Beauty Is Only Skin Deep

Brendan Fraser has a knack for playing the role of the clueless geek that can. From the wide-eyed caveman in "Encino Man" to the intellectually challenged George of the Jungle to the overly earnest Dudley Do-Right, the 31-year-old actor has endeared himself to audiences by proving that it's hip to be square. He continues the tradition of self-effacement in Harold Ramis's new film, "Bedazzled." Fraser plays the lovesick dweeb Elliot Richards, a computer-support technician who'll do anything to win the affections of his indifferent co-worker Alison (Frances O'Connor), even if it means selling his soul to the Devil (Elizabeth Hurley) in exchange for seven wishes.

The catch? Each of Elliot's wishes comes with a cruel twist. His dreams of money and power turn him into a death-marked Colombian drug lord, while his desire to be the most sensitive guy in the world finds him weeping uncontrollably at the sight of sunsets. Fraser, suffering from the flu and a broken rib incurred while filming "The Mummy Returns" in Morocco, caught up with NEWSWEEK's Lorraine Ali in New York to discuss the old adage "Be careful what you wish for."

ALI: It's painful to watch Elliot for the first 15 minutes of the film. He's such a hopeless, pandering geek.

FRASER: I know. I cringed too. It's like, "Oh, stop, stop!" He's drenched with desire to have acceptance and be loved, to have friends. But he just doesn't know when enough's enough. He shadows people. You can't shake him. He's like a burr on your shoelace. It was a tricky part to play. You have to find a way to earn sympathy for him without making the audience want to murder him. He's got it coming, just let him have it! But in a pinch, he can be your hero--just love him, pleeease, 40 times an hour.

Of all seven characters you play in "Bedazzled," who was your favorite?

Aside from Elliot? The basketball guy. I loved shooting those crazy, blind aviator, loopty-doop, double-bumpty-bump clunk shots. Then there's the sensitive guy who sings songs about dolphins. His teeth are kinda ground down 'cause he's anxious. His hair's pink rather than red, and it's receding in a way he's trying to be confident about and own. I also liked the Eastern, blue-blooded intellectual, but so did his boyfriend. Elliot didn't think that wish out very well.