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 The star of "Stripes," and "Groundhog Day," has been
omnipresent at this year's Toronto International Film Festival:
he took fan questions after a 30th anniversary screening of
"Ghostbusters" on Friday, hammed it up at the premiere of his
new film later, and was spotted cycling around the city and on a
late-night dance floor in random photos by onlookers.
The festival also declared last Friday "Bill Murray Day," and a
cadre of loyal fans dressed up as some of his beloved characters
in a costume contest.
But Murray also famously does his own thing, so it came as
little surprise when he left partway through a grueling schedule
of on-camera interviews on Saturday, deciding the fun was to be
had elsewhere.
"If you get a glimpse, the party follows him," Naomi Watts,
Murray's "St. Vincent" co-star, told Reuters, after returning
from a two-hour lunch on Saturday at the home of two of Murray's
friends. "He is such a joy to work with and every day on set
felt like a party."
Murray has no agent or manager, and uses a 1-800 phone number
and messaging service to field calls from producers and
directors eager for his involvement in their projects.
Melfi, who also wrote the script for "St. Vincent," said he
called the number dozens of times. Luckily for him, Murray
finally called back.
"I try not to write with someone in mind because if you don't
get them, it's just depressing," he said. "But Bill's the
perfect blend of bitter and sweet - and heaven and hell, really.
And once I started thinking of him, I couldn't stop thinking of
him."
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The film tells the story of Vincent - who drinks, gambles, and lives
alone but has periodic visits with a pregnant Russian prostitute -
and his unlikely friendship with the scrawny kid who moves in next
door.
After a rousing audience reception at the world premiere, reviews
have been mixed, with the BBC saying that the crowd "responded on
Pavlovian cue to the film's cutesy, aging-rebel theatrics, but,
really, Bill Murray deserves a better movie."
Yet Variety called the Weinstein Company movie a "window into the
actor's own soul", which it describes as "a ticket to movie heaven."
Apart from praise for Murray, accolades were also heaped on the
performance of Jaeden Lieberher, the 11-year-old actor whose
character Oliver is taken under the wing of Murray's Vincent.
Initially nervous in Murray's presence, Lieberher said the iconic
actor helped him relax and proved an instructive presence.
"I learned from him, but he didn't teach me with his words," he
said. "He taught me how to do it when he didn't know he was teaching
me."
(Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson, G Crosse)
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