Original subtitles

Alain Delon, Romy Schneider will soon be landing here in Nice.

Are you excited?

Yes, I won't hide the fact,

because it's been ten years almost to the day

since I first met her at an airport, back in 1958.

You weren't yet a star.

No, she was a huge European star,

while I was just starting out.

She'll be costarring with you in a film.

Yes, we begin shooting next week in St. Tropez,

a film called La piscine.

What role will she play?

First off, it's a woman's role.

Romy's no longer a young girl...

quite obviously.

She's no longer Sissi with her round cheeks.

She's a woman, as you'll soon see.

Romy Schneider, we're very happy

you've come to film in St. Tropez.

Do I hear some emotion in your voice at seeing Alain Delon again?

You're happy to see him again? - Very.

Earlier you said you were excited too.

Only natural, right? - Yes, of course.

You're excited with that microphone too.

Perhaps.

You haven't done any plays recently.

Not since Paris.

Since the last time you performed with Alain?

And since taking The Seagull on tour.

When did you last see Alain?

A year ago.

Very briefly, at a gala.

And the last time you performed with him?

Seven years ago.

Alain Delon---

the most handsome face in French cinema.

Though his name shimmers in lights,

he hasn't forgotten his roots.

The boy from the suburbs of Paris has made it big.

He's filming in St. Tropez with director Jacques Deray.

Alain Delon and Romy Schneider...

who was unforgettable as Sissi.

Their affair once held the press and public spellbound.

In their presence- - -

it's a moment of sudden grace and wonder.

You're a Pisces with Aquarius rising.

You were born to be loved.

Go up to her. Don't stay down here.

She's leaving tomorrow.

You must be bored stiff.

It's nice of you to hide it.

The schoolmistress did it.

I know. Thanks.

He just showed up one day,

and now he's around all the time.

He wants us to go out- He takes me everywhere.

When people take me for his girlfriend,

he absolutely loves it-

He protests, "No, she's my daughter!"

Hoping they won't believe him.

He gives me advice...

fawns over me...

wants to know everything I do.

Suddenly, last week...

he decided to take me along to Italy.

I didn't ask him to!

But there was no way I could say no.

A short break for some Olympics-

Alain competes in a 100-meter freestyle

against Kiki Caron and Alain Mosconi.

Alain wins with a time of 32. 8 seconds,

one for the record books.

Chase that wasp away.

- Is that another one? - No, lie back. We're rolling.

What you'll be seeing tonight

aren't interviews about recent films

but actual film footage...

what's left of a movie when all the rest is gone.

You'll see scratched-up bits of film stock,

the very physical material a film is made of.

Maurice Ronet, take 54.

It's hard to find an actor more worthy

of the role of Harry.

He's laying it on thick.

- Go on. Say "action." - We're rolling!

Ah! Now the questions begin.

It's "the swimming pool." Let's go.

Let's talk about La piscine-

People have called it a film about vacation, sun, love,

exasperation, action,

flesh, suspense, and lots of humor.

There you go!

I don't know

what "constructing a character" means for an actor.

I believe it's natural - - I'll explain.

Some actors map out everything about a character.

"How does he breathe? How does he walk?

How does he think? How does he act?"

I do the exact opposite.

I try to make the character mine rather than figuring him out.

For The Fire Within---

I created the character as I said a moment ago,

bringing to it

as many personal aspects as possible,

but without completely identifying with him.

I did the same with La piscine,

but as an actor, after The Fire Within...

everything else pales.

Are you a star?

That depends. I don't think so.

I'm just trying to do a job

as honestly as possible.

I don't know what a star is.

Film him!

Film him!

It's an affirmation

of a certain style and of my personality.

Hold on. There's a light in the shot.

We're still rolling. Keep going.

If by "intelligence" you mean synthesizing things,

yes, it makes things easier and saves time.

But there are two types of actors.

Some construct a character from the ground up,

while others bring as much of themselves as possible to it.

This swimming pool is an aquarium

with different kinds of fish.

If in an aquarium we put

a conger eel, a lobster, and a squid,

each in its own little hole, they'll die of hunger.

If the eel comes out to eat the octopus,

it's eaten by the lobster.

If the squid comes out to eat the lobster,

it's eaten by the eel.

That was a sort of allegory.

END OF PART ONE

We'll be presenting

La piscine to our viewers tonight.

Do you think the producers felt it was a smart wager,

pairing you and Alain Delon as the leads?

Yes, I'm sure they did.

I assume so.

Did you have any hesitation or doubts about the role?

None at all. I read the script and liked the role very much,

and I said yes immediately.

I think...

this role came at exactly the right moment for me.

You may not appreciate this next question -

It's no longer an ingenue or teenager.

It's just right for my age,

the kind of role I wanted to play.

You may not appreciate this next question,

though the media played this up too,

and it relates to my question about the producers.

You didn't mind playing the scenes with Alain Delon?

Not at all. We're both actors.

Why shouldn't we work together?

Can one really keep

one's professional and private lives so separate?

Yes, of course.

You said you were thrilled

with the script and the role.

Can an actor still be disappointed by the final result?

Yes, of course.

There are often many rewrites and changes,

often leaving little of the original script by the end.

Unfortunately... or sometimes "Thank God!"

Looking back now...

how do you see this film?

I think it's a good ...

psychological thriller. That's the term I'd use.

Don't you find the murder a bit too unexpected?

Perhaps you're right.

But I think there's a certain moment,

after the opening scenes,

when Maurice Ronet shows up with Jane Birkin,

that Delon's role begins to forebode more and more

not murder

but pathological jealousy.

I think that's made clear. We understand that.

If I understand correctly,

at the end you stay with the murderer.

Yes.

These questions are always a bit daring, maybe even silly -

I'm sure those things happen in real life.

When a woman loves a man,

even if he goes to prison for murder, she stays with him.

Apropos the ending,

we had to shoot two different endings.

In Germany they'll probably show the original ending,

the one you saw.

For the U.S., there's a shot of a police van -

No, wait. In Germany you see the police van too, right?

- No. - Really?

No, they just stand at the window.

I was relieved they weren't taken away in handcuffs.

No, no handcuffs. Just the police van.

That's the second version.

Why the different ending for the U.S.?

Because it would have been censored...

with the original ending.

The international market values you highly

as an actress.

How do you think the Germans see you these days?

I don't know.

Let's wait till they see the film. I can't say.

So the film's a sort of gauge?

It's my first film shown here in a long time.