Alternate Best Actor 2011: Results

5. Robert Wieckiewicz in In Darkness- This is not a great performance by any means as the role is relatively simple, but Wieckiewicz nevertheless gives a realistic performance.

4. Brendan Gleeson in The Guard-Gleeson makes this just a very entertaining from beginning to end through his realization of a man who may be the best and worst cop simultaneously.

3. Michael Shannon in Take Shelter-Shannon gives an excellent performance here through his ability to maneuver through the complex state of his character.

2. Michael Fassbender in Shame- A compelling performance by Fassbender that creates a memorable performance of a man seeking pleasure but only finds emptiness.

1. Ryan Gosling in Drive- This is another year where the choice of the winner was extremely difficult not only among the alternates, but also the overall of the year. My top three favorites still consist of the three who speak the least. Gosling gives an amazing performance with few words, but all the meaning needed through the smallest of gestures.

Overall Rank:

1. Gary Oldman in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
2. Jean Dujardin in The Artist
3. Ryan Gosling in Drive
4. Michael Fassbender in Shame
5. Michael Shannon in Take Shelter
6. Brendan Gleeson in The Guard
7. Demian Bichir in A Better Life
8. Christoph Waltz in Carnage
9. Michael Fassbender in X-Men First Class
10. Tom Hardy in Warrior
11. Joel Edgerton in Warrior
12. Ryan Gosling in The Ides of March
13. Daniel Craig in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
14. Brad Pitt in Moneyball
15. Michael Fassbender in A Dangerous Method  
16. Ewan McGregor in Beginners 
17. Robert Wieckiewicz in In Darkness
18. Asa Butterfield in Hugo
19. James McAvoy in X-Men First Class
20. Owen Wilson in Midnight in Paris
21. Chris Evans in Captain America
22. John C. Reilly in Carnage
23. Jason Segal in The Muppets
24. Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hollows
25. Hunter McCracken in Tree of Life
26. George Clooney in The Descendants 
27. Eddie Redmayne in My Week With Marilyn 
28. Jeremy Irvine in War Horse
29. Thomas Horn in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Next Year: 1954

Alternate Best Actor 2011: Michael Fassbender in Shame

Michael Fassbender did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Brandon Sullivan in Shame.

Shame is an interesting film about a man with an addiction to sex.

Michael Fassbender was not nominated for the Oscar even though he was well praised for the role, received a Bafta nomination, and it was one of four films he was in during the year. The academy obviously just did not care for the film since Shame did not receive any nominations period. The film was also rated NC-17 and deals with material that the academy is clearly not particularly comfortable with. Apparently the older members were not having fond memories about Midnight Cowboy when viewing this film, and that may largely be due to the main character who is a far cry from Joe Buck in that film.

Joe Buck as played by Jon Voight in Midnight Cowboy was an overly joyful naive dreamer who wishes to exploit his supposed sexual prowess for monetary gain in quite a desperate looking New York City. Well the city has changed a lot as has the protagonist. Brandon is a successful enough man, and constantly participates in sexual acts, but he is only ever doing for his own wants and quite often is the one paying for it. Brandon though is a cynical man, and although he is seeking pleasure through all of the sex that is in his life he finds that he has very little of it to be found.

Michael Fassbender, as I said in my review of his performance in Hunger, has a unique virile screen presence that alone makes him watchable. Here this is used certainly well in almost a strange way though. Brandon is constantly having sex with women both prostitutes as well as women he picks up from bars and such. The differences seem almost meaningless as Brandon is done with the voluntary just as fast as the paid. Fassbender through his strength of his personality with his great charisma makes this of course very easy to believe, and the ease in which Brandon can be a sex addict is never in question.

The main crux of this performance though really is in Fassbender's whole portrayal of the attitude Brandon has when committing a sexual act of any kind throughout the film. Fassbender has certainly an energy in these scenes always suggesting that Brandon is very much actively pursing the satisfaction one would want in a sexual experience. Fassbender though never shows even a glint of pleasure in the act itself even if he shows it in an energetic fashion. There is a desperation Fassbender portrays instead, in Brandon's face is always a want for something in what he is doing, but at the end there is always disappointment and emptiness shown by Fassbender's expression.

A striking part of his portrayal of Brandon is that although there is never pleasure found in any moment of his sexual activities, Fassbender still shows that this was something lost in Brandon over some time. The reason for this, which is well played by Fassbender, is that in his moments of showing interest before the intercourse he shows glints of expectation and actually a hope that perhaps this one will finally bring him the pleasure he is constantly seeking but can never find. Fassbender shows that just like the alcoholic who always drinks but never can get drunk, Brandon constantly has sex but never sexual satisfaction.

