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it depends upon societal
pressures. Part of the
confusion is the result of
what society is demanding
now, which is pretty much all
youth oriented. Cosmetically
and pharmaceutically you're
supposed to be able to
prolong your life, or at least the
appearance of it. The reality
is that you do age. Yes, we
are living longer, but there's
more pressure associated
with it. I suppose it's how all of
that manifests in each of us,
which has to do with our own
peculiar personality. That's the
interesting part about it; how
each one of us deals with it.
Generally speaking, your libido
drops, physically you're not
as active and not able to do
as much. All of that is pretty
much the same in people, but
very few people address it
psychologically. There's a lot
of pressure to be young. But
there is also a lot of pressure
being old, not to get any older.
I think that is so screwed up.
Allison Kugel: In Book
Club, your wife, played
by Mary Steenburgen, is
upset because she feels
your marriage has fallen
into a slump. Do you
think marriage should be
able to go through its
knew everybody. In this movie,
although it's an ensemble cast,
the focus was my interaction
with Mary's character.
Allison Kugel: What was
your initial impression
of the Book Club script
when you first read it?
Craig T. Nelson: Oh, I loved
it! It spoke to something I
was familiar with; that whole
process of aging. You think
you're never going to get
there, but eventually it just
shows up and there it is. I
thought the script was well
thought out, cogent, specific,
and each character was
delineated. I wanted to do the
movie right away, after reading
the script.
Allison Kugel: This movie
addresses that mid-
to-later-life slump that
people can slide into
without even realizing it's
happening. As you said,
you wake up and it's
just there. How do you
think men experience this
phase of life differently
from the way women
experience it?
Craig T. Nelson: I think
we experience it in much
the same way. Although,
