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Starring: Robert Redford, Willem Dafoe, Helen Mirren, Alessandro Nivola, Melissa Sagemiller
Directed by: Pieter Jan Brugge
Screenplay by: Justin Haythe
Release Date: July 2nd, 2004
MPAA Rating: R for brief strong language.
Box Office: $5,763,875 (US total)
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures
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Tagline: They're going from players to playtime.
Wayne and Eileen Hayes (Robert Redford, Helen Mirren) appear to be living the American dream. But all illusions are shattered when Wayne is kidnapped in broad daylight from the Hayes’ peaceful Pittsburgh estate.
Under the microscope of a probing FBI investigation and her own painstaking introspection, Wayne’s wife Eileen also becomes a victim. The interrogation introduces a life underneath outward appearances; the suspicions, the secrets, the inadequacies, and what can happen along the way to achieving the American dream.
Suddenly the man who, at one point in his life, prided himself on being a cunning negotiator finds his fate resting in the hands of a kidnapper (Willem Dafoe) who has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Will he succeed in the most important negotiation ever...for his life?
Held Captive: The Genesis of The Clearing
The story of a parallel emotional struggle between the victim of a kidnapping and the family that is left behind had long occupied Director/Producer Pieter Jan Brugge’s thoughts. The native of Holland first conceived of the plotline as a result of an actual kidnapping in the Netherlands.
The details of the tragic event filled the Dutch media for more than 200 days and inspired Brugge to deeply ponder the effect the tragedy would have on all parties. After extensive research, Brugge felt the story would be a compelling basis for a film set in his country of residence.
“It was a story that allowed itself to be transposed to the American landscape,” says Brugge. “It provided the opportunity to say something about the American dream and the price people paid in its pursuit, as well as the price paid by those it has eluded.”
Brugge, who was nominated for an Oscar for producing The Insider, was also ready to make the transition to first-time director. “I’ve produced with some remarkable directors (Alan Pakula, Michael Mann, Warren Beatty) for many years, and since film school I’ve always had the dream and desire to direct,” he explains. “But I felt that I wanted to learn the craft of filmmaking first. The best way to learn the craft is as a producer because you can stand at the very genesis of an idea and you can see it all the way through the final release and watch the effect it has on an audience.”
To write the screenplay, Brugge hired Justin Haythe, who was at the time completing his first novel. After their initial meeting, Brugge was convinced that Haythe fully understood the director’s vision for the film. “I saw it as a thriller that is unflinching in its portraits of people and the mistakes they’ve made,” says Haythe. “In the pursuit of success there are winners and losers. But there is an enormous cost for both of them that is not simply material; it’s what we fritter away while chasing our goals and how we lose track of some of the people around us in achieving those goals. The idea of not being successful can seem so terrifying. But when you open that door and see what’s behind it, it’s often not a great deal.”
To create a compelling psychological thriller, Brugge conceived a structural approach that followed two tracks and showed two unique perspectives, while challenging the audience with its alteration of timelines. “You are first with Wayne and Eileen and when Eileen realizes her husband has disappeared, we then cut back to the day we first met them and see what has happened to build to this point.”
The parallel perspectives continue throughout the film showing the torment of Mr. and Mrs. Hayes. “One is the story of Eileen, whose life is turned inside out and upside down by the presence of the FBI in her home investigating Wayne’s abduction,” Brugge remarks. “The other story is the kidnapping itself, and what happens to Wayne Hayes after he has been abducted.
“The two stories reflect upon one another and resonate within each other,” he continues. “That resonance is really the story of the marriage of Wayne and Eileen and the love story between these two people.”
The filmmakers maintain the tension and shroud the mystery of Wayne’s fate until the final scenes of the film by altering the timescape of each parallel track. While Eileen’s story spans weeks, forcing her to initially dig deep inside herself for some clue and eventually sending her into a state of desperation, Wayne’s storyline lasts only one day but is equally as climactic. From breakfast to nightfall is the full extent of the most significant event of Wayne Hayes’ and his family’s life.
After three years of collaborating, Brugge and Haythe showed their script to producers Jonah Smith and Palmer West of Thousand Words who were immediately drawn to the unique concept of The Clearing. “I was surprised at how brave Justin was in his writing,” comments West. “It broke outside the conventional realm of storytelling and gave us something different.” Smith adds, “The script was unique and engaging, with complex characters... Pieter Jan had a distinct vision for the movie, which we believed in and wanted to develop.”
