MovieChat Forums > Bunraku (2011) Discussion > Josh Hartnett, He is ok but he doesn't r...

Josh Hartnett, He is ok but he doesn't really stir it up for me...

posted 17 years ago by daveandhistuba
15 replies | jump to latest

Sigh.... Josh Hartnett is perpetually playing these down and out sorry, soulful types that have a ruthless streak about them (Lucky Number Slevin or Sin City to name two recently). I understand that the Studios have a particular way of going about producing entertainment which by and large is determined by the currency of a star.

But I would argue that when a film is based upon more adventurous ideals such as inventive casting and a more collaborative approach within a character based story structure (i.e The Departed or 12 Angry Men for a more classic approach) as opposed to a one man ran blockbuster setup, a film transcends such hokeyness of the final showdown or overdone conventions of the guy getting the girl at the end.

So therefore why not get someone more a little more volatile or left of center to bring some vibrancy and danger to a role like say Steve Zahn or David Tennant or Sam Worthington.

Finally that being said this film looks very interesting if only because the guy directing it has chosen peculiar and distinctive subject matter; also he is a relatively new player in the Hollywood game which can be both a blessing and a curse depending on how he approaches the experience.

[–] superjaz33-1 17 years ago

I wouldnt count this movie out untill you see what sort of chemistery Gackt and Josh have together, that can really make or break a movie
do we have to go right now, i want to watch the scary monky show
(ps i knoe i spell realy bad)

[–] crackerjack13z 17 years ago

Why do people keep talking about Gackt? He can't act for *beep* take a look at that crappy Asian film he did called 'moon-something'.

[–] melodyphillips01 17 years ago

I actually rather like Moon Child. It's not exactly Oscar-worthy material, but it could have been a lot worse, considering that pretty much all the main characters are played by trained /musicians/, not trained /actors/.

And apparently he was good enough in Fuurin Kazan for Guy Moshe to fly to Japan himself and ask Gackt to be in Bunraku. He's certainly capable.

[–] RoentgenSS 17 years ago

I think he did a great job in Moon Child, personally...not as well as HYDE (I actually do NOT understand why everyone says HYDE was terrible...I thought he did a really good job, especially considering he initially didn't even want to do it for acting)

[–] vick3ie 16 years ago

Considering that neither Gackt nor Hyde are trained actors I think they did admirably in Moon Child. The gunfights were a wee bit silly, but I thought both were convincing enough as tormented vampires. Gackt had a heck of a job playing a child-teen-adult role. I'd have dispensed with the contact lenses though. Too distracting, especially as he was meant to be human for most of the film.

As to the topic, Josh Hartnett is ok and he's getting better with each role. I don't mind him so much, but he doesn't seem too different from the other young male actors his age. I don't see anyone who really stands out.

I trust Severus Snape completely.

[–] cidandreevefangirl 16 years ago

Moon Child was more of a "pet project" of Gackt and Hyde's, rather than a serious attempt at making a brilliantly-acted blockbuster. It was cheesy fun, something that looked "cool", but that was about it. And I don't think Hyde and Gackt wanted it to be any more than that.

Take a look at Gackt's role in the TV series Furin-Kazan if you want to see his serious acting. He's quite a good actor when he needs to be.

[–] daveandhistuba 16 years ago

It's not because he is good looking that I think he is poor actor, which is something I don't think. I said he was Ok but he has tended to play roles fairly safe and that he hasn't shown a lot of breadth in terms of roles he could and can play. I would love to see Josh Harnett deliver a performance which moved me to tears or challenged me in some way.

I mean for example Heath Ledger, an actor who is very handsome but still made an indelible mark in cinema in both Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight.

Just because you say something is stupid doesn't make it so, you haven't really addressed or rebutted any of the points that I have made. And ah Summergirlever1 he does contribute to a lead role one man setup because that is how movies tend to get made, it very rarely on the strengths of an ensemble cast. I mean even a film like Saving Private Ryan, a film that has an amazing ensemble cast and plenty of fine performances would not have been made if Steven Speilberg and Tom Hanks were not attached, both of whom has a bankable reputation within Hollywood.

