Pauline Collins and Maggie Smith in Quartet
Not everybody would enjoy getting whacked over the head with a bunch of flowers by a furious Maggie Smith.
But for Pauline Collins, it was her favourite part in filming Quartet, the directorial feature debut from Dustin Hoffman.
“She didn’t hit me hard enough to start off with… but I said, ‘you’ve got to really go for it Maggie,’ and she did,” Collins says.
Also starring Billy Connolly and Tom Courtenay, Quartet delves into the joyful madness that is life in a home for retired opera singers. But existence in Beecham House is about to be turned on its head with the arrival of egotistical opera diva Jean Horton (Smith).
Collins, best known for her award winning performance in the 1989 feature Shirley Valentine, once again brings a lovable character to the silver screen with her portrayal of Cecily “Cissy” Robson, a retired mezzo singer “just beginning to tip-toe down the dementia road.”
It was a somewhat personal role for Collins, whose mother also suffered from the illness.
“(When I got the role) first of all I thought of my mum, who had it, and then I thought how my mum was very joyful, all the way through, and maintained her sense of humour … and then she dipped into another world. So I wanted that for Cissy,” Collins says.
“I wanted the way that she conceals her dementia a lot, because I think a lot of people do that, especially in the early stages, or don’t readily admit that they might have it. Because we’ve all done things where we’ve left our glasses and don’t know where they are. So I wanted that element that everyone can recognise in themselves. And also, the sweetness of her character which was still there.”
Both Courtenay and Smith recommended Collins for the role, unbeknownst to her at the time.
“I got a phone call from my agent saying, ‘would you read a script and would you accept a phone call from Dustin Hoffman?’ I said, ‘Oh all right,’” Collins remembers.
“I loved the script, loved the part, and then he rang up and talked for over two hours. He’s a real phone call junkie. He loves the phone. And I felt I knew him by the end of that period. He’s a great communicator. He offered me the part and I found out later that it was Maggie and Tom who suggested me for it.”
The driving force throughout the film is the preparation for Beecham House’s gala concert, in which Cissy desperately wants to perform as a quartet, but is met with strong reluctance from Jean. (Hence the attack with the bunch of flowers.)
Whether or not the gala goes ahead remains a secret to the end of the film, but all four actors did take singing lessons together.
“It was wonderful doing the learning, and the process of singing is very energising. Because there’s all the breathing… and the resonation in your head of the notes is wonderful too,” Collins says.
“So we enjoyed that part, and we gave a fair bash at it, but not amazing, obviously.
“But Tom says he and I were the best. He always says that.”
Though undoubtedly a comedy, there are moments of real sadness and great poignancy in Quartet, much of which has to do with the process of getting older and what that means physically, mentally and emotionally.
As Billy Connolly said in a statement, “Ultimately it’s about facing up to the fact that sometimes you’re not who you thought you were. These were the opera singers equivalent of players for Barcelona and Real Madrid – and they’re still good, but in a retired sense."
But on the whole the film remains optimistic about old age, and for Collins, that the retirees continue to do what they have always loved doing – whether it be singing, conducting or playing an instrument – was a key message in the film.
“I think the most important thing is that even if you do have to be in a safe haven, which is what (Beecham House) is, is not to stop what you do. Don’t become the person who sits in the chair, and goes, “if you’re happy and you know it clap your hands” (sings).
“You don’t want to do that. Do what you’ve always done. Or if you’ve never had a job, learn something new.”
Or, as Connolly puts it, “Don’t die until you die. Stay interested until the very last second. I’d like to think I’ll be like that. Stay interested; stay in it. Don’t let them feed you; feed yourself. And don’t pee your trousers. “
Quartet hits Australian screens on Boxing Day.
View the trailer here: