Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 48

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1992DETROIT FREE PRESS 7D Mel Gibson stays cool under heat of superstardom A jr ft-, 1 That ability to play both ends of the spectrum, action hero and romantic lead, pop star and thinking-man's actor, has propelled Mel Gibson to the forefront of this generation of actors. In films such as "The Year of Living Dangerously," "Tequila Sunrise" and "Hamlet," he has shown unusually wide range for a movie star. 7 Vv 1 7 I 'til' A i rr-- I 4 i were so few projects that you didn't have the luxury of choosing what genre you wanted to specialize in. You tried out for everything. "But I'm proud that I've been able to do both kinds of films.

A lot of people get stuck in their careers, not because they can't do both, but because they won't Ao it. "It's easier to remain safe in one area. It's very easy to get complacent and comfortable and not want to take a risk. But I find that so boring and not a heck of a lot of fun. I'd rather go out and test myself." In "Forever Young," Gibson returns to the romantic-comedy genre after his third foray into "Lethal Weapon" territory last summer.

He plays a test pilot in 1939 so despondent after a tragedy that he agrees to be a guinea pig in an early cryogenics experiment. When two kids accidentally thaw him out in 1992, he is chased by inquisitive government scientists and a few unsettling memories. "This movie reminds me a lot of those movies they did in what they call the Golden Age of Movies in the 1930s and '40s," Gibson said. "There is a real innocence and charm to the script, and I was a big fan of those movies when I was a kid. "I was always influenced by those movies, which were on the TV when I was growing up, and I admired those guys, like Spencer Tracy and Cary Grant, who starred in those films.

They could do it all." "Forever Young" was written by Jeffrey Abrams, whom Gibson said he had wanted to work with since he read the screenwriter's last script, which was made into "Regarding Henry" with Harrison Ford. "He's a great writer, and I saw this script that was one of the best I'd ever seen," Gibson said. "I wanted the part, but I was told I'd missed the boat that it was already taken. "So we began to stalk him," he said with a laugh. "We told him we wanted to see his next script first, and this was it." Gibson has no acting plans beyond "Forever Young." He is editing a movie that he directed called "The Man Without a Face." Directing may well loom large in Gibson's future.

Though he got a chance to see himself older in "Forever Young," he said he doesn't want to continue acting as he ages, unless he ages as well as Clint Eastwood. "Did you see 'Unforgiven'? Clint looks fantastic. I want to look that good, but I'D never look that good. He has aged so well; I'll bet he could still beat the stuffings out of me in arm wrestling." But could Clint drive the "Tonight Show" staff as wild as Mel? In "Forever Young," Mel Gibson plays a test pilot frozen in a 1939 cryogenics experiment, then accidentally thawed in 1992. WIM 'DUE MB8 XD9ID1M) MB 0MMIMS3 03 mSSSSSS) BUS By Barry Koltnow Orange County Register The definitive test for measuring star power is neither box-office figures nor Nielsen TV ratings.

It has nothing to do with magazine covers or how many times you've appeared on "Oprah." As any jaded Hollywood veteran can tell you, the only true test is how silly the "Tonight Show" staff acts when a star drops by for a visit. And judging by the reaction to a recent visit from Mel Gibson, who stopped by to promote his film "Forever Young," which opened Wednesday, the popular actor must be the biggest star in the world. How else to explain: The two dozen or so staffers milling at the stage entrance when Gibson's limousine pulled up? The show's host, Jay Leno, running down to the makeup room to greet his guests? The staffers who lined up for autographs when the star was getting his hair fixed? Aren't these people supposed to be coolly professional? You would think they would be blase by now. Not when the subject is Mel Gibson. The star, who graciously signed every autograph and returned every wave and greeting, handles it all like it happens every day, which it does.

It comes with the territory of being perhaps Hollywood's biggest sex symbol, and Gibson, in his words, just "goes with the flow." "I didn't used to be very nice," Gibson said as he changed from his T-shirt and jeans into an expensive sport jacket and slacks for the "Tonight Show" taping. "I was crazed over all this attention. But then about the time I turned 30, 1 decided to lie back and enjoy it. "You can't beat it; you can't get away from it, so why fight it' You just beat yourself up and waste too much time and energy. It's not worth it.

"But I don't hate the attention. It's nice that people feel this way. It's just that it's more fun when you're young. The novelty wears off after a while." At 36, Gibson has been hovering at these lofty heights since the first of the three "Lethal Weapon" films. But he has enjoyed some measure of stardom since 1979, when he thrilled action-movie fans in "Mad Max" and riveted more sensitive moviegoers in "Tim," in which he played a retarded handyman.

That ability to play both ends of the spectrum, action hero and romantic lead, pop star and thinking-man's actor, has propelled him to the forefront of this generation of actors. In films such as "The Year of Living Dangerously," "Tequila Sunrise" and "Hamlet," he has shown unusually wide range for a movie star. "I guess if you look back, it seems like a strategy, but there was no specific plan," he said. In Australia although born in Peekskill, N.Y., Gibson has been an Australian resident since the family moved Down Under when he was 12 he says "there He seems to butt in on camera Although Mel Gibson insists it wasn't in the "Forever Young" script, the actor's behind once again appears in one of his films. It's becoming a habit it started with "Gallipoli" in 1981 and continued through the "Lethal Weapon" series but Gibson says it isn't put in as an inside joke.

"It was not a calculated move," Gibson said. "I was frozen in a tank and then had to run around in an empty warehouse in my birthday suit. There was film of me from the front, too, but that didn't get into the film. "I know it's becoming some terrible joke, to see my butt in a movie, and I'm going to have to start cutting it out. "It's not like I enjoy it.

It's absolutely horrifying to do it the first time, and you never really get used to it. You always feel insecure. I don't care who you are. It's just not a natural thing to do." By Barry Koltnow LOOKING FOR MONEY? Find the popular Free Press column "Your Money" in the new Business Monday section. SOclroil rcc Prceo Michigan's great morning tradition mmm msmmmt (SQSiSQSQMP SMS it)' I Go-Go Kir VV Asms SMmr ri.vtk.

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