NEW YORK – Ever think to yourself that Paul Rudd, Paul Giamatti and Tatiana Maslany are so good, you could watch them read the phone book? A new film puts that theory to the test.
"A Statement," which held its world premiere at New York Film Festival on Oct. 3, tasks the talented actors with making riveting drama out of verbatim transcripts from meetings about climate policy.
"Spotlight" director Tom McCarthy's new movie tells the true story of experts gathering at a Florida hotel in 1980 to draft recommendations for Congress on how to respond to global warming and carbon dioxide emissions.
But it quickly becomes clear this will be no simple task: Over four sessions, the group endlessly debates and torturously squabbles over every word in their
proposed statement, while getting no closer to solving the urgent problem.
The script uses the actual transcripts from the real conference, giving the film echoes of a staged reading. It might sound dry, but McCarthy and the stars inject a surprising amount of humor, often simply by having characters express exasperation or glance at their watch in a way that reflects the audience's frustration at the group's inaction. There are also scripted scenes set in between the four sessions, including a hilarious subplot involving John Turturro crashing a wedding.
The film is based in part on "Losing Earth" by Nathaniel Rich, though the 2019 non-fiction book covered a longer period of time.
Rudd stars as the moderator of the conference, who attempts to maintain a chipper, idealistic attitude throughout, even while things are not moving in the right direction. Speaking to USA TODAY on the red carpet, the "Ant-Man" actor said the "clock is certainly ticking quicker" on climate change.
"Policies are being reversed now," he said. "It's so confounding, but they are. So hopefully, this movie does spark some conversations."
Rudd also described climate change as "the issue" right now.
"This one might take care of all of them. So it would really behoove us to try and come together and really tackle some of these problems. There are certain things we know we can do," he says, adding that the question is whether these necessary steps will be taken. "I'm crossing my fingers."
While introducing the screening, McCarthy noted the "industry wasn't clamoring for a conference movie, especially one on the climate crisis." But he said the film speaks to "how hard" it is to bring different people together to solve a problem. During a post-screening Q&A, it became apparent that many in the audience were unaware of the film's unique conceit going in: McCarthy drew gasps when he pointed out that "every scene in that conference room, every word is verbatim transcript."
To highlight the importance of the stacked ensemble cast, the Q&A was unusually crowded: A whopping 18 people, including Rudd, Giamatti, Turturro, Maslany, Amy Ryan and more, took the stage. Rudd recalled how McCarthy insisted there would be "no phones around" on the set, which helped the actors bond while filming.
"Because we spent so much time together and were really focused on the work, I think we all felt really close. It felt like doing theater," he said. "You get so close with your cast. It doesn't always happen on films, but I felt it happen on this."
Maslany stars as an environmental lawyer taking part in the conference. Speaking with USA TODAY on the red carpet, the "Orphan Black" star said the fact that there "continues to be debate over the existence of climate change" is a "horrendous prospect" that "doesn't bode well for us moving forward."
"We've experienced so much loss," Maslany said. "What this film highlights is the grief at what we've lost already, in terms of species and icebergs and land and nature and trees. All of it. It's horrific."
"Now is the time" to act, she added. "It's time to listen to the people who actually know what they're talking about."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Paul Rudd calls climate change 'the issue' of our time
