Semi OT: Maestro

[ksoper]

We watched "Maestro" last night, the new biopic of Leonard Bernstein.  Bradley Cooper is to be commended for his dedication to the role, his writing and his direction. This is a wonderful and deeply moving film.  It was different than I expected, though, and as a young musician who saw Bernstein on tv constantly in the 60s I would've liked to have seen more of him interacting with orchestras. When the film actually does show an extended performance it is well worth the wait. Plus, there's a reason Carey Mulligan was given top billing--she's incredible. Only on Netflix but perhaps worth signing up for a month.  

 

 

 

 

Oh, and smoking. Lots and lots of smoking. More than you can imagine. But hey, back then 4 out of 5 doctors recommended it. 

[jazzpiano88]

Thanks for the info!   Have this scheduled for tomorrow night after the tree trimming.

[Old No7]

Thanks for the heads-up -- will add it to our list!

 

Old No7

[Dave Bryce]

What an excellent film!  Bradley Cooper did a spectacular job on both sides of the camera, and Carey Mulligan delivered a performance for the ages.

 

The music, of course, is nothing short of breathtaking - even the pieces they chose for the end credits…

 

On 12/21/2023 at 6:47 PM, ksoper said:

Oh, and smoking. Lots and lots of smoking. More than you can imagine. 

          

 

dB

[Legatoboy]

I hated the dialog's pace in it, not necessarily the dialog itself... I shut it off after 30 mon or so, to annoying for the time being...is it a test of verbal-mental acuity or a freakin movie....I'm funny about flicks that way ...their setting, tone and pace beside plot... I'll try again later...I am interested but don't feel like constantly rewinding!  

 

I have inside stories about L.B. from the Lennie Tristano clan here in NYC through my lessons...

I'll keep them to myself for now... he would go over to Lenny's T's apartment/studio often in south Queens NYC in the later 50's and 60's I believe .....until one fatal event severed the relationship .... maybe next week I'll tell it.... it's Christmas Eve!    Merry Christmas all! 

[Legatoboy]

14 hours ago, jazzpiano88 said:

I didn't realize Bernstein was British.

 

Seriously though, one of my critiques is that they use the brit accent to connote sophistication.

 

Edit: I did some reading on the accent and it appears they plugged his nose to help with the effect and also inject some east coast vibe.

The flick spawned this articel a few days back in NYT... need to have a subscription to read it but you get the idea: 

Quote

The 12 Best (and Worst) Fake Noses in Cinema History    (photo below is at the top of the NYT article )   My nose is worse and I live on the East Coast - Oh well!  😁) 

 

[Floyd Tatum]

On 12/21/2023 at 6:47 PM, ksoper said:

Oh, and smoking. Lots and lots of smoking. More than you can imagine. But hey, back then 4 out of 5 doctors recommended it. 

I'm pretty sure that tobacco companies pay movie and tv production companies to have cigarettes featured in movies and shows.   Gross, but true.

[Legatoboy]

4 of the other snoz-ola makeup jobs they bring up in the NYT article: 

[Steve Nathan]

What's the big deal about the nose.  I thought it was very well done. In fact, all of the make-up in this film was outstandingly done imho.  They captured his physical look at all ages with incredible accuracy, and Cooper's mastery of his movements, facial expressions and body language was equally impressive.  

For people who weren't/t alive at that time, or tuned into popular music yet, it may escape them, how well they portrayed that time in history.  The smoking and the dominance of Broadway Musical scores in Popular Music are just 2 of the many well done aspects of this movie.  

What I didn't know as a youngster (or until now) was his personal life.  Apparently his daughter's book is deep, and she has given Cooper high praise for accuracy.  

Turns out, Bi-sexuality is not the recent invention of the Woke that half the Country insists it is.

[Joe Muscara]

On 12/24/2023 at 9:27 AM, Legatoboy said:

4 of the other snoz-ola makeup jobs they bring up in the NYT article: 

 

Sorry for the OT. It just reminded me of this scene that I saw again recently.  

[o0Ampy0o]

3 hours ago, Steve Nathan said:

What's the big deal about the nose.  I thought it was very well done. In fact, all of the make-up in this film was outstandingly done imho.  They captured his physical look at all ages with incredible accuracy, and Cooper's mastery of his movements, facial expressions and body language was equally impressive.  

For people who weren't/t alive at that time, or tuned into popular music yet, it may escape them, how well they portrayed that time in history.  The smoking and the dominance of Broadway Musical scores in Popular Music are just 2 of the many well done aspects of this movie.  

What I didn't know as a youngster (or until now) was his personal life.  Apparently his daughter's book is deep, and she has given Cooper high praise for accuracy.  

Turns out, Bi-sexuality is not the recent invention of the Woke that half the Country insists it is.

 

On the nose:

 

When I look at Leonard Bernstein I don't go to his nose. Karl Malden, W.C. Fields, Michael Imperioli, Adrien Brody yes.

 

Adrien Brody recently did a film, Wrecked, where it seemed to me as though they wanted his naturally large hooked nose to be taken as a broken nose in at least one scene. I suspect Bradley Cooper was concerned about his own recognizable face getting in the way of his portrayal of Bernstein. Also playing Bernstein at different ages he would have had to use make-up to look plausible no matter what.

 

When Robert De Niro gained weight to play Jake LaMotta in his later years it worked and was superior to loading on make-up like Billy Crystal for Mr. Saturday Night. But Nicole Kidman did not need a nose to play Virginia Woolfe. She can change personas so effectively she in effect put a wart on her face and expected the audience to ignore it. 

 

Christian Bale has gone on an emaciating diet for different roles at least three times in his career. Sometimes he has not been able to return to his normal weight for a different role. He was still skinny in a Batman sequel. Just acting he became unrecognizable as Christian Bale playing a character in The Fighter. He really should pass on future roles where the character is emaciated.

 

I remember reading a review of Collin Farrell's performance in Triage. There is a scene with him in a bathtub. He apparently lost a lot of weight for that stage of the film. The reviewer was commending his acting by citing how much weight he lost for the role. That is dieting not acting. In the film he played a photojournalist and I am not exaggerating by saying it was the most implausible performance as a professional photographer taking pictures. He looked surprisingly unfamiliar with using a camera. He should have put the time and energy into doing that convincingly instead of losing weight. The character's weight was trivial in comparison.

 

To reiterate, Bradley Cooper might have been concerned about his own recognizable face getting in the way of his portrayal of Bernstein. 

 

 

[Geoff Grace]

While I thought the film was well done in many respects, I was disappointed in how little coverage was given to Leonard Bernstein the musician. The movie was largely centered around his personal life, especially in regard to his marriage. True, that aspect was interesting enough to create a good film; but Bernstein was one of the top music figures of the 20th century, and the movie gave us very little of what made him great.

 

I think it’s fair to say that Bernstein the musician is worthy of a whole movie, while Bernstein’s personal life was far less notable; but I realize that people in general are interested in the hidden life of any given celebrity (unless it’s boring). If merely a fourth of the movie covered Bernstein’s achievements and ideas, I would have been satisfied; but his accomplishments mostly served as a backdrop. Sadly, last year’s film, Tár, about a fictional conductor covered more interesting musical subjects.

 

Perhaps I should search for a Leonard Bernstein documentary…

 

In short: good film; wrong focus.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[CyberGene]

We started watching it with the wife. I’m the classical music fan, she’s not. She didn’t even know who Bernstein was. Which is why she looked bored after 30 minutes. What’s worse though, I also got bored. I will probably finish it solo some other time. 

[analogika]

12 hours ago, Steve Nathan said:

 

Turns out, Bi-sexuality is not the recent invention of the Woke that half the Country insists it is.

Nobody I’ve ever met claims it’s a recent invention. 
 

The idea of not losing your career over it, or even going to jail, is a fairly recent invention, though. 
 

My father didn’t have that option. 

[Legatoboy]

The 2 Lennie's ... sort of like the 2 Jake's I suppose 

 

Alright I think it's time for the Lennie Tristano/Bernstein story  now .....not the the sexual/nose stuff isn't interesting and germane these days.. but back to the music!  Sexuality and the bulk of peoples lives are still separate slices of life for me and that helps me out understanding folks these days, I don't know about you! And as for the Noses , well .... they are noses!  I posted it because I thought the NYT was sort of playing the fool there... who cares except for make up artists, directors and people hung up about their noses! 

 

As was told to me by my long time teacher and mentor who passed 3 years ago.... they were all close, Sal Mosca, Lenny Tristano and Larry to some degree but Larry and Sal more so as Larry (my mentor)  was  Sal's student for about 20 years on and off and Sal Lennie's for about 12. 

