I Can't be away from my kids

Michelle Pfeiffer talks family, fashion, her latest flick and plastic surgery

Michelle Pfeiffer says she has played some evil characters before but Velma Von Tussle in the new movie Hairspray tops the lot. The actress, who turns 50 next year, stars with John Travolta and Zac Efron in the musical film, set in the 1960s. In August, we'll see Michelle as an evil sorceress in fantasy movie Stardust with Robert De Niro and Claire Danes. Michelle is married to Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley. They have an adopted daughter, Claudia, 14, and a son, John, 12. The family lives away from the glitz of Hollywood, preferring a quiet life in the California countryside.

Do you talk to your family before choosing a role?
Not normally, no. Unless there's something that I feel might affect them in some way. If there's something that might cause them embarrassment, then I would discuss it with them.

What is the most important message that you try to teach your kids?
To be resilient and empathetic. I think if you can raise kids to embody those two qualities, then they will have a rich and successful life.

How much do you think living outside of Hollywood helps your kids?
I think it's helped us as a family to be less distracted. We wanted more land, and we wanted animals. We were looking for a different kind of lifestyle.

Do you think it's tough for young women in the spotlight today?
Young women have a big challenge ahead of them now. I don 't think men really want women to be undemourished and bony and [getting] grotesque plastic surgery.

How hard was it to play a racist in Hairspray?
That was the hardest thing. I inched my way towards this character, and then one day, it registered: Oh my god, I'm playing a racist. There were lines I could not remember because they were so hateful.

What did you think fo the 1960s fashions?
I think that the clothes are beautiful, but when I look at women from that era, all I can think of is how uncomfortable they look. The makeup is so heavy, the hair is sprayed, the clip-on earrings, the shoes. It looks like it hurts and it did.

Tell us about villain you play in Stardust.
I'm probably the ugliest villain in Stardust [laughs] and the oldest because I'm 5,000 years old or something ridiculous like that.

is it hard being away from your kids when you shoot a movie?
When I look at doing something and have to be away, if it's at a time when they can't come with me, like during the school year, then I need to be able to come back and forth. I need to not be away from my kids more than a week or two — that's my absolute limit.