Por Scott Marcas | Crítico de cine SDUN

Chart-topping Australian pop-singer Sophie Monk likes the anonymity the United States affords her. The chanteuse, turned model turned actress can’t walk through the streets of her home town down under without being swamped by adoring fans, but in SoCal the perfect blonde strolls through the mall virtually incognito.

Sophie was at San Diego’s Analog Bar recently to promote her latest raunchy sex comedy, “Hard Breakers.” It’s a genre the 31-year-old bombshell would love to break free from, as she’s not only sexy but smart, funny and surprisingly down-to-earth. With only her brother acting as bodyguard, we were able to find a secluded corner of the bar to sit and schmooze in.

SCOTT MARKS: What’s the first movie you remember seeing?

SOPHIE MONK: It would have to be “Drop Dead Fred.”

SCOTT: Wow. That’s the one about the young woman who finds herself plagued by an obnoxious imaginary childhood playmate. You’re the only other person I know who’d admit to seeing the film let alone liking it.

SOPHIE: I was a kid, but I love that movie. I’m a fan of British comedy.

SCOTT: At this stage of your career, what is it about making movies that appeals to you?

SOPHIE: I did music for so long. Three albums is a lot of work. So is this, but then you have a break. It’s non-stop with music. I was exhausted and creatively getting nowhere. I needed a break so I headed to L.A. to try pilot season and book my first movie. Since then, things have picked up in Australia. I have my own lingerie line and all that kind of stuff. I am in a really good spot right now.

SCOTT: Is this your first trip to San Diego?

SOPHIE: No. I came to Comic Con, but I flew in with (Hollywood mega-producer) Joel Silver and Guy Ritchie and Gerard Butler on a private jet. (Laughs) I’m not dropping names; I just thought that was pretty cool.

SCOTT: What were you in town to promote?

SOPHIE: “The Hills Ran Red.” It was a horror movie (Sliver) produced. But this is the first time I got a chance to really see San Diego. I didn’t know it was so cool. It reminds me of home.

SCOTT: San Diego is what I envision Los Angeles was like 30 years ago.

SOPHIE: I don’t like Los Angeles anymore. The weather is bad.

SCOTT: Seventy-two and sunny. A veritable atmospheric catastrophe!

SOPHIE: I got up at 3:30 this morning and it was freezing. I practically had no clothes on all day. This is more clothes than I had on before and I’m still cold.

SCOTT: Where do you want your career to be five years from now?

SOPHIE: The behind-the-scenes of my life is hilarious. I’m so famous in Australia that the paparazzi follow me and my entourage everywhere I go. Here I travel light and no one knows who I am. It’s seeing the two lives —famous and not famous—that has attracted the attention of reality TV producers. I’m trying to decide, but to be honest, I think I want to stick with movies. I’ll give it a go—do the meetings and see how it goes—and if it falls that way, yes. But my focus is my love of acting.

SCOTT: The camera obviously adores you. When you and (“Hard Breakers” co-star) Cameron Richardson are on-screen together, you’re very appealing playing a ball-breaking variation on Lucy and Ethel from the old “I Love Lucy” show.

SOPHIE: Totally. When it comes to women and comedy, (Hollywood) tend(s) to want the girl-next-door who supports her man like Jennifer Aniston. It’s very rare to find a comedic role for someone who looks like me (and can wear bikinis). Usually they cast the more “serious” sexy girls to evoke warmth or whatever. Having said that, I am more than willing to wear some clothes in movies.

SCOTT: If it’s any consolation, what clicked for Jennifer Aniston on television has yet to find its way to multiplex screens. Most of her rom-coms are terrible in addition to underperforming at the box office. And I don’t want you to get the impression that I’m against nudity or anything.

SOPHIE: It’s feasible if it’s—I’m sorry—necessary. I made a movie (“Sex and Death 101”) with Winona Ryder where it was called for. I played a strong woman trying to torment her dad. I enjoyed that part.

SCOTT: So far, you have made a couple of pictures that are basically FHM magazine shoots adapted to the big screen. Does it bother you that you’re not getting…?

SOPHIE: Yes! YES! I’ve been here awhile, and all these Australians come in who have never achieved what I’ve achieved, and are getting massive roles. I arrived too early, I think, before the rest of Australia came over.

“Hard Breakers” is currently playing exclusively at the Regal Horton Plaza.