FILM INTERVIEW: BRENDAN FRASER
Star of 'Extraordinary Measures' Discusses the Sensitivities of a Difficult Role
It’s one thing to pretend to be John Crowley. Actually being John Crowley, however, is quite a difficult task.
After all, the honorable and respectable man found himself in a situation no one in his shoes would ever want to be in – a father of two children who have a very rare genetic disorder known as Pompe disease, or Acid Maltase Deficiency.
Quite a compelling story of a man and his wife challenging others to develop a cure to help the children they love more than anything else in the world, Hollywood actor Brendan Fraser had the daunting task of stepping into John Crowley’s shoes and pretending to endure the same pain the actual man suffered everyday in real life.
Fully understanding he was reliving Crowley’s struggle for the big screen, Fraser said accepting the leading role in Extraordinary Measures was perhaps the biggest challenge he faced in his storied acting career. Indeed, Fraser said it was difficult to know how exactly to tell Crowley’s story on screen, as it would be very easy to do too little or too much.
For Fraser, he ultimately saw his job as striking the right chords in his attempt to share Crowley’s actual struggles with the movie-going audience.
“This is a real-life individual. John Crowley is very much alive and exists,” Fraser told Buzzine. “He is not a fictional character. It’s a challenge I had to take. I would be remiss to pass it up. The real challenge is how to portray that real character in 90 minutes without seeming insincere or mock-ish.”
As Fraser chatted with this writer at the Beverly Hills Four Seasons, the veteran actor seemed to have a unique weight to his words as if he understood Crowley’s pain enough to know that he (Fraser) lives quite a fortunate life.
Still, Fraser said he was able to balance his appreciation and understanding with a sense of compassion. As a father, himself, Fraser said he did not have to try too hard to bring Crowley alive onscreen.
“I am the father of three sons, and they are a little wacky in their own way,” Fraser told Buzzine of his fortunate lifestyle. “I felt a little gravitational pull to the story where it didn’t really require much acting.”
While he somewhat relied upon his paternal senses to take on the biggest challenge of his career in properly and respectfully portraying John Crowley, Fraser added he did make an effort to understand the disease commonly known as Pompe disease to fully allow him to pay homage to a real struggle he knew he was fortunate enough not to endure.
“I met with a few children who had this disease,” Fraser humbly said. “I truly had an appreciation for how degenerative they are, but one thing it certainly does not affect is the mind.”
To that effect, Fraser shared several anecdotes of how Crowley’s two real-life children with Pompe disease, Megan and Patrick, were always in high spirits and finding ways to enjoy life to the fullest, such as chasing each other around on set in wheelchairs and playing practical jokes on the cast.
Fraser vividly remembers an interesting e-mail exchange with Megan Crowley, John’s daughter, about the film’s impending release. The veteran actor who made a name for himself with films such as Encino Man and The Mummy informed Buzzine he had no idea when Extraordinary Measures would be released in theaters.
“For love and money, I couldn’t get the release date of this film for the life of me. Studio reps, publicists — no one would tell me,” Fraser laughingly said with a hint of frustration. “I got an e-mail from Megan, who is Internet-savvy, saying, ‘Dear Movie Dad, Guess what? There is a website up about the movie, and the release date is January 22nd!’”
Such an anecdote was telling of the lighthearted sense of humor Megan and Patrick possess despite their collectively degenerative condition. It was that sense of humor that gave Fraser a unique perspective on those directly affected by Pompe disease.
Fraser hopes audiences watching Extraordinary Measures in the coming weeks will have the same positively touching responses to Pompe disease as he did. To that end, Fraser believes just by taking on the lead role opposite Harrison Ford in the film was a community service to those affected by the degenerative disease.
“I was told, by virtue of making this film, we were raising awareness in and of itself,” he humbly said. “The movie was message enough.”
Also starring Keri Russell, the CBS Films production of Extraordinary Measures opens in theaters on January 22nd.
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