Thursday, August 22, 2013

In Character: James Cromwell

If you’ve turned a television on and flipped through the channels at any point during the past 30 some odd years, there’s a chance you came across a show or movie featuring James Cromwell. Seriously, this guy has been in everything. From mainstream television series to blockbuster action films to Oscar-winning indies. Thing is, he’s always good. In everything. Despite (or because of) the material he’s working with, James Cromwell always delivers a performance of sheer power. He’s one of the most recognizable characters actors we have. A sturdy presence of confidence.

Five Essential Roles
Babe (1995)
Farmer Hoggett
There are many sides to James Cromwell. The one I’m most drawn to, I suppose, is the man who is right on the cusp of becoming unhinged. Interesting, then, that I’m so taken with Farmer Hoggett, who is as caring and taciturn a character as Cromwell has ever played.

Hoggett is a man who goes about his business, keeping up his farm, tending to his flock, and so on. But when a precocious pig comes into his life, Hoggett is inadvertently taught lessons in humility and kindness. I hadn’t seen Babe in many years, but decided to rewatch it for this post. I’m glad I did – it’s a perfectly decent family film anchored by a beautifully nuanced performance.

The Green Mile (1999)
Warden Hal Moores
The Green Mile is long. (Far too long, some might say.) One reason being the amount of time writer/director Frank Darabont dedicates to a subplot involving Warden Hal Moores and his ailing wife, Melinda (Patricia Clarkson). And while I agree that much of The Green Mile feels extraneous, there isn’t a second of the Moores subplot that I would cut. As the warden, Cromwell presents a professional man of strict morals. But as a husband, he’s barely able to keep it together. His wife is bedridden with an incurable illness, and it’s eating away at them both. But watching Hal’s reaction to his wife being inexplicably healed makes for one of the most moving moments of Cromwell’s career. 

Six Feet Under (2003-2005)
George Sibley
What a fun character George Sibley is. When he marries the show’s matriarch, Ruth, he fails to include a few minor details about his past. Like the fact that this is his sixth marriage, that he suffers from severe depression, and that his kids hate him so bad, they will most likely be sending boxes of actual shit to his house. Things like that.

Kidding aside, an accurate and compelling portrayal of depression demands that the actor hit both the highs and lows. When George is up, he’s a regular guy; a do-gooder trying to please his wife. But when he’s down, he lets his apocalyptic visions of the world control his every thought. The later episodes of Season 4 brought about George’s best character arc, in which he discovered a bomb shelter on his property and once in, refused to leave. It was simply haunting to watch George’s psychosis unfold.

W. (2008)
George H. W. Bush
I’m not the biggest fan of Oliver Stone’s W. when it attempts to chronicle the present. Or, better put, recent events that were documented publicly. Those scenes lack the punch of W’s earlier life, as an alcoholic loser with daddy issues.

Cromwell depicts “Poppy” Bush as a stern enforcer; a man who demands respect, but is impossible to please. The highlight of the film is when a young George W. arrives home late, drunk and uninhibited. Poppy and Barbara come downstairs, and a fight quickly ensues between father and son. “You want an ass whipping?” Poppy baits. “Try it, old man,” George fires back. Damn, if only they had.

American Horror Story: Asylum (2012-2013)
Dr. Arthur Arden
Arthur Arden is one sick bastard. As the doctor at Briarcliff Institute, Arden conducts sadistic surgical experiments on the institution’s troubled residents. When a patient claiming to be Anne Frank reveals that Arden was actually a Nazi, the character takes an even darker tone, which, in the case of a show as twisted as American Horror Story, is definitely a good thing.

I respect the fact that Cromwell decided to play Arden at all. I love an older actor proving he still has a lot of bite left in him, and will play an obvious psycho with such fervor. I think it’d be amazing if Cromwell won the Emmy he’s currently nominated for. He’s never won a major award, and what a unique twist of fate it would be if Arthur Arden could deliver it.

The Best of the Best
L.A. Confidential (1997)
Captain Dudley Smith
Okay, first off, if you haven’t seen Curtis Hanson’s flawless crime thriller, L.A. Confidential, then stop reading now and watch it. That’s not to dissuade you from spoilers in this post, but really… that’s a film everyone needs to see, for many, many reasons.

In the film, Cromwell plays the sturdy Dudley Smith, a police Capitan who isn’t against bending the rules to seek justice. Smith’s right hand man is Bud White (Russell Crowe) and it is fascinating to watch an older lanky guy like Smith completely dictate everything a hulking brute like White says and does. White is just one man who has fallen victim to Smith’s charm. Whenever I watch this film, I smile at how subtly Cromwell shades Smith’s misdeeds. And by the end, I remain convinced that Captain Dudley Smith is by long and far the finest character Cromwell has ever brought to life.

Have you a valediction, boyo?

Other Notable Roles
In Angels in America
Easy Street (1986-1987)
The Babe (1992)
The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
Eraser (1996)
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Species II (1998)
Deep Impact (1998)
Babe: Pig in the City (1998)
The General’s Daughter (1999)
RKO 281 (1999)
Snow Falling on Cedars (1999)
Space Cowboys (2000)
ER (2001)
RFK (2002)
The Sum of All Fears (2002)
Angels in America (2003)
I, Robot (2004)
The Longest Yard (2005)
The Queen (2006)
24 (2007)
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Secretariat (2010)
The Artist (2011)
Boardwalk Empire (2012)
Still Mine (2012)

28 comments:

  1. Oh my God! I love him so much, I'm so glad you featured him! I love the second season of American Horror Story, I had no idea you had a chance to check it out. So many great performances and he was just amazing.