Smith and West also felt that even though Brugge was a first-time director, his considerable experience as a producer would be crucial in dealing with the potential obstacles of a difficult independent production. Thousand Words co-financed the project with Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Casting The Clearing
“I imagined it that way, in the dark. I couldn’t have done it in the light.” - Arnold Mack
“The two actors I’ve always wanted as Eileen and Wayne were Helen Mirren and Robert Redford,” says Pieter Jan Brugge. “I was extraordinarily lucky on my first outing as a director to have both of them and for them to respond the way they did to the script. They had to have a sense of faith, trust and confidence to allow themselves to be vulnerable. It is out of that vulnerability that they could breathe life into the characters.”
Wayne is described as “`the man Hertz and Avis are afraid of.’ He is the selfmade maverick who started his own car rental business and became a great success. We had to have somebody who has the aspects of an icon,” says Brugge. “And there is no greater icon in filmmaking who is as gifted an actor as Robert Redford. When you look at the performances he has given in all of his films, they are remarkable.”
Redford responded to The Clearing and agreed to star as Wayne, a complicated character who is cold-heartedly plucked from his life and forced into negotiating for his life. “The script had what I always look for--a good story with interesting characters,” says Redford. “It was extraordinarily well crafted and had a simple elegance to it that was appealing to me. It had a first-time writer and a first-time director, which fits comfortably with what I believe in supporting. So what better way than to put your money where your mouth is and get in it?”
After spending time with Brugge, Redford felt confident in his vision for the film. “He was intelligent and not totally inexperienced. He knew the business. He had such a grip on the story and a vision of what he wanted to say. As an actor I appreciated that and wanted to support him.”
But Redford adds that Brugge also had the foresight to allow the story to unfold naturally. “As an actor, you want to know the director has a point of view that they are going to stick with, generally. But you also want them to stay flexible within a certain kind of frame, so they can find things that might be new. Sometimes a director who is too commanding cannot see the woods for the trees -- and the woods is the film.”
For Redford, Wayne symbolizes how success comes with a price. “What is the cost to family relationships? Does the drive to succeed override their emphasis because you’re working so hard? Then you find out late in your career that you might have missed something.”
Wayne and Eileen committed to the dream together. “She’s supportive of his ability to be free enough to pursue his dream,” describes Redford. “Along the way, the relationship changes; they’re not even aware of a drift that takes place. There’s no lack of love. It’s just that a chill floats into the relationship. And then something happens that’s dire and of crisis proportions that makes them realize they are about to miss something, and they want it back before it’s too late. They’re incapable of dealing with something that should be addressed. In this case, right at that moment, comes the kidnapping.”
Helen Mirren gave her exceptional talent to the role of Eileen Hayes. A powerful presence on screen, Mirren embodies Eileen with a quiet strength and composure in the face of uncertainty and danger. “One is constantly looking for an interesting, relevant role in a good script,” Mirren remarks. “I often look for a kind of reaction to the thing that I’ve just done. If I’ve done something big and extreme (Gosford Park), then I look for something quieter and more personal.”
In addition to the enticing role of Eileen, Mirren relished the opportunity to work with Robert Redford. “If Robert Redford was a Brit,” Mirren says “he would be Lord Robert Redford by now because he has given so much to my profession. I’m immensely respectful of that and love him for that. He has made a huge impact on film through Sundance, which has affected actors, directors and writers by changing the kind of material that is now acceptable in film. I think we all owe a great debt to Robert Redford.”
Concurrently, Redford felt a debt of gratitude to his co-stars Helen Mirren and Willem Dafoe. “It’s a joy to work with really wonderful actors because you have more options, more to work with. And you cut through any nonsense - it’s about the work and that’s when I’m the happiest.”
The chemistry between Mirren and Redford translates ideally to the screen. “Anyone looking at this couple from the outside would say, ‘Oh, what a perfect couple. I wish we were like Wayne and Eileen.’ They seem to have a happy marriage,” Mirren says. “But as with all marriages and all personal experiences, the reality is always much more complex than how it looks to people from the outside. They’ve reached a plateau in their life together where they both feel rather lost. They’re both in danger of losing something very precious.”
The kidnapping instantly changes life as they knew it for the Hayes who are left behind. “The family experiences the invasion of their home and their privacy and their life by complete strangers who are suddenly living in the house with them,” Mirren explains. “It creates a strange atmosphere. Eileen experiences a nightmare in her personal life that very few people have to go through. She is someone getting on with her life in a quiet way. Then this extraordinary event happens which she has to learn how to deal with. I think the person she is at the beginning of the film is a different person at the end.”
Each member of the family also changes as a result. “I think it affects them in the sense that each finds the strength in the family and learns what that unit really means. A family is a very difficult thing - there are many strains, personality conflicts and problems - but it’s also a very magical unit. And I think that all of the characters in this film find out what family means in a deeper sense.”
