It is not often that British director, Stephen Frears, crosses the Atlantic. However when he does, he usually brings along his latest film for us to enjoy.  

In Dallas, for only a day, Frears took time out his schedule to discuss his latest film, “Tamara Drewe,” exclusively with The Daily Campus.

The film, headed by British starlet, Gemma Arterton, was derived from the popular graphic novel bearing the same name.

Even though Frears knew of the novel and was a fan, he never thought to make a film of it.

“I used to read the comic strip all the time,” Frears said. “Me and the artist of the strip have known each other for almost 30 years now.”

The film and the graphic novel focus on the title character Tamara Drewe, a once ugly-ducking, who after a series of surgeries comes back to her small English village and shakes things up.

“I really wanted this film to be funny,” Frears said.  “Nowadays, Hollywood is only making franchise films; I wanted something different.”

During pre-production, Frears stressed the importance of casting, mainly that of the movie’s title character. However, Frears experienced much difficulty casting Andy Cobb, Tamara’s old flame, who was eventually played by Luke Evans, a British actor.

“Casting the decent farmer was a terribly hard thing to do,” Frears said. “They just don’t make decent chaps like that anymore.”

A subplot featured in the story involves the film’s antagonist, the pompous author Nicolas Hardiment, played by Roger Allam, and his homely, almost pathetic wife, Beth, played by Tamsin Greg.

The two are struggling to keep their marriage afloat after Allam’s character’s infidelities.

“It’s quite funny because both of these actors are almost the complete opposite in reality,” Frears said. “Roger is a great guy, and Tamsin is actually rather glamorous.”

Two other standouts featured in the film are the teenage girls that act as a Greek Chorus to “Tamara Drewe.”  

Both rather vocal, the two foul-mouthed friends, played by Charlotte Christie and Jessica Barden, provide comic relief to many scenes in the film.

“Charlotte and Jessica were great to work with,” Frears said. “They were very witty and just a riot to watch. I really enjoyed filming their scenes.”

Even though most of “Tamara Drewe” was easy to film, the ending, which involves a crescendo of stampeding cows, proved to be Frears’ toughest challenge behind the camera.

“The shot featuring the cows took days to film,” Frears said. “We had to find the perfect valley to lead them into. Eventually, we just shot the scene over and over until the editor would had enough material to work with.”

Frears’ last film to be released widely in America was the Oscar nominated movie, “The Queen.”  

Even though Frears claims to have grown up watching American cinema, he still can see a major difference between the way British and American films are made.

“American cinema is almost on a completely different scale,” said Frears. “[They] are almost like two completely different parts of the brain; they think differently.”

In terms of thinking differently, Frears sure fits the part. Prior to becoming a director, Frears earned a law degree from Cambridge University in England. How much of that knowledge he still uses is in question.

“The law degree was a complete waste of time,” Frears said. “I’ve been making films for almost 45 years now, and the thing I wish I would have studied more of would have to be economics.”

Frears’ future projects are in the works, with one that he hopes will involve him shooting in Las Vegas.

However, Frears claims that the economic state of cinema is not at its best and making a new film may be hard.

“England is virtually bankrupt,” said Frears. “Although, when it comes to movies, I’m a cheap date.”

“Tamara Drewe” is a sexy but hilarious comedy that is sure to brighten the audience’s day, a feeling that Frears hopes comes naturally with the film.

“I want the American audience to see this film as sort of a pleasure to watch,” Frears said. “Times are already gloomy enough, let’s at least have a laugh.”