Clooney Shines in Baumbach’s Film on fame’s costs

George Clooney. Enough said. Movie star, director, Oscar winner, amplifier of things no one else will say. In person, he’s better looking than in his films. You might say he’s one of a handful of “old guard movie stars”. It’s like he was put in a charm shower and emerged with all of them, so an encounter with him is effortless, attentive and like a cashmere hug. It makes sense, then, that his current movie role as the titular, Jay Kelly in Noah Baumbach’s new film, is perfect casting.

When Netflix did a press pre-screening, Clooney emerged in the foyer, en route to introduce the film. He was surrounded by journalists asking for selfies. It was the kind of moment when security muscles in and most stars make a quick exit. Not Clooney. He had a word and a smile for everyone. When the start time for the film approached and security tried to shackle him, the handful of people who hadn’t had their time in the spotlight with him pushed forward frantically. Clooney held up a hand to his handlers and interacted with the stragglers. That’s old school. That’s how the greats treat the crowd.

Back to the film ... we meet Jay Kelly in a crisis. He’s a 60-year-old movie star, beloved by the world, but he’s bought into all the trappings of stardom at the expense of real connections. He’s closest ally is his assistant, Ron Sukenick played by Adam Sandler, who Kelly under-appreciates.

Kelly has weak ties to his daughters and is beginning to understand that while he’s given himself to the world, those he loves have found him wanting, and have created their own lives that don’t necessarily include him. He also has to factor in that the cachet he uses with the public has worn thin with his extended inner circle. What elevates Clooney’s performance is the discovery and awareness that flitters across his face as he consistently fails to connect. You see his hurt and confusion, and the quick adjustment to adapt to using tools that might serve his profession but fail to work in his actual life.

One of the examples of his failure to connect is when he takes a train journey to be with his daughter. This exposes him to all the “average” people who go a little loopy at having a star sitting on a train with them, available to touch, talk to, and provoke. Kelly is a star, so his entire entourage gets on the train with him. For those who’ve never experienced famous people up close, especially the Hollywood famous, the team of support and paid sycophants that a star travels with, is eye opening. The humour of the film is baked in – some of it is ludicrous, some of it surprising, and some of it very sad. The character has to ask himself repeatedly if he is the person he thinks he is.

Baumbach says, “Success becomes its own barrier between you and yourself. We all have that gap between who we present ourselves as, and who we’ve decided we really are.”

Kelly is a tricky role. People will think Clooney is portraying himself; he isn’t. “A lot of people have stated to me, ‘It’s like playing yourself’.” But he doesn’t agree. “I don’t have the regrets this guy has. My kids still like me.” He pauses with perfect comedic timing before adding, “They’re eight. That could change.” His eyes crinkle in that Clooney way that sprays charm like expensive perfume into the packed ballroom at the pink, iconic, Beverly Hills Hotel. His kids are twins, Alexander and Ella, with his wife, human rights lawyer wife, Amal, who’s 47 years old. “All the people I’ve worked with in the past still work with me. I have a totally different life compared with this guy. I don’t really relate to him. People asked if I was holding up a mirror, but no, I didn’t see it that way at all. This guys is a d*ck. He’s like Frankenstein. He destroy the lives of everyone who’s in close contact with him, and his only concern is that he’s perceived as likeable.”

Clooney is in touch with the realities of the world and stardom. He reminds us that although his father was known in Kentucky for being a TV anchorman and journalist, and his aunt, American singer and actress Rosemary Clooney, had been famous, he grew up more “fame adjacent” than living in the kind of superstardom we now associate with him. “When I was a young, I watched Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous with [host] Robin Leach. I was cutting tobacco for $3 an hour and I’d hear some famous actor complain about their life, and I’d be like, ‘F*ck you, I’m cutting tobacco.’ So I don’t find any reason to complain about things," says Clooney, admitting that he caught that brass ring. “I got lucky in my career and life. I’ve had the chance to work with amazing people.” Would he choose it again now that he knows what fame is? “Yeah, I would. Fame is a funny thing - it offers you the opportunity to do the things you want to do. You run towards it like a bug towards the light and when you get there, you get really zapped. Like, holy shit, because there’s a lot of other pieces you hadn’t realised would come into play. But the truth is, what fame has afforded me is the ability to work on projects like this. I’m 64 years old, these parts don’t come around very often. I feel lucky to have these opportunities. Fame has afforded me extraordinary experiences. There are things you can’t do and fame makes some things limiting. But that’s no worse than cutting tobacco.”

The supporting cast include Greta Gerwig, Riley Keough, Billy Cruddup, Laura Dern and Eve Hewson.

• Jay Kelly is on Netflix now