PartyLines- photographs by Patrick McMullan

Adrien Brody plays a teacher in this movie. Do you think you’d make a good teacher? “No. I’m not patient enough. A friend of mine said she bumped into the head of my daughter’s school at the grocery store, and she said, ‘You know, the woman’s got a twitch.’ And I said to her, ‘My God, if you were dealing with that many teenagers, how many twitches do you think you’d have?’” —JANE ROSENTHAL

—TONY BENNETT

You play a prostitute in the movie. Was it a little scary to do a role like this when you were only 14? “Definitely. But I think it’s more authentic that way. I learned so much. I was like a sponge on this film; I soaked up everything.” —SAMI GAYLE

—EDIE FALCO

Sami Gayle said that you kind of took her under your wing and taught her a lot on set. “I only try to help people that I work with. Sometimes it’s a little bit more complicated with actors your age. I’d like to direct for that reason: because I have ideas, sometimes, that I’d like to share, that I mean from a good place. But it’s hard to give a note to someone if they’re established.” —ADRIEN BRODY

—LUCY LIU

What were you like as a teenager? Were you rebellious? “I would love to say I was really cool and everything, but I was so straight. I think I do more now, trying to make up for what I didn’t do, you know? If could grow an afro, I probably would.” —ISIAH WHITLOCK JR.

—ANSON MOUNT

What were you like when you were in high school? “I was always the brunette from the country club. I tried to be really, really bad, but I was, like, sequestered by good values. And then on Housewives I got to be bad, and I was, like, ‘Hot!’ [Laughs.]” —KELLY BENSIMON

—LEA THOMPSON

What were you like as a teenager? Were you a straight-A student, or were you smoking pot? “I was a straight-A, pot-smoker bad girl. I don’t know how I got through it.” —NANETTE LEPORE

—TONY DANZA