In this reboot (almost sequel) turned into a series, High Fidelity presents Zoe Kravitz in the role of Rob, (Jack Black) and, although it is hard to believe that there is a man capable of rejecting her, we ended up convinced of her emotional incapacity through self-destruction; hooked on marijuana, agoraphobic and antisocial.
The series is inspired by a novel written from a male perspective by British author Nick Hornby. Released in 1995 and adapted for film in 2000, it tells the story of Rob, the owner of a bankrupt record store with an equally desperate love life. The film was a hit, with an unforgettable performance by Jack Black where Lisa Bonet, Kravitz's mother, played one of Rob's lovers, singer Marie De Salle. Seeing mother and daughter in the same narration, even separated in time, is amazing for the similarity of both and gives the content an air of continuity. If the movie was a collage of songs and emotions that made the protagonists a cult object, the series inverts the formula of the novel by Nick Hornby making Kravitz teach us the power of a song in the face of our own fears from the point of view of a woman. Growing in Miami, the actress confessed her passion for Spanish Language and the root of a culture so close to her heart
Q: Why did you decide to remake a show that is so close to your mom?
R: My mother and I don't talk much about this project. He told me that he loved shooting the movie and I am a fan of it myself, but I thought it was a great opportunity to turn the story around. For me it was important to have the author's support before embarking on the series. I talked to Nick Hornby a lot. He is the producer of this series and with him I have shared many playlists. We have become very close friends shooting High Fidelity and I would not be here without his blessing because his opinion is very important to me.
Q: You have created a playlist on Spotify for your fans
A: Yes. I actively participated in the planning process for the soundtrack of the series. We have gotten almost all the songs we wanted. And we replaced the songs for which we could not obtain the rights with the themes destined to appear in the series. The final playlist is perfect. We have been very lucky because the musicians have understood how important it was to include their songs in the series
Q: High Fidelity tells the life of Rob in 10 episodes, a young woman who evaluates her opinions and feelings with a playlist titled The Top 5.
A: The heart of this series and the character's DNA is his obsession with music, that is what defines it. I have wanted to contribute my own passion for music by adding themes that are important to me. The series is very different from the movie because it is told over a longer period of time, it has other properties and that makes it different. It is not a love story between two people but the story of Rob and how she learns to love herself.
Q: How is your Spanish these days?
A: I used to understand and speak it very well when I was younger. I lived in Miami until I was a teenager and learned at school. It’s fascinating how much you can use Spanish in Miami, Los Angeles or in New York. I love it. I want to keep it alive in my life. Every time I go to Miami I fall in love again with the Spanish culture
Q: Do you have any Spanish author that you read?
A: I read Things we lost in the fire from Mariana Enriquez, who is a Latina author. From the Spanish world I would say Gabriel García Marquez is my favorite.
Q: Are you like your character in the show?
A: I also make playlists lying on the floor of my apartment. I was a spoiled teenager who revealed herself and was saved thanks to music.
Q: The wardrobe is amazing in High Fidelity
A: Is almost a character. I went out of my way to demand the wardrobe department to hire Colleen Atwood, the costume designer for Sex and The City. Collen is a legend. We had been without a wardrobe director for some time and I began to worry about that element. It was I who called Collen, asking him to work at High Fidelity. It was a dream come true because I've had the opportunity to go with Collen to buy Rob's entire wardrobe at vintage stores in New York. Imagine, I have filled my wardrobe with T-shirts, with fur jackets, we have even bought one for the character in honor of the jacket that Cusack wears in the movie. I want to clarify that I have not dressed the character as I dress, but as Rob would. I recognize that the Sex and The City series has been a huge influence and Rob has a lot of Carrie.
Q: With her credentials, being the daughter of Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet, it's hard to imagine her as a penniless hipster lost in the streets of New York.
A: You would be surprised to discover my path to success. My parents divorced when I was 2 years old and I grew up in Topanga Canyon with my mother, receiving a very free education. At the age of 11, I moved to Miami to live with my father in a much more sophisticated community, full of celebrities. I never liked it because I didn't fit in. My parents were beautiful animals and I was a normal girl. They had attractive partners who intimidated me.
Q: Zoe's transformation from ugly duckling to swan occurred in New York, a city that becomes the setting for the series and where the topic of gentrification is addressed.
A: I lived in New York for a long time and have seen many neighborhoods change. When I decided to play Rob, I knew I could imagine his surroundings because I have lived that experience myself.
Q: High Fidelity presents as protagonists two women of color at the center of the narrative.
A: Not only do we go around the genre with two women, but we are two women of color. I find it beautiful to be able to give life to a protagonist that we have not seen so far at the head of a series. There are many variations when it comes to telling the story from the perspective of African American culture and it is truly fascinating for me to be able to do it.
Q: You will play Selina Kylie, also known as Catwoman, in the next film in the saga (now starring Robert Patinson)
A: Is a wonderful character. The script is wonderful. Deeply rooted and deep within the Batman story, but I can't say more than that because I would be fired. In the Batman universe, for me, Catwoman is the most interesting. An iconic accolade that, while I've never been interested in comics, has always intrigued me. If I drank from someone to create the character, without hesitation, I would say it was Michelle Pfeiffer
Q: Lately you play many characters that require great physical effort.
A: I am interested in investigating the physical aspect of my characters because mentally it is a challenge. The work and the preparation help me to get into the skin of the role I am going to act in, I begin to create my relationship with them through the physical. Then with the choreography team we talk about body movements to add depth to the performance
Q: You have been in Mad Max, in the Divergent saga. It seems you are attracted to commercial movies?
A: All my roles are different. I do not choose a movie depending on the budget or whether or not they have action. I like all the movies I've made because I'm intrigued by the stories or ideas behind them. The fact that they have more money or more exposure to the public is a positive addition, although the message and the story are always more important
Q: Zoe, you are also a musician and you compose. In what way do you combine both worlds? Music and interpretation
A: Both complement each other. One inspires the other. Music for me is therapy. I use it daily in many ways. They are two separate worlds that creatively feed me. The more secure I feel in one area, the more that confidence in the other world helps me. Right now, I'm challenging myself and that's good
Q: What kind of cinema inspires you?
A: I grew up without television. It was my mother's rules, but we had a video device with which she could watch a movie every weekend, a movie that of course she chose. I grew up watching a lot of films from the sixties like Freaky Friday, Bugsy Malone, which is one of my favorites, Jodie Foster movies, musicals, Foxes. A lot of cinema from the seventies.
Maria Estevez
Correspondent writer
