BAMF Of The Week: Mark Strong

MARK STRONG

"If a slap don't work, you cut 'em or you pay 'em."

Mark Strong is one of the unsung chameleons of the acting world. If you don't know who he is, it's probably because you just didn't recognize him. He's been everything from Mr. Knightley in Emma (1996) to the nerdy, calculating hitman Sorter from Revolver (2005) (who Guy Ritchie constantly got a kick out of, as he remarked in the commentary, simply because he was so pleased with seeing Mark Strong in socks that stuck out from under his trousers). He's charismatic, terrifying, and completely imbibes every role he's in. Which is why it took me so fucking long to realize he's actually an amazing actor. Because never once did I think "Wow, Mark Strong was really good in Rocknrolla". I just thought, "Huh, Archy's a really badass dude". He's not one of those actors who you automatically think of as being as awesome actor because he just does it so damn naturally, you instantly get caught in the flow of his characters. 

I'll admit here that my admiration for Mark Strong could very possibly simply be another branch of my admiration for the BAMF Guy Ritchie. Who I love with all my wanna-be-British heart. After all, if Mark Strong is enough of a badass for Guy Ritchie to shove the man in three of his movies, there has to be something essentially fucking awesome about him, right? Right. But the thing is, I've seen him in other things, and he's been epic in every role and genre he takes on. Like I said. Fucking chameleon. 

Best Films: Revolver (2005), Rocknrolla (2008), Sherlock Holmes (2009). Guy Ritchie aside, let's be real, he was even a bamf in Stardust (2007).

Best Moment: Sorter's shootout in Revolver. Really. The movie should've just been called Sorter & Co. Or Archy's slap, it's really a toss up.

Best Quote: [When asked if he's going to try to scramble for that golden ticket Hollywood lead role] "I tend to read scripts and just take what I like. I have no plan...I wouldn't want to sit at home planning a campaign of how I'm gonna get an Oscar, I mean I'm not that kind of actor. I'm genuinely not interested in that kinda stuff. What I love is being on a film set with intelligent people, making movies."

Upcoming Films: He's going to be in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011). I'm there. 

Top Five Badasses Who Don't Know It

TOP FIVE BADASSES WHO DON'T KNOW IT

This is a quick and dirty list of a few actors I don't think get enough recognition for being downright awesome. These are people who for years have been skipped over, making maybe one or two really "big time" movies and then falling into dust for no good reason whatsoever. In no particular order, I give you a couple names I feel everyone should know better.

1. Michael Madsen.

"You gonna bark all day, little doggie, or are you gonna bite?"

Why we love him: his ability to be ruthless and sadistic while wearing those puppy eyes.

Classics: The ear slice from Reservoir Dogs (1992), the proposal from Thelma & Louise (1991), the tits full of rocksalt in Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004).

Where's he at?: The made-for-tv lifetime movie, Christmas Crash (2009)? Really? Is everyone so afraid he'll cut into them if they try to film with him? The last remotely badass role of his was voicing the wolf Maugrim in Chronicles Of Narnia (2005). C'mon. 

2. Tim Roth.

"The point of the story isn't the little girl, the point of the story is they robbed a bank with a telephone."

Why we love him: his devilish smile, his British accent, his professional acting skills. 

Classics: Imagonnadie! in Reservoir Dogs (1992), Pumpkin at the diner in Pulp Fiction (1994), the sound of his suffering in Funny Games (2007).
Where's he at?: Currently staring in the constantly-on-the-verge-of-being-cancelled tv show Lie To Me. I am actually one of the few who watch the show and enjoy it, but I can still recognize that he deserves better than his lot in cinema. Instead, it seems he'll go down in history as that guy who's face you see everywhere, but you can never quite place. 

3. Summer Glau.
"Please, God, make me a stone."

Why we love her: her badass gymnastics, the fact that she looks absolutely lethal with a gun, her crazy.
Classics: her behind-the-pole kick in Serenity (2005), her epic awesomeness in Firefly (2002-3), apparently Dollhouse (2009-10)--though I wouldn't be able to vogue for that.
Where she at?: TV, generally. Which is fine, since that seems to be where she wants to be, but she should still have directors knocking down her door. Plus, she had an unfortunate stint with The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008). She can do better than that.

4. Peter Greene.

"Ice this deadbeat!"

Why we love him: I'll admit this is a little personal vendetta of mine. But I loved him in The Mask, which I saw way too many times as a kid, and he was always the ultimate bad guy in my head. And then I saw him in The Bounty Hunter and knew I had to get revenge for this atrocity on his career. 

Classics: Dorian's growl in The Mask (1994), Zed the rapist from Pulp Fiction (1994).

Where's he at?: The Bounty Hunter (2010). Unfortunately.

5. Norman Reedus.
"And we will send you to whatever god you wish."

Why we love him: his ability to be both extremely sweet and a systematic assassin.
Classics: his terrifying bible recitations from The Boondock Saints (1999).
Where he at?: Let's face it. Most of the cast of Boondock Saints seems to have gotten shafted for no real reason except that they're all Irish or something. But he's currently in The Walking Dead, which you all know is massive cool points to me. Nonetheless, before that, he had credits that read like this: American Gangster (2007)--Detective in Morgue. Like our friend Tim Roth, he seems doomed to be another nameless face in the cinematic graveyard.

Honorable Mention: Tom Hardy

"You musn't be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling."

Why we love him: his bod. His accent. His risky roles and ability to pull all of them off.

Classics: his muscles in Bronson (2008), his ambiguous sexuality in RocknRolla (2008), and his dreaminess in Inception (2010). 

Where he at?: Tom Hardy would be on this list if Inception hadn't put him on the map. And his upcomings look good--he's even rumored for the next Batman, The Dark Knight Rises (2010). Congratulations, Tom Hardy, I don't think you're going to leave the public eye for a good long time.

That's my list, filled with personal quarrels with the movie industry. Anyone here already too big for their britches? What're some other actors who are consistently pushed out of the spotlight?