNER
YOU'RE PROBABLY NOT too familiar with
Amy Adams, even though she w r as nomi
nated for an Oscar last year, got smooched
(on film) by Leonardo DiCaprio, was
directed by Steven Spielberg and stars in two J\
year-end potential blockbusters: Enchanted,
opening Wednesday, in which she plays a
Disney maiden who lands in modern-day
New’ York; and Charlie Wilson's War,
a political drama that finds her billed
with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. - lir .
Until now, Adams’ biggest splash was
a dazzling turn as a pregnant small-town 1
girl in the 2005 indie Junebug. Despite J
box-office grosses of just $2.7 million, it
brought Adams awards aplenty and made
"I like men who are complex,
although a foot rub here and
there isn't bad either."
her a hot Hollywood property.
The red-haired, fair-skinned beauty
grew up in Colorado as the middle of
seven children, endured some family i
turmoil as a teen, then began ballet 9
and worked in Midwestern dinner ■
theater before winning her first ml
film role in 1999’s beauty contest (J
spoof, Drop Dead Gorgeous. Co
star Kirstie Alley persuaded Adams
to move to Los Angeles, where
she earned small but classy A
parts on TV (The West Wing, jm
The Office) and in major films M
(Catch Me If Yon Can). JR
Before her two holiday MM
flicks open and she becomes MM
another TMZ-craxed bold- BMI
PORTRAIT MARK l IDOfll
12
USA WEEKEND • Nov. 16-18, 2007
t i*“2P|
faced name, USA WEEKEND
chatted with Adams, 33,
over a liquid lunch of
& chicken ginseng soup
and decaf (she said she
Mr had already eaten).
Q Enchanted
is set in
Manhattan, where
“princess" and "fairy"
have much different
meanings than they do
in Disneyland. How was
shooting a movie in the
big city?
No matter who you are,
you’re on the street with
all types of people. In
Los Angeles, there’s much
more of a socioeconomic dis
parity. We did location shooting
in Times Square, where the oc
casional drunk would wander
into the scene and give us a hard
time. I remember one of them
looking at me and saying, “You
can be my princess.”
QYour character is torn
between a Prince
Charming-type and a
hard-edged New Yorker.
, Can you relate to that?
i I like the chivalry of a Prince
ft Charming, but I have had
■ good experiences with real
■ ists, too. I like men who
are complex, although a foot tab here and there isn’t
bad either.
Q You're a fresh face, but you look like a glamour queen
from Hollywood's golden era.
I think I’m more suited to that period. I don’t look very
modem, that’s for sure. I love older films like Break
fast at Tiffany’s, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Vertigo. I
w anted to be Kim Novak. I’ve watched Gone With the
Wind about 40 times and was so into Scarlett O’Hara.
I relate with the survivor in her, that feeling of doing
what it takes to make things work. She’s also who I
learned my temper training from, so be careful!
Ql saw an anonymous posting on an online message
board that said you had a complicated family life in
high school and that you moved out of your house to live
with another family. Can you set the record straight?
f Laughs.l We all have a weird family life... Growing up
was definitely hectic and challenging at times... I lived
away from my family for a period, but we’ve reconciled
and get along great. I can also tell you that I did not
have a lot of friends during high school, so whoever
wrote that was on the sidelines. High school was a kxmg
time ago. [Laughs.] I would not w T ant to go back.
Ql read your nickname was The Emasculator? How come?
My younger brother jokingly called me that It’s
because I come from a long line of powerful women.
We’re nice and sweet, but that can be deceptive. The
nickname comes from my tendency to help. It’s not
that I don’t think you can do something yourself. I just
want to help you do it
QAny other nicknames?
My boyfriend calls me “Tinker,” after Tinkerbell
not because I’m cute and a pixie but, again, because
I’m a little feisty. My dad calls me “Stinker” for the
same reason, rzi