The Rum Diary

[schild]

Yes, the title says The Rum Diary. As any of you know, this is the book Thompson wrote while he was 22. Why did I make a topic about this?

BECAUSE MOTHERFUCKING DEPP IS PLAYING THE LEAD...

...AND MOTHERFUCKING BENICIO DEL TORO IS SUPPORTING...

...and for some reason Nick Nolte and Josh Hartnett got roles. They must've impressed someone.

Directed by Benicio, as opposed to Gilliam. But I guess if I can't have Gilliam, Benicio would definately be near the top of the list since he's knowledgable of Thompson and his works.

Oh, and one more thing. It comes out next year. Probably in the fall, since Wonka is a summer blockbuster and Rum Diary is still in production.

I can now sleep happy. Goodnight.

[stray]

I hope it gets made.

That imdb link pisses me off though. Seems like the posters have nothing better to say besides YUMMMY JOHNNY DEPP, THE ONLY REASON TO SEE THE MOVIE!!!

Now I'll always be a big fan of Depp's, and have been for a long time, but he isn't the only reason to see the film. It's the motherfucking Rum Diary for crissakes.

Sometimes I wish he never made Pirates. He did a good job of turning off all the idiots back in the day, only to get them back again in the form of their kids. Maybe the Libertine will do them in.

[schild]

Just because idiots like something doesn't mean it isn't good. Things DO get popular for a reason.

[stray]

Oh, I loved Pirates, that isn't it at all. It's great no matter what. There's a lot of mainstream stuff I like, movies, music, whatever, so I hate to sound snobbish and all that.

It's just that he had a better crowd who followed all his films before that, because he was a good actor, not because of this Teen Beat bullshit. Nothing out of the ordinary though. It's bound to happen to any artist or band that's really good, even if they don't want it. It just gets a little irritating is all I'm saying.

Edited a bit

[schild]

In most cases I'd agree. But if he keeps making Teen Beat supporting bullshit, that's just more Depp movies. He may be the best character actor we have alive today. And there's no question that he and Toro are the only possible choices for any movie even remotely associated with Thompson.

While most teenage girls love Depp and most teenage boys want to be Depp, I can personally guarantee, by virtue of a couple of my cousins - that they have no fucking clue what Depp movies are about. When they talk about Pirates they talk about the love story and how hot Depp is; not the incredible fusion of character acting and stage acting he brought to the screen as Sparrow.

Whenever I think of the younger crowd and any form of high art from classical music to film to the classic arts, I can't help but reference The Filthy Critic's review of Princess Diaries 2.

Filthy says:
"Teenagers are horrible."

But more important, if you want to be hideous, disgusting monsters be interesting. Don't bore the holy snot out of the audience. Don't spend the first two-thirds of the movie with people wandering down dark halls waiting for something to go bump. Don't weight every character down with dialog as lame and thudding as a paraplegic falling from a barstool. Although I feel that ancient history and archeology have no place in a Princess Diaries movie, if you're going to put them in there, at least sound smart enough to fool people. The science in this movie is the sort of simpleton shit made up by a third grader the morning their big paper on South America is due.

This is what happens when you cater to teenagers. I was young and dumb - though a bit more educated about film (which I forced upon myself). Teenagers are stupid, stupid human beings. They buy the dumbest shit, see the dumbest movies, don't like museums, don't enjoy history courses, and don't enjoy good food. Sure, I'm generalizing, but by and large the first 18 years or so of your life, you're nothing more than a fucking walking fetus with a disposable income.

If those fetuses keep Depp making GOOD movies; I hope he's voted the sexiest man alive or Nickelodeon heartthrob or whatever until he's 200.

[SirBruce]

He [Depp] may be the best character actor we have alive today.

Whoa there.  Let's not go too far.  He has an amazing transformative power with his look, and his acting is certainly top drawer, but I think there are plenty of character actors who could claim that title.  Kevin Spacey for starters.

Bruce

PS - Your new avatar is lame.

[Trippy]

It's just that he had a better crowd who followed all his films before that, because he was a good actor, not because of this Teen Beat bullshit.

He was Teen Beat long before Pirates. Do you remember 21 Jump Street?

[DarkDryad]

I think what made me like JD  was he admitted that is main influence for Sparrow was Keith Richards heh.

[HaemishM]

I have not read the Rum Diary, but with Depp and Del Toro in it, you can bet it'll stay on the fucking ball. What those two did with an unfilmable masterpiece like "Fear and Loathing" was just spectacular.

Depp, Spacey, and Macy are who I can think of off the top of my head as best character actors working today.

[stray]

It's just that he had a better crowd who followed all his films before that, because he was a good actor, not because of this Teen Beat bullshit.

He was Teen Beat long before Pirates. Do you remember 21 Jump Street?

Yeah, that's why I said he did a good job of turning off that crowd before.

[Grelf]

All I can say is fucking A.

Who'd have thought TRD would be made into a movie.

