Denzel Washington plays a pilot that perfectly handled a plane crash. But some time later it's found out that he was drunk and under drugs throughout the flight.
He plays an alcoholic and unaccountable man that did something admirable, but there are lots of problems that are coming with it. This is a very grateful role to play. Does Washington uses it? Not at all. He doesn't realize the opportunities this character gives him. He decided to play it the most boring way. Doing nothing with this character, just read the lines in the script and sometimes - when it's really needed - have some fine scene.
I have seen many actors playing alcoholics and they did that much better way than Washington did. In some scenes he's supposed to be drunk, or under drugs, but it's almost unnoticeable. He doesn't play them much differently, than the rest of his performance. It happened to me sometimes that I wouldn't know he's drunk, if it wasn't said in the line.
The other problem I have with this performance is that he's extremely overshadowed by his co-actors. Kelly Reilly is re(i)ally great in her role (and did exactly what Washington should) and so is the scenes stealer Joh Goodman.
I don't mean he's absolutely bad. Some moments are really fine. The scene, in which he persuades her college to lie in the court or the scene he talks to his lawyer are really very decent. But he just failed to create a complex and interesting and remarkable character.
The chances of winning an Oscar: Very low, fortunately...
I basically agree about Washington but I disagree about Reilly who I thought was miscast, and John Goodman who I thought in a way summed what was so wrong with the film.
ReplyDeleteI know Reilly was overacting and her performance wasn't technically one of the bests, but I really enjoyed watching her (and therefore she was overshadowing Washington). And Goodman's character was really bad, but he handled it the way of stealing the few scenes he had for himself.
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