You would think the uber-graphicKick-Assseries, in which Chloë Grace Moretz plays the role of the diminutive but disturbingly brutal superhero Hit-Girl, would be the most violent role of the actress’s career. But inShadow in the Cloud, director Roseanne Liang pushes Moretz even further, in the role of Maude Garrett, a WWII pilot assigned to board a B-17 Flying Fortress charged with transporting an important piece of cargo.
The all-male crew forces Garrett to ride in the lower ball turret while on the way to their destination, which proves to be the perfect vantage point as the bomber faces off against a number of hostile, non-human forces. In an interview,Chloe Moretzexplained how the brutal challenges faced by Maude made the actress even more eager to play the part.
“I’m a bit sadistic. I enjoy jumping into projects that I know are gonna be a little rough, that I know are gonna kindakick my butt. I think that’s kind of a calling card for me. I’m like, ‘Oh, great! Is it gonna be brutal for me to jump into this one? Let’s go for it!’ Honestly, I was excited! I think Roseanne has kind of explained my brain as a bit of a technical brain and I completely agree with that, and I think this kind of movie let me really sink my teeth into that side of balancing the plates of acting on my own pretty much with just voices in my head as well as literally trying to exist within a tiny bowl and make it interesting and be able to progress the story with very minimal things around me.”
At a young age, Moretz has established aunique reputation in the action movie genre, that few male actors are able to acquire. And yet, the actress explained that nothing she has done in her past movies prepared her for the unique challenges posed by her role inShadow in the Cloud.
“I think this one, inmy adult career, probably ranks as one of the hardest ones I’ve done in being that it is really singular. It is really solo. And you really had to balance a lot of different things. Sometimes when you have technical difficulties in a film, [where] you have to be more specific with it, the acting might be maybe a little easier to do, but with this, acting was also very difficult and the technicality was difficult, so really trying to separate but also bring those worlds together was something I haven’t had to do yet in my career, and I think I am a better actor for being a part of this film and being able to get over this task.”
Shadow in the Cloudcurrently has a 74% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have praised the film’s high-energy action sequences, and Moretz has come in for particular praise as the no-nonsense, feminist heroine of a monster movie narrative set against the backdrop of war. The film had its world premiere on September 10 at the Toronto International Film Festival. This news arrives fromCollider.