 

In the late 1940's with the advent of Reel to Reel home recording (the Revox machine) readily available to musicians for the 1st time, Lennie would experiment with the machine and record mono to one track and record on another and double track himself... I don't know if he 'bounced'  or found another way to multitrack (turn tape over) with the Revox but it doesn't really matter for the story itself. I don't know that machine.... 

 

Lennie T.  eventually double tracks on a number of tracks on a record released to the public and the record was reviewed in Downbeat Magazine and that's exactly

what they did to him n the review(beat him down) and in those days he took a lot of flack for that from the jazz purists and critics and other musicians tantamount to Dylan going Electric... the blowback was bad and eventually settles down...this is late 40's or early 50's I believe. 

 

Leonard Bernstein had been visiting Lennie's apartment and studio in those years  accompanied buy 1 of his male friends ..... and they got along famously for many years.

Lennie would teach in the middle of the night and entertain also, being legally blind since the age of 12. So Lennie's was sort of a late night haunt for many NYers. In South Queens I believe.... their is famous neighborhood where a lot of the be-bop era people lived, this was not far from there.... that being St. Albans, Lennie was closer to Flushing the old Dutch named town... I graduated from  Flushing HS.  Anyway! 

 

Time moves on .... Lennie was and interesting cat, they were into classical music also that whole crew, not 3rd Stream  because that hadn't happened yet but they played the Classics.... so Leonard and Leonard was a great fit as musical friends....both modern and classical at the same time. 

 

Lennie because of his blindness could and would do unusual things at the piano.... play a different Hannon in each hand lets say #20 in the left hand and no. 12 in his right...for dexterity and had separation and his ear. he was in many many ways a monster pianist..... and blind players do tend to have their non visual senses enhance, we all know this fact.

 

So Lennie puts out a new LP and on one track (which I do not know but could probably deduce) he play a jazz solo piece using the separation he taught himself doing those strange and difficult hand separation exercises .. 

 

The record gets reviewed in Downbeat again and he is and accused of double tracking....again... But is was not doubled tracked.... Tristano played it outright! Just had great hand separation and concentration skills 

 

Some time later after the 2nd DB review.... Bernstein comes down to Lennie's apartment and studio in South Queens and sort of storms in and in  an argument with Lennie Tristano, accuses him of being a charlatan and a fake..... and misleading the audience stating that no human could perform such a way at the piano and  storms out and the friendship ends their ... I believe in the mid 50's, maybe earlier...

 

Now all the facts may not be 100 as to time frame.... but this is pretty much the story as told to me in my lessons by Lawrence (RIP) ... Larry was a great teacher nd human being... most of the Tristano crew were great teachers, they are known for that fact... even if you didn't like their music..... you learned a lot from that crew at your pace an no one elses! They didn't rush into things until you were ready ....  

 

I think Bernstein was a caught in his own cult of personality. Especially being throw into the limelight as he was mixed with the other flaws in his personality and it's make up good and bad..... still a great musician....as was Lennie but ultimately I feel Lennie was really in a deeper place in certain musical regards and in places LB was not ready to go nor understand  as a pianist and a conductor...  his focus was in another place.. and in some senses rightfully so ..... but sounds like he was unfair to Lennie T. ...     

 

LB

  

 

 

[cedar]

Watched the film last night.  Was disappointed, mostly in the decision to focus on the last portion of his life.

 

In a way, this criticism might be unfair.  Film makers can make whatever movie they want, and there was a story to be told about the last 1/4 of his life.  But I think that most people (musicians and non-musicians) would have been much more intrigued to learn about his early or mid-life, particularly when he was actually creating West Side Story, Candide and On the Town.  In fact, I would have been very interested to follow his development from his teenage years on.  Instead, it felt like 75% of the movie was devoted to his life from the late 1960s on.  And the section where his wife got sick, I thought, was maudlin and really dragged. 

 

I should also point out that I am invariably disappointed that biopics of musicians don't spend more time discussing the development of the artists and importance of their achievements.  But I realize that may be best left for documentaries, and is not the goal of these movies.

 

Still, the performances were great and the music outstanding.

[o0Ampy0o]

Has a biopic film been made that depicts the development and evolution of a musician plausibly? They tend to be sensationalized BS because most movie viewers are looking for a certain form of entertainment. Things have to be run through a conversion process to make them suitable for a film meeting acceptable guidelines as entertainment. Otherwise the general audience is not going to invest the attention span if they have it. 