The most persuading factor in Fassbender's performance is really the emptiness of Brandon's life. Fassbender effectively portrays this not really as a pain to Brandon, but instead a safety. There is problem from his past a trauma that apparently both he and his sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) both suffered. It never is explicitly stated what exactly the trauma was, but it most certainly seriously messed up both of them. Fassbender is terrific showing the trauma seems to be something he avoids through being completely detached from anything, keeping himself only connected to things in a brief fashion like his one night stands.

The most powerful moments of Fassbender's performance come by way of the moments where Brandon is forced not to be empty such as when he goes on a date with his co-worker Marianne (Nicole Beharie). Fassbender is great in this scene as he shows both a great deal of awkwardness in Brandon as he treads through actual conversations, but he also effectively shows an underlying almost happiness expressed that is absent from him at all other times. When the relationship is about to become sexual, Fassbender is convincing in his depiction of the pain that does develop when he forced to do something with an actual emotional connection which prevents him from continuing the relationship.

The same problems appear when Brandon deals with his sister, which again Fassbender is great in portraying Brandon's difficulties involving a relationship he has to actually feel something about. Fassbender is quite strong in showing how to avoid his sister he can only really show anger toward her most of the time. Fassbender carefully creates the relationship that there is a connection there with some small degree of love, but again there is an avoidance that to actually become truly emotionally involved only leading to rage against her for basically making himself confront his own problems.

The film is frankly not always as compelling as it should be as I said it is just interesting, but never quite amazing as many of Steve McQueen's directorial flares seem like a little too much like directorial flares. This is great work from Fassbender creating a vivid portrait of this man though, even if there are a few moments  by McQueen that seem to be there just to let Fassbender show off like the crying in the rain, but that is a fault of the film and not of Fassbender's work. And to be perfectly honest even in the scenes just to let Fassbender act, he still is great in these scenes even if they do not work toward his overall characterization as much as they should. This is a striking performance though that helps seal Michael Fassbender as one of the most intriguing actors of today.

Alternate Best Actor 2011

And the Nominees Were Not:

Ryan Gosling in Drive

Robert Wieckiewicz in In Darkness

Michael Fassbender in Shame

Michael Shannon in Take Shelter

Brendan Gleeson in The Guard

Alternate Best Actor 2008: Results

5. Leonardo DiCaprio in Revolutionary Road- DiCaprio certainly tries as hard as he possibly can in the role, but unfortunately his performance never quite comes together in the way the film wants it to.

4. Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino- Eastwood shows his usual strong presence here, and uses his unique individualistic screen persona brilliantly here.

3. Michael Fassbender in Hunger- Fassbender gives a strong performance showing the incredible unshakable drive in his character.

2. Colin Farrell in In Bruges- Farrell proves himself an extremely capable actor here as he creates both a energetically hilarious performance as well as quite a moving portrait of guilt.

1. Brendan Gleeson in In Bruges- This year is quite a terrible year for the academy missing out on such strong work for the over the top mannerisms of Penn and Langella as well as just the extreme blandness of Pitt. They in particular missed out on this great performance by Brendan Gleeson that is a unique very moving portrait of a career killer who is anything but cold blooded, and also to his credit Gleeson is simply hilarious particularly due to his chemistry with his co-stars of Farrell and Ralph Fiennes.

Overall Rank:

1. Brendan Gleeson in In Bruges
2. Colin Farrell in In Bruges
3. Michael Fassbender in Hunger
4. Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler
5. Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker
6. Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino
7. Philip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt
8. Richard Jenkins in The Visitor
9. Daniel Craig in Quantum of Solace
10. Leonardo DiCaprio in Revolutionary Road
11. Michael Sheen in Frost/Nixon
12. Jason Statham in The Bank Job
13. Ed Harris in Appaloosa
14. Leonardo DiCaprio in Body of Lies 
15. Daniel Craig in Defiance
16. Ben Stiller in Tropic Thunder
17. Sylvester Stallone in Rambo
18. Liam Neeson in Taken
19. Ed Norton in The Incredible Hulk
20. Tom Cruise in Valkyrie
21. Dev Patel in Slumdog Millionaire
22. Ricky Gervais in Ghost Town
23. Javier Bardem in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
24. Harrison Ford in The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
25. Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon
26. Sean Penn in Milk
27. Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Next Year: 1947

124. Prometheus

124. (08 Jun) Prometheus (2012, Ridley Scott)* 38

Certainly the most disappointing science fiction prequel since The Phantom Menace, this is infinitely more inept than that film. Failing to establish any characters to the point where it becomes downright comical when we're meant to feel for them as they perish one by one, it's impossible to get caught up in a moment of Prometheus. Reliant on special effects, this lamely undercooked spin on creationism is neither thought-provoking nor entertaining. The criminal underuse of Charlize Theron is perhaps most crushing of all.

Alternate Best Actor 2008: Michael Fassbender in Hunger

Michael Fassbender did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Bobby Sands in Hunger.

Hunger is an interesting film about the harsh treatment of IRA prisoners by the British, and their attempts to rebel in prison for better treatment.

