Inside the Actors Studio: Johnny Depp

Director: Jeff Wurtz,
Starring: Johnny Depp, James Lipton, ,

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DVD Review

Johnny Depp has always seemed like a character actor trapped in a leading man’s body. He was initially cast as a teen heart throb in the popular television show, 21 Jump Street – a role he grew uncomfortable with because he saw himself being transformed into a commodity for a corporation. So, he decided to deconstruct this image by starring in cult filmmaker John Waters Cry-Baby (1990). He never looked back, starring in a number of diverse films that saw him playing a colourful assortment of oddball outsiders, from Dead Man (1995) to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998).

Depp finally sat down with James Lipton in 2002 for an episode of Inside the Actors Studio. It seems rather odd that he would get a career perspective so early in his life, but he has assembled an impressive resume which this show skims broadly over. Depp talks about how he got into music, joined a band and how this led to his first acting gig in A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). Unfortunately, Lipton skips over Depp’s pivotal role in Cry-Baby and instead delves into his first collaboration with Tim Burton with Edward Scissorhands (1990). The actor talks about his relationship with the director.

Depp also talks about how he got the role in Ed Wood (1994) and how he approached the character as well as what influenced his performance: a mix of Ronald Reagan, the Tin Man and Casey Kasem. Lipton and Depp touch upon his more mainstream films, like Don Juan DeMarco (1995) and Donnie Brasco (1997) and working with legends like Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, respectively.

Thankfully, they cover Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and talk about how he got involved in the project and how he lived with Hunter S. Thompson in order to portray him accurately. Sadly, some of his other films, like Dead Man and The Ninth Gate (1999), aren’t discussed leaving you wanting for more. This is certainly not a comprehensive profile but rather a primer on Depp’s life and career.

J.D. Lafrance

J.D. is a freelance writer who is currently doing research for a book on the films of Michael Mann. He likes reading anything written by Jack Kerouac, James Ellroy, J.D. Salinger, Harlan Ellison or Thomas Pynchon. J.D. is currently addicted to the T.V. series 24 and enjoys drinking a lot of Sprite. This is not a blatant plug for the beverage but if they ever decided to give him a lifetime supply he certainly wouldn’t turn them down.
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Rating: 70%

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