About the Production....
Return to Me completed production as it began: a labor of love about
life by first-time feature director/co-writer/co-star Bonnie Hunt, who
designed the film as a valentine not only to the possibilities of romance,
but also to her native city of Chicago. Composing the script with writing
partner Don Lake - whom she both wrote and performed with on the
famed Second City comedy troupe - Hunt deliberately and tenaciously
set out to create a love story which was at once timeless and timely,
comedic and tragic.
"This is a movie about everyday life," notes the filmmaker, "rooted in real
characters with average lives, who are almost supernaturally touched by
the events of the story."
Adds writing partner Lake, "Bonnie and I wanted to make a really nice
love story with lots of romance that had a fairy tale quality to it but also a
slice-of-life quality that like life you laugh one minute and cry the next ...
or vice versa."
It made perfect sense that Hunt and Lake would choose to set their story
against the backdrop of the city in which the filmmaker has her roots
-that great monolith of the Midwest, Chicago. "Bonnie has written this in
an environment that she fully understands," notes producer Jennie Lew
Tugend, "but it's a movie that will translate all over the world because it's
populated with people we all know. We all have overbearing best
friends, worried grandfathers, difficult relationships. It's universal."
As Hunt and Lake's script came to fruition, the production team decided
that the entire film (save the final two days in Rome) would be shot in
Chicago on "practical" locations - real settings rather than studio sets
-that would lend complete verisimilitude to the story without any
Hollywood artifice. "Chicago is a character in itself," Hunt says. "There's
a certain kindness, that permeates the story, and a lot of these characters
are from my childhood ... especially the older folks who populate
O'Reilly's Restaurant. Don and I felt very strongly that the story had to
emerge through the characters."
Casting and Reeling
Once Hunt and Lake completed their script, it didn't take long for some
of film's most popular stars, both recent and veteran, to respond with
enthusiasm. "Casting is so important in a movie like this," notes Tugend.
"Romantic stories only succeed if the charisma and chemistry of the
leading players works out. We had to find stars who could pull off the
twists and turns of the story and keep the audience with them every step
of the way."
Hunt very quickly focused on two major international stars to essay the
challenging roles of Bob Rueland and Grace Briggs: David Duchovny and
Minnie Driver. "David and I acted in Beethoven together a few years
ago," recalls Hunt. "We had a scene together that didn't have a lot written
into it, and the director encouraged us to add something of our own. So
David and I quickly worked something else out, and it became a really
funny scene in the movie. I could see David's potential; he's funny, wry,
charming and debonair. We kept in touch."
Hunt had written a role for. Duchovny which would certainly call on his
dramatic skills apparent to viewers of The X-Files, but at the same time
demonstrate the actor's considerable comic abilities as well (anyone who
watches Duchovny's occasional appearances on late night talk shows
swiftly gets a taste of his endlessly dry and smart sense of humor).
As for Duchovny, the attraction was mutual. "The script of Return To
Me was so simple and direct, and it wasn't tainted with the kind of
cynicism which seems to affect everything else these days. It had a kind
of simple inevitability to it, beautiful, emotional and funny. The script
earns its sentimentality through truth, honesty and integrity. I just read it
and immediately wanted to do it, knowing that Bonnie would be the best
director for her own screenplay."
For the demanding role of Grace, who undergoes a physical and
psychological transformation in the film, Hunt chose her star in a
somewhat orthodox way. "I called her, we had lunch and she loved the
role of Grace and she loved the material. She was on board soon after
that first lunch."
Driver reacted as enthusiastically as fellow star Duchovny when she read
Hunt and Lake's screenplay. "Return To Me isn't solely a romantic
comedy, because there are some very serious and dramatic moments in
it. It's very, very real and honest and funny and sad, and there's a twist at
the center of it all, which makes for good cinema."
The extraordinary supporting cast - which combines such great
professionals as Carroll O'Connor, Robert Loggia, Eddie Jones and
William Bronder with younger veterans like Jim Belushi, David Alan
Grier and Joely Richardson - quickly fell into place. A lure for O'Connor
was that his role of Marty O'Reilly would call upon him to affect an
authentic Irish accent ... ironically for a man who both studied and
performed in Ireland early in his career, it would be the first time he
would ever do so on film. "When I was acting in Ireland and playing Irish
characters, considering my name and the accent I used on stage,
everyone thought I was a native," he reminisces with a smile. "But when I
came back to the United States, I was never asked to play an Irishman.