And your right Josh Harnett does deserve to be taken lightly some of the time, no most of time because.... he is like the greatest and... and any comment on his career is... is like a fallacy of gigantic proportions.

I am sure the guy is a charmer in real life, a real gentleman but when you are out in the open and living quite a blessed existence, I think it is fair game to offer an opinion on whether or not he is best suited for a particular role.

What I do get a little annoyed at is over zealous fans who probably fuel the scourge which is the paparazzi and the current vapidness of celebrity culture. I don't want to know what the latest star is eating or what he is wearing. What I would like to see is people who have truly changed our lives been touted and raised to the level we admire stars, people like Physicist Richard Feynman or author Arundhati Roy.

[–] Crazyonyou 16 years ago

but he has tended to play roles fairly safe and that he hasn't shown a lot of breadth in terms of roles he could and can play. I would love to see Josh Harnett deliver a performance which moved me to tears or challenged me in some way.

Have you seen his outstanding role in Mozart and the Whale or on the stage in Rain Man where he is moving audiences night after night in his most earnest and emotionally mature role yet?

[–] silver_raynefall 15 years ago

I think the reason you're not recognizing Josh Hartnett's acting talent is because he rarely plays a character who is meant to move you to tears.
Comparing him to Heath Ledger is a bit unfair since Ledger is well regarded today as one of the finest actors of our time.

I respect Hartnett because the roles he takes are so different and varied. He's a very well rounded actor, from playing in Black Hawk Down to The Black Dahlia to Sin City and Lucky Number Slevin, all those roles are vastly different from each other and he gives good performances in every one. He hasn't let himself be pigeonholed and I like his role diversity.
I do have to agree tho, I would like to see him in a role that really challenges me and makes me go 'wow' but even still, that doesn't make him a poor actor. I think he's still looking for his niche, much like Leonardo DiCaprio back in the day.

And this is a little off topic but I really hate the fact that this movie is full of great actors (Woody Harrelson, Ron Pearlman, Demi Moore, Josh Hartnett, all fantastic) and yet every second comment I see seems to be about Gackt.
Don't get me wrong, I love Gackt, but he's not a great actor. His performances tend to be very hammy and over-the-top and compared to all these fine actors I'm quite worried if he can hold his own.

I would actually like to see some of the fangirls holding Gackt to a high standard of acting performance and not just squeeing over him and calling role in Moon Child "good" (which it wasn't good from a purely acting perspective, tho that usually get's overlooked as the movie was blatant fanservice and the fangirls are usually more than willing to forgive bad acting when Gackt and Hyde are steaming up the screen together).

[–] melodyphillips01 15 years ago

Well, most of the acting that you see in Japanese TV and such is extremely over-the-top and very hammy. The Japanese school of acting is about as subtle as Godzilla. That's what makes an actor like Toshiro Mifune so excellent--he doesn't play every role as if stomping around in a rubber monster suit.

We Gackt fans are excited to see him getting Western exposure--Ron Perlman and Demi Moore and Josh Hartnett already have that exposure. At least, that's why I think there are so many posts about Gackt and next to none about Woody Harrelson.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] spbutters 15 years ago

I stopped reading at "Sam Worthington"

[–] spbutters 15 years ago

I stopped reading at "Sam Worthington"

[–] Shiddy 13 years ago

Josh Hartnett.. um yeah thats the dealbreaker, wont be watching this lol

[–] Rena_Mahone 11 years ago

Josh Hartnett is perpetually playing these down and out sorry, soulful types that have a ruthless streak about them (Lucky Number Slevin or Sin City to name two recently).

I think he's great at playing such roles. His charismatic hero was the best thing about this messy movie.

Boycott movies that involve real animal violence! (and their directors too)