We talked to Golden Globe-nominated actress Adriana Barraza about her work in the Oscar-contending "Babel" and her dealings with the infamous "Three Amigos" of Mexican cinema.
So Adriana Barraza didn’t win a Golden Globe for best supporting actress on Monday night. The Mexican actress has turned a lot of heads with her work in "Babel," playing a nanny braving the desert along the U.S.-Mexican border to save the children in her care.
"Babel" took home best picture at the Globes, and Barraza is up for a Screen Actors’ Guild award for best supporting actress and as part of the "Babel" ensemble. With the help of a translator, Barraza spoke with Rotten Tomatoes about awards season, working with Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, and the new wave in Mexican filmmaking.
Adriana Barraza with Elle Fanning in "Babel"
RT: The Golden Globes have often been called a dress rehearsal for the Oscars. An Academy Award is a possibility now, right?
AB: Well, I hope that the rule, pueda ser conmigo tambien, no?
Translator: I hope the rule holds true for me, too.
RT: "Babel" was a pretty tough role for you, huh?
AB: Yes, it was so hard. Not only physically, but emotionally, so, so hard. To create this character was so difficult because Amelia [is] nothing [like] Adriana Barraza. The weight, the look, the skin, and the character is not Adriana Barraza.
RT: I heard you had some trouble in the desert dealing with the heat.
AB: Yes, of course. Because it was 122 degrees. You can imagine this situation. With five pounds more on my weight, and the heels and the stockings and the sand, and the "Please, cut!" again and again and again in the scene and so forth and so forth and so forth. It was so, so hard, but it was so fun because I love acting.
Barraza in "Babel"
RT: Since this was your first English-language role, was that also a challenge?
AB: Yes, because I have to try to hear me. Honestly, lo que yo decia, tengo que sonar verdadero en Ingles.
Translator: I had to try to sound real, sound convincing in English.
RT: This has been a very big year for Mexican filmmakers internationally. Obviously it’s got to be kind of a thrill to be part of that.
AB: Yes, of course. I’m very, very proud because I am part of this group of Mexicans. Alfonso Cuaron, Guillermo Del Toro, I love Guillermo Del Toro. I don’t know Alfonso Cuaron yet. I hope to know him. But I know Guillermo Del Toro, and I love Guillermo Del Toro. He looks like a beautiful kid, I love his pictures. Obviously, I love Alejandro. And there are many, many Mexican creators in this occasion and I am very proud to be a part of this group.
