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In Reply to: Yep, different. posted by Victor Khomenko on February 06, 2004 at 08:51:44:
What is your take on Malkovich? I think he's one of those actors who gets by on very little, and has essentially built his reputation on the projection of an arrogance and aloofness native to his personality. This sort of, If I act like a genius, they'll treat me like one, approach.I liked The Talented Mr. Ripley much better than I expected to. I've got a stack of the books at home but they are among the hundreds I've only barely cracked. Her short stories are great, though. And with my stereo broke, I've got some time to read...
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Good characterization of him. He is one of those many over-rated cult-honored actors who play the same character film after film. Truly good actors can assume different identites or personae, but the public tends not to give them their due. Actors like Malkovich act only within the limits of their own personalities. They perform, role after role, as you or I might successfully lie--we can lie successfully, particularly to people who know us, if the lies we tell, no matter how outlandish or dramatic, are consistent with our personalities. Bad liers fail when they forget themselves. On those more narrow terms, some actors, like Malkovich, can be said to be quite exceptional. I don't quite want to say this, but I think it can be boiled down to their being exceptional liers (as well as exceptionally good looking or charistmatic, of course). I just don't think many people recognize how narrow the terms are, and I think this is largely because personality-driven actors are inherently more visible: the limits of their skills make for better self-marketing and amplify the same essential performativity with each successive performance. True actors are comparatively less apt to be noticed because of the variety of their work. Something like that.
While less scary than Malkovitch, the man played essentially the same part all his life.
If he had to project sadness or grief they'd stand him up barefoot in a tub of freezing water.
***If he had to project sadness or grief they'd stand him up barefoot in a tub of freezing water.That was a good line... how long it took you to write it?
I think you need to give the old man another spin - he is far more complex than you are making it sound.
--That was a good line... how long it took you to write it?Not exactly my invention. It's true. I remember it from a documentary about him.
I have been vocal in saying I dislike Malkovich, and I watched the movie trying not to let my preconception of him enter the picture. I have to say that he was good in that film. Of course some of the tortured plot moments had him scramble, but overall he was in the right place. He showed plenty of aloofness here, but the character calls for it, being a somewhat shallow cardboard cutout, and John actually brought some life to it.
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