Michael Fassbender here actually takes quite a bit of time to actually even first appear in this film, and when he first does appear he seems to be just part of the crowd of other men who are brutally treated by the guards. It is not until quite a great deal of time into the film when Fassbender finally takes over the film. Nevertheless early in the film Fassbender is just one of the faces of the men who are facing the cruelty of the prison, and in that he along with the others realistically portrays the pain the men are going through. It is an intense visceral pain they bring to life extremely well, and they make the scenes very difficult to watch.

I will say that in these early scenes Fassbender does not exactly stand as the only man in the crowd. This is not a negative though, as it is the group showing he prevailing horror the men face in the prison as well as their united anger of protest for their treatment as well. Again Fassbender early on does not especially stand on his own, but he is part of the cohesive whole of the men who express their frustrations as one of the brutality they have suffered. This actually is completely fitting for the film as a whole since it is very much about how all of the men who are all IRA prisoners come together to work almost as one against the British forces.

It would almost seem that Fassbender is not even lead, only part of ensemble, until well into the film when it exclusively focuses on Bobby Sands who intends to be the first of an organized many to hunger strike to move for reform of their treatment by the prison staff. This all starts though with a very long scene that includes an almost seventeen minute long single take where an Irish sympathetic priest (Liam Cunningham) who attempts to talk Sands out of his most likely to be fatal hunger strike. Although Fassbender was appropriately part of the group of men before this scene once this scene starts Fassbender leaves no question to who is the lead of the film.

An almost seventeen minute shot is certainly a risky undertaking, but it hardly matters as Fassbender, and Cunnigham as well make the scene truly compelling. Michael Fassbender is an actor who has a distinct natural charisma that is not only about his charm, but as well a raw virility. He is just a fascinating actor to watch, and keeping this very long scene interesting never seems to take any effort at all from Fassbender. He is just incredible as Sands, and it is quite difficult to take your eyes off this scene because of Fassbender. He creates a remarkable force and presence within Bobby Sands that cannot be ignored, and is quite overpowering at times.

Fassbender in this scene makes Sands a force of will his will to no matter what make a statement that cannot be ignored even if it means his own death. Fassbender avoids any pretension with his performance, when Sands is talking it is the absolute truth that comes from the very depth of his soul. There is not a hint of hesitation in Fassbender's performance as Sands. Fassbender makes it always clear that the sentiment of Sands is never a lark but an unshakable drive to stand up and be taken notice no matter what the cost. Fassbender is outstanding in the way he brings this incredible passion so vividly to life.

Interestingly enough Fassbender only becomes more engrossing as he tells a tale of Sands' youth where he puts down a wounded animal showing his strength as well gaining the respect of others. In this moment he shows exactly where Sands whole concept of power really comes from, and Fassbender realizes this marvelously. Fassbender has a determination in his eyes which in his eyes that is unforgettable. Fassbender shows us through this story just how forceful this man's will truly is. Fassbender makes it clear that this hunger strike is not just some afterthought or last ditch effort but rather the realization of Sands's whole moral outlook.

After this scene though Sands goes deep down into his hunger strike, and Fassbender's performance almost becomes silent as he quickly goes through an extreme physical decay. Michael Fassbender still is absolutely compelling as Sands slowly dies from his hunger. Fassbender firstly is almost all too real in showing both the degradation of Sands physically, and mentally as well. He shows the absolutely horrendous strain on Sands, but interestingly he never loses that spirit in his performance. Even when he is at the very end suffering from a horrible amount of ailments, there is still that same force of will in his eyes. This is not exactly an easy performance to watch at times particularly at the of the film but it is a perpetually gripping. This is a great performance by Fassbender that creates a memorable moving portrait of this man who is completely devoted to his cause.

Alternate Best Actor 2008

And the Nominees Were Not:

Brendan Gleeson in In Bruges

Colin Farrell in In Bruges

Michael Fassbender in Hunger

Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino

Leonardo DiCaprio in Revolutionary Road

PROMETHEUS

PROMETHEUS
Written by Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof
Directed by Ridley Scott
Starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender and Charlize Theron

David: Sometimes to create, one must first destroy.

The ship which Ridley Scott’s latest foray into outer space is named for, PROMETHEUS, is itself named after a Greek god. In case you’re unfamiliar, this particular God is not only credited with the creation of man, from clay no less, but also with providing mankind with fire and the possibility of progress. The trouble is he had to steal the fire in the first place and so his deed would need to be punished. Aside from eternal torment and torture, Prometheus would also be forever known as a symbol for overreaching and the often unfortunate consequences of doing so. There is only one person doing any overreaching on this ship though and that’s the director. Not to mention, it would seem to me that naming an exploratory space ship thus would just be more of a subconscious effort to sabotage your chances for success than anything else.

