Hollywood Hard Case; Harrison Ford contends with age, younger co-stars and invasions of privacy

6/7/2003
The Morning Call
Amy Longsdorf

BEVERLY HILLS -- Harrison Ford is smiling. This is not as rare an occurrence as somemight lead you to believe. On the other hand, this is not a man who suffers fools gladly.

"Harrison is an intimidating guy," notes his "Hollywood Homicide" co-star Josh Hartnett. "We had kind of a tumultuous working experience. He's tough. He's a lot better to me now than he was when we were filming. It was like he was throwing elbows. It was like we were under the basket trying to get rebounds."

Today, as he greets his umpteenth interviewer of the morning, Ford is in a much more relaxed mood. He actually grins at the mention of a joke from "Hollywood Homicide," his new movie opening Friday in area theaters. The line, which implies Ford's character could use some Viagra, seems to be an acknowledgement of the 60-year-old actor's advancing age.

"I thought it was a reflection on the pharmacology of our times," he says, laughing. "I don't think I need to acknowledge my age; I am my age. I'm not making any effort to change it. It's just a good line, and I like a good line."

He also likes his privacy. After 37 years in the business, Ford remains a reluctant star. "You don't see me attending openings and galas," he notes. "Unless it's an environmental cause or I'm selling a movie, I don't do those kinds of things."

He doesn't do the typical celebrity interview either. Ford is not one to engage in any method-actor mumbo jumbo. Acting to him is, "a craft or a skill."

Another dicey subject is his personal life. On the topic of girlfriend Calista Flockhart, he will only say how much he delights in helping her raise her 2-year-old son, Liam. "It's fun; I enjoy it," says Ford, who has a son and a daughter with his former wife of 15 years, Melissa Mathison, and two sons from his first marriage. "We watch "Bob the Builder' videos together."

You can't really blame Ford for being protective of his off-screen life. Since he began dating the "Ally McBeal" star two years ago, photographers have documented the couple's every move. "It's ludicrous, it's invasive, it's annoying," he says. "But it doesn't affect our relationship."

It was 30 years ago, during a break from "Return of the Jedi," that Ford realized he was in for a wild ride. He recalls renting a car in Morocco, where the film was shooting, and deciding to drive alone across the desert. After a couple of days of seeing nothing but blue sky and sand dunes, he came to Fez, one of the oldest outposts in North Africa.

"At the very edge of town was a single movie theater, and it was playing two movies that I was in," he remembers. "That's when I thought, "It's all over for me."'

His last vestige of anonymity might have been shot to hell, but his career was just beginning. And what a career it has been. In the three decades since "Return of the Jedi," Ford has racked up one $100-million hit after another. He's sold $3 billion worth of movie tickets and anchored four of the top 10 grossing films of all time: "Star Wars," "The Empire Strikes Back," "Return of the Jedi" and " Raiders of the Lost Ark."

Yes, during the last few years, his filmography has been blighted by such duds as "Sabrina" (1995), "Random Hearts" (1999) and "K-19: The Widowmaker" (2002). But there is no denying that the actor remains a matinee idol. Fans -- or, as he call them, "customers" -- still mob him in the streets. And the studios still pay him $20 million -- or more -- per movie.

"Look, if acting wasn't easy and fun for me, I wouldn't be doing it," says Ford, who, at one point, worked as a carpenter for 12 years to support his family. "At the same time, it's hard work and it's concentrated work. But acting is much better than a real job."

Acting in "Hollywood Homicide," his latest picture, was a particular treat for Ford. Directed by "Bull Durham's" Ron Shelton, the movie is an action/comedy about two L.A. detectives (Ford and Hartnett) who team up to investigate the murder of a rap star. When they're not solving crimes, Ford's Joe Gavillina is a real estate agent with a radio psychic girlfriend (Lena Olin) while Hartnett's K.C. Calden is a struggling actor and part-time yoga instructor.

The heart of the picture is the oddball friendship that develops between old-pro Ford and young-hotshot Hartnett. "Josh is a very capable, personable young man and I enjoyed acting with him, torturing him," says Ford, smiling again.

And how exactly did Ford torture Hartnett?

"It seemed almost enough just to show up," quips the actor.

There were some tense moments on the set after Hartnett got carried away during a driving sequence and slammed into a police car. Ford, who was in the passenger seat, pulled his groin muscle while Hartnett suffered whiplash. In fact, an unease still exists between the co-stars.

"The guy, he's been The Man for so long now," muses Hartnett. "He's still The Man, but to share the spotlight a little bit, I don't know. You can ask him. Ultimately he just wanted me to prove myself. And it worked for the film, and I understood that from the get-go. So I didn't have any qualms about it. But it was draining at times."

Ford clashed with another younger co-star, Brad Pitt, when the duo teamed up for "The Devil's Own" in 1997. Could it be that Ford is worried about being upstaged by younger heartthrobs?

"No, it doesn't worry me at all," he bristles. "I clearly am not a contemporary of Josh Hartnett's. There's still a lot of roles available for people my age or older, as Sean Connery has absolutely demonstrated. You know, you can continue to work far beyond what my age is at the moment. So I'm very happy, and I've never been an ageist, or concerned that much with age."

Sitting in the Four Seasons Hotel for a long day of interviews, Ford is certainly in fine fettle. "It's tennis and genetics," he says about his physical fitness. "And I work out. I do about an hour a day, three times a week."

Lena Olin, Ford's other "Hollywood Homicide" co-star, has nothing but favorable things to say about her leading man. "Working with Harrison is like working with a great dancer," she raves. "A lot of guys are trying to be Harrison Ford, and he is Harrison Ford. So he doesn't have to worry about that, which is great."

Their love scenes, says Olin, were a snap. "I felt very much at ease,very comfortable. He's very sweet and protective. And he's so knowledgeable. He's so aware of the whole context. He'd say, "Oh, that's not pretty if you show that.' And he's a great kisser. Harrison Ford has no problems in that area."

In recent years, Ford has been teamed with younger and younger leading ladies, but he was behind the decision to cast the 47-year-old Olin in "Hollywood Homicide."

"I didn't want to have a young ingenue girlfriend because we were talking about generational issues -- old school versus new school, new style versus old style," notes Ford. "I thought it would be nice to have a lady of a certain maturity who's still sexy and funny and very attractive."

There have been reports that Ford and Flockhart are thinking of making a movie together, and when asked about them Ford responds, "We have no plan. I have a little reservation about mixing business and pleasure, about working with someone that you live with. I'm not so sure how that would work out."

At the moment, Ford has only one film in the pipeline -- the much-delayed third sequel to "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Steven Spielberg is returning to direct, while the script once again will be written by George Lucas and Frank Darabont. "I'm looking forward to the opportunity to work with Steven again, and to playing that character and bringing that kind of film to the audience that I know has eagerly anticipated it," says Ford. "I want us to do a good job and make a film at least as good as the ones we've made before."

Unlike some actors nearing retirement age, Ford is unconcerned with examining past achievements. Looking back is not his style.

"I'm not working on my legacy, or anything like that," he insists. "I'm just working on my next movie. I honestly don't think about it. What I think about is trying to have an effective life, a good relationship and happy children."

Amy Longsdorf is a Palmerton-based freelance writer on film.

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