Cillian Murphy Takes to “The Water”

The "28 Days Later" star talks about the new short he stars in alongside Feist.

It really plays out like an odd dream about loss. I think I’ve had a sad, mystical dream, not unlike this after losing someone before.

Yeah, that’s a lovely way of describing it really, and I think Kevin and Leslie would be very happy with that. And also then you have the lyrics of the song, which are something completely separate as well. They’re beautiful. The mountain, and the water, and the comparison between, it’s really poetic. You put that layer on top of the music and the environment that they’re in, it’s great. And I like the way it takes time. The first time I saw it, even though the film is something like 12 minutes long, nothing really happens for like the first four. And I really like that in film. You just have to sit, and observe, and just wait for things to unfold.

Yeah, there’s a sort of magical evolution that takes place. Do you believe in magic yourself?

[laughs] Do I believe in magic? Ah, I don’t know. That’s kind of a broad question. I guess not in the kind of “pick a card, any card” type of magic. But I believe the mind is a powerful entity and I think that when the mind is affected in such a way through loss, or through love, or through fear, that something close to magic can occur.

I agree. It seems like even with this role, whether you’re playing a masked sociopath or a lovable transsexual, you have an innate calm about you, even in the diversity of the roles you play.

I’ve always been attracted to, and I’ve said this many times, people under pressure, and people in situations of pressure. And they may be normal people or they may be extraordinary people, but it’s an interesting study of what happens to a person in that situation. Or it’s interesting trying to portray that. In regards to the calm thing, I don’t know. [laughs] I’d say that people close to me wouldn’t use that to describe me.

You don’t think you’re bringing yourself into these roles?

I don’t know. I don’t want to go to far into it because you don’t want to talk it away, but you’re always bringing elements of yourself. You can’t but help do that. I think when you express yourself through music or acting, you always bring parts of yourself to greater or lesser degrees with each role, but I don’t know about the calm thing. I’ve never really dwelt or thought about [that] much really. But I’m secretly taking it as a compliment.

Good, it’s meant to be! Do you have anything on the horizon with Kevin or Feist?

We’re going to keep in touch, and I know Kevin has a couple of movie ideas. I think those guys are making a record in the meantime, but I think he’s got lots of movie ideas and he was an unbelievably natural director. I know he’d done a couple of Broken Social Scene videos, but this was something different, this is a little short film and he just got it. And from talking to him and Leslie, it’s like he’s been making and writing films in his head for years. I was so amazed by his ability to understand the way it all works. It took me a long time to grasp the nature or the language of film and he seemed to have it just naturally and that’s a real gift I think, particularly for a director, so I’d love to work with him again.

His energy is very infectious and he obviously enjoys the collective nature of music, and film also is a very collaborative form. He totally embraced that — everybody’s opinion was welcome and taken very seriously and you have to have a lot of confidence to be able to do that, I think. As for Leslie, I just can’t wait to hear her next [project], whatever she decides to do. A supremely talented lady. And I thought the performance she gave in that little film was brilliant. As I said earlier on, to be able to convey emotion without words, that’s quite something. If somebody writes you a beautiful monologue, or you have a beautiful scene and you do the words justice, you should be okay. But she had to do the whole thing completely without any verbalization and that’s something.

Yeah, it was gorgeous. I think we can leave it there, except I have to mention it’s St. Patrick’s Day. You have any plans?

No, I generally hide away on St. Patrick’s Day. The only thing I’m looking forward to is “The Simpsons” St. Patrick’s Day episode where they go to Ireland and Homer and Grandpa Simpson buy a pub that they can’t afford apparently. [It’s the first episode of the animated series to air in the U.K. and Ireland before the U.S.] So I’m looking forward to that. [laughs]

Check out an interview with Feist and Kevin Drew on “The Water” at Pitchfork TV.

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