It wasn't so awfully long ago that collective reasoning would have suggested that Robert Downey Jr, gifted actor and crazy addict, would be dead by now. So three cheers for sobriety and getting your s*** back together! He seems to have become a model Hollywood citizen.
That's a relief. Between longtime sane Drew Barrymore and he, it's almost enough to give one hope that Lindsay Lohan will eventually turn a corner. Celebrity addicts are plentiful but greatly charismatic actors are in shorter supply. I think it was David Poland (if memory serves) who pointed out that Robert Downey Jr. must truly be a new man because his forthcoming lead role as Tony Stark in Iron Man suggests that he's insureable again ... even for a mega budget tentpole project.
Several of his projects in the Aughts show an actor in top form. He proved he still had true star charisma in a memorable recurring role on the late Ally McBeal. He reminded us that he could carry a film effortlessly in the underappreciated Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. And he keeps proving that he's a reliable supporting player in sober ambitious stuff like Fur, Good Night, and Good Luck. and Zodiac. He's also somehow managed to maintain the old bad boy charm into his 40s while simultaneously dumping the actual bad boy behavior.
Oh and he sings beautifully, too.
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5 comments:
Hooray for Robert Downey Jr.! I really loved his performance in Zodiac, although it was a little unnerving how tragically accurately he portrayed Avery's drunken descent. I hope he gets nominated!
Oh.
My.
I will always lurv RBDjr.
I like him very much, but I honestly don't get the "great actor" praise - I really do feel like he's always playing some variation on the same character, i.e. some version of himself, or at least the "himself" as he's come to be seen by the public. Not that it bothers me, I like his schtick and find him very charasmatic and always watchable. But he's never suprised me, ya know?
Also, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is definitely underrated.
Eww, charIIIIIIIIIsmatic.
I hate typos.
Loved him in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Am fairly ambivilent to the rest of his career. Of course, I haven't seen much of his earlier stuff (Chaplin?) but he's not really my cuppa. To each their own.
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