Instead, all of the Lithuanian actors from the studio played them!"
The casting of Robert Loggia as Angelo Pardipillo, Marty's Italian
brother-in-law and partner in their Irish-Italian restaurant, was just as
authentic. "I've done so many films, and many of them were violent, so it
was refreshing for me to come across a script about romance and
camaraderie without bloodshed or profanity," the actor notes. "It was
also nice to see the older generation represented in such a way that
they're alive and kicking, with their own passions and romantic drives.
"I also loved the fact that Return To Me has some insight into who and
what we are as human beings. We have this mechanical body, but we
also have a soul and a mind. The body is just some sort of conveyance
quite apart from who we are inside, and there aren't many movies that
deal with such notions."
Another cast member who shared a history with Hunt was David Alan
Grier, chosen to portray devil-may-care Lincoln Park Zoo vet Charlie
Johnson. "I first met Bonnie on the plane to Vancouver to begin filming
Jumanji, and it was like we had been talking for a billion years and had
picked up an old conversation in mid-sentence. I felt like I knew her, and
from then on, we spent a lot of time together on the Jumanji set.
Bonnie's emotionalism is a throwback to old Hollywood movies, and it's
a refreshing take on films today."
"I thought that the script was really wonderful, sweet and charming," says
Joely Richardson, who portrays the brief but pivotal role of Elizabeth
Rueland, "and that's why for me to come to Chicago for three weeks was
an adventure in itself. The story is so lovely, funny and fresh."
As for Jim Belushi - another Chicago favorite - working with Hunt was
both personal and professional. Although they were ten years apart at
Second City, they met there when Belushi came back to visit as an alum
and Hunt was a new cast member and they have maintained a friendship
ever since. "Bonnie and Don's writing has a very Second City feeling to it
for me, very spontaneous and real. When I read the script, I was just
delighted at the charm that came across, and the spirit of humor and
romance.
"Bonnie has a great capacity for understanding human behavior,"
continues Belushi, "and she's not afraid of capturing its sentimentality or
pain. She was also raised in a big family, and so completely understands
the loving chaos in a family like Joe and Megan's ... and that Joe and
Megan can still have romance, even with five small kids running around."
The Chicago Connection
Return To Me began principal photography in early May 1999 with an
elegant party scene shot inside of the lavish Gold Room in the historic
Congress Hotel on Michigan Avenue, built in 1903. It was here that the
cast and crew were put in the right mood by a swinging version of the
classic Daniel DiMinno/Carmen Lombardo title song, with the
arrangement produced by Bonnie Hunt and Return To Me composer
Nicholas Pike and sung on camera by the talented Joey Gian. (Classics
from Frank Sinatra, the Gershwins, Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hart and the
like provide a deep-rooted musical backdrop throughout the entire film.)
This sequence kicked off a shoot marked by almost three months of
production in Chicago, a production in which the cast and crew became
part of the director's extended family.
Hunt was not only born and raised in Chicago, she also studied and
worked as a nurse there before utilizing her performing gifts for the city's
Second City troupe and then moving on to television and film work in
Los Angeles. True to the nature of a film about love and family, the
director would encircle herself with a group of fellow performers and
friends from the metropolis, with Second City alumni and members of the
Hunt clan sometimes appearing in small roles. Making notable
appearances in the film are writer/actor Dick Cusack (of the famous
Chicago clan which has also spawned John and Joan); Second City-ites
Holly Wortell, Chris Barnes, Tom Virtue, David Pasquesi, Tim O'Malley
and Darryl Warren; and a few Hunts popping up here and there,
including the director's brothers Tom (as a construction worker) and
Kevin (a medical doctor typecast as a medical doctor), nephew Patrick
as a young neighbor of Bob Rueland, and sister Carol Hunt as Nurse
Alice. And that's co-writer Don Lake, a familiar face in film, television
and commercials, as the "hair transplant guy" at O'Reilly's.
"We first came to Chicago in the winter in pre-production," recalls Jennie
Lew Tugend. "It was freezing, there was snow on the ground, but
wherever we went, Bonnie's name opened every door. She's a favorite
child of this city, and that made my job so much easier."
Joely Richardson notes, "Wherever we filmed, people would just pass by
and say 'Hi, Bonnie,' whether they knew her or not, She's the Chicago
Girl, and has included us into that big family, so it's very, very
welcoming."
