Deck The Halls - Danny DeVito interview
Compiled by Jack Foley
DANNY DeVito talks about appearing in Christmas movie Deck The Halls – about feuding neighbours and festive decorations – as well as the joy he still gets from Christmas and the movies.
Q: What was the attraction of playing Buddy Hall in Deck The Halls?
Danny DeVito: I really love this guy and he has a definite character arc. Buddy is a man who works hard to make a living but he has never stuck at one job. He’s done all kinds of sales jobs, he can sell anything and now he’s selling cars. He’s happy with his wife and kids and loves his family. But he’s never had that 15 minutes of fame that Andy Warhol talked about – that little bit of self esteem that he thinks will give him something to be proud of.
Q: What leads to the conflict with Matthew Broderick’s character Steve Finch?
Danny DeVito: Matthew Broderick and his wife [Kristin Davis] are very well positioned in society. They have a really nice home and the guy is a smart optometrist. He does Christmas “by the book”, according to the rules, and everything is done in exactly the right way. One day my kids are looking at a computer satellite image of our neighbourhood and they can see everyone’s house but ours. Then I go outside and suddenly get an idea that it would be really great to see our house from space. I think it would be a fantastic achievement. So I decide to decorate my house with tons and tons of lights.
It’s very annoying to Steve Finch who has a neat and subtle approach to Christmas. My house looks dazzling and crowds of people come to see it, because it has the brightest and biggest lights display in the area, which is fun for people, and they clog the cul-de-sac, nobody can move. Unfortunately I have to invade Matthew’s space and he gets very angry.
Q: Have you ever had an annoying neighbour like Buddy?
Danny DeVito: The worst was when we were having a birthday party for my daughter, Gracie, years ago in our back yard and the woman next door called the cops. I said: “Wait a minute, what’s wrong with this picture? This is a little kids’ party.” The Beverly Hills cops arrived at the front gate and said they had a complaint from the neighbours because there was a wild party going on. I said: “Oh really? I’m sorry, it’s my daughter and her friends, would you help me control them?”
We walked all the way through the house into the garden and there were seven and eight-year-olds playing by the pool with moms and dads chatting and two lifeguards. The cops shook their heads in disbelief and laughed and said: “Oh God, sorry, let’s go.”
Every once in a while you get a neighbour who is ridiculous and irritating. Years ago, Rhea [his wife] and I had a house with a little swimming pool at the back, with beautiful trees bordering the property. They were big and lush and one day the neighbour bought a chainsaw and just went crazy. He hacked the trees and chopped them down. I said: “What possessed you to do that? They were healthy and beautiful.” But he didn’t have an answer and the result was that we lost the privacy and the barrier between our house and his. Most of our neighbours have been great though.
Q: Do you still enjoy Christmas?
Danny DeVito: I love the holidays; you look forward to this time of year. I don’t love the commercial aspect, but I love the fact that it signals a time when families get together and have a nice dinner. A lot of it revolves around food with me because a lot of my life does in a way. Christmas is a good excuse to eat everything. In my house we always have Italian food but also traditional Christmas cookies and some kind of meat – turkey or whatever. I’ve always decorated the tree but we don’t go overboard. My wife is Jewish so we celebrate all the holidays. We’re working a lot and so it’s great to relax for a few days and be together.
Q: How much do enjoy going to the movies?
Danny DeVito: I love going to all kinds of movies, I screen DVDs in my house, but I go to the theatre a lot in the afternoon. I don’t get bugged because there aren’t many people around. I often go to a 1pm show, get myself some popcorn and watch a good movie. It’s great entertainment. I think the best film of the year is Little Miss Sunshine
Q: Do you have any favourite films of your own?
Danny DeVito: I’ve been very fortunate working with people I really care about. I’ve enjoyed most of the films I have made. The experience of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest was unique, a once-in-a-lifetime project, to be a part of a movie that’s so moving and so much fun. I can’t call it my favourite but I love it. All the movies you do are such a part of you, I loved Matilda, and I loved Hoffa and LA Confidential.
Read our interview with Matthew Broderick