    I adore that he is always so memorable, charismatic and funny too, like in The Queen. I really need to rewatch Six Feet Under again soon, that scene where he stares at the screen that shows the water running out was haunting.

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    1. I LOVED Asylum. Very tough to pick between that or Murder House as the superior season. Cromwell was such a damn creep in that show. I just loved it.

      The Queen was really close to making the cut here. He seemed to have a little fun with that character. That Six Feet Under scene you described was perfect. I actually forgot about that until now. I should rewatch that whole show too.

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  2. I love this guy. He's definitely one of the best character actors ever. I thought he was the best thing in W. as he was great as George H.W. Bush. I also liked him in The Queen in the way he was so flustered and such by all of that attention towards Princess Diana. I also enjoyed his performance as The Artist as I thought he was overlooked as that very loyal chauffer to Jean Dujardin.

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    1. I love him in all those movies. Thought he was perfectly subtle in The Artist, and kind of perfectly annoyed in The Queen. This dude just rocks in everything.

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  3. Right on! I love Cromwell's work, and LA Confidential is his crowning achievement. His work feels even stronger after reading the novel and some of Ellroy's other LA books (where Dudley always pulls the strings). I agree that W isn't great, but Cromwell is excellent in it.

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    1. Man, I really need to read LA Confidential (and some other Ellroy books). I've been meaning to do that for years. I know it is drastically different from the movie, but I gotta give it a go.

      So glad to hear you're a Cromwell fan. He's the best.

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  4. He really is fantastic. I remember watching Six Feet Under and freaking out about his character. I loved how he has his crazy arc and then redemption arc later on too.

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    1. And his redemptive arc is as believable as his downfall, which really speaks to Cromwell's skill. Love this guy. Glad you're a fan!

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  5. RFK is a movie about the stadium, right?

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    1. Yeah, it's like Babe. Cromwell plays the cup holder on seat 8 in row D of section 107.

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  6. Wait, I just remembered something. He was Lewis Skolnick's dad in the Revenge of the Nerds movies. He was awesome in that as well as he was the only thing in the made-for-TV sequels that was any good.

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    1. I swear, this dude has been in everything. Whenever I think about his filmography more, I'm like, Oh shit, that one too.

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  7. Love this. Cromwell has always been the go to character actor for me and I love finding how frequently he pops up in stuff. He also played Jack Bauer's dad on 24 and did a pretty decent job at that, even though he wasn't Donald Sutherland. So happy to see Six Feet Under mentioned, though. Everyone on that show needs to get attention and I always love his character in the show, even though he's a bit of a dick. His arc is heart-breaking.

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    1. Thanks man. I agree he is great in 24, but I definitely wondered why Donald didn't take that role. Maybe it would've been too obvious...? Either way, Cromwell owns it.

      He was a perfect dickhead in Six Feet Under, no doubt. So glad there are so many fans of his work in that show.

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  8. Great choice! I need to rewatch L.A. Confidential soon.

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    1. Thanks! I can rewatch that one damn near anytime.

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  9. Love it! Captain Dudley Smith at #1! He's so brilliant in that role. I also love his smaller roles in The Queen and The Artist.

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    1. Dudley is a BEAST! Dude is ice fuckin' cold. I really like him in The Queen and The Artist as well. Who knew a guy with such a great voice would fit so well in a silent flick.

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  10. I've never watched his TV shows. I thought he did a good job in The Queen. His tired, seen it all delivery of the "what's she done now?" line when first informed something happened with Princess Diana was perfect.

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    1. The Queen was closest to making the cut here. I was going to include it... then I watched American Horror Story. Wow.

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  11. Love this guy -- AWESOME choice! I became a big fan of Cromwell after seeing him in Six Feet Under, but yeah, I would have to agree with you that LA Confidential is his best performance. Such an amazing film, too. I might have to give American Horror Story another shot just so I can see his latest work.

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    1. Thanks man! Cromwell is the man - all of his performances are spot on. Glad you agree with LA Confidential as his best, he's such a damn creep in that one.

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  12. One of the most 'Oh This Guy' actors working today. Recognizable not just for his height. long time Star Trek TNG actor, who was given a great role in the 8th movie. It happens to be my favorite character from him as well. He plays a reluctant almost accidental scientific visionary, who is told from the future Enterprise crew (it's Star Trek) of how his discovery will change humanity for the better... but he doesn't want any of the praise that is bestowed on him. Which helps to present the concept that most visionaries never set out to be heroes or have statues dedicated to them, they just did what always wanted to do. Cromwell's Zefram Cochran made faster than light travel possible just because he wanted to give it a try. "Just be a man, let history (and future) decide the rest"

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    1. Big Star Trek fan, huh? I have to admit, the only Star Trek film or TV show I've seen was Abrams first film. Just not really my thing. Although I'm sure Cromwell is amazing in it.

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  13. Don't know how much you would like any of the franchises, I know your aversion to Sci-fi, but I do sincerely think that Star Trek has one or two or three of the best finest hours in T.V series history. Abrams take was... interesting but a far more jumbled sci-fi action outing than your usual Trek. There is over forty years of material, and I'm fond of nearly all the incarnations.

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    1. Good stuff. Like I said, I'm sure Cromwell is remarkable in it. Dude always hits.

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  14. I like Babe, don't get my wrong. I won a contest once and I get the dvd. It is a decent family flick, but not an Oscar contender. I don't want to complain about the film, because I enjoyed James Cromwell's performance. But the Academy really said lets get retarded and didn't nominate, I don't know, Se7en or Heat or maybe Casino. I don't hate the film, I the fact that it was nominated at Oscar.

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    1. I'm with you here. It was a sentimental nominee, for sure. So many other, better, more worthy films from that year.

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