Now THIS is the cabbie I'd like to meet |
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Everyone has been talking a lot about their favorites recently. Who they lust after the most and why, which movies were the best from whatever era. Everything is just a little too specified for my tastes. I'm more of the type of person who believes that "good enough" is perfectly awesome. There could be the biggest, most popular star in cinematic history standing in front of me and I probably wouldn't have as big of a geek-out reaction as I did when I bumped into Debra Wilson from "Mad TV" at our local mall. I see a greater appreciation for those who manage to do really well with little to no fanfare.
A character actor is an actor described as one who specializes in playing a particular style of character, often stereotypical, offbeat, or humorous. The majority of the time, these actors are cast in supporting roles rather than leading ones, whether due to a less-than-perfect appearance or a strange personal characteristic like an odd sounding voice. I think of the character actor as being the backbone of the movie industry. While you'll rarely see their faces in between the pages of tabloid magazines, they'll be the first people that you recognize while watching a major motion feature, even if it's to only snap your fingers and wildly gesticulate at the screen, saying to your companion, "Hey, that's that one guy who was in HEAT, right??"
To me, some of the best acting in movies comes from people who you wouldn't recognize passing you on the street. Or perhaps you would but you wouldn't bother to stop them in the middle of their shopping because you wouldn't be able to remember their name. Other times you'll get an actor who IS recognizable but not because you know their name, but because you know the character in a movie or franchise that they helped make famous. (I can't imagine Seann William Scott getting people calling him Seann as often as they greet him with, "STIFLER!!")
Probably one of my favorite character actors is a guy who, even though I know his name, I still have trouble pronouncing it. Donal Logue, (pronounced like "donut" but replace the "ut" sound with an "ul" sound) most fondly remembered as playing the sweaty, sniveling cab driver Jimmy in the series of shorts that MTV produced during the mid-'90's. I prefer to think of his one leading man role as Dex in 2000's THE TAO OF STEVE. Playing an overweight slacker who manages to charm the panties off of every woman that he meets mainly by acting as if he could care less if he slept with them, ("We pursue that which retreats from us."), I would have very willingly been one of those eager women. Logue is disarmingly charming for a portly freak who sits around smoking pot when he isn't working part-time at a pre-school.
Logue has had some success on the small screen as well, with appearances in shows from "The X Files" to "Northern Exposure" to "The Practice" to "ER" to his leading role as Sean Finnerty in the 2001-2005 television show "Grounded for Life," where he was the young father of three children. More recently he was seen on the short-lived series "The Knights of Prosperity," where a group of bumbling idiots plot to rob a celebrity in New York City.
That seems to be the angle which works best for Logue, that of the slightly inept, bumbling goof. Even when playing a vampire in BLADE (1998), he was the least coordinated of the bunch. He was a weak second banana to Nic Cage in the recent GHOST RIDER (2007) and a nebbish police captain in ZODIAC (2007). But Logue is great at adding the often much-needed dose of comedy in movies that otherwise would be seriously lacking. 
I'm totally listening to his voice right now... I swear |
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His delivery ranges between a slow confusion and a high tension freak-out, all without ever seriously raising his voice. Not conventionally handsome, Logue has a presence which can set you at ease, as if you're slipping into a moment of relaxation with an old friend. This is the guy that the girls overlooked at first and then found that he'd grown on them. Chances are, he's grown on you as well, without you ever really noticing.
Richard T. Jones is an actor that I can place with one single listen. Possessing the smoothest voice that I have heard escape a man's lips in as long as I can remember, Jones first captured my attention playing Slim in the terrific THE WOOD, a film detailing the lives of three friends who grew up together in Inglewood, California. Jones never manages to come off as anything less than intelligent and graceful, a skilled negotiator in times when a movie most calls for it.
The main problem is that most people in the movie industry haven't caught onto what a strong talent Jones is. The majority of his roles have been minor ones in mostly low-budget and under-noticed movies. In MOONLIGHT MILE (2002), one of the more high-profile flicks that he's been in recently, his screen time runs at a maximum of 5 minutes but it scores one of the highest impacts in the entire film. His acting is through his eyes and his subtle motions, two things which don't always get picked up on in an industry built on over-the-top histrionics. Jones was fortunate enough to get a long-time recurring role on the television show, "Judging Amy," which I must profess I haven't seen a single episode of. But I plan on checking it out simply because of Jones' participation in it.
I will tell you that I have never forgotten the exact moment when Illeana Douglas was blistered into my memory. It was 1991's remake of CAPE FEAR which, in addition to adding another example of Martin Scorsese's rampant misogynist ways to the ever-growing pile, showed the doe-eyed actress enjoying the romantic attention showered on her by DeNiro's released convict, Max Cady, after being brushed off by her boss, Nick Nolte's Sam Bowden. Enjoying it, that is, right up until he chomps down and bites off a chunk of her cheek. I was unable to get Douglas out of my head ever since then.
Tall and slender with a narrow nose and huge, deep-set eyes, Illeana Douglas should have one of the most recognizable looks in all of Hollywood. But she's been largely ignored aside from her ability to turn in amazingly quirky performances that also hold a touch of Earth Mama to them. Director Allison Anders' GRACE OF MY HEART (1996), a fictional bio-pic of sorts that was loosely based on songstress Carole King's life and career, was Douglas' chance to play leading lady and step into a brighter spotlight. Instead, the movie came and went from the theaters in a flash, leaving little lasting impact other than an outstanding soundtrack.
Usually cast as the sister, the mother, the teacher or the best friend who always has just the right piece of advice for the leading lady, Douglas is overlooked in one other dominating area. On the short-lived black comedy television show "Action," she was given the chance to showcase that area. Douglas exudes sexuality, whether with her lithe physique, lush lips or simply her frank delivery of some of the most suggestive innuendo that was uttered on a basic cable station. Douglas is powerful, whether through her perseverance in an industry that doesn't know quite what to do with her, her refreshing 
Better Than Unconventional |
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realistic sensuality or her mere presence, even in brief appearances on "Law and Order: SVU," "Six Feet Under," or "Ugly Betty."
One of my absolute favorite lines ever uttered in a movie was by one of the best character actresses of all time. "No. The world is full of guys. Be a man. Don't be a guy." That's the line spoken by the incomparable Lili Taylor in the masterpiece of geek romance, SAY ANYTHING. It was the third movie that she'd ever been in and the second where she was given a predominant role. Directly prior to this movie was MYSTIC PIZZA, that movie more commonly referred to as the one where Julia Roberts got her start, but it is Taylor who has the most interesting role in the flick as the pizza waitress who keeps getting cold feet about her marriage to the local fish monger.
As time has passed by since those two movies, rarely has Lili been able to find roles worthy of her talent. Frequently dismissed for being too "quirky" to carry off standard romantic comedies and never considered to be even an unconventional beauty, the years have seen Taylor slugging it out for work. She has been interviewed stating that she is frequently recognized on the street or while out shopping but struggles to maintain even a sparse lifestyle, one that most would not associate with being a Hollywood fixture. She works mainly within the independent film circles, where she is considered to be the biggest name that most low-budget directors can acquire. Still good friends with her SAY ANYTHING co-star, John Cusack, she made an appearance in his fanboy idolized HIGH FIDELITY in 2000.
One of the absolute best examples of how mesmerizing Taylor can be when given a wide berth and allowed to do her thing is in the movie DOGFIGHT (1991). One of the last movies made by the other great and tragic talent, River Phoenix, the film details the last weekend ashore for 4 Marine buddies, traipsing around San Francisco in 1963 before they're deployed for Vietnam. The men go looking for the ugliest women that they can find to accompany them as dates to a "dogfight," a function that the Marines place bets on to see who can take the top prize of having brought the biggest "dog" to the dance. Sweet and shy and yet unwilling to allow anyone to discredit her feelings, Taylor doesn't turn what could have been a sad sap of a character into a pitiable mess. Instead she lets the viewer see that while Rose has her weaknesses, she balances them out by her greater strengths. Much like how Taylor has approached her entire movie career.
If you allow me to go on, I could do it all night. However, I am writing this on the fly as I didn't have anything plotted out until the last minute. The next time that you're watching a movie and you find yourself pointing at the screen and thinking, "Oooo Oooo Oooo, that's that guy from (fill in the blank)," I urge you to look them up, study their resume and make a point of learning their name. Then spread the word. Remember, your own mouth is more important than any cover spread of People Magazine.
The Next Time You're Hitting Up Your Video Store or NetFlix Queue, Consider These Flicks:
My main suggestions for Donal Logue: COMIC BOOK VILLIANS, THE TAO OF STEVE, CONFIDENCE.
My main suggestions for Richard T. Jones: THE WOOD, AUGGIE ROSE (aka BEYOND SUSPICION), CUTTING ROOM.
My main suggestions for Illeana Douglas: GRACE OF MY HEART, HAPPY TEXAS, STIR OF ECHOS
My main suggestions for Lili Taylor: SAY ANYTHING, DOGFIGHT, I SHOT ANDY WARHOL
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| Neglected Foster Child of Hollywood |
Every other Wednesday
Not-so-gentle musings from the girl who is saving room in her uterus for Tarantino's spawn.
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| AwesomeZara |
She's awesome, who would have guessed that?
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