Like Crazy, the indie romance that earned a Sundance seal of approval from last year's festival, is a movie that lives and breathes on the chemistry of its two stars, Anton Yelchin (Star Trek) and Felicity Jones (Brideshead Revisited). Even off-screen, the mojo between the two is just as vibrant.
I took part in the chemistry between Yelchin and Jones during our small chat about the film, which includes a discussion about facial hair, Space Jam, and the unique occasion in which Yelchin received his first kiss.
Read Nick Allen's scorecard review of Like Crazy (6/10)
Let's talk about facial hair in movies for guys. (To Yelchin), Do you like your facial hair in this movie?
Felicity Jones: It's a necessary evil (laughs).
Anton Yelchin: I think what we tried to do was that basically the first time after you meet him after he hadn't seen Anna in a while, he just looks like sh*t.
Jones: It's just not like not caring.
Yelchin: Especially when you see him with Anna, he's so put together. It allows you to see a quick transition in time, physically and emotionally. And then he cuts it off. But then he starts balding.
From a woman's perspective ...
Jones: Facial hair is essential.
Even when it looks like a goatee thing?
Yelchin: Yeah, I have a sh*t goatee thing.
Jones: I mean for her.
Yelchin: For you, you like clean shaven?
Jones: For me, I like a man with a mustache.
Yelchin: What about (gestures to his lap).
Jones: I think it depends on the season. I think in the winter it is a little bit cold without ...
Yelchin: My pubes are a jungle.
Jones: And then in the summer you want to be lean and fast (laughs). I'm not going to protrude into specific details, but what percentage of you is in your character?
Jones: 2.5%.
Yelchin: For me, out of all the scenes, I'm the one that's yelling in the kitchen. Everything is very different for me. But I've had that fight a thousand times. Over anything. "Where's my f**king BURGER?!"
Jones: "Did you f**k him?! Did you?!" I think in every character there are aspects of yourself that you bring to it. But then it would be really boring to just play yourself. I think when Anna is younger that I feel like myself when I was a bit younger. But they're different people. Particularly with Anna, they're so forward, and so front-footed, and that's not how I would read.
Yelchin: I'd play you.
Jones: You'd play me? F. Jones? Which is now what I call myself.
Yelchin: (In an accent) "F. Jones."
How different was the movie from when you shot it and when you actually saw the final cut?
Yelchin: I'd say it was emotionally what the exact outline was. In terms of the scene.
Jones: The tone, yeah.
Yelchin: Scenes were different. I didn't remember doing certain things until later.
Was there a certain scene that you were surprised was missing from the final cut, or ... ?
Jones: No, we were just really pleased. We loved each other a lot, and we thought it would be really saccharine, and it wasn't. The greatest thing was how unsentimental it was. You were just in this relationship with these two people, and that was unexpected, I think.
Well, you guys are great.
Yelchin: That's the sequel to Like Crazy. "Quick Divorce."
Quick Questions
Favorite Fruit? Yelchin: Apples. Jones: Mangos.
What did you have for breakfast this morning? Yelchin: Oatmeal, hash browns, bacon, eggs, and grapefruit juice. Jones: Yogurt, fruit, orange juice, and coffee.
If you could be somebody for 24 hours, and go back to being yourself, who would it be?
Yelchin: Michael Jordan. 1990s Michael Jordan.
And you can get a little Space Jam in there.
Yelchin: Yeah, f**k yeah!
What about you, Felicity?
Jones: Kristen Wiig. I just watched "SNL" last night.
Favorite blockbuster movie?
Yelchin: I'll say T2. Or Commando. Last Action Hero. Jones: The Goonies.
Age of first kiss?
Yelchin: I had to do it for a movie when I was eleven. Hearts in Atlantis. That was my first kiss, and it was on-screen for like 200 people. Jones: 12. The guy had braces. And he smelled really strongly of Jean-Paul Gauthier aftershave.