Hot Chocolate
March 29th 2008 17:57
Well, once the ubiquitous enthusiasm that surrounds any of my new projects had died down, I took some time out to have a think about what I would like to say here and how I would like to start. With the ensuing torrent of fresh and vital ideas threatening to swamp me, I found myself limping back over to the computer to continue my introductory words: -
.
My opening gambit closed with some rather threatening overtones, which seemed to stem from a rather unfortunate experience with the film “Vantage Point”. It seems churlish to single out Oscar winning actor Forest Whittaker for his performance in what was an exceedingly average(?) film. However I was particularly bowled over by his range of emotion (which was chiefly focused on confusion), his protruding ears and his chase scene, where only the adjective “lumbering” seems appropriate. However, all of this got me to thinking, how can such a seemingly able actor be capable of delivering such pap. Another such example of woeful underachievement is Sean Penn’s role in The Interpreter, which also acts as a vehicle for the “actress” Nicole Kidman. My favourite line of the movie comes during an intimate phone call between the increasingly close lead characters, when played out on screen the effect is devastating:
Kidman: What do you do when you can’t sleep at night?
Penn: Stay awake
No? Well I guess you had to be there, in fact no you didn’t it was as bad on the screen as on the page. How did someone write that down and think, “Yes! By Jove I think I’ve got it!” At this point my train of thought inevitably leads me to ponder the question; just how crucial is the writing? If you have some kind of ability as a writer and the right opportunities to have your film made does it really matter who the actor is? I would suppose that there must be millions of people out there in the world who could deliver the lines as you intended. I guess the problem is that of the working actors out there only a certain percentage of them have got the chops and by the same token only a certain number of writers do too. Unfortunately most of the time they manage to miss each other in the melee.
.
My opening gambit closed with some rather threatening overtones, which seemed to stem from a rather unfortunate experience with the film “Vantage Point”. It seems churlish to single out Oscar winning actor Forest Whittaker for his performance in what was an exceedingly average(?) film. However I was particularly bowled over by his range of emotion (which was chiefly focused on confusion), his protruding ears and his chase scene, where only the adjective “lumbering” seems appropriate. However, all of this got me to thinking, how can such a seemingly able actor be capable of delivering such pap. Another such example of woeful underachievement is Sean Penn’s role in The Interpreter, which also acts as a vehicle for the “actress” Nicole Kidman. My favourite line of the movie comes during an intimate phone call between the increasingly close lead characters, when played out on screen the effect is devastating:
Penn: Stay awake
No? Well I guess you had to be there, in fact no you didn’t it was as bad on the screen as on the page. How did someone write that down and think, “Yes! By Jove I think I’ve got it!” At this point my train of thought inevitably leads me to ponder the question; just how crucial is the writing? If you have some kind of ability as a writer and the right opportunities to have your film made does it really matter who the actor is? I would suppose that there must be millions of people out there in the world who could deliver the lines as you intended. I guess the problem is that of the working actors out there only a certain percentage of them have got the chops and by the same token only a certain number of writers do too. Unfortunately most of the time they manage to miss each other in the melee.
| 87 |
| Vote |
Subscribe to this blog
Comment by Harry
Sydney Diary
Personals
Brisbane Diarystar
Zoo Parent
Comment by Holly Go Lightly
Movie Mage