Catching Up: Christian Bale

Last week was particularly difficult for me, which is why there were no posts, and thus no enlightenment for you, the dedicated masses. This was disappointing, since there were so many newsworthy items that just needed to be discussed. So, running fashionably late (or just plain ol' late) here is my take on a few things.

First, Christian Bale. The world was presented with an audio recording of the man losing his damn mind. I'm sure by now, everyone's heard it. And I'm sure we can all agree that he tore Hurlbut a couple'a new holes with that rant. Well, the man has since apologized for it, and the world has moved on to a slew of new bad craziness, but I still haven't had my say in the matter.

First off, I'll admit that this little outburst definitely crosses the line. Had I been on the receiving end of such a hissy fit, I would have either started sending a few fists to the face of my verbal assailant......or started crying.

But, I'm also the kind of person who gets antsy when people look over my shoulder while I'm trying to cook. And I know I've considered pulling out one of my too sharp knives and cutting on people for commiting such an act, so I can kind of understand where the guy comes from. When you're in the zone, any distraction can drive you to the brink. So, I'm not saying it's justified, but I think it's within the ballpark of understandibility.

I think the most disappointing thing about the whole episode was that it gave us a very clear look into how much of an "actor" Bale truly is. In between profanities you hear the terminology of a thespian. Words like "set," "scene," and the ever ridiculous theatre patois, that we as mere mortals have made fun of for years, "Very unprofessional." The man is a performer.

And that bums me out. I mean this guy was fucking Batman! A dark and tortured soul that kicked ass for my amusement. Batman's not supposed to care about the scene! He's supposed to bust heads damnit! The American Psycho isn't supposed to be burdened by shit that's unprofessional! This guy portrayed some of the coolest and most interesting characters in the last decade, and now it's hard to seperate those good times with the reality that he's just a guy who gets paid to pretend.

I suppose though that it is a testament to how good of an actor the guy is. You dig the characters he does so much that you almost want them to be real. And maybe losing his cool is part of the job that comes with being that good. At the end of the day, I'm not sure I'd ever call the guy a prick, just that he made a prickish move.

Still, it would've been kind of cool if Bale just didn't have a bitch fest, but literally threw the guy through a window a'la Dark Knight. Just seems so much more fitting.