Jesse Bradford
Interview By: Ida Ibricevic
Jesse Bradford was born in Connecticut on May 28, 1979, and twenty-six years later he walked into this interview sporting his signature eschew grin paired with his big brown glare. He's got that trustworthy charm and boyish persona that is likely to last for many years, and take him far in his career; Of course being talented as well as adorable isn't too shabby either.
We've seen Jesse in a bunch of movies so far like, Fear (1996), William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996), Bring It On (2000), and Swim Fan. Bradford seems to have been schooled in exactly how to pull off the dorky but incredibly sexy character. He's the got the dark and mysterious looks of Jake Gyllenhal and the naivet' of the typical boy next door.
When it comes to his latest endeavor, The Heights, Jesse wants to keep the talk of the possible homosexual aspect of his character Alec, to a minimum. Whether or not Alec is actually in the closet, or just a misunderstood struggling actor in New York City, Jesse Bradford states that, 'I think Alec isn't completely shut off. He's a bit more comfortable with coming out to people with his sexuality, [either homo or hetero] than say Jonathan (co-star James Marsden) for example.' When asked why he wanted to keep all the good stuff a secret he replied, 'We wanna keep it a secret as much as we can, it's like asking Bruce Willis what it's like to play a dead guy' it kinda blows the whole thing.'
In Heights, Bradford plays an actor trying to make his way in the theater world of New York. He insists, however, that 'it's not a parody of anything.' He's put a lot of thought into the inner workings of his characters, especially this one. He recognizes that Alec is sort of dealing with inner conflicts and likes to focus on bringing those sentiments to the surface.
Bradford is of course light years ahead of 'Alec' career wise ' he's a recognizable name and face in Hollywood, so we have to wonder if directors everywhere were just throwing lead roles at his feet. Surprisingly, the answer was no. In fact, Bradford is incredibly grounded and modest. 'It's [Alec's position] by no means something I have trouble identifying with...I still have to earn most of my roles,' said Bradford.
As far as choosing which roles to accept Bradford says, 'I just wanna do work I think is interesting.' It turns out that Jesse really loves playing 'an honest to goodness...smart-ass.' He believes that you shouldn't feel pressure to fit into a certain kind of world, because if they want you for the role they'll want you and not your three piece suit. It's all about the attitude. And that folks, is how he landed his role on The West Wing. And he's dying to return to that big white house, as an older and wiser smart-ass.
As with the rest of the cast, Bradford has nothing but praise for his first time director, Chris Terrio. Terrio shot Heights on location in New York City with the watchful eye for detail that only an authentic New Yorker could possess. According to Bradford, Terrio has 'ADD intellect,' because he finds him to be such a multi-dimensional genius. In speaking with us Jesse Bradford started, 'I would love to direct one day... I'd like to think that it's not outta the question.' Bradford tells us that Heights is full of shades of gray in that 'it's not a cut and dry movie...it's not that traditional trajectory.'
So, even though we might view Jesse Bradford as accomplished he feels that he's far from polished. 'I don't even think I'm ready to direct a feature length movie,' he states. However, once he does get around to directing a feature length film he said he's like to 'explore race relations in film,' because he feels that it's a largely important topic.
All these time consuming projects have taken away from Jesse's other love...playing the guitar. He's been playing his guitar for thirteen years now, but has been allowing it to collect dust lately, and he'd really like to return to it.
The first movie that I remember seeing Jesse Bradford in was Hackers (co-starring Angelina Jolie). Ever since that movie I noticed this suave yet goofy guy who could charm his way into the big time. I have to say that I'm curious what film he'll do next...perhaps something that'll really catapult him out of the pigeon hole of 'the nice guy.' Further more, what kind of film will he end up directing' It's clear that we can expect big things from Jesse Bradford in the future of cinema.
After such achievements in his past and aspirations for his future, one is provoked to ask what goes on inside Jesse Bradford's head' How does he do it' But, there is no secret here, just honesty. He concludes our time together with his signiture chuckle and smile, 'I don't pretend to know what I'm doing on any profound level.'
IdaIbricevic @TheCinemaSource.com
