Adam Goldberg

Spotlight By: Andrea Tuccillo
AndreaTuccillo@TheCinemaSource.com

In his new film 2 Days in Paris, Adam Goldberg plays the neurotic American boyfriend of a French photographer played by Julie Delpy. Written and directed by Delpy (Goldberg's former flame), the story involves the couple traveling from New York to Paris in a bid to spice up their romance. So is Paris really the city of romance like everybody says' Maybe not, according to Goldberg.

'I'd only been there twice before and it had been very briefly and so I think I over-romanticized it quite a bit because in two days how could you not love Paris'' he says. 'But I feel like I'm a real homebody so it doesn't really matter if it's Paris or Maryland where I'm working now I think I just always prefer to be at home. Once I get a sense of a place I'm sort of ready to move on.'

Goldberg's character in the film has to deal with the stress of meeting his girlfriend's overbearing parents. 'I think meeting parents or meeting best friends, meeting anyone who is really close to that person'you certainly want to impress upon those who are close to your mate that you're worthy of them, you're a decent person, not a scumbag,' he says. 'In my case it takes a lot of effort. But I think generally speaking I haven't had any conventional horrifying meet-the-parents experiences.'

Since he dated Julie Delpy briefly in real-life, what can he say about the comparison of French women to American women' 'I know Julie will often times say 'I'm French,' like she does in the film,' he says. 'And for instance when I say something like 'How does the French government feel about taking responsibility for all of your quirks'' it's in fact something I've said to her. But if one were to make a generalization based on that one experience I would said yes there is a cultural difference between those two kinds of women.'

Some of the dialogue was taken from actual situations and Goldberg admits that his character in the film is a direct representation of himself. 'I'm playing myself, I can't speak for her,' he says. 'The relationship they have in the film is not autobiographical in a literal sense. I would say more in terms of the kind of interactions, dispositions with each other. What probably was of interest to her and what was of interest to me was this idea that I think there's a certain entertainment value that the two of us have when we're with each other and to parlay that into a film seemed like an amusing idea. Although what happens in it, this sort of subterfuge, is a concoction.'

The film contains many funny moments, a fact due in part to Delpy's skill at comedic writing. So is she funny in real-life' 'It's unclear how conscious it is or not but, but yeah!' Goldberg says with a laugh.

In addition to his collaboration with Delpy, another collaboration was particularly rewarding for him. A small role in Zodiac allowed him to observe David Fincher, a director whom Goldberg has always admired. 'What happened was years ago he asked me to be in Panic Room and I couldn't do it because I was going to move here to do this TV show called The Street which got cancelled and so it has always been this thing which has slowly corroded and eaten away at me because I was just a huge fan of his and I truly think he's one of the great modern American filmmakers,' he says. 'In fact I was doing another TV series when I heard he was shooting [Zodiac] and I just simply asked my agent to see if there was any part because I would do anything. I said I would do craft service; I didn't care.'

Aside from his memorable guest-turns on TV shows such as Entourage, Goldberg seems to have no such luck when it comes to starring in a series of his own. Understandably, this fact has made him a little bitter. 'I think the [television] business of it is one of the absurd, really kind of gluttonous, crazy haphazard businesses,' he says. 'It really makes the film business seem kind of sane. So yes, I can't help but be affected by that. But doing guest-stars here or there, that's no skin off my back because I'm not that emotionally tied into it.'

So has he encountered any scumbags throughout his career' 'I don't think I've knowingly done that,' he says. 'I think I've maybe come to discover that these people aren't the most savory people in the world but I've certainly not gone into a situation where I know I'm going to get fucked over. I mean, I hate myself but not that much.'