Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 3, 1995 TAG: 9503030062
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAY DEDRICK KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE
DATELINE: DENVER LENGTH: Medium
Nah.
`` `The Brady Bunch' was really all about hair,'' said Christine Taylor, who plays - no, seems possessed by the very spirit of - eldest sister Marcia Brady in ``The Brady Bunch Movie,'' which finished the President's Day weekend No. 1 at the box office.
``Especially with the girls: It had to be shiny, all the ends had to be perfect. I spent close to an hour and a half getting the hair right every day,'' she added. ``By the end of [making] the movie, I just wanted nothing to do with my hair.''
In town last week to talk about the film and the phenomenon that inspired it, Taylor, who's about 23, no longer sports her character's flowing, evenly parted hair - she's wearing it pulled back, and with bangs.
Though her black, thick-heeled shoes wouldn't be out of place on Marcia's feet (thanks to the retro fashion trend), Taylor's beige blouse and black pants are far too natural and simple to be found in a Brady closet.
``I got to keep a bunch of skirts, and a few skirts I wore in a couple of scenes I would wear today - though not necessarily with the same tops as Marcia,'' the actress said. And despite the hair-rendous regimen, Taylor kept the pink, flowery hairbrush she's seen with in the movie.
Taylor calls ``The Brady Bunch Movie'' an ``affectionate satire'' of the 1969-74 sitcom that took on bigger-than-life proportions in its rerun afterlife. The film throws the family into 1995, but maintains their early '70s wardrobes, attitudes and lingo. Groovy meets grungy in a head-on collision.
Through costuming and sharp voice work, the new cast convincingly emulates the original family, which included Florence Henderson, the late Robert Reed and Ann B. Davis. ``Brady Bunch'' creator Sherwood Schwartz, who co-produced the movie, has repeatedly singled out Taylor as the most uncanny match (with original actress Maureen McCormick) among the six sibling parts.
Part of why Taylor was so eager to do the movie and believed it had a good chance at success: She was part of the core, built-in audience of teens and young adults that Paramount was counting on.
``I grew up a `Brady' fan,'' she said. ``It became my after-school activity. It was fun being able to tell which episode it was after only the first 10 seconds.
``And I really could identify a little bit with Marcia. She seemed to have this ideal life, but in a way, Marcia was a little misunderstood. I think she was just your basic insecure girl who covers up with complete confidence. I know what that feels like.''
Moments from two of Taylor's favorite episodes are re-created in the movie, such as the Brady kids' talent-show appearance for the sake of Mom and Dad, and Marcia's recruitment of former Monkee Davy Jones for a school dance. Taylor was ``never the groupie type,'' but during her school days might have tried to land Duran Duran, Cyndi Lauper or Michael Jackson.
Of course, no Brady fan's recollections are complete without acknowledgment of a puppy-love crush: Taylor's was on big brother Greg. Most guys, of course, were Marcia men, and stepping into that spotlight brings a humble smile to Taylor's face.
``It's a very fun thought,'' she said. ``Obviously, it's the ultimate compliment. But it's scary to think people can see me in those clothes and that hair and frosted lipstick and still develop a crush! But it is flattering.''
The original Greg, Barry Williams (who makes a cameo in the movie), wrote a book about the various degrees of romance kindled among some members of the TV cast. But Taylor said not to expect any kiss-and-tell tales from the movie set.
``We were together about 13 weeks, and right from the start we immediately developed this bond,'' she said of her faux siblings. ``It would have been far too incestuous for us to develop crushes on one another.'' Instead, she turned to Christopher Daniel Barnes, the new Greg, for advice on guys.
In real life, Taylor - who grew up in Allentown, Pa., and lives in Hollywood - has just one sibling, a younger brother. Wisely, she avoids holding up the unreasonably blissful, fictional Brady experience as a measuring stick for familial togetherness.
``I consider myself having a pretty happy family,'' she said. ``The Bradys were really put on this pedestal. Me and my family don't have potato-sack races in the back yard, and we don't have square dances in the living room, but we do love each other. Those Brady experiences are good for a laugh.''
by CNB