[Joe Muscara]

I just realized that Cooper did A Star is Born and now Maestro, yet his Wikipedia bio doesn't suggest anything out of the ordinary in his background that would lead one to think he's a musician, wanted to be one, or anything like that. I'd like to know if he's drawn to these projects for any particular reason.

[o0Ampy0o]

He is a multi-skilled performer and artist who can act, sing, produce, direct  and dance. If he says there is more to it than seeking opportunities to do it on the grandest stage he has achieved through cinema I'd wonder whether he was just trying to fill the time with a more elaborate response. In a way he did better doing A Star Is Born and Maestro than say J-Lo's starting and succeeding in a separate musical career after she was successful acting.

[nursers]

9 hours ago, Legatoboy said:

The 2 Lennie's ... sort of like the 2 Jake's I suppose 

 

Alright I think it's time for the Lennie Tristano/Bernstein story  now .....not the the sexual/nose stuff isn't interesting and germane these days.. but back to the music!  Sexuality and the bulk of peoples lives are still separate slices of life for me and that helps me out understanding folks these days, I don't know about you! And as for the Noses , well .... they are noses!  I posted it because I thought the NYT was sort of playing the fool there... who cares except for make up artists, directors and people hung up about their noses! 

 

As was told to me by my long time teacher and mentor who passed 3 years ago.... they were all close, Sal Mosca, Lenny Tristano and Larry to some degree but Larry and Sal more so as Larry (my mentor)  was  Sal's student for about 20 years on and off and Sal Lennie's for about 12. 

 

In the late 1940's with the advent of Reel to Reel home recording (the Revox machine) readily available to musicians for the 1st time, Lennie would experiment with the machine and record mono to one track and record on another and double track himself... I don't know if he 'bounced'  or found another way to multitrack (turn tape over) with the Revox but it doesn't really matter for the story itself. I don't know that machine.... 

 

Lennie T.  eventually double tracks on a number of tracks on a record released to the public and the record was reviewed in Downbeat Magazine and that's exactly

what they did to him n the review(beat him down) and in those days he took a lot of flack for that from the jazz purists and critics and other musicians tantamount to Dylan going Electric... the blowback was bad and eventually settles down...this is late 40's or early 50's I believe. 

 

Leonard Bernstein had been visiting Lennie's apartment and studio in those years  accompanied buy 1 of his male friends ..... and they got along famously for many years.

Lennie would teach in the middle of the night and entertain also, being legally blind since the age of 12. So Lennie's was sort of a late night haunt for many NYers. In South Queens I believe.... their is famous neighborhood where a lot of the be-bop era people lived, this was not far from there.... that being St. Albans, Lennie was closer to Flushing the old Dutch named town... I graduated from  Flushing HS.  Anyway! 

 

Time moves on .... Lennie was and interesting cat, they were into classical music also that whole crew, not 3rd Stream  because that hadn't happened yet but they played the Classics.... so Leonard and Leonard was a great fit as musical friends....both modern and classical at the same time. 

 

Lennie because of his blindness could and would do unusual things at the piano.... play a different Hannon in each hand lets say #20 in the left hand and no. 12 in his right...for dexterity and had separation and his ear. he was in many many ways a monster pianist..... and blind players do tend to have their non visual senses enhance, we all know this fact.

 

So Lennie puts out a new LP and on one track (which I do not know but could probably deduce) he play a jazz solo piece using the separation he taught himself doing those strange and difficult hand separation exercises .. 

 

The record gets reviewed in Downbeat again and he is and accused of double tracking....again... But is was not doubled tracked.... Tristano played it outright! Just had great hand separation and concentration skills 

 

Some time later after the 2nd DB review.... Bernstein comes down to Lennie's apartment and studio in South Queens and sort of storms in and in  an argument with Lennie Tristano, accuses him of being a charlatan and a fake..... and misleading the audience stating that no human could perform such a way at the piano and  storms out and the friendship ends their ... I believe in the mid 50's, maybe earlier...

 

Now all the facts may not be 100 as to time frame.... but this is pretty much the story as told to me in my lessons by Lawrence (RIP) ... Larry was a great teacher nd human being... most of the Tristano crew were great teachers, they are known for that fact... even if you didn't like their music..... you learned a lot from that crew at your pace an no one elses! They didn't rush into things until you were ready ....  

 

I think Bernstein was a caught in his own cult of personality. Especially being throw into the limelight as he was mixed with the other flaws in his personality and it's make up good and bad..... still a great musician....as was Lennie but ultimately I feel Lennie was really in a deeper place in certain musical regards and in places LB was not ready to go nor understand  as a pianist and a conductor...  his focus was in another place.. and in some senses rightfully so ..... but sounds like he was unfair to Lennie T. ...     

