The Last Three Days...

I’ve spent the past three days (well, almost) with Paul Haggis in Paris to promote his latest film “The Next Three Days.” The film is an adaptation of Fred Cavayé’s French movie “Pour Elle” and stars Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks. I took to the stage on Monday night to translate a Master Class with the director, then worked as a translator at the press junket on Tuesday and finally hosted the Paris premiere of the film on Tuesday evening. It was so incredible to hear such a talented writer and filmmaker (and producer!) talk about his rise to success. “It’s a ridiculous business. You need to believe in the impossible,” Haggis said. He added: “Russell Crowe’s character in the film is right when he says that if you follow logic, you’ll never succeed. You need to believe, even when all of the odds are against you and you need to work ten times harder than everyone else.” He then said during a press interview that “You need to be mad to accomplish anything great in this world. That’s why we’re all sitting here today. Otherwise, we’d all be accountants.” Russell Crowe is fabulous as usual in the film, and, though long, I like how Haggis strayed from traditional Hollywood thrillers by allowing the characters to develop before giving us a fast-paced, intriguing and thought-provoking finale. The film hits French theaters next Wednesday so enjoy the next three days before you enjoy “The Next Three Days”!