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Biography, Part 6:
Mixing It Up (2006–2008)
by The CillianSite Collective
With his name firmly established in Hollywood, Cillian probably could have laid claim to any variety of blockbuster roles. Instead, by choosing to go back a hundred years in history and fifty years into the future, returning to the stage, and challenging himself with his first broadly comedic role, his recent choices continue to reflect his commitment to diversity.
As Damien O'Donovan in
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
Working with legendary director Ken Loach, Cillian led the mostly Irish cast of The Wind That Shakes the Barley. The film, about the origins of the Irish Civil War, was shot on location in County Cork in the summer of 2005. Cillian enjoyed the opportunity to make a film on his home turf, sleeping in his old bedroom at his parents' home and visiting his childhood haunts. But the location shoot held an even more poignant meaning: historically, Cork was a stronghold of resistance to the British occupation. In fact, it is very unlikely that Loach would have cast Cillian had he not hailed from Cork; Loach often casts amateur actors from the communities depicted in his films. Loach's commitment to naturalism and authenticity also meant that the film was shot in chronological order without making the actors privy to the entire script beforehand. Cillian said this approach allowed him "to strip away all the analysing and all the intellectualising and just serve the script and serve the story." The film also gave Cillian the opportunity to explore his own family's history at the hands of the Black and Tans, which included a distant cousin who was killed and a grandfather who was shot at while playing the fiddle.
The Wind That Shakes the Barley won the Palme d'Or at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival despite having been denounced by detractors (many of whom had not even seen the film) as anti-British and pro-IRA. "I fucking loved the controversy," Cillian admitted, adding that it gave Loach and screenwriter Paul Laverty a forum. "I've never met people more eloquent than those two guys. So it was brilliant to see them take [the critics] on and win so convincingly." The film was a critical and financial success in Ireland and the U.K., toppling Intermission from its top spot as highest grossing independent Irish film at the Irish box office; in 2007, it enjoyed a successful limited release in North America and won glowing reviews from critics.
In rehearsal for Love Song
Cillian has often spoke of the education gained on stage. "You leave a production a better actor, because you're practicing and constantly evolving a character ... It challenges you tremendously. Not that film doesn't, but it's a more direct and immediate thing on stage." During press junkets for The Wind That Shakes the Barley, Cillian repeatedly stated that "the stage is calling me." He answered that call for the London premiere of John Kolvenbach's play Love Song, which reunited him with director John Crowley from Intermission. Like the cheesiest love song that can lift your spirits, Cillian said the play was about "how, when you fall madly in love, everything becomes so wonderful." His Beane was a misunderstood loner whose life is changed with the appearance of a young woman played by Neve Campbell. Michael McKean and Kristen Johnston rounded out the cast (Cillian gushed, "It's pretty cool jamming guitar backstage with David St. Hubbins.") The production enjoyed an eleven-week run at the New Ambassadors Theatre.
Just a few months after Love Song closed, Cillian was back on the press junket tour, this time promoting Sunshine. Playing Capa, a physicist sent with a scientific mission to re-ignite the dying sun, Cillian joined the 28 Days Later... writer/director team of Alex Garland and Danny Boyle for this existential sci-fi adventure in the tradition of 2001: A Space Odyssey and the original Solaris.
As Robert Capa in Sunshine
Sunshine presented some new challenges for Cillian, such as a CGI-heavy production. "This was the first time I made a film where there was that much of a green screen element to it." Boyle also put his cast through rigorous training for their roles, from screenings of the science fiction classics to flights in zero-G to housing them together in East End dormitories to give them a better feel for communal living during their 18-month journey to the sun. To authenticate the story's science, Boyle called on University of Manchester physicist Brian Cox. Although science wasn't his forte in school, Cillian studied extensively with Dr. Cox and even traveled to Geneva to meet scientists at CERN, the world's largest particle physics laboratory. He admitted he couldn't quite grasp the advanced physics that they deal with every day, but said that talking with them helped him get into the right mindset for the role—and portray a convincing scientist, despite some reviewers' skepticism that geeks could ever be so attractive.
As Neil in
Watching the Detectives
Eager to tackle a new genre, Cillian starred in Paul Soter's romantic comedy Watching the Detectives, filmed in just under a month in New York and New Jersey in July 2006. Cillian played an independent video store owner with a penchant for film noir whose life is rocked by femme fatale Lucy Liu. Coming into this project after Sunshine was a relief for Cillian: "I'd done a lot of exhausting, intense films. They're the kind of films I do love to watch, but it was nice to just go and have a bit of fun." Soter said that the character of Neil is very much a "regular guy" that will give Cillian a chance to show mainstream audiences that his range extends far beyond "strange, creepy guy." Sadly, this somewhat lightweight flick did not achieve this goal, as it failed to find a distributor and went straight to DVD.
As Captain William Killick in
The Edge of Love
In May and June 2007, Cillian shot The Edge of Love, Sharman Macdonald's story based on the true story of the intense relationships between poet Dylan Thomas, his wife Caitlin MacNamara, and their neighbours, the Killicks. Cillian plays William Killick, the World War II captain whose jealousy flares over his wife's close friendship to the poet (her former beau). While shooting on location in Wales, Cillian got his first taste of the tabloid side of celebrity when paparazzi swarmed the set to photograph Cillian's co-stars, the gossip page regulars Sienna Miller and Keira Knightley. The Edge of Love was released in late 2008.
Immediately following The Edge of Love, in late June 2007, Cillian snuck into Chicago to film scenes for reprise his role as the Scarecrow in the next Batman movie, The Dark Knight. The filmmakers and Cillian himself denied for months that he'd appear in the sequel, but fans spotted him on set and he was also seen visiting Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art. Finally, in December 2007, Cillian's role was officially confirmed, when a sneak peak showing of the first six minutes of the film in Los Angeles revealed his name in the credits. Nolan confirmed this, though he did specify that Cillian is only in the movie briefly. The Dark Knight was released in July 2008.