 

LB

  

 

 

 

That's an amazing story - thanks for sharing!

[Adan]

A wonderful period piece, and when a movie is a biopic about a great musician, one can always just enjoy the music and call it worthwhile.  But I agree with others who said the focus is a little perplexing. Maybe it's more accurate to say the movie is fine, it's just the labeling that's misleading. If the real subject is the relationship between a great composer/conductor and his partner, then calling it "Maestro" creates a false expectation.

[o0Ampy0o]

11 hours ago, Legatoboy said:

The 2 Lennie's ... sort of like the 2 Jake's I suppose 

 

Alright I think it's time for the Lennie Tristano/Bernstein story  now .....not the the sexual/nose stuff isn't interesting and germane these days.. but back to the music!  Sexuality and the bulk of peoples lives are still separate slices of life for me and that helps me out understanding folks these days, I don't know about you! And as for the Noses , well .... they are noses!  I posted it because I thought the NYT was sort of playing the fool there... who cares except for make up artists, directors and people hung up about their noses! 

 

As was told to me by my long time teacher and mentor who passed 3 years ago.... they were all close, Sal Mosca, Lenny Tristano and Larry to some degree but Larry and Sal more so as Larry (my mentor)  was  Sal's student for about 20 years on and off and Sal Lennie's for about 12. 

 

In the late 1940's with the advent of Reel to Reel home recording (the Revox machine) readily available to musicians for the 1st time, Lennie would experiment with the machine and record mono to one track and record on another and double track himself... I don't know if he 'bounced'  or found another way to multitrack (turn tape over) with the Revox but it doesn't really matter for the story itself. I don't know that machine.... 

 

Lennie T.  eventually double tracks on a number of tracks on a record released to the public and the record was reviewed in Downbeat Magazine and that's exactly

what they did to him n the review(beat him down) and in those days he took a lot of flack for that from the jazz purists and critics and other musicians tantamount to Dylan going Electric... the blowback was bad and eventually settles down...this is late 40's or early 50's I believe. 

 

Leonard Bernstein had been visiting Lennie's apartment and studio in those years  accompanied buy 1 of his male friends ..... and they got along famously for many years.

Lennie would teach in the middle of the night and entertain also, being legally blind since the age of 12. So Lennie's was sort of a late night haunt for many NYers. In South Queens I believe.... their is famous neighborhood where a lot of the be-bop era people lived, this was not far from there.... that being St. Albans, Lennie was closer to Flushing the old Dutch named town... I graduated from  Flushing HS.  Anyway! 

 

Time moves on .... Lennie was and interesting cat, they were into classical music also that whole crew, not 3rd Stream  because that hadn't happened yet but they played the Classics.... so Leonard and Leonard was a great fit as musical friends....both modern and classical at the same time. 

 

Lennie because of his blindness could and would do unusual things at the piano.... play a different Hannon in each hand lets say #20 in the left hand and no. 12 in his right...for dexterity and had separation and his ear. he was in many many ways a monster pianist..... and blind players do tend to have their non visual senses enhance, we all know this fact.

 

So Lennie puts out a new LP and on one track (which I do not know but could probably deduce) he play a jazz solo piece using the separation he taught himself doing those strange and difficult hand separation exercises .. 

 

The record gets reviewed in Downbeat again and he is and accused of double tracking....again... But is was not doubled tracked.... Tristano played it outright! Just had great hand separation and concentration skills 

 

Some time later after the 2nd DB review.... Bernstein comes down to Lennie's apartment and studio in South Queens and sort of storms in and in  an argument with Lennie Tristano, accuses him of being a charlatan and a fake..... and misleading the audience stating that no human could perform such a way at the piano and  storms out and the friendship ends their ... I believe in the mid 50's, maybe earlier...

 

Now all the facts may not be 100 as to time frame.... but this is pretty much the story as told to me in my lessons by Lawrence (RIP) ... Larry was a great teacher nd human being... most of the Tristano crew were great teachers, they are known for that fact... even if you didn't like their music..... you learned a lot from that crew at your pace an no one elses! They didn't rush into things until you were ready ....  

