“I can’t shut up. I have the worst verbal diarrhea,” joked Janeane Garofalo last Tuesday to a wall-to-wall crowd of admirers at the Paramount Theatre — and so began 90 minutes of brutal honesty. Clothed in her standard black ensemble and ready to rant about everything from acting to politics, Garofalo wowed the audience with an intoxicating candor coated with her trademark sarcasm that, as much as it reinforced her existing celebrity persona, brought a decidedly earnest dimension to her as a person. Steve Kessler, who directed Garofalo in The Independent, opened up the discussion by asking Garofalo’s thoughts about acting as a profession. Never one to sugarcoat the truth, Garofalo explained that “a lot of the work you do as an actor is not great. They can’t all be The Larry Sanders Show.” Garofalo went on to address her own oeuvre, calling The Truth About Cats & Dogs “a thorn in my side that I can’t get over” and last year’s Mystery Men “not a great film.” Citing studio tinkering, she voiced dismay at the fact that the Truth executives threatened to fire her from the set unless she would soften her character [a “smart” woman who plays second fiddle to babe-next-door Uma Thurman]. As for Mystery Men, Garofalo claimed the script was simply second-rate. “I can play material I don’t believe in,” she said, adding that “acting is not a religion. It’s a job. I wanted to be a stand-up comic, not an actress. Ben Stiller got me involved in acting, and it turned into a really well-paying job.” Clearly not one to butter Hollywood’s muffin, Garofalo went on to characterize the profession as materialistic and image-oriented, citing the unreasonable physical expectations that some paper-thin actresses promote. In all her honesty, however, Garofalo emits a radiant glow that complements her vibrant personality and makes her words not jaded and cynical but strangely rewarding and encouraging. Promoting The Independent, Garofalo said, “The ones you do for next to nothing [financially] are the ones you believe in.” She expressed admiration for both Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (“I thought it was hilarious”) and Clay Pigeons, a noirish thriller she took part in because her role as an FBI agent was originally intended for a man (“I was determined to try to make a difference in that genre”). When asked how she chooses her roles, Garofalo joked that she receives so few offers that she looks at the material first, then asks whether or not the producers will hire her. “It’s very hard for me to get hired,” she explained, adding that virtually every role under the sun passes by Angelina Jolie and Charlize Theron (“They’re in everything!”) because of their beauty. Of all the humorous soundbites thrown out to the audience by Garofalo, it was Kessler who perhaps voiced the most indelible words of perception. “The woman is honest, uncompromising, blindingly beautiful, and talented,” he said — reaffirming what many of her fans already knew.
The Independent screens Saturday, March 18, 10pm, at the Convention Center.
This article appears in March 17 • 2000.