PROMETHEUS opens with stunning shots of landscapes and waterfalls and culminates in a bizarre spectacle that announces the possibility of a truly unique and breathtaking film experience. It then moves rather quickly into all too familiar territory. Type on the screen dictates the time and place of the mission, while people are asleep in pods on the ship, and an android watches carefully over them with some potentially questionable motivation. There were months of speculation but now there is no denying that this is an alien movie, somehow connected to Scott’s seminal 1979 film, ALIEN. It isn’t made clear just how at first but it certainly follows exactly the same pattern as his original film, as well as James Cameron’s sequel, ALIENS. After everyone wakes up, they pal around in the cafeteria; the ship’s authorities have money on their minds at all times; disposable crew members are picked off in small increments; heck, there are even things that pop out of stomachs and girls in tiny, objectifying briefs. The technology allows the film to look fresh and updated but the familiarity left me wondering if I was watching a remake and also why no one told me ahead of time.

So, once you realize PROMETHEUS is an ALIEN movie, the question becomes is it actually a good ALIEN movie? It is, to some extent, if you consider the word “alien” to mean beings from outer space and not the specific ones from the original film. Go in expecting them and you will be disappointed. That said, I can’t guarantee you won’t be disappointed if you go in not expecting them either. We wait to see what all the fuss is about for a good hour, and marvel at its beauty, because PROMETHEUS is nothing if not beautiful, but by the time the action comes, we have been waiting for it for so long that it almost feels forced. And I know that genre pics like this warrant all secrecy but the fact is that the spoiler moments in this film almost spoiled it completely for me. There are moments that are just too hard to believe or too sadistic to be taken seriously. Some of these moments are too hard to truly recover from even. Scott may know aliens but he doesn’t seem to know much about creating credible human beings here.

PROMETHEUS is co-written by LOST alumni, Damon Lindelof (along with relative newcomer Jon Spaihts). Like in the popular television series, Lindelof again attempts to tackle ideas about where we came from and where we’re going. And once again, he provides vague musings about our nature that truly only beg more questions. Hence the reason any characters left at the end of the film are only left with one question on their minds; why is this happening? Naturally, they must find out and so PROMETHEUS seems destined to continue its quest, which, while noble in intention, is really nothing more than a setup for a sequel. With that, PROMETHEUS the film reveals its true mission is not so dissimilar to that of the ship. Profit at any expense is always more important than understanding humanity.

Black Sheep interviews Michael Fassbender

Ain’t No Shame
An interview with Michael Fassbender, star of SHAME


Note: This article was originally published in Montreal's Hour Community.

It can be a bit jarring to go from watching an actor on screen one minute to seeing them sitting directly in front of you the next. It can even be somewhat awkward when you’ve just watched said actor engage in a multitude of sexually explicit encounters on film. When the actor you’re speaking with though is as effortlessly talented as Michael Fassbender is, you quickly realize there is no shame in it at all.

In SHAME, British filmmaker, Steve McQueen’s sophomore effort, Fassbender is naked within minutes of the film starting, so it seems only fitting to begin our conversation there as well. “It’s kinda embarrassing,” says the actor who has nothing at all to be embarrassed about. At this point, I laugh out loud and when Fassbender realizes I’m shocked that he was the least bit shy given how good he looks, he jokes, “Oh I see. You were having a gay old time then.” On that note, the Irish-German actor is clearly quite the charmer, even when fully clothed.

The 34-year-old Fassbender, who won the Best Actor prize at the Venice Film Festival, plays Brandon in SHAME, a sex addict living in New York City. It would seem to me that if you’re going to tell a sex addict’s story on film, you’re going to need to see a little sex happen, but some people have argued that SHAME not only goes too far but that it relishes in its boundary pushing. “It’s ludicrous to me,” Fassbender explains, with only a hint of outrage. “You can take someone’s head off with a cheese cutter but heaven forbid should you show a penis.”

As much as it is about sex, SHAME isn’t really about sex at all; it’s about a person with an addiction. Brandon isn’t the easiest character to like either. He uses women whenever required and he is horribly unsupportive to his sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan), but Fassbender was never concerned people wouldn’t come around to Brandon. “I knew people were going to like him because I liked him, because he was a guy that knew he was ill. He is a product of our time.”

Despite Brandon’s timeliness, the Motion Picture Association of America has slapped an NC-17 rating on the film, which prohibits anyone under 18 years of age from seeing it, regardless of whether they are accompanied by an adult or not. Ordinarily, this rating means box office death but SHAME wears its badge proudly and is doing well in limited release despite it. “It can be a good thing,” Fassbender says of the rating. “The most important thing is to get people talking about it. That creates curiosity and it only seems to put more bums in the seats in the end.”

A few cuts to the film could have brought the rating down to an R, to which Fassbender responds, “Good luck trying to convince Steve McQueen on that!” Fassbender and McQueen had previously worked together on McQueen’s debut feature, HUNGER, a 2008 film about the 1981 Irish Republican Army hunger strike, as led by Bobby Sands, whom Fassbender portrays in the film. (Incidentally, the two are scheduled to work together again on McQueen’s third feature, TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE, expected in 2014.) “He’s the only person I could have asked to do this,” McQueen tells me about casting Fassbender in Shame. “I don’t believe he’s an actor. He doesn’t act. What he does is a different thing altogether.”