 

I think Bernstein was a caught in his own cult of personality. Especially being throw into the limelight as he was mixed with the other flaws in his personality and it's make up good and bad..... still a great musician....as was Lennie but ultimately I feel Lennie was really in a deeper place in certain musical regards and in places LB was not ready to go nor understand  as a pianist and a conductor...  his focus was in another place.. and in some senses rightfully so ..... but sounds like he was unfair to Lennie T. ...     

 

LB

  

 

 

 

I wonder if he ever demonstrated this ability for the detractors. If he did not, why not? That stormy confrontation is a natural reaction for someone convinced it was impossible and feeling anger at his friend claiming otherwise. If they were that close and knew one another well enough the stormy reaction of the person would be that much more understandable and forgivable. And give him a chance to apologize.

[TommyRude]

On 12/21/2023 at 6:47 PM, ksoper said:

Oh, and smoking. Lots and lots of smoking. More than you can imagine. But hey, back then 4 out of 5 doctors recommended it. 

yeah.. similar to Mad Men, similar time frame (early-mid-60s), those guys were constantly lighting up

[El Lobo]

There were aspects of the movie that were very well done, especially Bradley Cooper's makeup and looks and his imitation of Bernstein's voice. It was almost uncanny. Still, I was bored through the middle of the film. Focusing on Bernstein's marriage and personal life was an interesting approach and made for some good story-telling, but it wasn't good enough to keep me involved in the story so I was surfing the internet during the middle section and towards the end. If it had said much more about Bernstein's musical accomplishments, I would have been more engaged. He was a musical genius, as a composer, conductor, teacher. I remember his voice talking to us about "What is jazz?" and explaining and singing the 12-bar "Macbeth blues" - take any Shakespeare couplet, repeat the first line, then the second line:

 

You know I will not be afraid of death and bane

I said I will not be afraid of death and bane

Til Birnam forest come to Dunsinane.

 

I learned a lot about music in the 10 or 15 seconds it took him to sing and play that on the piano.
 

[Legatoboy]

12 hours ago, o0Ampy0o said:

 

I wonder if he ever demonstrated this ability for the detractors. If he did not, why not? That stormy confrontation is a natural reaction for someone convinced it was impossible and feeling anger at his friend claiming otherwise. If they were that close and knew one another well enough the stormy reaction of the person would be that much more understandable and forgivable. And give him a chance to apologize.

As far as I know there was no reconcilation ..... I think by then L.B. was well on his way to mega fame.... The folks who studied w/Lennie T. knew he could do that...good point about demonstrating to his ditractors though.... but , as far as I know, no!.... They could cop some real attitudes about stuff like that that crew, and altough they played alot of classical those folks.... there was a e bit of a war going on with them and pure classical folks in the city then ( and now to some degree) who , as I was told, put them and other jazz musicians down in NYC.... the claim by them that Lennie and Bud Powell (++)  had much to offer classical musicians in terms of technique was a real sore point for that crew and many jazz musicians in NYC vs purely classical folk ...they played 'flat handed' as did Monk... a be-bop thing and not classical technique (wrists up) and the way I was trined to play piano, I didn't play alot of classical in my youth... I was born in '54, so I really couldn't say 1st hand why he never demonstrated, but I got the impression Lennie T. was pretty ticked off from the way the story was told! .... New York You Nork - it's a hell of a town! 

[Fleer]

Just watched it. Good movie. Great acting. 

[stoken6]

On 12/27/2023 at 4:40 AM, El Lobo said:

I remember his voice talking to us about "What is jazz?" and explaining and singing the 12-bar "Macbeth blues" - take any Shakespeare couplet, repeat the first line, then the second line:

Findings from the rabbit hole for those who are interested: https://bardfilm.blogspot.com/2011/01/when-shakespeare-had-blues.html

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Synthaholic]

On 12/25/2023 at 5:59 PM, o0Ampy0o said:

Christian Bale has gone on an emaciating diet for different roles at least three times in his career. Sometimes he has not been able to return to his normal weight for a different role. He was still skinny in a Batman sequel. Just acting he became unrecognizable as Christian Bale playing a character in The Fighter. He really should pass on future roles where the character is emaciated.

Dangerously emaciated, in The Machinist.

 

 

He also gained a lot of weight to play Dick Cheney.

 

[timwat]

https://www.davidpack.com/leonard-bernstein

[El Lobo]

On 12/28/2023 at 2:53 PM, stoken6 said:

Findings from the rabbit hole for those who are interested: https://bardfilm.blogspot.com/2011/01/when-shakespeare-had-blues.html.

Thank you for that. Brings back my childhood.