David Warner

[poliphilo]

Whatever happened to David Warner?

Back in the 1960s he was the brilliant young star of the Royal Shakespeare Company. I saw his moody, studenty Hamlet- one of the defining performances of the era- and fully expected him to turn into my generation's Gielgud. Then he went to Hollywood and- well- embarked on a career playing doctors and clergymen and Klingon elder statesmen. Oh, yes, and he was the homicidal gentleman's gentleman in Titanic.

Last night he turned up on TV- as he does every once in a while- as the patriarch of a disfunctional Agatha Christie family. He's a damn fine actor, but where are the clouds of glory he should be trailing by now?

Comments

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

Proof that talent is not what gets you anywhere in the acting world, especially not in Hollywood. You need a sprinkling of "who you know" and a very hefty dose of luck.

Actually, I've found this to be more and more true in the world in general. It's not what you know or how good you are at what you do anymore, it's all about who you know - who you can call on to get you inside.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Sheer, naked, ruthless ambition gets you a hell of a long way. Look at Madonna. I'm not saying that ambition is all she's got, but no-one has ever argued that her singing/dancing/acting talent is anything more than modest.

[archyena.livejournal.com]

I think a lot of this has to do with a general lack of knowledge. Unless you are already a major name in any business, people rely on those who pay attention to offer advice from casting to personnel. As people become busier and more focused on their narrow specialty, they rely even more on "experts" on other people. Since most such "experts" seem to be merely the networkers we all knew in high school--not popular enough to be recognized and not pretty enough to be prom king/queen--that they rely primarily on the same system of brown nosing and favors that got them by in the past should be no surprise. The goal of everyone's life ought to be to find a way to do without these human scum.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

I'm unfamiliar with David Warner, but I hope he returns to the stage at some point. I believe Patrick Stewart has--he says that Hollywood offers fewer roles to people his age. I think he's returned to England.

All of which reminds me of a fine interview with Michael Caine I once heard on NPR.

By happy coincidence, I happened to check out of the library last week All I Did Was Ask, by the interviewer, Terry Gross.

And Michael, who has starred in many films, had a couple of gems in that interview I've often remembered:

"Having a Cockney accent...was difficult. But also it's where the voice is placed, ad Cockney's naturally right up in the throat. It's rather like John Major....he talks like that. The trick was to bring my voice down to the diaphragm."

"Authority is shown not only by voice but by movement. And the first thing in authority is you never move. If you look at aristocracy and other powerful people, they move very little because everybody is waiting on their every word, wish, or command. And their voice is very, very slow ecause everybody will wait no matter how long it takes for them to say what they are going to say...A gangster accent is a working class Cockney accent. But there is a cheerful chirpy working-class accent, 'Hello, lads. Let's all go down the pub,' another one which is very drawn out. And it's very flat. I grew up with gangsters like this. They will say "I like you,"...and it's like an icicle. When you know you're in trouble with a Cockney gangster, he'll say something like, "Welll, who's been naughty then?" Now, that question means you're probably going to get kneecapped to the floor. The voice just flattens right out."

"If you blink on camera, it signifies weakness. If you look in the mirror yourself, and just stare and start saying things to yourself, you'll see how powerful it is. If you just blink once in the middle of it, you'll see how it all dissipates the whole thing...When I was a young lad, I found a book, 'How to Teach Yourself Film Acting,' and the first thing it said is, 'You must not blink.' So I walked around this working=class district of London without blinking. I looked like an early serial killer. I'm sure I frightened the life out of people because I used to have long conversations and never blink."

Off the subject, sorry, but so interesting I had to segue a little!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I love Michael Caine. He had a rough time in Britain at the start. People wouldn't accept him as a serious actor- and all because of the cockney accent. It was purely a class thing.

I cherish his performance in Sleuth, where he goes toe to toe with Laurence Olivier and- IMHO- wins on points.

He's a very great actor I think- and so intelligent and insightful about his craft.

Yeah, Patrick Stewart has been appearing onstage at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, which is just down the road from where he was born.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

I fell in love with Michael Caine when he told the secret of his 'sexy' eyes - he can't see without his glasses. And I fell further in love with him this past week when I saw him as Scrooge in "A Muppet Christmas Carol". He will always be the 'real' Alfie to me, and not that skinny Jude Law.

Feel free to make fun of me...

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't dream of poking fun...

And quite apart from his talent and his sexy eyes he comes across as largely unspoiled. I think he's a all-round decent bloke.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I guess I have a romantic view of acting. I think of actors crafting their careers when really I know that for most of them it's a hand to mouth struggle.

Warner was my hero for a while. I saw him as Hamlet in 64-65 and shortly before that as an electrifying Henry VI in a TV version of the RSC's Wars of the Roses Cycle. I thought he was going to be a huge star and then he disappeared from the English stage.

When I express disappointment with his perfectly respectable but unspectacular film and TV career it is perhaps my own youth that I am feeling wistful about.