If You Go Down To The Woods Today...

For shame. ‘Tis disconcerting enough that the Academy overlooked Paul Giamatti for a Best Actor nomination, but it’s bordering on the criminally insane that Kevin Bacon didn’t get the nod for The Woodsman as widely expected. The film’s subject matter, I guess, was just far too strong a meat for the glitzy gong committee.

This astonishing work from debutante director Nicole Kassell casts the King Of Six Degrees as a paedophile recently released back into a small-town community. There he aims for a quiet life based around a job at a lumber yard and a newly burgeoning romance with a co-worker (played by Mrs. Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick), while battling his own twisted desires and the hate-fuelled prejudice of others.
Acting as a supremely considered riposte to those waves of hysteria that wind up with paediatricians taking shit from tabloid inspired mobs, The Woodsman is an unmissably complex treatment of its fraught subject matter which saw Nicole, who also co-wrote the film with playwright Steven Fechter, researching psychological profiles and case histories over several years.
“It was certainly difficult at times,” she tells me. “You couldn’t really predict when the research would just suddenly hit you. But it was really important to me that all possible viewpoints were taken into account. I didn’t want it to be a knee-jerk film.”
As it happens, The Woodsman is anything but. Kevin Bacon’s protagonist is mediated through the alternate gazes of his newfound love, a loyal brother in law (Benjamin Bratt), a suspicious co-worker (Eve) and a weary stalker cop (Mos Def) weaving a gripping, multifaceted and incredibly compassionate portrait of his condition.
“Like anyone else, my first gut reaction with paedophiles is lock them away for ever,” explains Nicole. “Obviously you feel a sense of utter revulsion about their acts. But if Kevin’s character Walter visits tragedies on others, it’s important to understand that he himself is borne of tragedy. And it’s equally important to consider our humanity at a time when that’s less and less a consideration. Are we capable of showing compassion in these difficult cases? Because that’s where it really counts.”
One extraordinary scene sees Bacon’s paedophile spying on another predator outside the local school while his voice over takes on the guise of a sports commentary. I wonder how difficult it was to get into such a twisted, voyeuristic scene from behind the camera.
“That sort of gaze was definitely difficult to maintain. But I guess that’s were all those hours of research and preparation came in useful.”
Not surprisingly, Nicole was hardly on the lookout for such controversial material after she graduated from New York University film school. It was only after seeing the original play that she had a Dasmascan moment and decided to take the risk.
“Seeing the play really was like an epiphany for me,” she says. “I had no prior interest in this, but the importance of thinking about this area really hit me, so I approached Steven with a view to developing The Woodsman as a film. Of course, it was incredibly difficult persuading anyone else and it took years to even get a producer attached.”
Help came in the unlikely form of Kevin Bacon who was blown away by the screenplay and immediately signed up for the lead role and as an executive producer.
“I’ll never forget taking that call,” laughs Nicole. “I was just too shocked to jump up and down or I certainly would have. He was just amazing to work with. He’s incredibly generous, both as a person and an actor. He gave up his time and rehearsed the role with me for a month without pay. He was also really great, really encouraging with all the younger cast.”
Obviously, given the nature of the material, I wonder how she managed with the younger cast? What could she tell them about the kind of film it was?
“Well, I love working with kids,” explains Nicole, who has herself just given birth to a little boy. “I know everyone says it’s terrible, but I had worked with children on two shorts previously and really enjoyed it. Transparency was crucial. We were very frank about the film’s content with the children and their parents. It wasn’t my place to discuss child molestation in detail with them. That was clearly a job for their parents. But we were all open with one another and made sure there were no secrets on set. It had to be like that. You can imagine that doing a scene like the one with the little girl in the park is already a challenge without there being a shroud of mystery about what we’re doing.”
Understandably, Nicole was a little disappointed for her lead actor and guardian angel when the Oscar nominations were announced.
“I felt so disappointed for Kevin. His performance is just incredible. But it was a really competitive year in that category and it’s not really a topic many people feel comfortable with.”
Next up for Nicole is the screen adaptation of Arthur Miller’s The Ride Down Mount Morgan. That must seem like a picnic after the raw, uncompromising material of The Woodsman.
“Absolutely,” cries Nicole. “It’s a very dark comedy, but it’s completely relaxing beside The Woodsman. It’s almost like doing a rom-com by comparison.”

The Woodsman is released February 25 and is showing as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival.