Ondine

On Nov. 3, 2009, Wendy Bouchard and Michel Drucker received Laetitia in Studio Europe1.
She talked about the "hairy" Little White Riding Hood and
frozen meat almost throughout the Salome's body.

Michel Drucker:

Would you talk us about Tsai Ming-Liang who is a quite strange personage?

Laetitia Casta:

The movie is about the fragility of actors when they look in the mirror. They did not know who they are.
It is enough sensitive. This film is a journey.
Tsai Ming-Liang is a personnage. He is a film director who has a particular universe.
I watched several of his movies. I like a lot. He has a manner to shot, to direct and mainly there is a lot of poesy in his pictures.
I was delighted to work with him.

Wendy Bouchard:

It is a movie that moves deeply because one is in the phantasmagoria, in the surrealism.
Tsai Ming-Liang leads us in a tribute to la Nouvelle Vague.
You are a kind of enchanting, erotic, hypnotic goddess; you lead us by the hand in an adventure.
How do you define your character who is very sensual, carnal?

Laetitia C.:

When I met Tsai Ming-Liang, he did not come with a scenario.
He sleeps the night. He makes a dream. He comes back with his dream. He wants to shoot it. It is dazzling.

I let myself get carried by Salome, by the director. It was each day as it comes.
The director sometimes takes seven hours to prepare one plan.

Wendy B.:

You are the character of the guiding thread always a few evanescent.

Laetitia:

The director told me about a Taiwanese actress, who after a while no longer knew who she was.
She was too much in the light. She has been seeing a Buddhist man. She asked him what to do.

He said: "Withdraw you. Lock yourself in the darkness. Hide your windows. Remains in the darkness for several days." This way she found again pleasure in playing. It is a split personality of her own person.

I am in the movie actress who plays Salome. She falls in love with the director Hsiao Kang who is homosexual. So he is inaccessible. At the same time she is taken by her character. It is an entire melange.

Wendy:

It is a totally surreal scene where you scotch-taped, in real time with black opaque paper, glasses and mirrors because you cannot stand your reflection

Laetitia:

It's unbearable. One passes by this moment. It's intoxicating. It's annoying.
After a moment, we are relieved when it ends.

Europe1 broadcast a short extract of the singing ballet You're really beautiful from the movie Visage.

Wendy:

We must imagine --she is magnificent-- in the snow a Little White Riding Hood.

Laetitia:

Hairy [Poilu]!

Wendy:

There are mirrors all over the map. The obsession of the image.

There were scenes that have been cut where
--Tsai Ming-Liang is a bit sadomasochistic anyway--
he gently put frozen meat throughout the Salome's body
... to turn the dogs loose [pour lâcher les chiens].

Laetitia Casta