Part II of the Big T’s

Girls special

By JASON DONALD

It seems some guys don’t have all the luck. Charlie Dattolo, played by Christopher Abbott in HBO’s hit show Girls, has been humiliated by comments in a diary, dumped while in bed with his girlfriend and, now in season two, is struggling to find a balance between his new love and feelings for his ex.

At a press junket for HBO Latin America, The Big T sat down with Abbott and asked if the show’s predominately female perspective makes a difference to how the men are portrayed.

“Even though it is a female point of view, which is Lena’s (Lena Dunham, the show’s creator), primarily the way that she writes is very personal,” Abbott said.

“So she takes situations that she has either heard of or seen or experienced herself. And she bases her characters on either people she’s met or people she knows personally or has heard about in passing. Everything she writes is very honest in that way.

“I think the focus is about just these characters, and whether or not they’re from a female point of view is just coincidence that a female wrote it. It’s more about just the story.”

Charlie’s story so far has centred on his relationship with former long-time girlfriend Marnie (Allison Williams). Their emotional roller coaster was one of the most interesting plot threads of season one and there’s been no let-up in the drama in the new episodes. Abbott said the realism of his scenes with Williams is down to the writing and direction.

“Because the writing is so fluid, if you’re speaking just technically, the lines are easy to remember because they’re written so well. So that saves you a lot of time of working on it. Because you do it once and at least you know the lines.

“And because of the direction that we have, whether it’s Lena that’s directing or Jesse Peretz that’s directing, or whoever, people know the show so well.

“All these people have worked on the show since the first season, so people know the show so well and they know where it’s going. So there’s a nice road to go on. Even if you stray a bit off of it, there’s always something to bring you back. So it’s because of the material that makes it easy to do.

“There’s a cadence and a way of speaking and everyone gets it. Lena has this way that sounds very natural but is very specific and everything that is said needs to be said. There is no fat on it.”

The couple’s final break-up in season one came at the end of an uncomfortably intimate encounter, in typical Girls style. Abbott admits there can be a “natural nervousness” with these scenes.

“I’m not blind to the fact it’s a TV show and people watch it and that’s what’s happening,” Abbott said.

“But because it’s rooted in truth and honesty and there’s always a sense of vulnerability, in a sex scene for example, it doesn’t feel like I’m doing something wrong because you’re trying to portray something true.

“I think it’s important and it’s real. I mean, sex happens.”

While Charlie often comes off second best in confrontations, Abbott says he wouldn’t be too keen on him turning more assertive.

“It would be harder for me if it strayed too far,” he said. “This is my only experience doing a TV show, so I find it challenging enough to keep it open year after year. Doing theatre and doing film, I always know the end. In a way I hope she (Lena) doesn’t, because me and her together worked out who this guy is and how he acts and what he does.”

While Abbott doesn’t see much similarity between Charlie and himself, there are elements he is drawn to.

“There are things that Charlie says and does that I wouldn’t agree with, I wouldn’t do myself, but I like how Charlie continues to try and be a good person.”

“The thing I like about it is, he works on it. He makes mistakes and sometimes he says the wrong thing, but there’s a part of him that’s always aware of it. He can kind of hate himself for it, but he learns from it at the same time.”

And Abbot says he is also fond of the character of Ray, played by Alex Karpovsky.

“I like Alex Karpovsky’s character and story line,” Abbott said. ‘This guy is like trying to find his way. But he’s like very smart, but kind of digs himself in holes and I think it’s really interesting.”

After just one season, Girls has landed two Golden Globes, an Emmy and gained a huge fanbase. But Abbott, who also starred in the acclaimed drama Martha Marcy May Marlene, said while you can tell quality when you’re on the set, you have no sense of whether a project will be successful.

“You can’t predict what’s going to happen. The thing with Martha is we all knew we were doing something kind of special. But it’s hard to think like, ‘let’s go for that award’ while you’re working on something, you know? I like projects that way.

“Truthfully, I think even though Martha and Girls have had success, I feel like because of how unique it is it could have gone either way. We knew we were doing something good, but you don’t know if people are going to grab onto it.”

And is he personally affected by the show’s success?

“For me it’s always just about the work and you do different jobs throughout the year, so this show is one of the jobs that I do. But for me it all lies just where we show up and film it.

“Outside of that, it’s just what’s happening.”

Abbott could find himself in this particular job for some time yet, with Girls set for a third season, something he’s looking forward to.

“I think it’s great, there’s a lot of life in these characters still,” he said. “Most of these characters are in their mid- to late twenties so there’s still some growing up to do. And it’s a time of life when people can actually change who they are.”

And he says there’s nothing wrong with just being entertained.

“I think the characters are very unique and specific and I think the stories are very unique and specific, so whether or not people can learn from them I don’t think it’s important. I think it’s the way the show is and the way Lena writes; the audience should be a voyeur and just watch. If you learn something, you do, if you don’t, you don’t.

“It could be for pure entertainment and that’s okay.”