Mickey Rourke was one of the biggest film stars of the 1980s. He was a modern-day James Dean, a sex symbol from the films "Nine 1/2 Weeks," "Wild Orchid" and "Angel Heart," but also an excellent actor with unforgettable performances in "Rumble Fish" and "Barfly." But his story, as everybody knows, went downhill as his antics made his name synonymous in Hollywood with unprofessional behavior. The coarse man became intolerable. At the time, they used to tell me to be on the set in five minutes and I would answer, F--- you, Ill see you in two hours, he admits. But you cant act that way for long. I had terrible psychological problems that made me react that way. Since then, Ive succeeded in putting the past behind me as much as possible. In large part, it was Rourke who, at the beginning of the 1990s, decided to retire from acting and go back to the only thing he knew how to do besides movies -- box. His brief career lasted for eight matches -- six wins and two ties. Match organizers refused to allow him to compete against the greatest boxers in the field, claiming that at 35, he was too old. As it happens, that decision saved him, since his body was already ruined. He had a broken nose and broken ribs, a torn tongue, a crushed cheek and problems with his short-term memory. The scars from those tough moments in the ring are still clearly visible on his face and audible in his voice. He speaks softly and with excitement about those days. I lived by myself in a studio apartment. After seven years during which the telephone never rang, I told myself that I was really finished. After 10 years went by, I realized that they werent going to let me come back. I remember that one night, I went out to buy cigarettes at about two oclock in the morning. As I stood in line, some dumb fat guy said to me, Hey, werent you ...- He didnt even remember my name. I remember that I left the store and walked about two blocks and said to myself, Oh, f--- . Im really glad that time is over. Rourke decided to return to acting with the help of a plastic surgeon. The treatments were only partially successful, and the James Dean of the 1980s found himself with the face of Michael Jackson of the 2000s. But "Sin City" and "The Wrestler" brought him back in a big way, this time through the front door. His performance in "The Wrestler" earned him a Golden Globe award, defeating major stars such as Leonardo Di Caprio, Sean Penn and Brad Pitt. After that, the telephone started ringing and Rourke was able to move himself and his dogs to a slightly larger apartment. Do you feel today that a circle has closed for you- I dont look at it as if a circle has closed. I dont think theres any such thing. I could mess up tomorrow, easily. I could mess up 10 minutes from now and go back in a moment to where I was before. Im like an inmate whos gotten out of jail. Ive really changed even though there are parts of me that will never change. Once, I had no rules and I never took responsibility for my actions. Now I work with a doctor and try to put all the pieces together. He calls this change. For me, its hard to define it. F--- , all my life I built myself to be a certain kind of man, like I believed a man should be. Then I realized that I had to do things differently. For me, its hard to turn the other cheek. It was very hard to make the change, but I had to do it in order to survive. Otherwise, they would have won. Although Rourke may have changed, he remains an outsider. Throughout all the interviews, he talked a great deal about them -- the Hollywood establishment that raised him and then abandoned him. They ground me to bits. They couldnt wait to do it. And I helped them. I thought it would take a year or two and then theyd let me back in. But it didnt happen. He is now promoting his new film, "Immortals," in which he stars alongside Henry Cavill (who will be starring in the next "Superman") and Freida Pinto ("Slumdog Millionaire"). This is a 3-D movie made by the producers of the hit movie "300." As with "300," the producers decided to base the movie on an action story out of Greek mythology. Rourke plays King Hyperion, who decides to wage war against the Olympian gods. He goes in search of the legendary bow of Epirus in order to free the Titans, the Olympians sworn enemies. Although this is a seasonal action film whose real stars are the action scenes, which are filled with special effects, Rourke refused to treat the evil kings character as a shallow comic role. Do you like being the bad guy- Ive fought very hard over the past few years to play the bad guy. Its much more interesting to me to find reasons for why the bad guy is who he is. In the past, I had a few gangster friends, and sometimes, when I used to bring all kinds of girls to dinner with one of them, he was always really nice. At the end of the evening, the girl would tell me, Oh, hes so nice. Im not sure any more whether I believe all the things they say about him. Did he really murder 12 people- And I would tell her, Yes. You try to avoid cliches. Yes, thats the idea. I had the same argument when I was in "Iron Man 2," and they won. But thats how it is when you work with Marvel. They wanted something very one-dimensional, so everything I tried to do in order to give the character a bit of variety stayed on the cutting-room floor. Things like that can make you stop making an effort and not create an intelligent character or one whose reasons can be understood. I fought against that all the time. With this character, it was hard. It was written as pure evil. I did what I could. I can justify the kings actions only to a certain point. I know that it doesnt look all that good when he cuts somebodys balls off. Did you see the film? What did you think- What can I tell you? Its entertaining, it looks good. I didnt put on the 3-D glasses. I wasnt in the mood to put them on, but they told me that its different. I thought that Tarsem [the director] did outstanding work in order to get his look. Those are two outstanding hours that let you run away to the movies and experience something different. Do you like to watch yourself on the screen- Id rather not, but here, because the character is so extraordinary, I wanted to see part of it. You dont sound enthusiastic. I can say that its all great and that its a must-see, but thats not how I am. Ive never made a film like that before, and whether I like the film or not, theres an audience for movies like that. Tarsem did what hed planned to do. He realized his vision and its supposed to bring people to the movies. Rourke and the other actors had two major reasons for working on the film. The first, as they put it, was the producers big checkbook. The second reason was the director, Tarsem Singh, who is known for his creative, colorful commercials and films. He came to this meeting with all kinds of sketches about how he would do this movie. I was very impressed by that meeting and by the commercials for Nike that hed done a few years before, so I said, Im in. At that stage, it was not clear whether Rourke knew that some of the masks from that commercial would be worn by actors in the film. Rourke ended up with a particularly heavy costume and a gigantic mask that drove him up the wall throughout the filming. Im claustrophobic, and it was tough. First, I had to sit for three hours in the makeup room and after that, I couldnt take the mask off for 14 hours. It was a nightmare. One evening after filming, I met a girl in a bar in Texas and invited her to the set the next day to eat with us at the lunch break. I came to the meal with my mask on because I couldnt take it off. Of course, I never saw her again. Next to Rourke sits Daniel, a large young man who looks like a bodyguard but is actually his Israeli trainer. Rourke says that he is a former commando who works him very hard every day but Saturday. They met for the first time when Rourke needed to get back into shape for "The Wrestler," and they have worked together ever since. He keeps me from going overboard. If I eat too much, he takes the food off my plate. Despite his regimen of diet and exercise, the scars of the past are still visible. Several days before filming, he tore what was left of his bicep. Theres nothing there any more. It looks like the muscle of a 12-year-old kid. Im waiting for someone to die so they can transplant that part, he says. Because of that, I did most of the battle scenes with my left arm. I can move my arm, but I have a gigantic scar on that hand, and it doesnt look good. How did you get hurt- It happened a year ago, after a night of drinking and mixing it up with a few rugby players. You have another movie about to come out "13." Oh, thats a crappy movie. A crappy movie- Yes. If you dont believe me, you can go ahead and call Jason (Statham) and Ray (Winstone). So why did you do it- For the money.
Mickey Rourke: Immortal
The actor continues his comeback with another hit: "Immortals" • Ive never made a film like that before, and it doesnt matter whether I like it or not; theres an audience. • The producers big checkbook and an Israeli trainer keep him alive.
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