Fairfield gets a glimpse of a star
July 16, 2007
MEG BARONE, Correspondent
FAIRFIELD — The morning tide has erased the evidence that Leonardo DiCaprio’s feet touched the sand at Sasco Beach.
No matter to his scores of local fans; they have proof the superstar was in their town Monday. DiCaprio’s Fairfield visit, including a romp on the beach with co-star Kate Winslet, dinner at the Scandinavian Club and racing on foot through Southport center, was captured for the silver screen by director Sam Mendes, Winslet’s husband.
Fairfield is the latest location for the filming of “Revolutionary Road,” about a troubled Connecticut couple in the 1950s based on the book of the same title by Richard Yates. The film crew has also shot scenes in Trumbull, Darien, Beacon Falls, Norwalk, Stamford and Thomaston.
It is the first time that the Oscar-nominated actors have been paired since their performance in the blockbuster hit “Titanic.”
The Sasco Beach set was closed to the public during several hours of afternoon shooting, but a crowd estimated by police at more than 500, and possibly as many as 700, lined the intersection of Pequot Avenue and Old Post Road for a glimpse of their favorite film star.
Some of them stood in Southport center all day waiting for the action to begin about dusk.
“We got here at 12:30 [p.m.]. We saw everything get set up. We saw them cover the crosswalk and sprinkle paint on it to blend in with the road. It shows how much work it takes and how many people it takes even for a short scene,” said Claudia Bernstein, 16,
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of Fairfield, who came to the set with two friends.
The owners of Heatwave Tanning Studio closed for the day and the whole staff hung out in Southport center from 9 a.m. Manager Toni Meszoros, 28, of Stratford, said she would have been too distracted to work knowing DiCaprio was close by.
“He’s the best actor in the world,” Meszoros said.
Re-enacting a scene from the bow of the Titanic in the movie, Jen Skiba, 20, of Fairfield, portraying Winslet’s character Rose, extended her arms out and threw her head back, while her friend Meg Greco, 19, also of Fairfield, took DiCaprio’s role as Jack, securing her from behind.
“We’re huge Leo fans. We just really want to see Leo,” Skiba said.
Kelcy Jenkins, 18, of Bridgeport, had waited the longest for the chance to meet her heartthrob. “Eleven years, six hours,” she said, referring to the first time she saw DiCaprio on screen in Baz Luhrmann’s “Romeo + Juliet” and the amount of time she spent on Pequot Avenue Monday.
Although most people in the crowd were young girls, Keri Cocchiola, of New Haven, said, “You don’t have to be a 20-something to be out here waiting since 2 o’clock for Leonardo DiCaprio. “We’re star struck,” said Cocchiola, 32, who hoped to be close enough to the action to see DiCaprio’s facial expressions.
No such luck, but the crowd did watch as the star jumped from a 1950s-era brown-and-white Buick, race through the Spic & Span Market parking lot and up Rose Hill Road.
After four short takes filming wrapped for the night.
During the filming, the large crowd cooperated with requests from assistant director Joseph Reidy to refrain from screaming or cheering when DiCaprio appeared on the set, to avoid using video cameras and to disable the flash function on their still cameras.
“This is a scene that’s very deeply emotional. When you see the movie you’re going to see what I mean. It’s very powerful Let him [DiCaprio] go through what he has to do. When we call a wrap, that’s the time to [cheer and applaud],” Reidy said.
Those who attempted to scream, tape or take flash photos were reminded by Police Lt. Don Smith that cameras would be confiscated and, if necessary, the crowd would be pushed back.
While most people were there for DiCaprio, a handful of people said they were disappointed Winslet was not in the scene.
“I love Kate because she’s a good role model for my daughter. She makes my 12-year-old daughter not so conscious about her body, not so consumed by weight,” said Holly Hart, a co-owner of the tanning studio. Hart was referring to Winslet’s stardom despite her refusal to conform to film industry standards of size 2 actresses.
“She’s a natural beauty. A policeman said he saw her without makeup and she was stunning,” said Coreen Pace, owner of Coreen’s Bridge Floral, one of the storefronts in Southport center that was transformed into the 1950s.
Location manager Rob Streim said he was attracted to Southport center because it already had a mid-20th century feel and little had to be changed.
“It’s perfectly stopped in time,” Streim said. Many of the storefronts’ original signs were untouched. Only a handful of store signs were changed, air conditioners were covered and a Fed Ex deposit box was camouflaged with shrubbery. Spic & Span Market got signs reflecting grocery prices from the era — a 12-ounce jar of plum preserves for 25 cents, nine cans of green beans for $1, two pounds of Marlene margarine for 49 cents.
The street was lined with 45 vintage vehicles, including a 1951 black Studebaker, 1955 Cadillac Coupe deVille, 1948 Plymouth, yellow Ford Thunderbird, and Guy Hatfield’s 1950s Plymouth Special Deluxe wood-paneled station wagon.
“My mother bought it new. It’s never been restored. I heard about the film and drove it down myself. The prop person said it was perfect and to park it in front of the pharmacy,” said Hatfield, of Stratford.
Streim said the town of Fairfield was very accommodating to the film crew. “I found everyone totally respectful. They rolled out the red carpet for us. I’d come back to Fairfield any day,” he said.
“Fairfield, the new L.A.,” said Jacqui Janis, 24, of Fairfield.
First Selectman Kenneth Flatto said he was pleased the town could host a film and crew of this caliber. “It’s a good sign for Connecticut that more films are interested in using our scenic spaces and beautiful neighborhoods,” he said. The town benefited too. The production company paid Fairfield $7,000 for the rights to film there.
“Every little bit helps,” Flatto said.
The film shoot will continue today in Fairfield.
Revolutionary Road is due for release in 2008
Source: The Connecticut Post
Posted by: Ruth
Posted in: News > Revolutionary Road
