A Filmmaker's Guide to: Gary Oldman

In this chapter of ‘the filmmaker’s guide’ we’re actually going to be learning about literature and film together. I understand that many of you are sitting in university during difficult times and finding it increasingly hard to study and I understand that many of you who are not at university or not planning on it are possibly stuck of what to do, need a break or even need to catch up on learning film before you get to the next level. This guide will be brief but will also contain: new vocabulary, concepts and theories, films to watch and we will be exploring something taboo until now in the ‘filmmaker’s guide’ - academia (abyss opens). Each article will explore a different concept of film, philosophy, literature or bibliography/filmography etc. in order to give you something new to learn each time we see each other. You can use some of the words amongst family and friends to sound clever or you can get back to me (email in bio) and tell me how you’re doing. So, strap in and prepare for the filmmaker’s guide to film studies because it is going to be one wild ride.

Gary Oldman

Who is he?

Known as one of the most versatile actors working today, an Oscar-winner and one of the most respected men in the business. Gary Oldman has portrayed basically every single type of character you can think of and he does it with complete ease.

Born in the March of 1958, he was not like regular British actors who normally grow up in rich and upper-middle class families, Gary Oldman came from a regular working class family and his father was a sailor. He grew up to work in a sports shop and unsuccessfully applied to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Be that as it may, he went on to go to university in South London and got a BA in acting in 1979. He would be the first person in his graduate year to get professional work due to dilligence in application. He worked in theatre before getting his first film role in 1982.

Greatest Films

Gary Oldman's 'greatest films' are possibly too many to count but I honestly want to go through my personal favourites.

Sid and Nancy (1986)

I think everyone enjoys the thought of Gary Oldman portraying Sid Vicious (or, if you prefer, Simon Ferocious). It was a brilliant movie about how this very young star rose to fame and was ultimately blamed for a crime not many people could prove happened. It was one of the better films about rockstars because it did not try to sugar coat things or make Sid Vicious out to be better than he was. It was a very raw film and Gary Oldman did a great job.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1990)

Gary Oldman portrays Rosencrantz in this film directed by the playwright and filmmaker, Tom Stoppard. It is a brilliant comedy based on the Shakespeare play "Hamlet" and its subplot of the deaths of Hamlet's friends overseas when Hamlet replaces the letters so that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are executed instead. It was a brilliantly made comedy where Gary Oldman was basically exploring his whole comedic talent. And it was awesome.

JFK (1991)

One of my personal favourite films of all time, "JFK" (1991) by Oliver Stone is a brilliant, but very long, movie that I have written some papers about. Gary Oldman portrays the infamous Lee Harvey Oswald in various flashbacks throughout the film in which we see the life of this character and how he came to possibly assassinate the president of the United States of America. I think that this was the perfect role for him to explore his villainous and deceptive characters and went on to have a huge impact on the rest of his career.

Conclusion

Obviously there are a lot more that I actually do not have time to go through in detail such as:

• Bram Stoker's Dracula
• True Romance
• Leon: The Professional
• Hannibal
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• The Dark Knight Trilogy
• Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
• Lawless
• Child 44
• Darkest Hour
• Mank

So if you have not seen all these movies then I suggest you go and check them out because they are not only a huge part of his career, but since their release they have become a huge part of the world and history of cinematic genius.