The collapse of Enron and
the subsequent demise of their accounting agency Arthur Andersen
made global headlines and sent shockwaves through corporate America.
While some investors lost their life savings, Enron's bosses made
millions. Now the tale of unrelenting corporate greed has been made
into a movie The Crooked E. This airs on Hallmark channel on 28 June
at 10:30 pm. India also gets a brief mention in the saga.
The film is based on the book
written by former Enron employee Brian Cruver. In the film, actor
Christian Kane plays Cruver. Kane was previously seen in the
television series Dawson's Creek as well as in Angel, which was the
spin off to Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Through an email questionnaire
sent by Indiantelevision.com's Ashwin Pinto, Christian dwelt on his
role, his love for acting and music as well as his attitude towards
his fans.
Did you get to meet the
real life Brian Cruver and what did you learn from him?
Yes, I did get to meet with Brian. It was a nice thing because I
understood better what was expected of me, how Brian felt, what he
went through. Brian himself had worked there only for around nine
months, but he had all the inside information
On the day the scandal broke
out, reporters were calling Brian and he gave them anonymous quotes.
It's when those quotes started to appear on the front page of papers,
that he decided to write a book. Meeting Brian was fun and it
definitely helped me a great deal in portraying him.
Was there extra
pressure on you to depict a real life person?
It is always more of a challenge when you know, besides your
directors and your audiences you have this set of people who know
the real person and will always compare you to him. Then there is
the person himself, evaluating my performance as he watches it.
Were the former Enron
employees happy with 'The Crooked E' or did they feel that some of
the depictions were exaggerated?
There are a couple of showbiz distortions but for the most part, the
TV version is right. For example, the rumour about strippers being
hired as secretaries just makes the movie more spicy
There is another instance, which
was that Brian never broke up with his fiancée due to work pressure.
Also the employee pep rallies led by Kenneth Lay (Enron's former
CEO) were far more massive than what was depicted in the movie.
Is Brian Cruver the
youngster with stars in his eyes who comes crashing down to earth
something you can personally identify with?
Well yes. I think it happens to all of us at some time in our life.
The height of the fall is variable.
I started my career as an actor
thinking it would be a piece of cake and that I was the best thing
that happened to the industry. It's when I actually started out that
I realised how tough it was.
When and how did you
get your first major break in television?
Well, I dropped out of University and wanted so badly to be an actor
that I headed straight for Hollywood. I got a job as a production
assistant and then also in the mailroom of a talent agency, hoping
that I would come across something suitable for myself.
Fame L.A was launched back in
1997. I went ahead and auditioned and bagged the lead role. Then
came Rescue 77. The fortunate or the unfortunate thing is that
neither of them turned out to be huge successes.
Do you recall the
moment when you realised that you would be an actor?
My best friends as a kid were the movies and my singing. Very close
to home, I found a movie theatre that became my second home. I would
watch every single movie that hit the theatre. Sometimes, I would
watch the movie more than once.
After watching the movie I would
act like a bartender, a pilot, a cop, a sweeper, a vampire…gosh! I
wanted to be everything. They became my inspiration. But it was Top
Gun that made the final mark. It was somewhere in the middle of it
that I decided that acting was my calling!
When and how did you
get involved with 'Angel'?
Well, the producer wanted me to be on Angel as a lawyer. It was not
as cool as being dressed in a camouflage and having fangs and stuff,
but it was a great experience anyways.
There has been
criticism in some quarters that even those teen flicks which have an
interesting premise are often dumbed down to appeal to a not too
demanding audience. Your comments.
I think everyone has a role to play, a job to do. The film critics
have a job to do too and I guess they are only doing their job.
How much baseball
practice did you do for you role in Summer Catch?
I was already decent at baseball if I may say so! We would play lots
of it! For the role though besides all the practice there were also
loads of re-takes!
Would you say that the
new movie 'Secondhand Lions' which you appear in has more emotional
depth and maturity as opposed to the slapstick seen in Just Married?
I think the role is packaged differently. Every role requires a
particular performance and has some expectations. It is my job to
meet the expectations.
Tell me a bit about the
music you create with your band Kane?
I'm the lead singer and a guitarist in our band - Kane, founded by
my friend Steve and myself. We are a rock-n-roll country band. We
just basically have a ball.
The music is real good - I guess
anyone would say that about their own music, but seriously, even if
you don't like country music, you will love this.
What is a bigger
priority for you? Music or acting and why?
Well, both are a priority for me. I treat both of them with equal
importance. I know it's strange to have two 'first loves'…but that's
the way it is. I mean every time I would act I would also sing.
Finally what kind of a
relationship do you enjoy with your fans?
Well, I owe a lot to them. They have seen me in all these negative
and 'bad guy' roles, but they still love me and support me and
that's the best thing. I want them to know that I am not really
'that bad' and that I love them all! Cheers!