To say that Tony Goldwyn feels pressure to succeed would be something of an understatement.
The 38-year-old actor and filmmaker is both the grandson and son of a pair of legendary film producers, Samuel Goldwyn and Samuel Goldwyn Jr. Between them, the two are responsible for a score of older and more recent movie classics, including "The Best Years of Our Lives" and the Kenneth Branagh version of "Henry V."If for no other reason than that, Tony Goldwyn has tried to choose his film projects carefully. And he found the '60s-era drama "A Walk on the Moon" to be something he just couldn't turn down.
"There are great expectations of everything I do, so I've had to exercise my best judgment whenever anybody pitches something to me," Goldwyn said during a telephone interview. "But this is one case where I didn't worry about what other people would say."
("A Walk on the Moon" opened in local theaters Friday.)
Actually, his involvement in "A Walk on the Moon" was a fluke. The original draft of the script, by first-timer Pamela Gray, won a national screenwriting award -- an award named for Goldwyn's grandfather. It wound up in his hands by accident, and it was love at first sight.
"The characters were so vivid and the story was so fresh -- it was terrific," Goldwyn said. "I couldn't believe that this was her first script, because it seemed so mature. After I read it, I knew I had to be involved.
I really wanted to see it get done right."
However, Goldwyn only wanted to produce the film, or to play either of its male lead roles -- blouse salesman Walker Jerome or harried husband Marty Kantrowitz, who find themselves in competition for the love of the main character, Pearl Kantrowitz.
But it became readily apparent he wasn't right for either role. "I had to be realistic. I couldn't really see myself playing either of the parts. I could have tried, but it would have been a mistake."
At the same time, Goldwyn was getting much too involved in the project to remain solely as producer. "When we were interviewing prospective filmmakers, I'd find myself disagreeing with them on their approach to the story. They would want to change the characters, change the setting or change the script, and I didn't want to change a thing -- not a single word of it."
That's what put Goldwyn behind the camera, something he said he never really wanted to do.
"Like I said, I've felt pressure about my acting -- but directing was something else entirely," he said. "That was opening up a whole new can of worms. But what else could I do?"
However, the decision wound up delaying the filmmaking process. Few studios and production houses were interested in a low-budget drama from a first-time director, no matter what family he came from.
Enter actor Dustin Hoffman, who rescued the project from the scrap heap.
But Hoffman also wanted to direct the film. "Dustin had read Pam's script, too, and wanted to make it. Fortunately for me, I was able to talk to him, and he believed in what I was doing."
Hoffman got the project rolling again, and his company, Punch Productions, wound up producing the film . . . with Goldwyn attached as director.
"He's a real mover and shaker," Goldwyn said of Hoffman. "While we were having problems getting anyone interested, as soon as he got involved, things changed almost immediately."
With Hoffman's support, the film began to come together, beginning with the cast. Actors Viggo Mortensen, Liev Schreiber and screen veteran Tovah Feldshuh committed to the film, based on the script, and Goldwyn was able to convince his ideal Pearl, Diane Lane, to come aboard.
"There was no one else who could have played that role," Goldwyn explained. "Diane is a terrific, underrated actress and she looked like I imagined Pearl would look. I think she just needed the assurance that we were going to stick with the script."
Similarly, Anna Paquin was Goldwyn's only choice for the role of Alison Kantrowitz, Pearl's teenage daughter, who comes of age during the '60s. "I was extremely fortunate to get the cast I wanted. To be honest, I don't think the film would be what it is without them. They were so terrific."
Goldwyn said he was also extremely fortunate to land a spot in the 1999 Sundance Film Festival lineup. Though "A Walk on the Moon" had already been picked up by a distributor, Miramax Films, the rave reactions at Sundance convinced Miramax to release the movie in April.
"It was wild. People were giving us standing ovations at the screenings, and telling us how much they loved the movie," Goldwyn said. "In my wildest dreams I never imagined my first movie would get those kinds of reactions."