Copyright: Showtime
The Transformation
"We wanted Lee to look beautiful and theatrical. This isn't a story about an over-the-top drag queen. It's a story about a person who believes that she is a woman and passes for a woman," say the producers. "Lee Pace is a very handsome man. But you never know how somebody's going to look as a woman, because some of the most handsome actors look like 'Mrs. Doubtfire' when they're in drag. So we did extensive makeup and hair tests in New York and began to discover how Lee would look in the role."
But hair, makeup and clothes do not a woman make. Lee took voice and dance lessons to learn to walk and talk like a woman, including days spent learning to walk in high heels. In pre-production, he rehearsed daily for his choreographed scenes on stage in the film, lip-synching to Cher, k.d. lang, Annie Lennox and Garbage. He also listened to tapes of Calpernia's voice. "Her voice has that sadness of having lost it all," he says.
"I feel guilty saying this, but the most fun is all the dress up. It's exciting. I look in the mirror and there's someone I didn't even imagine looking back at me. The painful parts were having my thick eyebrows plucked and bleached, and glued-on nails that keep getting caught on things! But then there are the magical parts, the amazing breasts that look and feel absolutely real -- and the hips. Just to see yourself in a new form changes your perception of who you are. The design team is terrific," enthuses Pace, who, to get ready for his role, was often picked up at 4 a.m. to undergo the full transformation, which took four and a half hours daily. "And I have to shave during the day, so they take it all off and start again."
Filming the Story
The cast had a week's rehearsal, a.k.a. "Cast Boot Camp" prior to principal photography, which began on June 10th, 2002. Trans-gendered expertise was garnered from several sources. Garity and Pace both spoke at length with Calpernia, who helped them with their characters. Additional help came from Toronto-based Tulsi Balram, a trans-gendered woman who plays Ginger in the film, who was in the exact stage that Calpernia was at the beginning of the story.
"I think the character of Calpernia kept us going in the early days of trying to develop this story because she was so inspiring. She had continued on her journey through all kinds of obstacles, and certainly Doro and I had every kind of obstacle in getting this movie made. Calpernia was a beacon," says Gottlieb.
"SOLDIER'S GIRL is about the transforming power of love, about a man who accepted Calpernia and loved her completely. We believe it's a universal love story," adds Bachrach.
Pace agrees, "It's easy for an audience to see a freak and the guy who loves her. But that's not what the film's about. I hope that in an alternative and dangerous relationship like this, people will see what's key -- that Barry and Calpernia just love each other."
Relates Pierson, "It's a story that needs to be told. It resonates on a social and political level, and at the same time is a deeply touching romantic tale. The love story, juxtaposed against what life is like in the military, is fascinating. SOLDIER'S GIRL is a tragedy, and it's about those things that are just amazing about the human spirit."
Andre Braugher perceives a Shakespearean theme in the material. "It's a love story no different from 'Romeo and Juliet.' These are two houses which are absolutely set against each other, and consequently, it breeds tragedy," the actor says.
Sums up Nyswaner, "The movie plays with an illusion: that this is just a young man dating a young woman. At some point, Barry and Calpernia -- and everyone else, including the audience -- have to face the truth. The illusion will be shattered. Barry and Calpernia approached a terrifying boundary and crossed it and were fine. Ultimately, this is a movie about the right to love."
Says Garity, "Barry Winchell is a hero because of living and loving courageously. Forces beyond his control have elevated him in a way nobody would ever have dreamt about, including Barry. One of my objectives with this Barry Winchell story is to take him back from the sort of martyrdom he's been placed in, and to remind everybody that he was a living, breathing son."
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