tMF | The Movie-Fanatic

What constitute good acting? What makes a good actor? Are there certain steps one must follow in order to become an actor or is it a gift or a natural talent and requires no formal training? These are the questions we'll try to answer - and before we begin, let me just say, I have been patiently waiting for an 'opportunity' like this, and I would like to thank one tMF viewer for the vigorous and insightful comments on 'good acting' and the case between Ben Barnes, Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp.

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Backgrounder: There is an upcoming movie based on Oscar Wilde's book entitled Dorian Gray starring Ben Barnes. In order to relate this particular article elsewhere in the blogosphere, I refer to a cinematical post about the new movie, and in reaction to cinematical's comment that Ben Barnes might be the next Orlando Bloom. The thing is, Bloom is the last actor I would compare, especially with a lot of today's newcomers. I would prefer someone more credible. Apparently, someone did not agree. And why mention Johnny Depp? For the simple reason that Depp happens to be acting alongside Mr. Bloom in The Pirates of the Carribean series.

The contention: Who among Barnes, Bloom and Depp can really act?

What constitute good acting? Good acting is when a performer understands his character, interprets this fictional or true person (as the case maybe) with conviction, passion and enthusiasm and in doing so, convinces the audience that they are watching a completely different person. - - -
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What makes a good actor then? I think the best way to answer this question is to come up with a few names. But again, let me emphasize that tMF focus on young, emerging talents, therefore, our examples will reflect that. Let me start with Jamie Bell. The British actor who remains UK-based, won the Best Actor award at the BAFTA for his first onscreen role as Billy Elliot, beating Tom Hanks and Russell Crowe in the process. Back then, the fact that people point at him in the streets and call him Billy is testament enough to Jamie Bell's acting ability. Another fine example is Heath Ledger. Playing the villain or the romantic leading man or the confused and hurting gay cowboy are just examples of his acting diversity. We also have 50 names of young actors we considered belonging to the cream of the crop and has updated this list - refer to Top 50 Hottest Young Actors list.

A good actor is a consumate professional - someone who is not afraid to play unconventional and controversial characters, relish the opportunity to work with different filmmakers and will not compromise his integrity for the sake of fame. He is more interested in honing his craft than appear before paparazzi and deliberately attract attention to himself to keep the media buzz on his side.

Are there certain steps one must follow in order to become an actor or is it a gift or a natural talent that requires no formal training? There are certainly some actors 'born with the talent to act' while there are also some who pursued acting and turned it into a professional career.

So, how did our three actors began?

Working Hard to Become a Class Act: Ben Barnes

Armed with smashing good looks and the ambition to succeed, Ben Barnes is considered one of today's most sought-after young actors. While I am still to be convinced about how good he is, I find him to be smart, charming and generous in many of his interviews. His replies to even the most mundane of questions is sincere and not taken from cues from his agent (as is the case with most young actors).

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After watching him, you get the impression that he is an educated and self-assured individual who is driven by his desire to act and work his way to the top of the acting excellence 'ladder'. Here's an excerpt of an interview with Barnes, which also gave us the latest updates on his career so far:

“I definitely didn’t grow up wanting to play a young dad, with a child in a coma, searching for the answers!” The role of a young dad searching for the answers comes courtesy of the film he’s just completed in Boston, which carries the temporary title of Valediction. “It has a very adult theme and I am playing my own age for the first time ever,” says Barnes, “a 28-year-old man with a daughter. It felt like a lot of films that I have loved but also didn’t feel like anything I have read in a long time. It’s hard to describe. How would describe The Three Colours Blue or Blue Velvet or Momento? They are hard to pigeonhole. They are films about people. It is certainly the most real film I have done, it’s my second contemporary film, and it just kind of screamed at me to come and do it.” His first contemporary film was Bigga Than Ben, an indie offering released in 2008, not long after he’d appeared in Matthew Vaughn’s grandiose fairy-tale, Stardust. His breakthrough, however, came with Prince Caspian and he followed that with the Noel Coward adaptation Easy Virtue. “I don’t believe in that kind of pragmatic career ladder stuff,” says, although he caused some controversy in thespian circles when he controversially quit The History Boys at the National Theatre to take the role of Caspian. “I think because of the way I got involved in Prince Caspian, people think I am a crazy, ambitious person, but it is not that at all. I just want to work on this level ” I know how lucky I am to be able to work on small independent films and big studio productions like Narnia.” [ read more ]

Barnes opted out of History Boys, a role that can help him hone his theatrical skills, and choose to star as Prince Caspian in The Chronicles of Narnia series. He made a career decision which actually succeeded in making a fastrack of his movie career. The results show he made the right decision - Easy Virtue went his way, then the lead in Dorian Gray, and then there's the forthcoming Valediction. Not to mention, the high-profile role as Prince Caspian. Looking back, he took on the role in the Chronicles of Narnia series at the middle of his stint at the London stage. He spent quite a limited amount of time to train, absorb and internalize his character, and sport a foreign accent at that. No mean feat, but Barnes was able to deliver. It takes passion, confidence and a burning desire to succeed to do such things.

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Missed Opportunities and the Slide into Mediocrity: Orlando Bloom

There is no denying the fact that Orlando Bloom has been quite successful - in Box Office terms - he starred in four of the biggest box office hits that include The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Pirates of the Carribean series. He also played the lead in a number of contemporary and period movies - Elizabethtown, Haven, Kingdom of Heaven, Ned Kelly and Troy.

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He was supposed to play an important part in An Education, a movie highly praised at the recent Sundance and is now considered a potential candidate for the Oscars. He opted to explore a career in theater instead. While a good number of British actors started out via stage acting and then move on to the big screen, Bloom is doing the exact opposite. A rather old article provides some backgrounder:

Bloom was planning on becoming a stage actor after graduating from Film school, but instead he won the role of Legolas in Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and is now a huge film star. However, Bloom is not planning on starring in Hollywood blockbusters forever and hopes to tread the boards real soon. According to BreakingNews he said: "I really want to do some theatre. My career took this marching pace that meant that I was running to the beat of a drum that I wasn't quite sure where the noise was coming from. "I'm avidly looking for the right sort of material that I can do something with."

I have yet to hear good news regarding Bloom's foray into theater, but he is involved in three new films in various production stages - Sympathy for Delicious, Main Street and The Cross.

Bloom is a bonafide Hollywood star - a very popular celebrity. While he may carry his 'classical training' credentials, I'm afraid he has yet to play a role worthy of an award. The closest he ever got to some critical acclaim is in Ned Kelly. Whether he plays an American shoe designer, a legendary Knight, a British national living in a remote island or an arrogant Prince - he still maintains his British accent, and that is something I find disappointing for an actor who is supposed to be well-trained. 

Even his foray into indie film, Haven, was disastrous. The NY Times Nathan Lee wrote a scathing review:

From a producer of “Crash” comes “Haven,” an even phonier exercise in manufactured conflict, facile irony and preposterous contrivance. The story begins with an American businessman (Bill Paxton) who, betrayed by a British financier (Stephen Dillane), flees to the Cayman Islands with his daughter (Agnes Bruckner). Enter Fritz (Victor Rasuk), a local delinquent, along with all manner of trouble (greed, racism, colonialism, acid flung in the face), not least of which is a violently arbitrary rupture in the plot. [ read more ]

There are actors and there are stars. Bloom, apparently, opted to become the latter.

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I have yet to witness someone capable of eclipsing Johnny Depp's star power. Leonardo DiCaprio made his mark in a movie that also stars Depp and that is probably the closest thing. His success is not limited to box office records, but also include acclaim from his peers, the media and the general movie-going public. Just take a look at the record, so far: