The fictional series which tells the story of the romantic encounter between Marianne Ihlen and Leonard Cohen in Hydra, Greece, finally arrives in Quebec after competing at the French Séries Mania festival last February. The Press saw the first two episodes, which will drop on Crave on Friday.
“I needed Leonard. I felt a big void in my life when I was younger and he helped me feel more complete as a human,” revealed young American actor Alex Wolff, who plays the famous singer-songwriter Montrealer. “I feel privileged and grateful to be able to play him, but also to relive his quest, and to get closer to his truth. »
Alex Wolff’s voice – but also his demeanor – is so close to that of Leonard Cohen that at certain moments, we wonder if it is really him who is speaking… The American actor admits to us that he worked with A coach vocalist, Chris Lang, to match his voice, slightly nasal and deep, with that of Leonard Cohen. The same goes for his gait and posture.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Actor Alex Wolff
I think with the clothes, the suits and the sweaters, I was able to get into the skin of the character. Playing with Thea also gave me the confidence to take on this role. And maybe also all those cigarettes I smoked…
Alex Wolff, interpreter of Leonard Cohen
Thea Sofie Loch Næss is the young Norwegian actress who plays the character of Marianne Ihlen, Leonard’s young muse, met on the Greek island of Hydra, with whom he will have an intense but tumultuous relationship, which inspired the song So Long, Marianne, released in 1967.
“I spoke to a lot of people who knew her,” Thea Sofie Loch Næss tells us, notably at Hydra, where we filmed a good part of the series, to find her essence. “I was terrified, actually, but it was an actor’s dream. I have seen several video clips of Marianne, hair blowing in the wind, in search of freedom. I tried to absorb his spirit from everything I saw, but in the end I had to make up my own character. »
The eight-episode series, a Canada-Greece-Norway co-production directed by Norwegian Øystein Karlsen (Exit) and the Canadian Bronwen Hughes (breaking Bad, The Walking Dead), was filmed largely on the island of Hydra, where the couple met in the early 1960s, but also in Montreal and Oslo.
The magnificent images shot by Ronald Plante are reminiscent of those in the brilliant documentary by Nick Broomfield Marianne & Leonard: Words of Lovereleased in 2019.
PHOTO NIKOS NIKOLOPOULOS, PROVIDED BY NOOVO
Alex Wolff and Thea Sofie Loch Næss in a scene filmed on the island of Hydra
The first two episodes of the series take place mainly on the island of Hydra, with some back and forth in time. We explore the lives of Leonard Cohen and Marianne Ihlen before their love affair. He leaves Montreal, encouraged by his literature professor at McGill; she leaves Oslo with her fickle lover, the writer Axel Jensen, gives birth to a boy, etc. They cross paths a few times, but their story is not yet written.
Filming in Hydra was a whirlwind. Nothing else exists when we are there. There are still no cars on the island, so we traveled by donkey to get to the filming locations. The cats from the island even came to sleep at my house in the evening, it was truly a wonderful experience.
Alex Wolff, interpreter of Leonard Cohen
Macha Grenon plays Leonard Cohen’s mother, Masha Klonitsky, who arrived here from Lithuania at the age of 21. “It’s impressive,” she told us, “to play the mother of an idol! »
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Alex Wolff and Macha Grenon, who plays the role of his mother, Masha Klonitsky
“We know that Leonard Cohen had significant depressive episodes, we understand that this comes in part from his mother, who suffered from depression, but she also passed on to him her love of music and her relationship with spirituality,” she continues. . He was someone with whom he had a certain complicity, despite his depressive side, it was his anchor. »
Patrick Watson was also present during the viewing on Tuesday. The singer-songwriter was expected to play the role of Irving Layton, Cohen’s poetry professor at McGill, who encourages him to pursue his path and quit his factory job; but it is ultimately Peter Stormare (Fargo, The Big Lebowski) who got the role.
“I passed the audition,” Patrick Watson tells us, “but I wasn’t very good… They invited me to do a cameo, but I was cut in the editing… so I finally composed the piece theme of the series. » The instrumental piece brings together guitarist Brad Barr with vocals from Erika Angell, Thus Owls, and Arielle, among others.
PHOTO NIKOS NIKOLOPOULOS, PROVIDED BY NOOVO
Thea Sofie Loch Næss and Alex Wolff in a scene filmed on the island of Hydra
In So Long, Marianne Alex Wolff performs the piece The Stranger Song on the guitar, and this is where we realize that his voice is not quite the same as Leonard Cohen’s, but the 26-year-old actor wanted to perform it himself. Which did not prevent the directors from adding original pieces to the soundtrack, such as Happens to the Heart.
The relationship of the two lovers was not a smooth river, as evidenced by Nick Broomfield’s documentary. Will the series reflect the more explosive aspects of their relationship? “Absolutely,” replies Alex Wolff, who did not want to give too many details about the content of the other episodes. “Buckle up”he simply said.
Once the first two episodes are dropped, Crave will deliver a new episode per week until November 8.
Read Hugo Dumas’ column