Sunday, November 19, 2006

Peter the Great

I don't know why people -- journalists no less -- keep telling me what a "great" movie Shattered Glass is. I finally rented it this weekend, and while it's not terrible . . . All the President's Men it ain't. The best thing about it -- and it's a very best thing indeed -- is Peter Sarsgaard. I've never seen him give a bad performance -- from Kinsey (another one I didn't love as much as everyone else) to the intense and bizarre The Dying Gaul (in which he sports a very fetching beard). In Shattered Glass -- about disgraced journalistic fabricator Stephen Glass -- he's practically the only actor whose performance is completely free of Hollywood mannerisms. As Glass's New Republic boss, he goes from reluctant suspicion to barely contained rage without any grandstanding.

I was also impressed with an actress I didn't think I'd ever heard of,
Melanie Lynskey. She has an almost-nothing role of an innocently insecure young colleague of the pathologically insecure Glass. I found her very natural and believable. And now I'm shocked to see on IMDb that she costarred with Kate Winslet in the fantastic 1994 film Heavenly Creatures. What the heck is she doing in a bit part in Shattered Glass? Apparently, she also is on the sitcom Two and a Half Men. Oh, dear. Well, I wish her bigger and better things.


4 Comments:

Blogger diablo said...

it's been a while since i've watched movies on dvd—don't have the patience to sit there and watch, i get sucked into other activities too easily. maybe during the coming holiday i'll make some time. i'd consider watching my architect which i'd meant to see when it was out but never got around to it.

8:33 AM  
Blogger Laurie said...

Hey~ Your blog post link showed up randomly in my email because I have "peter sarsgaard" on my google news watch alert. Lately they've started including blogs along with news...Anyways, you are right about Sarsgaard. He is an amazing actor. I first saw him last year in 'Shattered Glass' and sought out his other works from there. If you have not seen "Garden State" it is worth checking out. Great movie and great performances, especially by P.S. "The Dying Gaul" was a superbly acted movie that should have gotten an Oscar nod. And yes, that beard was pretty damned nice.

Now, I need coffee...
Ciao,
a random reader in Alaska (Laurie)

10:27 AM  
Blogger Nell Minow said...

If you're going to write about movies, you know I won't be able to resist a response! I agree with everything you wrote about "Shattered Glass." I found Glass so annoying and obvious that it was hard to imagine him as the charismatic character who successfully conned so many people, and the movie uneven, though I thought the opening scene in the high school was terrific. And I adore Melanie Lynskey, who has been sensational in an astonishing range of parts, from a wicked stepsister in "Ever After" to a KISS fan in "Detroit Rock City," to, as you mentioned, her mesmerizing performance in "Heavenly Creatures." You should see "Garden State" for more Sarsgaard, as suggested (also great soundtrack). Happy Thanksgiving!

3:51 PM  
Blogger Billy said...

I have seen Garden State! I have seen Garden State!

10:14 PM  

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