Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by TA (A) on January 06, 2003 at 12:50:31

In Reply to: dialogue delivery in 40s and 50s films posted by neilgl@earthlink.net on January 05, 2003 at 20:10:10:

our appreciation of acting reflects our tastes of the time. i think films of the era you're pointing to have a very strong theater stage feel. marlon brando, one of the first proponents of the method school of acting, was heralded as a great "natural" actor in films like on the waterfront. nowadays, our tastes have changed and his performance is pretty "theatrical" looking today.

actors in a contemporary film do not really act or speak the way a real person does in real life. imagine if you threw a camera on a simliar scene in real life - it'd be a lot different. there's still a certain stageyness to the actions that we are able to overlook because of what we're accustomed to. a great actor can play within these necessary mannerisms but convince us that there we are seeing none.