When Julianne Moore won the Oscar for Best Actress in 2015 for her moving portrayal of a woman afflicted by early-onset Alzheimer’s in Still Alice, it was fitting recognition for someone regarded as one of Hollywood’s most gifted stars.
For the best part of 30 years, Moore has been turning in one brilliant performance after another and her film biography reads like a rock star’s greatest hits roster that includes Far From Heaven, Boogie Nights, The Big Lebowski, Magnolia, The Hours, Children of Men, A Single Man, and The Kids are All Right.
She’s earned four Oscar nominations along the way and continues to find one brilliant role after another despite the fact she’s recently turned 58… well within a demographic that doesn’t tend to be kind to women in Hollywood. But Julianne remains a stunningly beautiful woman who has arguably matured like a fine wine. And, as the cliché goes, maybe the best is yet to come.
“For me, this was a crucial film to make,” begins Julianne Moore, with typical punch, as she dives straight in to discuss new movie Gloria Bell. “At the age I am at, it is a movie that spells hope, expectation, bravery and fulfilment. I think as we get older we all need to remind ourselves that those things are very much attainable, no matter what age we’re at.”
In the movie, Moore plays the title character, a free-spirited divorcée who spends her days at a straight-laced office job and her nights on the dance floor, joyfully letting loose at clubs around Los Angeles. After meeting Arnold (John Turturro) on a night out, she finds herself thrust into an unexpected new romance, filled with both the joys of budding love and the complications of dating, identity and family.
“Because the film is a remake of Chilean movie Gloria, we had such an expansive background to plot this against, but at the same time there was the opportunity to alter a few things… from the expressions to the vernacular to the presentations,” she says. “Despite that though, the initial film was flawless, and the idea was to always present such a positive story of midlife love to a new audience, rather than change was is a perfect original.
“Ultimately, I just wanted the happiness, excitement and contentment to remain in place, and I think we have achieved that.”
While film ambitions continue to flourish, Moore, who moved around a lot as a kid, admits she is looking forward to settling down over the course of the next few years, having recently celebrated three decades in the movie world.
“We have to give ourselves a break… we have to look for change, or we simply won’t survive,” she says. “As a kid we moved around so much that I ended up learning how to be very protective of myself, and I adapted very quickly to new situations.
“As an adult I lost a lot of that – I fell into a very uniform way of being, and that’s not really me. So I am looking forward to getting back some sort of unpredictability, because I believe that is very healthy for the soul. I want to learn again how to reinvent myself over and over.”
And yet, by Moore’s own admission, the reinvention won’t take her out of New York. “Some basic elements must always stay the same,” she laughs. “I’ve always loved my life in New York, and we have so many friends here and a real sense of community.
“I have a happy home and, I’m glad to say, I have now stopped thinking about age. I know I’ve been blessed with good genes and that age for some reason hasn’t been a factor in my being able to find great roles at this point in my career.
“I worry about my age a lot less now and I worry less about things in general than I ever have in my life. I feel a lot freer now and I am grateful to be able to enjoy a beautiful life with my family while also being able to keep doing interesting work.”
She concludes: “Remember, what we experience as individuals is always going to be the most personal experience that we can have, so we have to value it all, whilst being brave and ambitious. I mean, yours is the only life you know, so don’t waste it.”
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