With her creative team - headed by greatly respected cinematographer
Laszlo Kovacs (who had recently tackled Chicago in another big-screen
romance, My Best Friend's Wedding), production designer Brent
Thomas and costume designer Lis Bothwell -Bonnie Hunt set out to
integrate Chicago into the story rather than just exploit its visual beauties.
It was also incumbent upon Thomas and his crew to amend the settings
just enough to bring them in line with the fairy tale element of the story.
"We sought a kind of poetic realism," explains Thomas, "and in the
context of the real world there are little trill notes that make it a little more
magical ... such as twinkle lights, a certain color of petals blowing across
the courtyard behind O'Reilly's or the light in Grace's paintings."
The two key locations in Return To Me are O'Reilly's Restaurant, the
comfortable Italian-Irish joint where Grace works with her "family," and
the Lincoln Park Zoo, where Elizabeth Rueland serves as a devoted
trainer, and for which her husband Bob is designing and building an
expanded gorilla habitat. The perfect location for O'Reilly's was
discovered at the popular Old Town barbecue restaurant Twin Anchors,
a classic neighborhood hangout. And, despite Brent Thomas'
considerable (and temporary), alterations, O'Reilly's maintained the real
restaurant's air of warmth and hospitality. "The most important change in
the transformation of Twin
Anchors into O'Reilly's was that in the script, there's a courtyard in back
of the restaurant," notes Thomas. "This necessitated moving the kitchen
to the side and adding doors and windows in the back. Because we're
moving in and out of Twin Anchors during the course, of the shoot, it's
become a little ballet of people moving in at midnight the day before we
film and setting everything up."
O'Reilly's was Gaelicized by copious amounts of colorful Irish
bric-a-brac found by set decorator Daniel Clancy and his team.
Meanwhile, the O'Reilly courtyard was actually filmed a few blocks away
in the front of a comfortable Old Town residence. The art department
also constructed the facade of a typical neighborhood brick building
directly to the left of Twin Anchors, giving the impression that the comer
restaurant is really in the middle of a street.
The Great Kwan
Without question, the most remarkable location of all was the Lincoln
Park Zoo. Director/CEO Kevin J. Bell and curator of primates Dr.
Kristen Lukas provided the production unprecedented access to its
grounds, including the Lester E. Fisher Great Ape House - and to a
magnificent resident gorilla named Kwan. "Kevin, Kristen and everyone
else at the Lincoln Park Zoo were great to us," says Jennie Lew Tugend,
whose previous experience working with large mammals included
producing all three entries in the popular Free Willy series of motion
pictures. "They liked the project from the very start, and told us that they
had turned down a lot of other requests to film there ... mostly because
those projects required the animals to behave in unnatural ways.
"What we all agreed upon, both production and the zoo," continues
Tugend, "was that Kwan would not be specifically trained for anything he
does in the movie. Everything that we see Kwan do is within his regular
behavior."
In Return To Me, Kwan plays Sydney, Elizabeth Rueland's "student" and
friend. "He was amazing," enthuses Tugend. "He would do take after
take like a professional. We asked for a lot, and got more." Don Lake
adds, "People are going to think that Sydney is a guy in a monkey suit,
but that's Kwan, the Real McCoy!"
Kwan was called upon to interact in different scenes with David
Duchovny, Minnie Driver and Joely Richardson. The actors were
enthralled once they got past their expected nervousness at being in such
close proximity to such a powerful primate. For Duchovny, an important
scene in which he speaks to Kwan while sharing his food was a great
learning experience. "We did four or five takes and Kwan was cool,"
recalls Duchovny. "But then, every time I handed him a zucchini strip, he
would throw it -down. Finally, Kwan started handing them back to me.
So we switched to apple strips, and he liked that. So it was five takes
with zucchini, two or three takes with apple. He's a true actor. His
motivation got tired on him and he had to go to a new one."
My Kind of Town...
More Chicago and area locations were found in the Lincoln Park district
(Bob and Elizabeth's lovely home), Oak Park (Megan and Joe's more
informal working class environment), Michael Reese Hospitals, the famed
Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park and an aerie high above the city on a
West Wacker Drive skyscraper, which is one of Bob Rueland's buildings
in the film and his place to be alone in thought.
