Influential Heroes: Charles Laughton

He may seem an unusual choice to spotlight in a first write-up about my influential heroes, but Charles Laughton is the kind of actor/performer I would aspire to be. He wasn't a pretty face or an Adonis. He wasn't your quintessential "leading man" nor was he (as we would define today) a "movie-star". Laughton made a career as a brilliant character actor. And he was able to defy the notion that only "good-looking" actors could command the screen; draw crowds and lead a film. The native-Brit did all of that and more. 

Ironically, I discovered his talent on the very last film he made of his career, the criminally underrated "Advise & Consent". Laughton played a wily old Southern, veteran Senator trying to railroad a presidential appointee from becoming Secretary of State. 'Consent' was a film of its times (the early 1960s), full of anti-communist angst (the McCarthy era was a fresh memory) and homosexual paranoia (you've got to see the movie to know where that's coming from). Laughton's "Seab Cooley" was the film's main antagonist throughout, but you'll be charmed by him nonetheless. Cooley's command of the English-language, casual, almost jovial demeanor, clever wise-cracks, and resolute principles were all channeled by the Laughton presence (which I'll speak on in a bit). And even though he merely plays a supporting-role, the scenes that do not revolve around Cooley and his antics beg for them. That's a credit to Charles Laughton.

As an actor, in many scenes, he needn't utter a word. Laughton was brilliant at conveying emotions through facial expressions. His comedic timing was impeccable on this front as well. Oftentimes his characters would speak, receive a response from their scene counterpart, and then do these double-takes that were hilarious. This was especially the case when Laughton's characters were being insulted. Even in the most intense moments, a dour expression or a squint of eyes from Charles will force you to smirk. 

I sort of think of Laughton and Whoopi Goldberg in the same sense when I speak of an actor's presence. There are some actors who no matter what character they're playing, a consistency of bold personality is persistent. That is, even though we know Whoopi is playing "Oda Mae Brown", her personality is so vibrant that it exudes even from that most unlikely character. Whoopi is Whoopi, regardless of the film role (even meek Miss Celie had traces of Goldberg). Charles Laughton is in the same boat. In all the films of him I've seen, there is one consistency, the Laughton presence. Sure, in many roles he was type-cast as the same sort of antagonist, rascal...but his (and Whoopi's) genius is the ability to weave that presence into each character and still create something unique and viable. It's a charming trait, and one only present in actors who have both strong personalities and skills. These kinds of actors are the anti-Meryl Streep (who gets lost in every single role she plays).

That skill was no more evident in Laughton's case than with his iconic role as "Captain Bligh" in the film, "Mutiny on the Bounty". Here he plays a fascistic, sadistic, oppressive captain of the seas, one who orders the flogging of men for minor offenses and tows a hard, no-non-sense disciplinary line. A role of this sort could have easily become a one-note caricature. Bligh's an evil man, most would simply play him as such. But Laughton did more. He made Bligh's villainy almost cartoonist and comedic. The film's script is razor-sharp (full of one-line barbs) and Laughton's (again) over-the-top facial expressions (and double-takes) are a hoot. It would be hard for anyone to watch that performance and claim to have taken no glee from it. 

History knows Laughton from his Oscar-winning role as Henry VIII in "The Private Life of Henry VIII", as Captain Bligh, as well as the Hunchback from Notre Dame. I'd also implore folks to check him out in "Captain Kidd" (as a treacherous and clever pirate captain and definite precursor to one, Jack Sparrow) and "Witness for the Prosecution" (a late-career turn that won him another Oscar nomination for his role as the cantankerous, ambitious, and brilliantly sardonic barrister Wilfrid Robarts).

Laughton heavily influenced any comedic performance I've ever given (right along with Redd Foxx). Someday I hope to have his mastery of line-reading and effortless wit. He doesn't look the part, but Laughton blazes through the screen with a star-wattage that even the biggest names of his day failed to possess. I don't often hear his name revered today and that's a shame. The Senator will always acknowledge him though, and will forever be thankful for the timeless gift he shared with the world.