Airforce One hijacker gets his Statue!

Airforce One (movie) was a raging hit in India. Those days all things America were playing out in CinemaScope in viewers minds and we looked at AF1 as THE deal of that year. Harrison Ford was a cult hero in India too with his Indiana Jones acts..

Ford took on many villains and we never even remembered any of them because they were all too insignificant in the presence of him.

This was largely the narrative till AF1 arrived.Then it changed!

'Ford is fabulous...But, hey, look at the Villain! What a perfect counter weight?'

Menacing, yes, but something more caught my eyes; sincerity in his craft. My mind volunteered another name instantly, Daniel Day Lewis - multiple Oscars winner...

When 'Leon the Professional' played his trade to save the life of a tweener, we all went gaga over the craft of the movie, the unemotional Jean Rene and his child-like demeanour while handling sophisticated weaponry at the drop of a hat... 

When I watched it, something else, someone else, caught my eyes. The Villain. 'What a manic performance! Have I seen him before? In which movie? Is he not the one who hijacked AF1? Yes!' 

And, What an end to his character in Leon!

I grew fond of his craft.

Then I picked up 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy', a John Le Carré novel condensed into a fine fine cerebral thriller of a movie. My initial reaction when I saw Smiley was 'Aha, this guy! I know him! This got be a good movie'. 

By the time the end credits started rolling, I was darn convinced that this was an Oscar winner and He was an Oscar Winner; Boy, watch this movie if u haven't!!

That was the year 2011. He didn't win it then. I imagined him shrugging his shoulders and rushing out to save Gotham as he got bigger things to do!

When Christopher Nolan rebooted Batman trilogy like never imagined before, one guy stood out again, against the likes of Batman, Joker, Rah Al Gul, Lucious Fox and the Butler right through the three piece act; James Gordon, the Police Chief. He added something intangible but perceptible to every single frame he stepped in. 'Here is a method actor who gets under the skins of the characters, infuses an X-factor that makes us want to watch him more / again; Oscars or not' were my thoughts. Gordon truly carried the trilogy together with Batman I would say.

Last year I read about a World War II movie in the making and noticed that this guy was roped in to 'slip into' the skin of W. Churchill. I didn't bother to watch the movie and don't intend to watch it though The Darkest Hour has honoured the finest of the actors around with an Oscar for Best Actor this year. 

You know why I said what I said about not watching Darkest Hour? It (The Oscar) was due since 2011!

Oscars or not, this "Professional" shall keep enthralling us with his trade as only he can. 

In a way, I consider this year as the year in which the Best Actor baton has passed hands from Daniel Day Lewis to Gary Oldman.

Many more Oscars to come your way, Chief. Keep acting!