LOS ANGELES, Dec. 15, 1999 — “I’m very, very nervous. This is the premiere!” says “Hurricane” director Norman Jewison.
You’d think Jewison would be well past the point of having premiere nerves after dazzling critics and audiences for four decades with films such as “In the Heat of the Night” and “Moonstruck.”
Still, the excitement level was high Dec. 15 at Westwood’s Village Theater for the premiere of Universal Pictures’ “The Hurricane.” The film, which stars Denzel Washington, tells the true story of boxing champion Rubin “Hurricane” Carter. Carter was wrongly convicted of the 1966 murder of three white men in a New Jersey tavern.
The film’s stars made their presence felt. Washington, Vicellous Reon Shannon, Rod Steiger, Deborah Kara Unger and composer Christopher Young were joined by guests LL Cool J, Michael Clarke Duncan of “The Green Mile” and skater Tara Lipinski.
“You can’t write these kinds of stories. I didn’t know about the story. I submerged myself in the story and got passionate about it,” says Vi Shannon, who plays John Aretis, a friend of Hurricane’s who was also imprisoned falsely.
Shannon isn’t the only one who felt passionate about the project. For Oscar-winner Washington, “The Hurricane” has been a labor of love.
“He submerged himself in his role. He’s been carrying this film around for 10 years,” says Shannon. “He knew all about the Rubin Carter story. It took a man of his caliber to pull this film off.”
How did Washington’s commitment play out on film?
“He is without a doubt one of his generation’s most incredible transformational actors,” says co-star Deborah Kara Unger. “He transformed physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually in order to claim the essence of Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter.”
In addition to the film’s stars, the real life subjects of he film, Carter and Artis, also attended the premiere. Did they have any concerns that Hollywood would take liberties with the story that they lived?
Artis has too much faith in his friend to worry: “Rubin wouldn’t allow anything but the truth to be portrayed. I trust Rubin implicitly.”
And what of Washington’s performance as his friend?
“Denzel captured the total essence of Rubin,” says Artis. “He’s put such an intense impact in the film. You feel what it’s like to be behind bars with no hope of ever getting out.”
Indeed, Washington’s passion for the project and respect for the real men who suffered in prison unjustly pushed him to work harder than he ever did.
“I played a boxer so I wanted to live and eat and walk like a boxer,” says Washington. “I only had 15 or 16 months to do it, so I trained very hard and got in good shape.”
The stars wanted people to know that the film may deal with a serious issue, but that won’t diminish the pure entertainment experience.
Veteran actor Steiger says, “It’s very difficult to present a social position. If it feels like a lecture, people just clam up. They’re not interested. The trick is to entertain them first and then let them think, as they leave the theater, ‘Wait! They’ve got a point there!'”
“The Hurricane” opened in select theaters Dec. 29 and goes nationwide Jan. 14.
