Director Paul Haggis (Oscar winner for Crash) spent four days shooting scenes for his new film, In the Valley of Elah, in the town of Whiteville, just east of Memphis, in Hardeman County. But according to the film’s stars, Tommy Lee Jones and Susan Sarandon, it wasn’t all work. As Jones and Sarandon recently told MoviesOnline, there was time too for some off-camera perks. And that means, in the Mid-South, pork chops and greens (plus music and moonshine).
TOMMY LEE JONES: You know, there was a café – you’ll like this. Our trailers were parked on Martin Luther King Blvd. in Whiteville, Tennessee. And around the corner there was a place called the Dove of Paradise Café, and really, what made the whole trip worthwhile were the pork chops and the greens.
SUSAN SARANDON: Some good music there too.
TOMMY LEE JONES: Yeah, pretty good music.
SUSAN SARANDON: Outside of Memphis, I went to a club and it was really good.
TOMMY LEE JONES: I don’t get out very much. I remember y’all went.
SUSAN SARANDON: It was at the very end of the shoot. … [T]he old guy whose club it was died and his widow wanted me to know. I just got a message on my service.
TOMMY LEE JONES: Oh.
SUSAN SARANDON: Yeah.
TOMMY LEE JONES: Was it down on Mud Island?
SUSAN SARANDON: It was outside of Memphis. I have no idea where I was … .
TOMMY LEE JONES: It was outside of Memphis?
SUSAN SARANDON: Yeah, yeah, it was right outside the city. It wasn’t when we were on location. Although I did get a lot of homemade fudge and some moonshine that somebody gave me. I got a lot of presents there.
TOMMY LEE JONES: So now, you really understand what acting is all about. Pork chops and moonshine.
SUSAN SARANDON: It’s the perks.
TOMMY LEE JONES: Yeah.
Valley of Elah is scheduled to open in Memphis on Friday, September 21st.