Giamatti's Career Hits High Tide With 'Water'

From wine to water, there's no question that acclaimed actor Paul Giamatti has been blessed with some miraculous roles the last couple of years.

In the hit dramedy "Sideways," Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church were metaphorically moving sideways in their lives until a fateful road trip through the California vineyards effectively steered each on a path to straighten themselves out.

And the trip only got better after that.

Giamatti went on to earn a Best Supporting Oscar nomination for "Cinderella Man" under director Ron Howard, while Church landed the plum role of Flint Marko/Sandman for "Spider-Man 3."

For Giamatti, who's had a solid reputation for years in Hollywood, the biggest things are clearly yet to come: starting with the starring role in new fantasy thriller "Lady in the Water," the latest opus from hailed mystery filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan.

In a recent @ The Movies interview, Giamatti was still gushing over how "Sideways" affected his life, and was thrilled that the cups of the film's cast continue to runneth over with success.

"It was a hugely significant thing for me -- certainly, people have much more interest and confidence in casting me in things. It's taken me to places that I never could see before," Giamatti told me. "I'm sure Tom feels the same way. He and I were journeymen character actor guys, and to get what we've gotten is unforeseen and amazing."

Wading Into 'Water'
Originally a bedtime story that Shyamalan made up for his two daughters, "Lady in the Water" follows Cleveland Heep (Giamatti), a man who's trying to run away from a tragedy in the past by leading a modest existence as the manager of a broken-down apartment complex.

But Cleveland's life abruptly changes when he discovers a young woman lurking beneath the complex's swimming pool. As it turns out, it is Story (Bryce Dallas Howard), a beautiful nymph from an epic bedtime story who is stalked by a deadly creature trying to destroy her mission of returning to her world from ours.

Finding themselves as part of the bedtime-like tale, Cleveland and the building's tenants are inspired by Story's plight. But in order to rise above their fears so they can help her find her way back home, Cleveland and the tenants must each discover what their purpose is.

Of course, anytime you tackle profound ideals like one's destiny -- or one's purpose -- it's bound to get the wheels turning inside of your head. So don't be surprised if "Lady in the Water" will find examining your own purpose in life after the film is over.

And that question isn't just for audience members. I asked Giamatti to mull over his own destiny and sense of purpose.

"Destiny -- so much of it is luck and opportunity," Giamatti wondered aloud. "I don't know. I've never thought of acting as my calling or anything like that, but the more I do it, the more I'm like, 'I can't imagine that I would have done anything else in my life, so there was a certain amount of incredible luck that happened upon my purpose."

Unfortunately, Giamatti added, most people aren't that lucky.

"I had a nice, comfortable middle-class existence which allowed to find what I was really meant to do in my life," Giamatti said. "I don't think most people have that opportunity, which is awful."

Staying In 'Character'
Personally, I'm always leery about using the "character actor" label in my interviews, because 11 years ago, Joe Pantoliano bristled at the identification. And this came despite the fact that I was quoting the first line in his bio: It referred to him as, you got it, a "character actor."

Giamatti, on the other hand, clearly embraces the "character actor" moniker.

"People ask me about that a lot and I say, 'No, it doesn't bother me -- I call myself that,'" Giamatti said. "I don't quite know what it means, necessarily, but I do get the sense that there is some reason that we shouldn't like it -- that there is some reason that we should get upset about it -- but I'm not sure why."

One good reason that I suggested actors shouldn't get upset is that films or plays are made up of, well, characters.

"I can understand Joe getting upset that because sometimes you just want people calling you an actor," Giamatti added. "There seems to be some distinction being made but it doesn't bother me at all. When I think of character actors, I think of those old school guys that I really love."

One definite benefit to being an actor to Giamatti -- character or otherwise -- is that his "everyman" appeal has opened up a world of possibilities for him. He's not only worked in a slew of great films, he's worked with some of the best directors in the business, to boot.

Starring in 1995 with Sydney Pollock on "Sabrina," Giamatti has since worked with Woody Allen ("Deconstructing Harry"), Milos Forman ("Man on the Moon"), Peter Weir ("The Truman Show"), Steven Spielberg ("Saving Private Ryan") and Tim Burton ("Planet of the Apes") -- and that's only to name a few.

But Giamatti's career kicked into overdrive under the auspices of Alexander Payne with "Sideways," which, of course, was followed by his performance as Joe Gould in "Cinderella Man." Continuing his amazing streak, Giamatti then found himself partnered with Shyamalan, who said that the actor possessed "the perfect balance of humor and humanity."

To ask Giamatti which of the directors was his favorite would have been like asking him to pick out his favorite child. But I was curious to know what separated Shyamalan from the rest of his filmmaking brethren ... what made him different -- and not necessarily better -- because they're all great filmmakers in their own way.

"He has his unique take on things, clearly. He has a unique way of filming things, and he has his own visual style. But stories he's telling are very, very personal and unique and eccentric," Giamatti said of the writer-director. "They're entirely his own creation, too. He's not getting them anywhere except from his head, basically, which is very interesting."

And, Giamatti added, he loves Shyamalan's approach, because he is very relaxed.

"He has an enormous control of things but he doesn't feel dictatorial or like a control freak, but he's absolutely assured of what he's doing, which puts you at an enormous ease," Giamatti said.

The great thing about talking with an actor like Giamatti is that because he's worked in depth with Shyamalan, he can offer a unique perspective about the man that comes off as an enigma to fans.

"He's a very canny guy -- and smart," Giamatti said. "He's enigmatic only insofar as when you get to know him, he's a very complicated guy. He's doing something, so complicated to make these very personal, arty commercial movies. That makes him kind of an enigma in itself. But what I found, because I expected him to be of this great mystique, is that he's actually an incredibly personable, funny guy."

Keeping Grounded
What I found to be most refreshing when talking with Giamatti was that the man is clearly humbled by all of his recent success.

Case in point is his admiration for his "Lady" co-star Bryce Dallas Howard. While she grew up around the film business as the daughter of director Ron Howard, she's still a relative newcomer to film roles. But that doesn't stop Giamatti from saying she's a far better actor than he.

"It's reality -- it's clear-eyed and realistic, is what it is -- it's true," Giamatti said, musingly. "I have no problem copping to that. She's more skillful, and she's more steady and purposeful and focused than I am."

Giamatti next will be heard as the voice of an exterminator in the computer-animated family adventure "The Ant Bully," which comes out later this month.

And even though he's the chief antagonist in "The Ant Bully," don't expect him off-screen to be treating anyone like dirt.

After all, he's been in the business long enough to know that if he wants to be successful and keep working, he has to stay humble.

"I think it helps, especially if you're 40 years old, basically," Giamatti mused. "I'm too old to go nutty."