Opinion Fox knows many things
Megan Fox is a fox. And not just in the way you might think if youve seen her in a tiny bikini in a mens magazine or leaning over the hood...
Megan Fox is a fox. And not just in the way you might think if youve seen her in a tiny bikini in a mens magazine or leaning over the hood of a 76 Camaro in Transformers. Yes,Fox is beautiful and often scantily clad,but dozens of beautiful girls arrive in Hollywood every day who are more than happy to pose nearly naked. Unlike them,Fox has a quality that sets her apart: Fox is sly. Canny. A devoted student of stardom,past and present,she knows how to provide her own colour commentary a narrative to go with the underwear. After having appeared only in Transformers I and II,in which the true stars were giant robots,she created a rebellious,frankly sexual persona and talked her way into the limelight. The only problem is,having come so far so fast,how do you stay this years girl when the year is almost over?
This question seemed to be on Foxs mind when I met her one morning in late September. She was in New York to host Saturday Night Live,and she answered the door of her hotel room dressed in black leggings,a low-cut tank top under a grey,loose-fitting long cardigan and large,rectangular glasses,which gave her a kind of sexy librarian look that vividly contrasted with her pinup image. Fox is small and narrow,with a tiny waist,and she wears her long,thick dark brown hair parted in the middle,which gives her a vaguely Indian quality. Her most striking feature is her eyes theyre bright blue and catlike,and they look half-closed even when theyre wide-open. For all her raunchy talk,Fox is surprisingly dainty and ladylike. She took ballet for much of her childhood,and she has a natural stillness and grace. Shes not warm or particularly friendly and doesnt seem at all interested in small talk. Instead,shes self-contained and a bit wary. She will answer any question,but she resists true dialogue. With Fox,its not a conversation but a presentation.
Four days earlier,Jennifers Body opened,and despite Foxs many salacious interviews and alluring photos,the movie performed poorly,winding up in fifth place at the box office. Fox plays a sexually sophisticated high-school girl transformed into a zombie demon that must feed on humans to survive. She satisfies this desire by first seducing and then eating men. Not surprisingly,and despite the heavily publicised 64-second lesbian makeout scene,men did not buy many tickets. Neither did women,who tend to prefer movies that feature more approachable,less vixenish actresses,like Sandra Bullock or Jennifer Aniston. People expected Jennifers Body to make so much money, Fox said flatly. But I was doubtful. The movie is about a man-eating,cannibalistic lesbian cheerleader,and that pretty much eliminates middle America. Its obviously a girl-power movie,but its also about how scary girls are. Girls can be a nightmare.
Historically,Hollywood likes to look for a close (and usually younger) facsimile of its reigning stars. When Julia Roberts became less interested in romantic comedies,those parts went to Sandra Bullock. When Robert Redford was more attracted to directing than to being a leading man,Brad Pitt was waiting in the wings. Angelina Jolie was unique: from the start of her career,she combined stunning looks,talent and a penchant for extreme behaviour. She was openly bisexual,had many tattoos and flaunted her fascination with drugs,blood and self-destructive behavior. What better person for Megan Fox to emulate?
And while Fox hasnt shown Jolies acting talent,the rest could be approximated. The physical resemblance is striking: Fox is shorter and less lush,but the pillowy lips are similar,and in a sea of Hollywood blondes,If theres an Angelina playbook,Fox followed it. The Jolie comparison would probably have been made by the media eventually,but Fox sped up the process. Fox,who is an expert shedder of skins,complains that the Jolie comparisons are now the bane of my existence, which is part of the reason she wanted to host SNL.
Her first acting role was in Holiday in the Sun an Olsen twins film that went straight to DVD. At 17,she moved to LA and landed the role of Lindsay Lohans enemy in Disneys Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. I played the bitch,of course, Fox recalled. I was always cast as the bitch. The light-haired girl is the sweet leading lady,and the dark girl is the sexy bitch. She paused. I didnt know how to act when I did that movie. I just mimicked all the bitches Id seen other people play on TV.
There would be a fairly easy way to enlarge her persona: Fox could look for a role that appealed primarily to a female audience. Jolie,who always had a stronger following in male-oriented movies like Tomb Raider,changed her image by appearing in the action-filled romantic comedy Mr. and Mrs. Smith. But Fox isnt convinced she should risk losing her male fan base. It might be a good business move, she said. And I get sent romantic comedies. But Im fearful of doing those. Im 23 I dont belong in a romantic comedy yet. Those movies are very safe. Theyre tailored to middle America,which is why they make the money that they make. But I dont want to do that yet.
On her right forearm,Fox has an intricate tattoo of Marilyn Monroe. Although she has read biographies of Ava Gardner,Elizabeth Taylor and other movie-star icons,Fox is particularly fascinated by Monroe. While Gardner led a wild life,her work is forgotten. Monroe created a legacy: her persona is instantly recognisable. Its not a character she played in a particular movie like,say,Vivien Leigh as Scarlett OHara in Gone With the Wind. Monroe was her own brand before branding existed. She lived her whole life as a character playing other characters, Fox said. And that was her defence mechanism. But Marilyn stumbled and lost her way. She became overwhelmed by the character she created. Hollywood is filled with women who have tried to cope. I like to study them. I like to see how theyve succeeded. And how theyve failed.
The New York Times
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