For some really, really, REALEE odd reason, my absolute favourite actors are all from the U.K. And, by some incredibly crazee coincidence, they mostly belong to what is now called the "Brit Pack". [ AHHHHH!!! I'm conforming !!!!! :-o I swear that I didn't just read some magazine that listed them all as fabulous actors and just decide to worship them because of that... ] But I can't help it, I honestly do think that they're unbelievably talented! (Not mention damned !) Ya know what's even more weird though? I don't seem to have any favourite actresses...Go figure. ;-)
Oh, well--So these are the best actors of all time (according to me, of course):ALAN CUMMING
JOSEPH FIENNES
JUDE LAW
EWAN MCGREGOR
ALAN CUMMING
I think I first saw Alan as "Boris" in "GoldenEye" (James Bond movie), but at the time I had no clue as to who he was. The first time that I really noticed him was as the "Emcee" in the revival version of Bob Fosse's "Cabaret", when he was performing on the Tony Awards. Before that, I'd heard a lot of hype about him through my online friends who'd actually had the INCREDIBLE good fortune to have seen him perform in the show on Broadway already.
Unfortunately, when I was in NYC last summer, the Kit Kat Klub had just had a construction accident, and I didn't get to see the show. Awwww....I'll never see him live now! I've seen all the movies that he's appeared in; as many as I could get my hands on, at least: GoldenEye, Circle of Friends, Spice World, Buddy, Black Beauty, Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion....I can't find: Prague, For My Baby, or Bernard and the Genie. He has Plunkett and Macleane and Titus Andronicus coming out in theatres soon--can't wait to see 'em!
I first saw Joseph Fiennes in Bernardo Bertolucci's "Stealing Beauty", but, like Alan Cumming, I didn't really notice him then, or even know who he was. It wasn't until I saw Shekhar Kapur's "Elizabeth" that I thought he was exceptionally gifted with the ability to convey his characters to the audience. (He wasn't all that bad-looking, either...) After "Elizabeth", I knew that I'd have to see John Madden's "Shakespeare in Love" next. Oh my, his role in this is even better than that of "Lord Dudley" in "Elizabeth"! (Naturally, he plays Shakespeare in SiL.)
Although Joe has made me completely fall in love with his characters, I'm dying to see him in a non-romantic lead role; something where he can be a cold, unfeeling, heartless kinda guy. I want to see if he can pull it off! So far, he's been in Stealing Beauty, The Vacillations of Poppy Carew, Elizabeth, Shakespeare in Love, and Martha Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence (but the incredibly ***smell the sarcasm*** intelligent Hollywood suits are changing the name to "The Very Thought of You"--bah!), and they've all mainly been romantic types. I hope he's not type-casted like this forever! I hear that "Rancid Aluminum" isn't Joe's normal kinda movie work, so it's piqued my interest...and, of course, he's gonna be in town filming "Forever Mine" in a few months, so you all must pray that I'll some how have the good fortune to run into him somewhere!!! (riiiight...)
I believe that what initially drew me to Joe was his startling eyes...They're not perfect, but they're really expressive--they stand out. He also seems to have an interesting sort of personality. He comes across as the sort of guy who can be shy and uncomfortable at times, and then at other times he can be extremely self-assured and witty (like on stage). Obviously, he also has a talent for acting. Experience in "legit" theatre usually makes an actor more credible, and almost all the time, you can count on them to be a lot better than those huge Hollywood "stars". (Yikes! Does it sound like I have something against Hollywood?! I really don't.) So Joe is perfectly suited for the Shakespeare role, since he's already done so much of the Bard's work. It's also nice that he's the same age as the character in the movie...!
Jude Law just has one of those astonishingly perfect faces. It's strange to say this for a guy, but he's beautiful. His eyes are very expressive, and they're completely hypnotizing on screen. I first noticed him in Gattaca--he had such a great character to play in that movie. Then I was hooked, and went out and rented I Love You, I Love You Not, where he plays a high school kid. He's really convincing in that; it's hard to believe that he's got a wife (Sadie Frost) and a kid (a son)! Now I've seen him in Wilde (not for homophobes), Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (where he does a great southern American accent), Shopping (his first film), and his most recent one, eXistenZ, which was directed by David Cronenberg. I can't wait to see The Talented Mr.Ripley when it comes out--it sounds good. Jude picks his movies well. He also picks his friends well! One of his closest friends is Ewan McGregor...;-)
Ewan is definitely a unique actor. He doesn't conform to anybody else's expectations. I respect him for that, and I admire him for staying true to himself. (Cheesy, I know.) He even has a production company that he runs with Jude Law, Sadie Frost, Jonny Lee Miller (he's cool too), and Sean Pertwee, called
Natural Nylon. (They helped produce eXistenZ.) The company allows them to have some creative control over their work. I've seen Ewan in quite a few things: Trainspotting (of course--this was his big break), Shallow Grave, A Life Less Ordinary, Emma, Nightwatch, The Pillow Book (Ewan seems to be very proud of his family jewels...hee hee), Velvet Goldmine (I actually liked this), and in the role the whole darned world knows him for now, as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars--Episode One. I just have to see him in Brassed Off (I didn't really pay attention the first time I saw it) and in his harder to find films, like the Serpent's Kiss and Rogue Trader...ah, and Little Voice. Better go rent that soon. Like Jude Law, he's a major family man as well, and he has a wife and a young daughter. Dammit, wouldn't it be nice to be them!
