Renee Zellweger

Interview By: J.P. Mangalindan
JPMangalindan@TheCinemaSource.com

Ask Rene' Zellweger what the most challenging part of filming New in Town was, and she spits out the answer immediately: the cold, icy weather.

'I didn't know cold like that,' she says. 'It was a very different kind of experience.'

Set in the quaint town of New Ulm, Minnesota, but filmed in Winnipeg, Zellweger dealt with what's long been dubbed, the 'coldest city in the world.' (Case in point: The lowest recorded temperature during the last 25 years was '43.1 degrees Fahrenheit.) As such, the cast and crew were forced to become inventive in coping with the harsh weather on a day-to-day basis.

'It was a marvelous exercise in developing survival skills and a whole new language for the biological things that happen in those situations,' she recalls. 'And, who knew pantyhose of all things could be so important' I'd usually go three, four pairs at a time. I mean, I never thought that I would rejoice at the sight of pantyhose laid out on the bed by wardrobe every morning. But let me just tell you: I would not be here today talking to you if it wasn't for the hose!'

Still, after spending several months wandering the streets of the city, the 39-year-old actress slowly came to appreciate and enjoy its charms.

'There were so many things about that city though that were just so wonderful, like the ice sculptures downtown. Waiting for the snow to compile and then harden. That took probably 30 minutes, which was fantastic. And the tenacity of the people' Just so impressive. Some days, it was so bad, you couldn't even see the road. But everybody there just got up and went on with it like it's normal, like it's commonplace that your face freezes within two seconds of stepping outside the door!'

And despite the weather, she says she identified with the town and its quirky, memorable set of characters, most likely due to the fact that Zellweger and her older brother Andrew, grew up in a tiny suburb outside Houston, Texas.

'I know small towns. I know communities like these are not 'simple' in that way. They're as headstrong in their perspectives as anyone who doesn't understand those perspectives. They make decisions on how they want to live their lives and what is valuable to them. I recognize this community of eclectic folk. I recognize the values; I recognize the support systems that are inside small communities like that and generations of families who have lived in and contributed to those communities for years.'

Has Rene' ever felt like her character, Lucy (read: the new girl in town)'

'Oh, gosh. Every four months, it's like being new in town. You know, wherever the next location is. Wherever you get sent. First order of business: plop the bags down in what is going to be home for the next four to six months or whatever, and then hoof it around and try to discover and what your sort of patterns are going to be and what your surroundings are going to be for the next six months. So, I feel as though I'm perpetually new in town.

'And on a set, there's an immediate sort of intimacy because you come into a project with a whole lot of people with a common goal, and so it's this huge cooperative effort that everyone's really passionate about. It's very exciting, and it's very strange because you sort of become a high school class that's graduating by the time you wrap a picture. It's very strange to leave it behind. It's a very strange, nomadic type of life. Perpetually new in every respect.'

She pauses for a moment, pensive.

'But that's one of my favorite things about this job. It sends me all over the world, and I get to look at things from different perspectives all the time. Cultural perspectives. It's a thrill to me to be stuck on top of a mountain in Romania and tune into the Belgian news. I love it.'