Whatever it is he does, Fassbender will be doing it for quite some time if he keeps up this pace. Upcoming projects for the Best Actor Oscar frontrunner include work with some of today’s most famed directors, from David Cronenberg (A DANGEROUS METHOD) to Steven Soderbergh (HAYWIRE) to Ridley Scott (PROMETHEUS), which is exactly where Fassbender wants his career to be. “The way it is at the moment is pretty perfect for me. I get to work with great filmmakers and that’s as simple as it gets. I just want to mix it up and keep myself guessing.”

Best of Black Sheep: SHAME

SHAME
Written and by Abi Morgan and Steve McQueen 
Directed by Steve McQueen
Starring Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan


Brandon: Some people fuck up all the time.

Steve McQueen’s sophomore film, SHAME, begins with his returning star, Michael Fassbender, lying in bed, staring at the ceiling or into some far off space. He doesn’t move; he just lies there half covered by the blankets for some time. Something in his eyes suggests he can’t move just yet. He is trapped in those precious morning moments, where you become aware again of everything sleep managed to erase temporarily the night before. To get up, means having to face it all again and once you see what it is this particular man is trying to avoid, it becomes pretty obvious pretty quickly why he would rather stay in bed.

Fassbender, who owes a great deal of his notoriety to McQueen after the two worked together on  McQueen’s first feature, the brilliant HUNGER, plays Brandon, a New Yorker with a fancy job and an even fancier apartment. He presents perfectly in every fashion but he is hiding a secret, one so big that it could threaten everything he has in his life. Brandon is a sex addict. Some scoff at the whole idea that someone can actually be addicted to sex, as if it is some sort of made up excuse people use to get off the hook for indiscretions. The way McQueen writes the affliction though, it becomes painfully obvious that sex addiction is in fact very real and likely pretty rampant. I wouldn’t call it a disease but it is certainly a learned behaviour that triggers the same pleasure and comfort responses in the brain that any addiction would. Brandon needs sex in his life and he gets more than a little antsy when he doesn’t get his fix.

SHAME does not judge nor does it invite us to judge Brandon. That said, we are not asked to sympathize either. We are simply given the opportunity to observe a man in some of his weaker, more vulnerable moments. Brandon is able to manage his needs fairly well when he has routine in his life but when his sister (Carey Mulligan) comes to stay with him, he is no longer able to keep his habits in the closet. Subsequently, we are witness to them all, in all their naked and sordid glory - this is a movie about sex addiction, after all; you should expect a fair amount of sex. Fassbender is brilliant and fearless as Brandon. As he processes what he’s doing and how it is affecting those around him and his self, Fassbender carries this weight in his entire body. (And I do mean, his entire body.) With SHAME, McQueen and Fassbender prove they aren’t afraid of anything and that HUNGER wasn’t a fluke. The only real shame would be if no one saw this film.

Black Sheep interviews Steve McQueen

THE SHAMING OF STEVE MCQUEEN
An interview with Steve McQueen, writer/director of SHAME

The other day, I joked to a friend that I had received shame in the mail. Of course, I was referring to my review copy of SHAME by Steve McQueen, but I preferred to remain cheekily ambiguous. It did get me thinking about how the title of the film might be more apt than originally imagined though. Sadly, SHAME, one of this critic’s top picks from last year, was scarcely seen in theatres. I had been out to see it twice and was deeply moved both instances but when the topic is sexual addiction and the content is widely publicized as explicit, the crowds do not always follow. There is at times an underlying sense of shame in seeing something so sexual amidst strangers. Perhaps now that the film is available for home consumption, privacy will make way for its genius to be appreciated. I’m just pleased it didn’t come wrapped in black plastic.

McQueen, a novice director whose mastery of the language of film is miles away from amateur, knows that the film is a hard sell but suspects that there are other levels to the depths of our shame. “He’s like us,” McQueen tells me of his protagonist, Brandon (Michael Fassbender), when we meet at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2011. “We do not have self worth. If we did, the world would be a fantastic place but we keep on fucking up and trying to fix it.” The notion here is that those who cannot handle Brandon, don’t want to look at themselves. McQueen continues, “He’s trying, that’s what is so endearing about him. I’ve come to appreciate that people who have an affinity with Brandon is because they understand him and I think that’s important.”

Asking people to understand Brandon means asking them to accept sexual addiction as a legitimate affliction. This is something even McQueen had a hard time with before he sat down to write the screenplay for SHAME with co-writer, Abi Morgan (THE IRON LADY). “When I first heard of sexual addiction, I laughed of course, as you do. It’s like if we take a great drunk, makes everyone laugh. Well, when you realize it takes him two bottles of vodka to make it through the day, it ceases to be funny. When it comes to sex addiction, you realize this guy has to have sex, to a certain extent, every day and it then ceases to be titallating. Any emotional involvement, any emotional risk at all, it just fucks him up.”

