Small Roles... Big Performances blogathon

The lovely Ruth from FlixChatter had this great idea of highlighting smaller, but still impressive performances in movies, and asked me to be part of it.

The idea of this blog-a-thon is "to shine a spotlight on the 'unsung heroes' if you will, the overlooked performers who add so much richness/entertainment value to the film no matter how brief their appearance is, but yet they don't get the credit they so deserve." For general rules and other details, if you are interested in participating, click here:  http://flixchatter.net/2012/08/30/small-roles-big-performances-blog-a-thon/

When I first received Ruth's email, I had to think long and hard and even leave it for another day to actually find a performance like she was asking, I don't know why I found it so difficult to do or find. I am sure I have forgotten many great small performances, but this is what I thought of when I got the proposition. I have several choices: a very small part that maybe isn't very powerful, but that had an impact over me, a bigger, more appreciated role, and the last, the one I like and think fits the best Ruth's request. So taking that into consideration, here are my 3 choices:

1. The cigarette guy aka Carlos in A Single Man- there's no surprise in finding out that the part of the mysterious, yet highly attractive man who asks for a cigarette outside a supermarket in Tom Ford's A Single Man is a famous model that goes by the name of Jon Kortajarena. He may have an extremely small role in this stunning adaptation of the Christopher Isherwood novel, but for me it was quite memorable. It may have been for the predictable and shallow reason of me considering him to be a very attractive man, but I also think he had real charisma and appeal, making that scene ten times more sexier and sensual than a normal model/actor would have managed. Plus, it helped us understand George better and it was visually, very well made. Here's a clip of that moment:

2. Jared Leto in American Psycho- people don't give him as much credit as he deserves. I never actually understood how good an actor he was until this movie, and I haven't even seen Requiem for a dream, in which I've heard he is fantastic. He always has smaller, yet interesting and memorable parts, and American Psycho is no exception. He plays Paul Allen, one of Bateman's colleagues, who Patrick has a grudge on, because of Allen's success and charm. Leto portrays the wacky, cocky character wonderfully and blends into the crazy, unbelievable world quite easily. Here's a clip of the movie- he is in it for a short time, but the whole scene is pretty great:

3. The housekeeper from Schindler's list-Helen Hirsch played by Embeth Davidtz- Schindler's list is one of my favorite movies of all time and, in a sea of amazing actors, stunning scenes and memorable performances, I still remember her very well. Firstly for her beauty and quiet demeanour. Secondly, for the way she brought humanity to the story, the environment and the house, and more specifically, to Ralph Fiennes' character. I absolutely love the scene in the basement when he discovers her bathing, the fascinating conversation between the two and change in attitude of Amon. This could have been a turning point for him, but it wasn't, just because of his nature- no matter how much he tried to look at things from different perspectives or listen to his heart, he couldn't change. Still, Embeth's performance is breathtaking and I loved it. 

With the exception of the third choice, I am not very convinced that the first two are awards-worthy or fantastic performances, but I just wanted to highlight them one way or another. You can call them Honorable Mentions, as number 3 is the final and, probably, best choice!

Hope you enjoyed it, can't wait to see what the others chose!

American Psycho [2000]

(that's actually my DVD cover, not the original poster- I like it more)

[SPOILERS]

To celebrate the 4th of July, I decided to finally see American Psycho, a movie based on a great book by Bret Easton Ellis, directed and written by Mary Harron, about a man who leads a seemingly perfect life, but actually has a horrifying secret that makes his day to day routine much harder. Even before it started, I knew I was in for some crazy shit, since you can't avoid the online pictures of a wild Christian Bale.

He plays Patrick Bateman, a 27 year old who works in an advertising company and recently became a VP. At a first glance, nothing stands out. He has a great job, a group of friends around him (Justin Theroux, Josh Lucas), a girlfriend (Reese Witherspoon) and he affords going out and having fun every night in clubs and restaurants. But as things move along, you observe little details about him and his personality that make you reconsider.

Here is where you start analysing him, and honestly, my review will probably be that, since the character Bale portrays shines throughout this movie. One of the first things I noticed is the obsession with details, that most likely has to do with his need for power- you see it in his overreaction to business cards, or in his daily beauty routine. I think it's just a way of controlling a part of his life that he understands and has access to, unlike his nightly adventures that are beyond his control. When it does begin, his moments of rage don't last long- two or three quick swings, shots, in the most brutal and horrible way possible, and then he is done...back to his normal, restrained self.

This leads to a confession that explains a lot to us: he has no emotions, with the exception of greed and disgust, adding that"something horrible is happening inside of me and I don't know why". It's obvious by now that he is a serial killer and that he can't and won't stop.

He carefully plans his escapades and when his infatuation with Paul Allen (played by Jared Leto, who was, apparently, huge in the 90s) goes to the highest level, he deals with him the only way he knows, but this time, things don't go as planned and for the first time, the police are on to him. I found it funny that the detective (Williem Defoe), is the one who manages to get a normal reaction out of him, since Bateman starts acting erratically and making everyone suspicious.

The end is crazy and I was left wondering what just happened, especially when his lawyer says that he met with Allen twice in London- I kept asking myself, or my imaginary friends, what did he mean? Was it all in Patrick's imagination? It's obvious the guy didn't believe the wild phone call (btw, brains?), but.....Allen, alive in London? Overall, I liked the fact that it left the audience wanting more, it makes the film even more memorable, although I do wish I'd know what really happened. One of his last quotes describes his character, the story and the possible follow up perfectly: "My pain is constant and sharp, and I do not hope for a better world for anyone. In fact, I want my pain to be inflicted on others....my punishment continues to elude me, and I gain no deeper knowledge of myself. No new knowledge can be extracted from my telling. This confession has meant nothing."

American Psycho is quick, irregular, with no emotions, just like Bateman's personality and behaviour. It's nicely made and it moulds around the character, as he is the star. There are some funny tibdits in the film, maybe intentionally put to relieve some of the tension. The classic "I have to return some videotapes", or his weird, but interesting obsession with music, since he talks and interprets lyrics and songs before having sex or, actually, before the craziness begins. I also have to mention the fact that Bale looked amazing in this film- very fit, beautiful skin, nice haircut (for that era), I think that guy would have made a fantastic Christian Grey nowadays.

Yes, American Psycho is a crazy movie, with a great character- development story and a fantastic performance by Bale that you definitely have to see.