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BIG
5
Hollywood's twisted types
In recent cinematic history, the characters that have burst
forth from our television screens have been diabolic and dynamic,
ruthless and reckless, twisted and tortured. Instep presents the
five best of these that have raised hackles and caused nightmares
in recent times…
By Saba
Imtiaz
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Hugo
Weaving as
V in V for Vendetta
Probably one of the most brilliant films to have been released in
recent times, V for Vendetta, based on the Alan Moore-David Lloyd
graphic novel, is centred on the mysterious, masked character V.
With Britain being ruled by a totalitarian regime, V takes it upon
himself to rid the UK of its Big Brother-like, far-right rulers and
re-establish a new order. And how V does this is really a work of
art altogether: leaving one entirely spellbound at this character's
devious mind, his philosophy, his musings on life and love, and his
extreme determination to destroy the very seat of power of the fascist
regime. Starring Hugo Weaving as V, the spell he casts as a Pied Paper-like
figure of change and his tactics to destroy any sense of links to
the government are brilliant and speak volumes of a man who has just
been pushed too far. As he stages a kidnapping of Natalie Portman
who is led to believe she is being tortured by the government to find
out V's whereabouts, one is left astounded along with Natalie (who
plays Evey). And V's justification for this?
"You found something else. In that cell you found something that
mattered more to you than life. It was when they threatened to kill
you unless you gave them what they wanted... you told them you'd rather
die. You faced your death, Evey. You were calm. You were still."
The dialogue of the film is brilliant, the words chilling to the bone
and a stark vision of how governments can be toppled by the vendetta
of one man (its reference to "Remember, remember, the fifth of
November" struck home in Pakistan when the judiciary was deposed
in Pakistan on November 3, 2007) and this is, by far, one of the most
twisted film characters to have burst forth in recent history.
Jim
Carrey as Joel Barish in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
While
not in the same vein as V and the Joker, Jim Carrey's portrayal
of a man desperately seeking to lose his memories of his tumultuous
relationship with Kate Winslet struck a chord home with anyone who
has indulged in contraband substances or held a bonfire of relationship
mementos to be able to get rid of their memories. Jim Carrey's tortured
character Joel Barish goes to extreme measures to be able to forget
his relationship. And the film is inherently twisted with a sci-fi
experiment gone wrong, additional characters thrown in and a carousel
of memories that spin along as the film moves forward. While the
extreme measure may seem ideal, the film's happy ending proves that
perhaps there's a reason to remember!
Heath
Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight
It
was literally the performance of a lifetime for Heath Ledger, who
was found dead of an accidental drug overdose after he had wrapped
up filming for this role. Giving one a distinct fear of men with
make-up and pencils, the line "Why so serious? Lets put a smile
on that face!" uttered by the creepy, diabolic Joker in this
multi-million dollar grosser had one shivering for weeks after seeing
The Dark Knight. The Joker lurches about proving that in a world
with no rules, there is nothing such as morals or ethics. He pits
people against each other (a chilling scene in which the occupants
of two boats have to decide whether they'll be responsible for blowing
up the other), proves that everything is fair game and moreover,
unleashes a wave of unstoppable anarchy on the inhabitants of Gotham
City. Outshining Batman, the special effects and the great script
was no easy feat but Ledger's portrayal did just that.
Heath Ledger as the Joker was a parallel to those who have unleashed
similar violence without a second thought - and for no apparent
philosophy - in the country. The lines "You know the thing
about chaos? It's fair," could have been uttered by any one
of the perpetrators of violence, whether it's state-orchestrated
or anarchic. Worth every bit of the shining gold Oscar statuette
Ledger received as a posthumous honour. |
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Edward
Norton as Aaron in Primal Fear
It was the film that brought Edward Norton into the limelight and
landed him an Oscar nomination.
In Primal Fear, Aaron plays Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde both with such intensity,
conviction and passion that one is simply blown away. Aaron plays
an altar boy, charged with murdering the city's archbishop. It isn't
the crime that makes Aaron so heinous, although that only adds more
edge to the drama. The real twist is Aaron's two-faced personality
that makes him such a memorable character. He plays an innocent man
suffering behind prison bars and bring out sympathy in the coldest
of hearts. In the same range, he brings the madman inside to the surface
with such brutality that it leaves one terrified.
The web of deception he weaves leaves no one immune. Not even the
man Martin (Richard Gere) who fights because he believes Aaron is
innocent. It was just an act. And what an act it was! Guy
Pearce as Leonard Shelby in Memento
Christopher Nolan's brilliant Memento was so confusing and twisted
that several people had to watch it repeatedly to be able to figure
out the storyline. Remade badly by Bollywood as the massive hit
Ghajini, the Indian counterpart of Memento isn't a patch on it.
Leonard Shelby's very, very angry character is violent but in a
stark manner. With a one-track, vengeful vendetta, Shelby could
have been just any psycho killer out there but the film's twisted
plotline makes the viewer continually guessing why exactly this
man is on a killing spree. With two plotlines running in black-and-white
and colour, watching Memento leaves one in a state of absolute confusion
and hooked till the last second.
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