Taming the Giant.(Gerard Depardieu)(Interview)

It's 4 o'clock in the Park Hyatt hotel bar in Paris, and Gerard Depardieu has ordered what he calls a "5 o'clock wine." The wine, a muscat blend, was produced by his girlfriend, French actress and vintner Carole Bouquet. "It makes a sort of marmalade that is a perfect wine to drink in the late afternoon by two friends," he says. "A wine of conversation."

There is plenty to talk about. On Depardieu's passport he lists his occupation as actor-winemaker--which is accurate, if understated. Both are obsessions. Depardieu oversees 16 vineyards around the world, where he produces such labels as Cuvee Cyrano, a nod to his Oscar-nominated role. Since his cinematic debut in "Cry of the Cormoran" more than 30 years ago, Depardieu has appeared in nearly 150 films. In the next four weeks he has four films opening in France, including French director Graham Guit's arresting mystery "Pact of Silence" and Norwegian director Ole Bornedal's 19th-century epic "I Am Dina." He also does a riotous turn as a French-expat barman in Matt Dillon's "City of Ghosts," set in Cambodia. And Depardieu has spent the past few weeks shooting two films simultaneously: Anne Fontaine's "Nathalie X," a love-triangle story, and Francis Veber's "Tais-toi" ("Shut Up"), a comedy in which, he says, he plays "an idiot."

It's fair to say that Gerard Depardieu is the hardest-working man in French cinema--and maybe the entire movie business. He's also one of the most gifted. "Like Brando, Anna Magnani--I put him in that league," says Dillon. "Actors with real passion, intelligence and an animalistic quality." Depardieu's strength is his ability to embrace life, soak it in, then project emotion into the camera without hesitation. "Gerard's sense of observation is extraordinary," says Veber. "Lots of actors lose their focus because they are looking at their bellybutton. Gerard looks at the world, and it nourishes him."

But Depardieu's insatiable hunger may also be his greatest weakness: for every masterpiece, there is a string of minor roles that attract little attention, are rarely challenging and surely don't advance his career. "Most of these films I made for no money, because friends needed me," he says. "And sadly for them, the critics say, 'What's he doing there again?' I'm just giving a little bit of joy to life and helping to run the machine." His friends see it differently. "Gerard has to be on set, in a role, all the time," says Veber. "It's his oxygen." Adds Jean-Paul Rappeneau, who directed Depardieu in "Cyrano de Bergerac" and the upcoming drama "Bon Voyage": "Gerard suffers from a bulimia of work, of ...