Fresh from directing the award-winning 'Antwone Fisher', Denzel Washington gives an excellent performance as a love-struck, unstuck cop in Carl Franklin's smart noir thriller 'Out Of Time'. The two-time Oscar-winning star of 'Glory' and 'Training Day' talks age, power and love scenes, whilst at the same time smiling like the cat that got the cream!

You went from directing 'Antwone Fisher' to being "just an actor" again - how was that? "This was a tough film to do coming off of directing 'Antwone Fishe'r because Carl had such a style that he wanted to do. This wasn't an actor's film per se. It was chopped up bits and pieces. It wasn't a performance-driven film."

What appealed to you about it? "It's an interesting group of flawed people who get together and make a mess! It's the sort of film where you're shouting at the screen going: "Denzel, no! Don't do that! Oh, he got away with another one!"

You play a corrupt cop in 'Training Day' and a flawed cop in this film - why the same kind of character so soon? "Maybe it's the power and the misuse of power, maybe they have that in common. But the fact that he was a policeman was the least important thing to me. He's a guy who swims and goes fishing, you know. He's Chief of Police and he's got three guys and one of them is kind of a crossing guard, so it's kind of sad."

You have some love scenes - do you ever get used to doing those? "Love scenes in movies are not what you think. There's a hundred people in the room and 20 takes later, you know ...! You try to make it intimate like it's just the two of you but really it's very technical. There's one scene we have where Sanaa Lathan and I move through the bathroom and through a door and all of that. I'm carrying her and now it's take 19 ...! You know?"