SHAME is McQueen’s second film and also second working with Fassbender in the leading role. Their first pairing was McQueen’s award winning debut, HUNGER, where Fassbender played Irish Republic Army leader, Bobby Sands, during his time in prison. The two are slated to work together again on McQueen’s third feature, TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE, so what is it about McQueen that keeps Fassbender coming back for more? “The one thing that really impressed me when we were in Northern Ireland, doing HUNGER, was the passion that everybody came to the set with. Nobody wanted to let Steve down,” says Fassbender, before he takes a breath and continues to gush about his friend and colleague. “Steve leads by example. He is a very open, confident man. He’s not afraid to fall flat on his face, or rather he is afraid but not afraid to show that he’s afraid and show his vulnerabilities. That makes him a giant, very strong, so people follow him.”

McQueen is a concise man, both in his artistic expression and general conversation. When asked about the choice of New York City as location for SHAME, he says, “New York is the epicenter of excess.”

When asked about the lack of backstory for Brandon and his equally damaged sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan), he says, “I didn’t want to be mysterious at all; I wanted to it be familiar.”

And when asked why he favors such long shots in his films, he says, “The content demands the form. Some times long is long but sometimes long is necessity.”

Our interview took place in under 10 minutes and he was able to answer almost ten questions in that time. His answers were sometimes curt and abrasive and other times flourished and detailed; it all depended on what was asked. What is unmistakably clear after meeting McQueen is that he certainly has no shame whatsoever for anything he has done in his career and nor should he. He makes art for art’s sake and what people think of his work, well he is just as efficient with that answer too. “Whether people like it or they don’t like it, either way, I don’t care. I just hope they’re very passionate about it.”

SHAME is now available to rent or own. Do not be ashamed to bring it into your home.

034. Jane Eyre

034. (29 Jan) Jane Eyre (2011, Carey Fukunaga) 54



How Mia Wasikowska continues to get work in period films baffles me. Her posture is positively awful and her unladylike behavior makes her stick out like a sore thumb. Michael Fassbender similarly seems out of sorts since he's too handsome for the role.

Fassbender proves to be Fukunaga's greatest asset by making this remarkably sexy. The book was, after all, a romance and there are touches of that here that seem almost lurid. A particular favorite comes when Jane wakes Rochester when his room's on fire. His nightgown has a slit running up his leg and her eyes linger on it. It's a delightfully erotic touch.

This Jane Eyre sits in a heavy shadow for me, having seen Susanna White's 2006 television adaptation not long ago. White was blessed with Ruth Wilson, a far greater talent than Wasikowska, and her tone and aesthetic made for a far more engaging adaptation. The last hour of this film, in particular, feels completely rushed. Fukunaga's original cut was a half-hour longer and I imagine that's a more complete, better paced movie.

Dowdy though they may be, I like the costumes here. Jane Eyre's drab color palette is wonderfully historically accurate, but also capably illustrates the class divide. A white wedding dress is the only major misstep. Dario Marianelli's score is evocative, but minor work from him.

HAYWIRE

HAYWIRE
Written by Lem Dobbs
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender and Channing Tatum


Aaron: Is this your idea of relaxing? Wine and gun maintenance?

To a large extent, both on the surface and at its root, Steven Soderbergh’s latest caper, HAYWIRE, is nothing more than a filmic excuse to watch former “American Gladiator”, Gina Carano, beat the living crap out of a bunch of big, strapping men. On many levels, Soderbergh has made this exact same movie in some form or another a number of times before, both stylistically and structurally. And while it may not be original at all, nor carry any real substance, HAYWIRE packs a punch that resonates with visceral intensity, leaving the viewer just as walloped as the men on screen, and loving it.

HAYWIRE is tailored to exhibit Carano’s talents to the utmost. Her mixed martial arts background lends great weight to the film, making the showcase well deserved. Whether she is taking on the likes of the mammoth Channing Tatum, or the highly skilled Michael Fassbender, or even the slightly smaller but equally spry, Ewan McGregor, Carano holds her own and then some. Her acting is occasionally stiff, but like Sasha Grey in Soderbergh’s THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE, the frosty exterior suits her character. Besides, Carano is a total pleasure to watch when she gets rough and tough. When she fights, she unleashes a pressure and force on her opponents that is almost palpable, as if you can almost feel the brunt of her knuckles against your own cheek. Of course, this is also partly attributed to the manner in which Soderbergh allows the sequences to play out as well. While they bear his unmistakable style, they also exude a certain natural rawness to them that helps anchor the film too.

