Julianne Moore gets caught up in love and lies in 'Chloe'

Julianne Moore

What would you do if you thought your significant other was cheating on you? That’s the question posed in the erotic thriller "Chloe," which tells the story about gynecologist Catherine Stewart (played by Julianne Moore), who suspects that her husband, college professor David Stewart (played by Liam Neeson), has been unfaithful. So Catherine hires a prostitute named Chloe (played by Amanda Seyfried) to pose as a student, tempt David, and tell Catherine what happens.

When Chloe begins to tell Catherine steamy tales of how she seduced David, Catherine is both shocked and aroused. It isn’t long before Catherine becomes obsessed with finding out more about her husband’s infidelity with Chloe, so she continues to pay Chloe to keep the affair going and to disclose to Catherine all the details of the sexual trysts. Chloe then reveals her attraction to Catherine, which sets off a chain of events that change their lives permanently.

Directed by Atom Egoyan, "Chloe" is based on the 2004 French film "Nathalie," although "Chloe" is more of a reimagining than a remake of "Nathalie," since many key plot points have been changed from the original film. "Chloe" (which takes place in Toronto) had its world premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The day before the premiere, Moore participated in a TIFF press conference for "Chloe." Here is what she had to say.

Julianne Moore at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival press conference for "Chloe"

How did you get involved with "Chloe"?

I had been an admirer of Atom’s for a long time. I met him at the Toronto Film Festival in the mid-’90s at some point, and then later on. We kind of expressed to each other that we really wanted to work together, and I’d always kind of hoped that something would happen. [The movie "Chloe"] came to me in a really ordinary way, where you just get a script on your desk. Atom said he wanted to meet me. I was very anxious to do it. I was very interested in the material and his take on it.

For me, his work has always played with issues of identity, and perception versus reality, within this kind of psychological drama. And that was most interesting: The fact that all of this stuff is happening in the middle of a long-term relationship that seems possibly transgressive but is really an outgrowth of where this woman [Catherine Stewart] is emotionally. That really intrigued me. And I felt like Atom was the right person to handle this very loaded material.

How did you prepare for your role in "Chloe"?

People ask questions about preparations a lot, and most of mine really happens from the script. The script was your source material where you go for everything. ["Chloe" screenwriter] Erin [Cressida Wilson’s] language is very specific, very nuanced and, I felt, very indicative of character. It wasn’t hard to find who that character was in the actual language.

Amanda Seyfried and Julianne Moore in "Chloe"

What scenes in "Chloe" were the most challenging for you?

The interesting thing about this character for me was that she was using this girl as a conduit to her husband. There was something kind of fascinating that she thought rather than turning to him — she really felt that avenue had closed [that] was going straight to him — that she was going to take this girl and ask this girl to show her what her husband was feeling.

It started being a way for her to feel what he wanted, what he liked. And it was fascinating and, I thought, at times deliberately cruel. And there was kind of a power thing that was happening. And also there was a real sense of access and intimacy that was thrilling, and it allowed the relationship between the two women to kind of grow. So in her efforts to find out what her husband liked, in a weird sort of way, she really found out what she wanted, what she liked.

Do actors give each other direction behind a director’s back in rehearsals?

Yes and no. Some actors like it, and some don’t. I think the notion of rehearsing … in the theater or opera is very different from doing a film, because the idea is you want to prepare yourself for something to actually happen on the set. I don’t want to predetermine what the event is before I shoot it, because if I have, then it doesn’t occur. If I’ve decided and rehearsed it and I know what it is, then I’m not going to capture that real sense of being alive on camera. You want to set up the parameters and have the conversations, but what actually happens on film, hopefully, is not predetermined. Then I find it the most exciting.

Amanda Seyfried, Julianne Moore and director Atom Egoyan on the set of "Chloe"

What kind of reflections do you have about your role in "Chloe"?

One of the hard things about doing press after I finish the movie is that I haven’t thought anything about the movie at all. Until I gain a lot of distance on something, I’m not able to articulate what has happened or how I feel about it even, because it hasn’t gelled for me yet.

Atom talks about setting something up and then finding out what the parameters are. Sometimes what happens when shooting is so far away from what you constructed in your head, you’re like, "Wow, I don’t know if I can categorize it yet." It’s a very difficult thing to do. And also because it’s such a subjective medium, it’s going to mean something different to everyone. So I’m often more interested in hearing what people have taken away from something than what I was thinking personally.

One of the things I always say is that the thing about entering a movie is that the audience always enters in as themselves, and there’s lots of projection of what your own drama is. And that’s what’s most interesting about watching the movie. So I kind of want to hear what other people think.

Amanda Seyfried and Julianne Moore in "Chloe"

What was it like doing that sex scene with Amanda Seyfried?

I loved it, every minute of it. It was fine. They [sex scenes] are never the easiest things to do. But also, you have to remember that by the time we shot that [sex scene], Amanda and I had been shooting for a long time. We had established a relationship and a rapport and trust.

And the [Catherine and Chloe] characters had also been very established. So it was an extension of that, and Atom makes things very easy. We were comfortable, and the crew was great. It was very interesting for me to play these people, who in ordinary life, making what we would call "bizarre transgressions." They’re stepping outside the normal boundaries of their life, and that was an extension of that.

You often plan women in a crisis …

[She says jokingly] Are there any other kind?

Julianne Moore in "Chloe"

Don’t you want to play someone who’s perky and light-hearted?

Then there’s no drama!

What can you say about the filmmaking team that worked on "Chloe" with you?

There was a tremendous amount of support from all aspects. It was like freedom. It was like having a lot of partners. And everybody had their own area of expertise and allowed each other to bring their own thing to it, really.

Photo credits: Photos #1, 2: Getty Images. All other photos: Sony Pictures Classics.