Andy Garcia at the Red Sea International Film Festival 2022: «The dream of cinema»

For Andy Garcia, cinema continues to be a dream from which he hopes not to wake up. “It’s the life I’ve always wanted,” he says in a meeting with the press during the second edition of Red Sea International Film Festival of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The spark was ignited at the age of 16-“I grew up with Jaems Bond films”-, even though, then and there, his parents hoped that young Andy would take a different path. “In my senior year, a teacher encouraged me to go that route, so I started studying theater in college and eventually moved to Los Angeles, even though my parents were worried. My father wanted me to take care of his business, which was understandable given that his generation had as reference points Bogart, Grant and Gable». «They supported me, however, despite everything», underlines Andy Garcia, aware that the film that marked a watershed in his acting career was only one: The Untouchables by Brian De Palma, thanks to which he starred with Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro and his idol Sean Connery.

“It is the film that marked my career and gave me international success, even if at the beginning I had to play another role,” says Garcia before talking about the other great project that changed his life: the third and last chapter of the saga de The Godfather by Francis Ford Coppola. “I was the last person to audition after a long list of candidates, I remember it very well,” recalls Andy Garcia. “The first Godfather it was made on a tight budget, but it was able to break out worldwide because Francis recognized early on the potential of the novel on which it was based. The second chapter was, however, a much larger production», says Garcia adding that he owes a great debt to all the great directors he has worked with because they represented for him “an incredible chance to grow”. “Working with colleagues I admire is something magical, as well as the beauty of this job,” says Andy Garcia, on the strength of his 35-year career.

Does interpreting very different roles still represent a challenge for him that is worth accepting? “It is essential. As an actor, you need to explore as many colors and shades as you can: rightly so», explains the actor, reviewing the very different roles he has played in his life: from the tender and romantic pilot in love with Meg Ryan in Love each other to the treacherous Terry Benedict in Ocean’s Elevenup to that of Fernando in the second chapter of Mamma Mia! alongside Cher. «I feel very lucky to work with people I respect», Garcia repeats once again, proud of his work in the new remake de The father of the bride, where he played the role that was played in 1950 by Spencer Tracy and in 1991 by Steve Martin. «I took on the role of that character with great responsibility, but also seeing it as an incredible opportunity: I’m very happy with how the film turned out». Finally, a positive reflection on the many steps taken by Hollywood in terms of inclusiveness in recent years: «There is more variety in the casts and in the stories, and I think it’s a great opportunity to finally talk about different people and cultures. The films travel around the world and give you the opportunity to understand what is happening in countries far from yours. It’s a beautiful thing, and that’s why it’s a privilege to be here.”

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