With Redford and Mirren cast, Brugge began a lengthy search for an actor for the pivotal role of kidnapper Arnold Mack. “It’s a three-character piece that stands or falls with each one of these performances,” emphasizes Brugge. “You have to have an actor who can hold his or her own against each of the others. Once you have set the bar, and the bar is as high as you can get it with both Helen and Bob, you really need a formidable actor who is not going to be blown off the screen.”
Arnold is an ordinary man who had the misfortune to suddenly be out of a job. He was “unable to get himself out and over it and became deeply misguided by developing a plan to kidnap another person,” explains Brugge. To have the audience believe that there is danger in the situation, Arnold would have to be credible physically as someone capable of controlling the very dynamic man played by Redford.
The director’s instincts guided him to Willem Dafoe. “I said to Willem, ‘I have no preconceived notions as to whether Arnold should be tall, skinny, whether he should be pudgy, anything.’ I just wanted to see who had a connection with it. And it became very clear that Willem was the right man,” Brugge says.
“I thought it was a script with wonderful possibilities,” Dafoe remarks. “It was a very smart, character-driven movie that I wasn’t sure what exactly it meant or what would come out of it. But it had a complexity that interested me. It had the pleasure of being a suspenseful movie, but it wasn’t a genre piece. It went very deep. It’s a story about human character and identity. There’s a truth in the story that can exhilarate people and it can be an exercise in empathy and understanding and consideration that can be thrilling.”
Additionally Dafoe was impressed with Brugge. “It’s always a good combination to have really rich material and to have people that know it intimately, care a great deal about it and just need some help telling it.”
He was drawn in by the complexity of the character. “Arnold is lots of things - initially you see a man who is brutally kidnapping this guy. Then once they get out in the woods, he really takes care of his hostage. To pass time with another human being, they have these conversations that start out very mundane and prosaic and then move towards some sort of intimacy. In a very short time, a lot is revealed. Sometimes you’re sympathetic to the Redford character, and then you’re sympathetic to Arnold. It goes back and forth, this tennis match of emotions, played against the tension of not knowing what’s going to happen.”
Brugge likened the characters of Wayne and Arnold to two sides of a coin. “Wayne is a builder. He is truly somebody with a vision who comes from nothing and creates something extraordinary. But there’s also the flip side of that coin. There are perfectly decent people who fall by the wayside with no safety net. And some of those people come to commit horrific acts, for whatever reasons, and send themselves on a path of destruction, which they may later regret. It was something I was interested in exploring.”
The character of Arnold and what drove him to this deed also fascinated Dafoe. “I think Arnold is fixated on Wayne,” Dafoe says. “Wayne is the man he could have been. They’ve just had two different experiences of the world. His envy is sort of existential. Wayne is not a great man, but he is a passionate man. So there is a struggle throughout the movie of who you identify with and where your allegiance lies.”
The film broke new ground for Dafoe who typically becomes acquainted with his character through playing a scene, rather than through extensive pre-research. “There were so many levels of deception in the role playing that I had to be very specific in my manipulation of Wayne and the truth about Arnold. I’ve never worked so specific psychologically. The mechanics of the kidnapping were so intricate, it was interesting to work with such precision.”
With the three principles in place, the cast was completed with Alessandro Nivola and Melissa Sagemiller as Tim and Jill, the adult children of Wayne and Eileen, and Matt Craven as FBI Agent Ray Fuller.
Finding The Clearing
Visually, The Clearing would have to contain three essential elements: the forest, the residence and the city and would need to interweave multiple time sequences without belying the timeframes in which they were shot. Director Pieter Jan Brugge employed the much-lauded skills of Production Designer Chris Gorak, who has led the art direction of films as diverse as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Man Who Wasn't There and Fight Club, to complete the complicated task.
For the forest sequences, Brugge wanted to showcase nature in its most glorious state. “I always believed that the forest should be the forests of the Blue Ridge Smoky Mountains,” says Brugge. “It ended up being Asheville, North Carolina. It provided the richest texture of the forest I was looking for, which was an assiduous forest with a difficult, mountainous terrain. You could then have the conflict of the physical journey of Wayne and Arnold put up against the psychological conflict of these two individuals in the forest.”
Brugge brought French cinematographer Denis Lenoir on board as his visual collaborator. Lenoir allowed the camera to function on a visceral and immediate level, using hand-held and Steadi-cam shots extensively to track the nuances and facial expressions of Wayne and Arnold as they read each other’s intentions. The almost constant movement of the camera “makes you feel like you’re completely on top of these two people,” comments Brugge. “We can closely watch as they strategically try to move on to the next step. In particular, how is Wayne going to negotiate himself to freedom at the hands of his kidnapper?”
