Despite their characters coming from profoundly differently genres, the two most unforgettable performances from this summer's crop of movies did have two things in common: hideous appendages and jaw-dropping talent.
Mr. Leslie Chow (The Hangover)
While Ed Helms, Bradley Cooper and of course, Zach Galifianakis were made stars from The Hangover, and rightly so; Ken Jeong owned his scenes and eclipsed his co-stars while giving hands-down, the most hilarious performance of the summer. From the first moment his gay Chinese Vegas gangster literally burst onto the screen with that tiny penis, the femme wave of his hand and delivery of what should be the newest addition to the pantheon of famous movie goodbyes: "toodaloo mutha fucka" - you knew you were watching timeless comedy gold.
Wikus Van De Merwe (District 9)
His name is Sharlto Copely. Remember it, because you will see it at Oscar time as a nominee for best actor. District 9 is probably one of the best science fiction movies since Alien because it is so much more than science fiction. It has allegories befitting Shakespeare and filmmaking that deftly jetés between documentary style and back behind the fourth wall all while you have this man delivering nothing but complex performances that range from bumbling incompetence to heroic pathos. The entertainment press states he has no acting experience whatsoever, which must really piss off those who do knowing they could never come close to the job this guy did.
1 comment:
What makes Ken Jeong even more amazing is his background as a doctor of Internal Medicine (he's also married to another doctor). His scenes in The Hangover don't exactly scream "Respected physician."
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