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Features
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The Free Flow Girl
Beginning with Sin City, actress Brittany Murphy has been quietly distancing herself from an earlier Meg Ryan-like halo. But she insists it’s not part of any master plan.
Monday, May 14, 2007 at 11:15 AM
By Daniel Robert Epstein
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Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage.com
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Moncrieff, at AFI Fest premiere of The Dead Girl
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In 1952, writer-director Karen Moncrieff made her debut as an actress on the soap opera The Guiding Light, playing a character by the name Patricia Murphy. At least that’s what the IMDB says. There’s just one problem – Moncrieff wasn’t born until 1963.
In any event, after garnering good notices for her poetry teacher-poetry student drama Blue Car, Moncrieff has returned with this week's new DVD The Dead Girl, a film that received a lot of attention because of the performances in general and that of another Murphy in particular. Brittany Murphy’s against-type portrayal of Krista - a troubled teenager, mom and girl of the title - is miles removed from her chirpy voiceover work in the holiday hit Happy Feet and her bubbly rom-com image.
“The environment on this film is one of the happiest environments I’ve ever worked in during my entire life,” Murphy exclaims during a recent interview with FilmStew. “The film is dark, but the tone on set was very blissful because it is an independent. People were there because they wanted to be there.”
Murphy knows a thing or two about showing up on set. In the past ten years, she has made an astonishing 35 movies. But she has a rather unique take on her body of cinematic work.
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Gregg DeGuire/WireImage.com
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The always working Murphy
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“I’m always disappointed that the characters that I play never look like they’re supposed to,” she says. “They always look like me. There’s always something that I would recognize about my own face.”
“No matter how much I pad my body, no matter how much I change my hair or no matter what it is,” adds Murphy, “there’s still a glimmer that looks like me. Except for Gloria in Happy Feet and Luanne in King of the Hill.”
“I’m not drawn to any specific kind of character and I think if you look at the choices that I’ve made throughout the years, it’s all over the map. That’s because I love telling stories and I would never alienate one type of art or one particular type of cinema.”
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Jessie Grant/WireImage.com
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(l to r) Co-stars Kerry Washington, Marcia Gay Harden
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The Dead Girl was nominated for three 2007 Independent Spirit Awards – Best Feature, Best Director (Moncrieff) and Best Supporting Actress (Marcia Gay Harden) - and although it failed to take any of those home, Moncrieff's screenplay was judged the year's best by the San Diego Film Critics' Society. And despite some solid film festival circuit excitement about Murphy’s performance, the actress was passed over by both the Spirit Awards and the Golden Globes. For the moment, Murphy’s awards show pinnacle remains the fact that she scored four separate Teen Choice Awards in 2003, including two in the category of Choice Lip Lock (for Eight Mile and Just Married).
In fact, so far, the only acting award Murphy has won is an Annie last year for her voiceover work on the animated TV series King of the Hill, in which she enlivens Luanne Platter. “I think it’s the greatest show on television,” Murphy enthuses. “We just got picked up for another season. People have been saying for the last four years that it would be our last season, so I feel very grateful that we’re still on. We’ll be going into our 11th season.”
“I never want [the character of] Luanne to wrap up,” Murphy continues. “If I get to play Luanne for the rest of my free-floating life I’d be thrilled to death. I really would be thrilled, that’s such a wonderful job. It really is so fantastic and it’s an incredible show.”
Murphy sports a very distinctive look on screen for the role of Krista in The Dead Girl. Prosthetic teeth were changed up at the last moment, with Murphy painting them herself, while her hair and make-up was constantly fiddled with to make the character look as varied as possible.
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Avika Gilboa/WireImage.com
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Co-star James Franco
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“I never thought of Krista as anything but a hopeful, optimistic person who had a really rough life which unfortunately detoured her,” Murphy reveals. “She utilized those experiences in her own best way. She did try her best, but her best wasn’t healthy.”
“Because of the very short schedule, [director] Karen [Moncrieff] wanted [co-star] Kerry [Washington] and I to have familiarity with one another, because of the intimacy between our characters,” she adds. “So we had a dinner together and Kerry is a lovely, beautiful, intelligent, talented young woman.”
“As for research, I did speak with two different drug counselors that have counseled people on the problems that Krista had. I also met with several recovered addicts.”
In between projects, Murphy likes to stay grounded by spending time with a family that includes eight nieces and nephews. Up next for the 29-year-old actress is The White Hotel, in which she plays an opera singer who falls under the care of none other than Sigmund Freud.
Murphy says if the right opportunity came along, she would welcome the chance to segue from film to pop music. In the meantime, she recently lent a hand to DJ Paul Oakenfold for his latest album “A Lively Mind,” which is nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award in the category of Best Electronic/Dance Album.
”Paul had seen me perform some jazz music,” Murphy recalls. “He asked me to be a part of this and we became friends. I went in the studio for 20 minutes and recorded some vocals and about a year later, he asked me if I’d put my name on it.”
“I’ve been recording anonymous vocals since I was about 14-years-old, but since Paul is my friend I said, ‘Okay, I’ll put my name on it.’ I think “Faster Kill Pussycat” is a very good song. I’m proud of Paul and the fact that the album got nominated for a Grammy.”
And with spring in full bloom, Murphy has a set of humble hopes. Of a kind that turn out to be very much out of reach for The Dead Girl. Says the Atlanta born, New Jersey raised gal: “I want to learn as much as I possibly can, be the best human being that I can be and spend as much time with my family as possible.”
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