The crew made their base at the Sequoyah Reserve, an abandoned summer camp 17 miles northeast of Asheville. It offered a variety of foliage, landscape and elevation in one concentrated area. During four weeks of filming there the production used 12 different forest settings. Additionally, there were two nights of filming on the grounds of the historic Biltmore Estate in Asheville.
On the logistical level, “Asheville is very savvy,” says Producer Palmer West. “We weren’t making this movie on a massive budget, so we needed to pull in a lot of local crew. We could rely on the community there. Our biggest challenge in Asheville was the weather. We had three storms with first names that made our lives a little difficult.”
The unpredictable weather along with the rough terrain brought a whole new dimension to the film. “Pretty much everything was unexpected,” remarks Robert Redford. “First of all, there was never any flat ground. We were always on an incline. It was wet and muddy. It was very hard getting your footing. I had my hands tied much of the time. So that added a dimension that you didn’t quite anticipate. I thought it was good for the situation.”
Dafoe, who cracked his sternum during one of the fight sequences, agrees with Redford. “I could’ve gone without some of the cold and some of the rain and discomfort, but that was part of the story. It’s discomfort that raises the stakes and motivates you and gives you a sense of place and a sense of the story. It creates a different kind of engagement and a different kind of commitment.”
And there were other benefits to the cold, wet set. “When we were in the forest, all of the elements of film sets that sometimes interfere with work, from my perspective, sort of dropped away,” Dafoe says. “There weren’t really any trailers. There wasn’t any big craft service. There wasn’t a big entourage. There wasn’t a lot of distraction. Since we were on a very modestly budgeted film for what we had to do, we had to work at a fairly good clip. When the location is such a strong personality like that, it affects everything you do. Visually it provides you with great opportunities.”
The second element of the story was the residence of Wayne and Eileen Hayes, which is to appear a part of an upscale Pittsburgh neighborhood. Since production started in September, the producers knew they would have to go farther south to find a house that allowed them to keep the seasonal continuity of the story. “We chose Atlanta because it was geographically close to Asheville,” explains Smith. “We could drive the crew about three hours south and still have a little bit of summer left before the leaves fell.”
After an extensive search, Production Designer Chris Gorak located a new home in the wealthy Buckhead suburb of Atlanta. The owners had just finished building it. “They weren’t fully moved in yet. They had not finished decorating,” says Gorak. “So it was kind of a clean palette for us to come in and do our own wall treatments, colors, curtains and carpeting. Coincidentally, and luckily for the story line, it helps show the new money. The Hayes didn’t just move into the old mansion on the hill or make it look like old money. It’s actually new money that was spent to build the new home.”
“The house is very voyeuristic,” remarks Brugge. “You can always look from one room into another. So there’s a sense of these people’s lives being put under a microscope and scrutinized in every single detail of their personal privacy. We needed to visually express the way that their personal privacy is suddenly being violated.”
The world inside the house had to be distinctly different in color, texture and camera movement from the forest setting. “The way the camera is handled in the home is much more traditional than in the forest, with a static camera on a dolly,” explains Brugge. “The house was a prison for the people in the story. For them, time and life as they knew it to that point ceased to exist. That informed their every move.
“The way Wayne is held hostage by Arnold, Eileen is held hostage by the FBI investigation into their personal life to find who is behind this abduction,” adds Brugge. “When you shoot for a period of time inside a house, one becomes imprisoned and claustrophobic. You keep a certain pressure on, and that magnifies some of those conflicts. Those conflicts find their way into the performances and into the picture itself as it is being experienced by the audience.”
In the director’s mind, Pittsburgh was always the hometown of the Hayes. Early in the development process, he sent screenwriter Justin Haythe there on a research trip to explore its unique essence. “Pittsburgh is a city with a lot of history,” says Haythe. “It’s a real American city that was once very clearly identified by a truly American industry - steel.”
“For me Pittsburgh was a city formed out of the American dream and the robber barons and the prices that people paid as a result of it,” comments Brugge.
The company filmed throughout downtown Pittsburgh’s “Golden Triangle,” in the high-tech subways, on the historic bridges, in the landmark William Penn Hotel and in the working class neighborhoods of McKees Rocks and Duquesne Heights.
The ultimate challenge of making The Clearing was combining the three elements of the forest, the residence and the city with the differing timelines to create a cohesive movie. “Ordinarily when you make a film it’s one movie with one set of circumstances,” comments Brugge. “Rarely does it go off in such distinct arenas that are all part of the way the story is told. The trick was to make the two conflicts and two separate stories, which are genuinely connected, resonate with one another and bring a satisfying experience to the audience.”
 Production notes provided by Fox Searchlight Pictures. |
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The Clearing