I Dig It

Brendan Fraser, the excavating star of Journey to the Center of the Earth and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Empire, talks blockbusters, big changes in movie-making and baby diapers.

Brendan Fraser is a wacky dude. You probably could have come to that conclusion yourself if you watched the guy in George of the Jungle or wondered why the guy did Monkeybone. But seeing the man with your own eyes is pure entertainment worthy of a cushy chair and a bucket of popcorn. Good thing we’re in a jam-packed movie theatre.

“You need to wear the way-cool glasses,” Fraser tells a midday audience of eight-year-olds and their parents about to catch an early screening of Journey to the Center of the Earth in 3-D. “[The glasses are] a lil’ bit Buddy Holly but it’s hip to be square.” One of the youngsters asks who Buddy Holly is. Fraser snaps back quickly, “Look him up! iTunes!”

If you’re looking at box-office tallies from the past 10 years, you don’t need to go down far to find Brendan Fraser’s name. As goofy archaeologist Rick O’Connell, Fraser helped The Mummy and The Mummy Returns unearth nearly $850 million worldwide. The next adventure in the franchise, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Empire, begins August 1, and it could make the study of ancient Chinese cultures halfway cool. Next year, he’s thinking smash hit again when he laces up the combat boots as Gung-Ho in the long-awaited G.I. Joe.

But today it’s all about explaining the science behind Journey. “The projection system up here is special because it’s going to allow you to see 3-D before like you’ve never seen it,” details the 39-year-old Indianapolis native. “I guess I should stop talking. Check out the film. We’ll come back. Answer some question. Take questions. We’ll hang out. This is Journey to the Center of the Earth. I just got off an airplane. What’s my name? Time to go to lunch.”

Visually, the movie is, in fact, everything a growing boy needs to send his imagination into another stratosphere. The crowd goes bonkers when Fraser and Journey director Eric Brevig come back into the theatre. A young lady stands to present the Hollywood star a question, presumably about the flying rocks and charging dinosaurs she just saw on screen. “Will you sign my baby’s diaper,” she asks. Brendan Fraser never flutters: “Umm, sure. Just send up the diaper and a Sharpie.” Told you he was wacky.

The 3-D elements here never seem too gimmicky.

You’ve got an environment that’s been created that you feel a part of. What I found really interesting was the depth of field. If you were to watch this film again, and I hope you will, guys stop looking at Anita [Briem, Journey costar] and look way in the background. There’s just so much beautiful CGI that you just cannot pick out in 2-dimensional film.

Give me your initial thoughts when you first saw the final product?

I was ecstatic. I was a kid in the candy store. I couldn’t believe. I geeked out. I was so very, very happy for many reasons. This is the first time that this has been done- properly and in a way that’s entertaining. Look to the person to the left and right of you. You’re an audience that can safely say, “I was there when…” This is true. The industry is going in a very interesting direction.

How did the 3-D aspect change the process of acting?

It actually allowed you to have a little more time. The conventional cameras as we know them have film in them, yeah? There are magazines in that are loaded and then roll out. You have a certain amount of time in there. With this, if the mood was off or the actor flubbed –no comment!- you could always [re-do the shot]. It gave a sort of sense of liberty. It was actually quite freeing, to tell you the truth. You get the feeling the clock is ticking when you’re doing a normal take. With this, there was a lil’ more leeway. You could stay loose and get the job done and not feel the pressure. That’s why you have the sense of spontaneity.

Is Atlantis next?

We’re going to have a conversation about that. If there is another one, there will likely be more water involved, I predict.

What is it about the adventurous scripts like this and The Mummy that you gravitate to?