night beach Making waves with its premiere in 2024 at the Toronto International Film Festival, a horror-comedy about a mother who is afraid of the pressures and double standards for women in modern society - and possibly feeling hairy because she turns into a dog. Star and producer Amy Adams is no stranger to award-worthy work, having received near-universal critical acclaim with films such as The fighter, The master, American hassleAnd Arrival. She's also an actor with her finger on the pulse of pop culture, a power she taps into all the time in projects like Enchanted And Man of Steel.
It should be no surprise, then, that night beach Offers a fascinating mix of both. Based on Rachel Yoder's novel of the same name, the film was written and directed by Marielle Heller (A beautiful day in the neighborhood), extrapolating on the supernatural aspects of the story and also focusing on the protagonist's state of mind. Adams plays a mother whose happy marriage to husband (Scott McNairy) has come under strain since she quit her job as a painter to devote herself full-time to their son. While husband travels constantly for work, mother battles inner demons at home and at baby book club, and outer changes as she finds herself growing more canine by the day.
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Screen Rant joined several other media outlets on the red carpet for night beachs TIFF premiere and interviewed stars like Amy Adams and Archana Rajan, as well as filmmaker Marielle Heller. The cast and creatives praised the film's wild side, and specifically praised Adams' performance and the fascinating layers of the story.
Amy Adams claims that Nightbeach does not necessarily set men and women as opposites
"My husband actually identifies with both because we share roles in our household."
Tell me about getting into character for this.
Amy Adams: Marielle and I have been talking about it for a really long time. We were deep in quarantine when I brought it up to her, and she was first on my list. I was excitedly hoping that she would sign on, and she had just had a baby so she identified with the isolation aspect of the story. Here was our conversation [came from] And the idea of isolation and transformation helped me get into that and helped us get into storytelling.
We always hear that it's a comedy for women and a horror movie for men.
Amy Adams: I love it! I guess it depends on the woman, and it depends on the man. I think what I love about this film is that it will speak so specifically to each person in a different way. I think for some, that's accurate, but my husband actually identifies with both because we share roles in our household.
What resonated with you personally?
Amy Adams: One of the things that resonated the most is the idea of transformation, and how we move through transformation at different points in our lives, be it through puberty, through marriage and relationships, or through menopause. We constantly go through transformation and how it changes us in a very visceral way.
Source: Screen Rant Plus
"It also said Amy Adams, and if it wasn't for that, I'd be asking a lot more questions."
Screen Rant: What was the first thing that stood out to you when you read the script?
Archana Rajan: The title. I got the edition, and it said Nightbitch. It also said Amy Adams, and if it wasn't for that, I'd be asking a lot more questions. But I saw that she was signed, and I was like: "Sign me up! Amy Adams, Mariel Heller... Night Beach, let's go."
Screen Rant: Did you get to do a lot of scenes with her? What was that?
Archana Rajan: I did. All my scenes are with her, and it was such an empowering, woman-filled room with chemistry. It was such an honor to be with you.
Source: Screen Rant Plus
Nightbitch director Marielle Heller reveals her inspiration for the movie
"Why is everyone doing better than me? Why am I the only one struggling?"
Your movie has such a powerful theme, and it resonates a lot with mothers like me, but also with a lot of other women. What do you want to take away from this movie?
Marielle Heller: You don't have to be a parent to really relate to this story. Many of us have the experience of long-term relationships or locked in our house with our families or pets. But I am a mother. I have two small kids, and I wanted to reflect my experiences of motherhood, which looked and felt much different than the Instagram version of motherhood that I saw.
I looked around with feelings, "Why is everyone doing this better than me? Why am I the only one who struggles? Why am I the only one who feels that this is so crazy and difficult?" And I wanted to make people feel less alone if they were at that moment in their lives. I also wanted to give people more compassion for the people in their lives who might be going through major life transformations, where they look at themselves like, "I don't even know who I am anymore. I feel like a cow I'm just milking." A baby, and I don't even have my own identity, what happened to my life?
Why did you go with the choice of literally converting into a dog?
Marielle Heller: There was something that just felt right about it. I have this memory of my son when he was first born, and I felt the animal instinct to protect him. That I can, if someone comes after him, just tear them to shreds. It just felt right, emotionally. It is not here [points to head]It is in here [points to heart].
Source: Screen Rant Plus
More about Nightbitch (2024)
An overworked stay-at-home mom (Amy Adams) tries to catch a break, any break, while caring for her restless toddler. Also, she could be turning into a dog.
Check out our other TIFF 2024 interviews here: