A friend in need

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Missing woman has a dark past

When a friend asks us to do them a favour, most of us have no problem doing it. But what if it turns out that the favour isn’t that simple? Opening at cinemas this week, A Simple Favour is a suspenseful thriller in which an unlikely friendship leads to a mysterious disappearance.

Stephanie (Anna Kendrick) is a shy widowed mother who befriends the stylish Emily (Blake Lively) after their sons become best friends at school. When Emily suddenly disappears, Stephanie becomes determined to find out what happened to her. But the more she looks into Emily’s past, the more mysterious and disturbing the situation becomes.

With the help of Sahamongkol Film, S Weekly scored an exclusive interview with star Blake Lively, who told us all about A Simple Favour.

What is the favour referred to in the film’s title?

Blake: Emily asks Stephanie to pick up her son from school one day, which seems like a pretty simple thing to ask. But then Emily disappears and is nowhere to be found.

Can you tell us more about your character?

Blake: On the outside, Emily seems calm and very self-confident, but she’s actually a time bomb. She’s a master of showing people the side of her that she wants them to see. But she’s hiding a lot. She’s actually very fragile. She has no choice but to live this way. In reality, her life is very dangerous.

What was it like to work with Anna Kendrick?

Blake: It was great. I’m a big fan of her movies. She’s such a talented and versatile actor. I enjoyed working on this film a lot because I got to play the bad guy, which is something I’ve never done before. I found it more interesting than my usual roles. I was lucky to play the role opposite Anna because she helped me a lot.

Video from: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCihK7exmjJvp5UbrsMS8dCQ

Emily’s clothes are very eye-catching. Can you tell us about them?

Blake: After reading the script, I had the idea that we should change Emily’s look to make it different from how she’s described in the book. I wanted her to look stylish but intimidating. I told my idea to the film’s costume designer Renee Ehrlich. We decided that her look should be quite masculine — a three-piece suit, a buttoned-up shirt and a bow tie. I think it ended up looking very sexy.

Is it true that you don’t have a personal stylist?

Blake: Yes, I choose to be my own stylist, maybe because I have control issues and a huge ego. [Laughs.] Actually, it’s because I love design and fashion. I do my own wardrobe because it’s a chance for me to express myself creatively. I also love to dress up and do make-up for other people.

What did you enjoy most about working on this film?

Blake: I was just really excited to be doing such a fun and suspenseful movie. I think it’s the kind of film that reminds you of classic Hollywood thrillers like Gaslight, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? or All About Eve. There are elements of humour here and there, but overall, the film is quite scary.