alfornos found this 4-26-05 BOSTON HERALD interview
from an unknown date:
http://theedge.bostonherald.com/movieNews/view.bg?articleid=80155&format=text
The Duchovny files: 'X-Files' star steps out on a limb with
directorial debut By Stephen Schaefer
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
The "D" in David Duchovny's "House of D" does not stand for the
"X-Files" star who wrote, directed and acts in this 1970s-era
New York City comedy-drama opening Friday.
The titular house refers to Manhattan's long-gone Women's House of
Detention, a Gothic prison that once sat in the heart of Greenwich
Village and was torn down decades ago, replaced by a garden.
"It was purely a coincidence; I would never name a movie after
myself," said the actor turned first-time filmmaker. "But it
was always 'House of D'; I never had any other title in my head.
If someone had come up with a better title, like 'Titanic 2,'
I would have gone for it," he joked.
Only slightly autobiographical, "House of D" has Duchovny as
American writer Tom Warshaw, who lives in Paris and reflects
back on his East Village youth (as ****trayed by Anton Yelchin).
"My father and mother divorced when I was 11, and I think the
psychology of a kid like that I understood, but the character
of the mother is very different," he said. "What happens in the
movie is much more dramatic than anything that happened to me,
but that's why you have a movie. So it's not autobiographical that
way, but a universal film about growing up and becoming a man.
That doesn't matter if it's set in the '70s or what clothes
you're wearing or what color you are."
Tom has a chronically depressed mother (Tea Leoni, also known as Mrs.
Duchovny); his much older best friend is retarded (Robin Williams);
and his friendly adviser is forever unseen, a prisoner (Erykah Badu)
who shouts to him from her Women's House of Detention cell.
The bright spot is a shy flirtation with aschoolgirl
(Zelda Williams, Robin Williams' daughter, in her debut).
"That's why its not 'Women's House of D' and just 'House of D,'"
Duchovny said. "As the actual House of D is now a garden,
it's how each one of the characters is imprisoned: Robin is
unable to grow mentally; the mom played by Tea is imprisoned
by her grief and inability to move on after her husband's death;
and Erykah is literally imprisoned. This kid has to move on
because they can't come with him."
For Duchovny, moving on from "The X-Files" is unlikely.
There are vague but likely stirrings for another "X-Files"
movie that would reteam him with Gillian Anderson.
"It's Chris Carter's baby," he said, referring to the show's
creator and guiding force. "We're in agreement in that we
think the movie should be what's known as a standalone episode.
You won't have to have knowledge of the mythology of the series
to understand the movie, which would make it a sci-fi, action
thriller and less about aliens that would continue the story
of 'The X-Files.'"
As for being forever known as Fox Mulder, Duchovny,
who has turned down offers to return to series television,
is thankful for the show that made him rich and famous.
"The show was everything for me," he said. "I can't imagine my
career without it. I was able to teach myself in this business
how to act, how to write and direct, how to construct a script.
Security blankets are nice, but my movie is about throwing those
away. At some point, you have to strike out on your own."
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