Speaking Frankly

Finally witnessing the light of day against all odds after savage funding difficulties, the Irish-produced Peaches is not exactly likely to sweep the boards at international awards ceremonies, but its mere release is remarkable enough in the circumstances. Written in 1994 as a play by Anglo-Argentine Nick Grosso - to much stage acclaim in London - Peaches spins a nudge-nudge-wink-wink yarn about three laddish cockney layabouts whose rampant sexism allows them to lead uncomplicated, if deeply pathetic, existences. It's played chiefly for laughs, with a largely-unknown cast of young British talent displaying commendable enthusiasm.

As the seven-year timescale might indicate, Peaches' path to the silver screen was not a smooth one. Everyone in London rejected the script, forcing the (Irish) producers to shoot the thing in Dublin on a derisory budget of $200,000, with most of the crew deferring their full fee. With a budget like that, it was quite a feat to actually get the project finished, and it is here now in all its ragged glory.

One saving grace is a fine lead performance from up-and-coming Welshman Matthew Rhys (Titus), who portrays wannabee womaniser Frank with an impressive air of fuck-you arrogance, and generally does as well as humanly possible with pretty flimsy material. What was Rhys' initial reaction to the script?

"I was intrigued," a thoroughly knackered-looking Rhys responds, "I hadn't read anything like it in a long time, as a dialogue-driven piece. The part itself was unlike anything I'd ever touched, Frank being a total sleazeball like the rest of them, so that was a challenge. Even by the time we finished making it, I hadn't managed to like him, although I thought I kinda understood him. I think he's quite entertaining, and I couldn't help feeling sorry for him. I felt sorry for all of them, to be honest - even at the end, there's no sense that they're ever going to grow up or move their lives along."

How does Rhys think the film will be received, critically and commercially?

"I don't know," he replies wearily, in a manner which strongly suggests he wishes he were at the dentist instead of attempting to argue Peaches' merits. "Maybe for a student market (long pause) - I hope it's an honest film in what it's setting out to be, that there's no explosions. But it's a difficult niche-market for it, the pitch is a bit difficult… I'd say students and 18-to-24-year-olds might go for it. Maybe girls more than boys: boys might be like 'fuck off, we're not that bad' whereas a lot of girls around that age who've seen it have gone 'yeah, fucking blokes are like that.'"

Changing tack, I ask him about last year's infinitely superior Titus, in which he portrayed one of two murderous maniacal twins (the other being Jonathan Rhys-Myers) who spend the movie's entire duration laughing like hyenas and hacking people's limbs off.

"I really enjoyed doing that and I think it's a film of serious value," he reflects. "But I wondered for a while if I was going too far into the seriousness, and I've deliberately taken a break from that in my last two projects. And I've got a good film coming out now where I'm playing a sort of show-song-singing camp homosexual, that'll be out next year. And I just wrapped up a film last night in Dublin called The Abduction Club, which is more of a swashbuckling romp with swords and guns and horses, it's got a good story as well and it's good old-fashioned entertainment, it was like being a kid again, so I enjoyed that.'

Peaches opens nationwide on April 6th.