THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, February 13, 1997 TAG: 9702130030
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
LENGTH: 70 lines
CUPID SAYS: Opposites attract.
Confucious says: Wanna bet?
``Fools Rush In,'' the film opening Friday that aspires to become the Valentine's Day dating flick, poses the question: Is the love of your life worth giving up the life style you love?
Matthew Perry (of the hit TV series ``Friends'') plays a straight-laced New York corporate type who meets, falls in love with and marries a fiery Mexican-American, played by new star Salma Hayek (``Desperado'' and ``From Dusk til Dawn). It's a bit of a romance in reverse. The two don't really know each other when they march to the altar, but she believes it's destiny. He isn't so sure.
She comes from a large, loving family. He comes from a very proper, uppercrust, Manhattan setting. A culture clash develops.
Hayek tosses her ebony hair over her shoulder and admits that there is something of herself in her role. ``Latinos believe in destiny,'' she said. ``We often believe that fate has its way with us. This is a love story about fate. Matthew was already cast in the lead when they came to me. They say `You must make a test to see if the chemistry is right.'
``What do they mean by this chemistry? Are they going to give me a blood test? That's what I thought when I went in.''
Perry, who has a bumbling, fumbling vulnerability that reminds one of both Jimmy Stewart and the early Tom Hanks, is the latest member of the ``Friends'' cast to attempt a crossover from the small screen to movie theaters.
``The only pressure I felt was to be good,'' he said. ``It's a falsity that the movies made by the `Friends' cast have all flopped. They've done very well, actually. But I didn't feel my movie career depended entirely upon this one film. I figure I'll get other chances, but this chance is good enough.''
He's committed to ``Friends'' for three more years and vows he'll stick with the show until the end. All those nasty reports about how the cast had gone money-hungry and were threatening to quit were false, he claims.
``We were in a position that the show is making a fortune, for other people,'' he said. ``Yes, we did want to negotiate a new contract and we decided we would do it all together. We do the same job. But it was done quietly and logically, not the way it was played out in the press.''
Born in Massachusetts, Perry grew up in Canada and came to Los Angeles to play professional tennis. He was discovered in a restaurant by director William Richert, who put him in the movie ``A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon.''
Hayek was a big star in Mexico before she gave it all up to try for jobs north of the border.
``In Mexico, everyone knew me,'' she said. ``Here, when I arrived, I was a nobody. To get my green card, I took a job as an extra on a little film. One of my fans saw me there and said `You have ruined yourself. Why would you take a non-speaking part?' But I love movies, and to me, Hollywood is where movies are made. For `Desperado' I was paid nothing. Now that I am a `star,' I spend all my money trying to look like a star. It is very expensive.''
``Fools'' director Andy Tennant denies the press reports that his co-stars didn't get along.
``English is not her first language,'' he explained, ``so he was frustrated, sometimes, on the set, but that is perfect for the plot. Matthew says that they are like brother and sister - only they get to make out.''
Both are slated for stardom. She stars next in ``Breaking Up'' with Russell Crowe. He appears in Chris Farley's next comedy.
As for the Valentine date market, it remains to be seen if they will buy a romance in which the lovers are at such odds. Confucious and Cupid aside, the film takes its drive from Elvis, who sang: ``Wise men say only fools rush in, but I can't help falling in love with you.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
COLUMBIA PICTURES
Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek co-star in ``Fools Rush In.''