[DarkDryad]

Depp, Spacey, and Macy are who I can think of off the top of my head as best character actors working today.

Despite his political views Robbins is a pretty damn good actor as well.

[schild]

He [Depp] may be the best character actor we have alive today.

Whoa there.  Let's not go too far.  He has an amazing transformative power with his look, and his acting is certainly top drawer, but I think there are plenty of character actors who could claim that title.  Kevin Spacey for starters.

Bruce

PS - Your new avatar is lame.

Spacey doesn't have the range of Depp. Spacey, in his comfort zone, is better. I'll grant you that.

PS - Your old avatar made you look like a serial killer.

[Big Gulp]

Spacey doesn't have the range of Depp. Spacey, in his comfort zone, is better. I'll grant you that.

Dude, seriously.  I know you have a big boy crush on Johnny Depp, but there is no way on God's green earth that he's the best character actor out there.  He's a very good actor, but there are many better out there.

Daniel Day Lewis
Russel Crowe (although a prick, a prick that has serious acting chops)
William H. Macy
Robert De Niro (although lately he's been coasting on being De Niro)
Benicio Del Toro (Yep, I said it.  Better than Depp)
John C. Reilly

And probably several more I'll think of later.  I give Depp all kinds of props for his work in POTC.  He transformed that movie from a decent little action movie into something special, but that doesn't make him the be-all-end-all.

[schild]

Hmmmm...

Turturro is better than Depp. He just doesn't act enough.

How about this - there are better actors than Depp, he just gets all the good roles.

Edit: At least lately he has been.

[HaemishM]

I wouldn't call Crowe a character actor.

[stray]

I think Depp is one of the better actors in his generation, but not the best (His generation being 40 yr olds, I guess: Depp, J.J. Leigh, Penn, Kilmer, Del Toro, R. Downey Jr. are all equally great imo).

Technically, imo, there is no best. Acting is so tied to one's choices, body, and personality that saying there's a best actor is like saying there's a best "person". Not to say there aren't "better" actors than others though. But "better" in the sense that they have less tendencies to restrict themselves. The more comfortable you are in your own skin, the easier it is to move, to speak, to observe what and who is around you (instead of what's in yourself). The worst kind of actors are those who have their heads so far up their asses that they can't see a vision for a character, let alone embody it or express it.

Some learn to loosen up their tension faster than others, some lose their tension by just staying in a certain range, and some will eventually reach that point, so long as they stick with it. But then, it just comes down to opportunity. Will they able to show it? It's just a matter of scoring a good job, or what a character may or may not allow then.

As for Depp, one of the reasons he's good is because he really doesn't give a shit about acting. Not in the same way that the desperate thousands who stand in line every day for auditions do at least. He considers himself a musician first. The tensions, hangups, self doubt, and desire to please the industry were never there in him, and he's a better actor because of it.

Brando was the same way, in that he really didn't give a shit...He considered it no different than being a plumber or, in his own words, a "kleenex salesman", and "a professional liar", and because of that attitude, it worked in his favor. Daniel Day Lewis, Mickey Rourke...One would rather be planting apple trees, the other putting on a pair of boxing gloves. Same story.

Not saying one has to hate acting to be good though. I'm just talking about achieving that state of mind. The important thing is that the more you take yourself seriously, the more mental barriers and hangups are gonna creep in, the less you'll be able to see your surroundings, and the more contrived and stiff, or even non-existent, your characterizations are gonna be. The "best" actors are those who are just trying to have fun.

Anyways, perhaps a bit longwinded for this thread, I know. I'm just a little restless and felt like putting in my 2 cents.

[plangent]

Have any of you seen Where the Buffalo Roam?  No one will ever do HST like Bill Murray.

[Fargull]

I wouldn't call Crowe a character actor.

??Romper Stomper??LA Confidential??The Insider??A Beautiful Mind??

Now...  for character actors, how about Jeff Bridges and Giovanni Ribisi.

[schild]

I wouldn't call Crowe a character actor.

??Romper Stomper??LA Confidential??The Insider??A Beautiful Mind??

Yes, he played the gruff, distant loon with something to hide in all of them.

Now...  for character actors, how about Jeff Bridges and Giovanni Ribisi.

Jeff Bridges never got past desperate drama queen. Giovanni hasn't gotten a chance yet, nor will he. He's too quiet.

[Fargull]

Jeff Bridges never got past desperate drama queen. Giovanni hasn't gotten a chance yet, nor will he. He's too quiet.

Dude,

What movie did he dress up in Drag?

Giovanni will grow the way Spacey has grown.

[WindupAtheist]

No love for Keanu?  F U !!!!

[HaemishM]

Don't get me wrong, Crowe is a good actor. LA Confidential is one of the best performances I've seen. But he's too "big" a name to be a character actor. Depp has always been a character actor, even when he was a big name (before and now). He is a more "true" actor.

[naum]

What, no mention of Chuck Norris, the best actor in modern times.... ....Walker Texas Ranger is cinema extraordinaire!!!!