Method actress Meryl Streep has just won a Best Actress Award from the New York Film Critics Circle. I think this is a sign of what is to come with the Oscars.

In case you haven’t heard, Meryl has been filming a film about the life of Margaret Thatcher. It is due to be released soon.

The thing about Meryl is that she is a complete chameleon, and when she develops a character she goes the whole nine yards. Apparently, when they were filming, the other actors said it was really like Margaret Thatcher was in the room.

This is what I love about Method actors. They only settle for outstanding. They go the extra mile and they use every tool in their Method toolbox. Well, I guess you need to if you are being paid £15m a movie!

I suggest you watch her performance and dissect it. Look at her emotional range and truthfulness; look at her physicality; listen to her voice. I tell you, she has the whole package going on – which you can learn a lot from.

Best wishes

Brian

I read an article about Denzel Washington’s Method approach to acting on his new movie with Ryan Reynolds and thought you would like to read it.

I keep telling people all the best actors use The Method – and here is the proof.

Ryan is being given a masterclass by Denzel on The Method, whilst actually filming. In my experience, you don’t want to leave it that late before learning it!

Here is the article: http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report_ryan-reynolds-finds-denzel-washington-s-method-acting-endearing_1617306

Well the results of the 2011 Academy Awards are in and I guess there were no great surprises.

Colin Firth won Best Actor. Although Colin puts in a great performance I would argue that method actor Javier Bardem’s performance in ‘Biutiful’ was far superior. His performance was in another league. He brought great emotional depth and range to the role.  The film is very gritty and in Spanish which is probably not as appealing to UK and US audiences as the ‘The King’s Speech’ which is all about the British royalty.

Personally, although ‘The King’s Speech’ is an enjoyable film, I’m a little tired of seeing British films about the monarchy and the old British stiff upper lip. Give me a gritty, real and  emotional moving film any day.

Talking of which the film ‘The Fighter’ did well at the Awards. Method actors Christian Bale and Melissa Leo won Best Supporting Actors and Actress Awards and well deserved too.

Also Natalie Portman won Best Actress for her role in ‘Black Swan’. The 10 months of ballet dance training before shooting the film paid off!

This post raises a very important point within acting that you need to know, so I would recommend reading it the whole way through.

At the weekend I went to see the critically acclaimed film ‘Black Swan’.

It was a very interesting film and I recommend you see it. Not only is it a great film but it also highlights a particular acting challenge all actors face.

If you haven’t seen it yet, let me fill you in. It centers on a ballet dancer (Natalie Portman) who has worked very hard at her craft but has failed to land a leading role. Why? Well, she is technically brilliant but lacks artistic flare.

An opportunity arises when the Artistic Director (Vincent Cassel) decides to stage ‘Swan Lake’ and needs someone who can play the white and black swan. As you would imagine the white swan character is angelic and fragile while the black swan is, well, a bit naughty. A bit of a simplification but you get the picture.

Portman’s character is great at the white swan. Her character type fits the white swan. But when she dances the part of the black swan she just can’t crack it. It’s too controlled and analytical. Her character hasn’t fully lived yet and is a goody two shoes who struggles to relate to the darkness of the black swan. (It’s worth noting how her real life affected her dancing life, which is very often the case with actors too.)

There is however another dancer in the troop of ballet dancers (Mila Kunis) who is very good at doing the black swan. She comes across as a mischievous and sensual person who can identify with the black swan.

But here is the Directors problem he needs someone who can play both. In ‘Swan Lake’ one dancer plays both roles.

He opts for Portman and tries to educate her on how to play the black swan.

I won’t ruin the film for you so I will stop there, but this raises a crucial acting issue.

Sometimes actors are not aware of how they come across and how much they need to change in order to play a role.

The casting of the film itself highlights this. Portman plays the ‘nice’ girl beautifully and manages to pull off the bad girl routine as well, but not quite as well as Kunis who was cast as the bad girl of the film. You can see that she is very comfortable with that kind of role.

In order to play a range of roles you need to transform because if you don’t someone will walk into the casting room who is exactly like the character.

Here is my pivotal question.

Can you do that now?

Do you have the skill and technique to pull off a performance at the highest level and completely transform?

If you can’t then there is someone out there who can, I can assure you.

If you want to develop this sort of skill and achieve this sort of level of performance then you need to start training.

Natalie Portman employed some hallmark method acting techniques. She also trained in ballet dancing for 10 months before the acting process began showing true commitment to the role.

I predict an Oscar for her performance. Bravo!