LH: Did you watch a lot of John Cassavetes to get in the mood?
RG: Not really. But I love Peter Falk. I wish I could be Peter Falk. When I made The Notebook, the director, Nick Cassavetes, who is John’s son, used to show me his father’s movies. He told me so many stories: John would have an idea for a movie, and he’d wake Nick up in the middle of the night and pitch the story to him. Nick would start to fall asleep, and his dad would rearrange the plot to keep him interested. Actually, the story never mattered. John was mostly interested in the characters. If the character is true, the movie will fall into place. Or at least that’s what you hope.
LH: Is that why you watch a lot of reality TV? Are you looking for the truth on, say, Cake Wars?
RG: In a way. You do see human nature on those shows. But unfortunately fondant has changed the entire nature of cake decorating. It used to be more creative—fondant has changed everything.
