Mena Suvari: Talks About Her Naughty New Movie and Her Passion for Reggae

Mena Suvari began her acting career in a Rice-A-Roni commercial at the tender age of 13. Her big break came a few years later, when the then-20-year-old blonde beauty starred in two hits movies in one year, 'American Pie,' and 'American Beauty.'

In the years since, Suvari has worked with everyone from Queen Latifah and Colin Firth to Jennifer Aniston and James Franco. PopEater talked to the busy actress about her latest movie, an adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's novel 'Garden of Eden,' in which she plays a young American newlywed honeymooning with her writer husband. Things get complicated when an exotic interloper enters the picture.

You did this movie a while ago.
Yeah, we made it at least four years ago.

So, it just sat on a shelf?
(Laughs) Good question. It premiered in Rome a year-and-a-half ago. I think if you ask any actor, it is the most devastating thing to have happen. Its funny, my agent told me about this article in Variety or Hollywood Reporter about how some actor's best work is sometimes shelved. I think with this film, I think the business has really changed a lot. This was always an independent film, it was a passion product, it took a lot to get it made. There was a moment when we were almost unable to finish it. I feel like this film getting picked up and released on DVD is the best thing that could have happened.