Soderbergh is unquestionably one of the most accomplished filmmakers working in cinema today. He is also, most of the time, one of the most identifiable directors as well. One always knows when one sees that yellow tint on the screen that one is watching one of his films. Even the international spy story, told from several different perspectives is reminiscent of his OCEAN’S 11 series or last year’s CONTAGION. On the one hand, I was disappointed to see Soderbergh cruising through such familiar terrain in HAYWIRE, but then there is the flip side to that. While it may not break any new ground for the director, all of his staples come together perfectly here, allowing for HAYWIRE to do what it does best, which is just kick ass.

Black Sheep interviews David Cronenberg

On paper, it would make perfect sense to any outsider that famed Canadian director, David Cronenberg, would be the only appropriate choice to direct A DANGEROUS METHOD, an exploration of the complex relationship between the great grandfathers of psychoanalysis, Carl Jung and Sigmond Freud. Melding the cerebral and the hyper-sexual in this heightened a fashion might seem like old hat for the director of DEAD RINGERS and A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, but suggest this to the man himself, and you might be surprised to hear what he has to say.

“I have to tell you I don’t think in terms of theme at all,” Cronenberg tells me over the phone, right before my chest gets tight at the prospect of insulting one of this country’s most acclaimed talents. “Anyone telling this story would be dealing with those same things. When I’m making a movie, for me, creatively, it’s as if I’ve never made another movie.” Cronenberg is also quick to explain to me he isn’t trying to be evasive in his response. With that, my tension is relieved and we move on happily.

“In retrospect, I could say I always wanted to do something about Freud,” Cronenberg, 68, says, upon further reflection. “To say that isn’t really to say anything at all though because Freud is such a big topic.” And so, he just needed the right project to come along and he found that project in Christopher Hampton’s (DANGEROUS LIAISONS) stage play, "The Talking Cure". Cronenberg had heard his Spider star, Ralph Fiennes, was playing Jung on the London stage and, while he couldn’t attend, he did read the play and found the angle he had been looking for all this time.

“I thought it was very doable as a movie and it would be fascinating to approach it just the way Christopher had, which is to say very neutrally,” Cronenberg explains. Hampton’s play does not pick sides between Jung and Freud, played on film by Michael Fassbender and Viggo Mortensen, respectively, but rather allows the audience to take in their differing points of view and assess on their own where their allegiances lie. The play pits the two against each other by framing their relationship in context with another, that of a shared patient and one of the first female psychoanalysts, Sabina Spielrein, played with great fervor and bravery by Keira Knightley.

Fleshing out the stage version for the screen was easier than one would expect. “As they were both psychoanalysts, no detail went unnoticed. They were their own first subjects after all,” Cronenberg quips. So there was a plethora of information to draw to fill out the story but there was still some things that required a certain creative flair, namely most of the intense sexuality that happens behind closed doors. “There are some very intimate moments which are speculative, of course. There was still some modesty involved in these relationships because of the era.”

As impassioned as it gets onscreen, Cronenberg insists that the set itself, located in Vienna and in various German locations, could not have been more ideal. “It was as though, after one or two days, as if you’d worked with everybody many times before,” he recalls fondly. Of course, Cronenberg has actually worked with Mortensen before, most recently in 2007’s EASTERN PROMISES. While Christoph Waltz was originally due to play Freud, he had to drop out because of scheduling conflicts, and Mortensen stepped in. “With Viggo, I would say I have a long hand rather than a short hand,” Cronenberg describes of their working relationship. “We would exchange something like 25 e-mails about what kind of cigars Freud smoked and when.”

Cronenberg is currently in post-production on his 20th feature, COSMOPOLIS, based on the Don DeLillo novel and starring Robert Pattinson. First up though, he must contend with awards season, as A DANGEROUS METHOD is naturally garnering attention. Though happy with the acclaim, Cronenberg takes the arduous process in stride. “Awards season isn’t a real season; it’s not like fall or winter,” says the man whose first brush with Oscar came when his 1986 film, THE FLY, took home the statue for Best Visual Effects. “It can be very exhausting if you’re nominated so at a certain moment, part of you is almost praying you don’t get any nominations.”

Well, consider my fingers crossed for you, Mr. Cronenberg. Wait.

495. A Dangerous Method

495. (17 Dec) /A Dangerous Method/ (2011, David Cronenberg)* 75



On this rewatch, I'm more impressed than ever by the beautiful structuring of Christopher Hampton's script. There's also such astonishing nuance in the men's performances that balance Knightley's histrionics.

A DANGEROUS METHOD

A DANGEROUS METHOD
Written by Christopher Hampton
Directed by David Cronenberg
Starring Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley and Viggo Mortensen

Otto Gross: If there is one thing I’ve learned in my short life, it’s this: Never repress anything.

Canadian director, David Cronenberg, is synonymous with exploring sexuality and psychology on screen. In his latest epic, A DANGEROUS METHOD, he lets our minds get lost amidst these two forces as they intersect in Austria during the birth of modern psychology. What should have been an explosion of intense thought and tantalizing eroticism unfortunately amounts to little more than awkward conversation.

