War Through a Womanís Eyes Australian Director Shows the Positive Side of Human Spirit by Ky N. Nguyen Loquacious Australian film director Gillian Armstrong presented her new movie, ìCharlotte Gray,î based on Sebastian Faulksís best-selling novel, one evening at the Australian Embassy. ìThe screening is for all the homesick Australians,î she said. ìIíll tell them whatís going on at home. Iíll bring the news. Australians are like that. When one comes to town, they all flock around.î Dressed in an elegant suit, Armstrong was relaxed in her suite at the Ritz-Carlton in Foggy Bottom. Over tea and coffee, she discussed ìCharlotte Gray,î scheduled to open in Washington on Jan. 11. Fellow Aussie Cate Blanchett plays a Scottish woman, living in World War II London, who is recruited for a secret mission as a courier in France. Her hidden personal agenda is to search for her lover, a downed Royal Air Force pilot missing in action. ìI think that what makes the story of ëCharlotte Grayí so strong and compelling is that Charlotte is so real and ordinary that, through her, we can all identify with and imagine what it would be like to do something like she did,î Armstrong said. ìWatching Charlotte, I think both me n and women wonder, ëCould I have done that?í or ëHow would I have behaved under such life-and-death circumstances?íî she noted. ìI do think itís interesting to look at war through a womanís eyes, but ëCharlotte Grayí is not just a womanís story. The truth is that men and women found themselves doing the same tasks with equal determination and conviction in the [Special Operations Executive organization, the British spy unit].î Armstrongís research revealed the extraordinary transformation of so many people during the war. ìWhat amazed me is that these were men and women who came from all walks of life, who had lived what we would consider very everyday lives, until that point. But then they underwent rigorous training, both physical and mental, had total makeovers to become ëFrench,í parachuted into France, and became completely different people.î Armstrong noted her insights into the character Charlotte. ìI learned that shy, introverted people apparently make better spies than extrovertsóbecause they are able to hold things back,î she said. ìIn a sense, Charlotte was the perfect recruit. She was very self-contained and reserved, but she also had a very strong inner motivation. Sheís not a female James Bond. She makes her share of mistakes in life-or-death situations, which is part of what makes her story so riveting and true. ìCharlotte Gray is probably the best role Iíve read for a woman in 15 years. Cate really has to play two characters in this movie: one person for the beginning of the story and an entirely different person once Charlotte enters into her undercover disguise. Itís an extraordinary challenge and it requires an actress of great imagination, empathy and strength,î said Armstrong. The writer and producers of the film had approached Blanchett to play the lead. After joining the project, she recommended Armstrong as the director. They had previously worked together on ìOscar and Lucinda,î Blanchettís first lead film role. Armstrong said, ìThere was a lot of pressure from Fox to cast a star to be with Ralph [Fiennes]. Finally, they said, ëOkay, you can cast an unknown Australian, but we will cut your budget down.í I thought that sheís so special, that sheís worth it.î Armstrong said and laughed, ìI gave her a break then! Sheís now returned the favor.î Of course, Armstrong was already a well-established director with an international reputation for her acclaimed body of work, including ìLittle Women,î ìThe Last Days of Chez Nous,î ìHigh Tideî and ìMrs. Soffel.î ìEvery one of the films Iíve chosen because Iím passionate about the story,î Armstrong pointed out. ìIíve never made a film where I wasnít totally excited about the script. Obviously, they are personal statements in that way. I can say that they all have some humanist content that is positive about human spirit.î ìCharlotte Grayî was shot on location in France. Of the location choice, Armstrong said, ìWe wanted somewhere that retained a slightly eerie feeling to it, rather than just being an over-pretty historical site. St. Antonin Noble Val [near Toulouse], with its peeling 14th-century walls and dark, narrow lanes, was perfect. It has a fast flowing river and a sweeping bridge, which, once we found them, led [screenwriter] Jeremy Brock and I to rework scenes to incorporate them within the drama.î Armstrong said that filming in a real village that was once part of Vichy France was a chilling experience for her and her crew. ìThe French still refer to that period as ëthe dark years,í so we had to show enormous respect for the people who lived through the events we were re-enacting. When we brought German tanks into the village, it had an enormous impact, and we became aware that we had a real responsibility to tell the stories of these people without harming them,î she said. ìI had a fantastic crew of artists working with me who made the story really come alive. The main thing everyone remarked upon during production is how real everything seemed,î Armstrong continued. ìThis is a movie about very big thingsóabout war and freedom and identityóbut what makes it special is seeing it all through the very human eyes of Charlotte, one woman trying to do whatever she can to keep a certain amount of hope alive,î Armstrong added. ìTo me, the essence of ëCharlotte Grayí is that anyone can make a difference, and that even the smallest things do make a difference,î noted Armstrong. She calls the film a ìwonderful mix of human journey, love story and action thrillerî and ìa tale about what it is like to really be undercover, to truly lose your identity and try to keep yourself together at the same time.î Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.