As Brent Thomas was decorating the town, costume designer Lis
Bothwell was appropriately attiring the cast. "Bonnie was very
collaborative regarding wardrobe, but also had strong ideas. The great
thing about Bonnie is that she's chosen a lot of people to work on this
movie who she trusts, which makes it easier for you to do your job. You
feel like you can bring something new to the table."
For much of the film, David Duchovny's look is considerably less
buttoned-down than Fox Mulder. "The last thing Bob worries about is
styling his clothes," Bothwell notes, "so he usually pulls out a pair of jeans
and throws on a tee shirt. The thing is, David looks absolutely sensational
in jeans and tee shirts!" Reflecting Grace's joy in a new-found life,
Bothwell dressed her in colorful prints and patterns, many of them from
the charming Dutch fashion line, Oilily.
While selecting the wardrobe for Jim Belushi as Joe Dayton, Bothwell
received a quick lesson in how Chicago really works. "I told Jim that I
wanted to put a Cubs tee shirt or hat on him, or maybe something from
the Bulls. Something that blares out 'Chicago' loud and clear. But Jim
said that it had to be the Blackhawks, the Chicago ice hockey team. I
told Jim that I knew what had been legally cleared and what hadn't been,
and it had to be either the Cubs or the Bulls.
"Jim told me not to worry ... it would be cleared. It turned out that the
owner of the Blackhawks is one of Jim's best friends!"
As the filming progressed, the cast became something of a mutual
admiration society, with Duchovny definitely winning the admiration of his
leading ladies. "Everything about David is sexy," says Driver. "His manner
and delivery are so quiet and slow that you're usually not prepared for
how hilarious what he's saying turns out to be."
"Minnie's a great actress," says Duchovny, returning the compliment,
"always prepared, upbeat and a team player."
Of course, the tone was set by director Hunt, who while carefully
guarding the screenplay so meticulously worked out by herself and Lake,
also utilized her strong background in improvisation to encourage her cast
to organically develop their characters. "All directors are different," notes
Hunt, "and I've certainly worked with so many different types and
personalities. But I think it's important to be nurturing. I was a nurse
before I was an actress, so that comes in handy....
"What I'm most impressed by is the teamwork,," continues Hunt. "The
cast and crew amazed me everyday. I come from a family of seven, so
teamwork is second nature for me. I love to see it in its practical,
application on a movie set."
Says Driver, "Bonnie looked out for me, as a girl, which is a really good
thing. She just understands, from acting and emotional points-of-view,
how to protect other performers."
"Bonnie opened the floodgates on improvisation for the scenes inside of
O'Reilly's," notes Loggia. "There's singing, dancing, gambling and lots of
talking. Bonnie brings out the best in her players. She has a wonderful
spirit without being a goody-two-shoes."
Belushi adds, "Bonnie makes the actors feel very confident and free, and
she stimulates you to be real and make the dialogue your own. And
consequently, it's like a playground here. She brings out a great joy with
the ensemble, and I'm sure it will be captured on film."
Indeed, the cast and crew often reacted quite emotionally to the heartfelt
drama and comedy that was taking place in front of the camera. "We cry
behind the camera," admits Tugend, "and it's not just because we're a
couple of women making this movie. The- cameramen are crying, the
grips and gaffers; are crying, the craft service people are crying. And
then, with other scenes, they're often laughing so much that they have to
hold their hands over the mouths so that they don't ruin the take."
On some sets, the company can't wait until Friday wrap so they can
disappear back into their apartments or hotel rooms. But on Return To
Me, there were Friday night post-wrap dinners at a popular Old Town
restaurant frequented by Hunt. "I think it's a unique situation on any
movie where we become friends outside the set," notes Tugend. "Often,
productions are either tense or difficult, and as soon as you wrap, it's
'thank goodness it's over.' But, on this film, some very long-lasting
friendships have been forged."
After completing work in Chicago, the company alighted across the
Atlantic to the even more wildly romantic environs of Rome, filming in
and around the baroque precincts of the Pantheon, which further
internationalized the film's romantic heart.
"Return To Me says that there are all different sorts of love," notes
Richardson, "that come to you at different times of your life. Different
people that you love can bring out different things in you. And life does
indeed go on, despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles that are
thrown into our path by fate."'
"There's a magical element to the entire movie," concludes Driver, "which
you must give yourself over to. What happens between Bob and Grace is
a little farther over from coincidence, but in the spirit of the film, it's not
unbelievable. You like these characters so much, you want them to be
together ... and the film allows the audience to fulfill their wishes."
