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April 4 - April 11, 2004 |
A very passionate Celentano
The daughter of Italy's most famous couple stars in Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ
By Angela Baldassarre
Originally Published: 2004-03-21
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Rosalinda Celentano plays the Devil
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Her name is barely known on this side of the Atlantic - unless you're of Italian descent. But in her native Italy the word Celentano is synonymous with music, film and superstardom. The daughter of renowned singers and actors Adriano Celentano and Claudia Mori, 39-year-old Rosalinda Celentano has had a tough time living up to her pedigree. But following a brief music career and roles in Italian films, the stunning actress has hit the big time in Mel Gibson's controversial box-office hit The Passion of the Christ.
The film, which chronicles the final hours of Jesus' life, showcases a remarkable Celentano as the androgynous Devil who tries to lure Christ into doubt.
Tandem talked to Rosalinda Celentano from her home in Rome.
How did Mel Gibson offer you this part?
"I was working on a short film with [director] Francesca Neri, and while I was on the set I was told that a very important director wanted to see me for a very important and very particular role. The person wouldn't tell me anything else because she didn't want to disarm me but said I should study Aramaic under this particular professor. One month later they call me, and I go in for an audition. I walk into this room and I see Mel Gibson and this professor of Aramaic. Gibson had my photograph and asks me to read some Aramaic with this professor. I do and everything is fine. We start laughing, and he made me very comfortable. After a while he says, 'I'll see you on the set. I want you to do this part. You're perfect for it.' It was incredible."
So did you already know how to read Aramaic?
"No. No. I didn't know how to read Aramaic, but I have a good musical ear, so reading with this professor was very easy for me. Also, I believe if one studies hard enough, one can learn anything. So that's what I did."
In order to keep the Devil androgynous, it's my understanding that Gibson dubbed your voice with that of a male's.
"No. The voice was mine. It was deep, I dubbed it myself in a heavier tone. What they did then, with my voice, is they altered it with a harmonizer to make the voice more metallized. It was a pretty natural process. They did it in a way that the voice could be attributed to anyone, a man, a woman, an old man, a young woman, or no one in particular. That was their intention."
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