Like so much of psychoanalysis, some things make perfect sense on the page but do not necessarily apply past the theory. On paper, A DANGEROUS METHOD should work. Michael Fassbender plays Carl Jung, the founder of analytical psychology, who engages in a father-son like relationship with Sigmund Freud, played by three-time Cronenberg collaborator, Viggo Mortensen. Freud’s beliefs surrounding psychological trauma tended to be sexual in nature and this would inevitably cause an irreparable rift between them as Jung thought there had to be more to it than that. The situation was only further exacerbated by Jung’s own affair with one of his own patients, Sabina Spielrein (Keira Knightley). The two enter a kinky relationship that really only proves Freud’s point but men being men, neither will admit any fault.

A DANGEROUS METHOD is aptly performed by its talented cast and beautifully shot and composed but it never truly comes alive. Considering the film itself is about repression, it certainly feels as though it could have used some loosening up. Instead, its tightly wound setting and nature eventually lead to its own unravelling.

Black Sheep interviews Michael Fassbender

AIN'T NO SHAME
An interview with SHAME star, Michael Fassbender.

It can be a bit jarring to go from watching an actor on screen one minute to seeing them sitting directly in front of you the next. It can even be somewhat awkward when you’ve just watched said actor engage in a multitude of sexually explicit encounters on film. When the actor you’re speaking with though is as effortlessly talented as Michael Fassbender is, you quickly realize there is no shame in it at all.

In SHAME, British filmmaker, Steve McQueen’s sophomore effort, Fassbender is naked within minutes of the film starting, so it seems only fitting to begin our conversation there as well. “It’s kinda embarrassing,” says the actor who has nothing at all to be embarrassed about. At this point, I laugh out loud and when Fassbender realizes I’m shocked that he was the least bit shy given how good he looks, he jokes, “Oh I see. You were having a gay old time then.” On that note, the Irish-German actor is quite the charmer, even when fully clothed.

The 34-year-old Fassbender plays Brandon in SHAME, a sex addict living in New York City. It would seem to me that if you’re going to tell a sex addict’s story on film, you’re going to need to see a little sex happen but some people, let’s call them the more conservative film critics out there, have argued that Shame not only goes too far but that it relishes in its boundary pushing. “It’s ludicrous to me,” Fassbender explains, with only a hint of outrage. “You can take someone’s head off with a cheese cutter but heaven forbid should you show a penis.”

As much as it is about sex, SHAME isn’t really about sex at all; it’s about a person with an addiction. Brandon isn’t the easiest character to like either. He uses women whenever required and he is horribly unsupportive to his sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan), but Fassbender was never concerned people wouldn’t come around to him. “I knew people were going to like him because I liked him, because he was a guy that knew he was ill. He is a product of our time.”

Despite Brandon’s timeliness, the Motion Picture Association of America has slapped an NC-17 rating on the film, which prohibits anyone under 18 years of age from seeing it, regardless of whether they are accompanied by an adult or not. Ordinarily, this rating means box office death but SHAME wears its badge proudly and is doing well in limited release despite it. “It can be a good thing,” Fassbender says of the rating. “The most important thing is to get people talking about it. That creates curiosity and it only seems to put more bums in the seats in the end.”

While Fassbender does see the controversy as a roundabout marketing push, he does not agree with the scrutiny itself. “Whatever rating people want to slap on it is kinda irrelevant. The fact is that I felt comfortable doing the scenes with Steve because I knew that it wouldn’t be exploitative. It’s real. It’s part of the story. It’s part of getting inside this guy’s head and where he’s coming from.”

A few cuts to the film could have brought the rating down to an R, to which Fassbender responds, “Good luck trying to convince Steve McQueen on that!” Fassbender and McQueen had previously worked together on McQueen’s debut feature, HUNGER, a 2008 film about the 1981 Irish Republican Army hunger strike, as led by Bobby Sands, whom Fassbender portrays in the film. (Incidentally, the two are scheduled to work together again on McQueen’s third feature, TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE, expected in 2014.) “He’s the only person I could have asked to do this,” McQueen tells me about casting Fassbender in SHAME. “I don’t believe he’s an actor. He doesn’t act. What he does is a different thing altogether.”

Whatever it is he does, Fassbender will be doing it for quite some time if he keeps up this pace. Upcoming projects for the Best Actor Oscar frontrunner include work with some of today’s most famed directors, from David Cronenberg (A DANGEROUS METHOD) to Steven Soderbergh (HAYWIRE) to Ridley Scott (PROMETHEUS), which is exactly where Fassbender wants his career to be. “The way it is at the moment is pretty perfect for me. I get to work with great filmmakers and that’s as simple as it gets. I just want to mix it up and keep myself guessing.”

And it would be an awful shame if he weren't allowed to continue doing just that.