THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 2, 1995 TAG: 9511020039
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
THE EYEBROWS bothered him the most.
To play Powder, the weirdest looking dude of the movie year, Sean Patrick Flanery shaved his head every day. Some days, he shaved his entire body. Through it all, it was the eyebrows that were the most trouble.
``People kept telling me that nothing would grow back,'' he said. ``It scared the hell out of me,''
The new Disney release ``Powder,'' which has been drawing a lot of controversy and puzzlement in and around movie theaters this week, features Flanery as a teenage albino who has been sheltered in his grandfather's cellar all his life.
He seems to be an advanced species with super intelligence. He can quote ci books, move objects through the air and do wild things with electricity - yet he has no social graces, because he's never been around people.
The movie is raising questions about religion and sexuality, and it purposefully doesn't answer many of them.
Flanery was the first to audition for the role, yet he was chosen only after some 80 other young actors were considered.
``I stayed out of the sun for three months before filming began,'' the 30-year-old actor said. ``That was the start. I lost seven pounds and ran every day to get down to 142 pounds. I wanted to look pitiful. Then I went to Houston, Texas, for six months of the filming itself. The makeup took from two hours to five hours every day, depending on whether it was a nude scene or not.''
Flanery had only the highest praise for his director, Victor Salva. It was not known, though, at the time of this interview, that Salva had been convicted of child molestation and had served 15 months in a California prison. The conviction came as a result of a 1992 sexual liaison with a 12-year-old boy who, to the consternation of the Disney organization, made the past public by picketing in front of a theater showing ``Powder.'' The victim is now 20.
Many think that ``Powder'' will become a cult film to rival the likes of ``Edward Scissorhands'' or ``Carrie.'' If that happens, Flanery, whom no one can believe is 30, faces being known as Powder for the rest of his life.
``I'm not sure how I'd feel about that,'' he admitted. ``I'm not ready for it. As for now, I can go anywhere and no one knows me. You wouldn't have known I was Powder if you had just seen me on the street, would you?''
He's right. Flanery, who starred in TV's ``The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles'' for George Lucas, now has a head of black hair and a heavier look.
During the filming, he learned about intolerance. ``I, of course, was bald and with this chalky look for the six months of the filming,'' he said. ``I felt quite alone. I'd go in restaurants and people would stare. They'd treat me differently. Even when they wanted to be kind, they gave me strange looks. They, for no reason, would ask, `Are you OK?' Of course I was OK. Why would they ask?
``I learned what Powder would feel like. It was a help, actually, in getting to the part, but it was a painful one. You couldn't escape from it. There were no days off. To say the least, it ruins your social life.''
Flanery claims that he understood Powder's position when he was forced out into the ``real'' world.
``His knowledge was inside two bookcases,'' the actor said. ``He didn't know people. He hadn't learned yet to walk around in a shell the way we all do. He hadn't learned yet to hide.''
There were several nude scenes, featuring Flanery as naked as the day that Powder was born. ``Sure, it was a little embarrassing,'' he said. ``I had to imagine that there weren't 50 people there watching. That took some concentration.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
HOLLYWOOD PICTURES
Sean Patrick Flanery avoided the sun for months and shaved his head
daily while playing Powder.
KEYWORDS: PROFILE BIOGRAPHY MOVIES by CNB