10 Behind-The-Scenes Screw-Ups That Created Iconic Movie Moments
3. Apocalypse Now Marlon Brandos In-Darkness Performance Hid His Expanding Waistline
Marlon Brando wasnt known for being the most accommodating person on set. In fact, theres an entire movie that points this The Island Of Dr. Moreau featured him being followed around by a midget and wearing a bucket on his head, two things that werent in the book because nobodys that demented but Brando insisted on anyway. Though this film came toward the end of the great mans career, its not as if this bizarre diva-esque behaviour was a new thing hed been doing it all his life, and to most ridiculous aplomb in Apocalypse Now.
Francis Ford Coppolas war flick already had its fair share of problems Martin Sheen kept nearly dying, they were shooting in the Philippines during a civil war using prop ordnance the army kept having to take off them to fight but he mustve felt like hed finally secured a boon for his troubled production by snagging a Hollywood legend. Then Brando showed up, and everything went to hell again.
Simply put, he was overweight, something which usually wouldnt matter if his role as Colonel Kurtz didnt call for him to be lean and hungry. For a moment, the whole thing looked like it was ruined. But Coppola was a consummate film-maker, and he wasnt going to be scuppered by an acting colossuss propensity for doughnuts. So he chose to film Brando bathed in darkness, a dramatic technique which gave the powerful impression of a man so consumed by the dark that you almost couldnt see him or his humanity any more.
The whole thing won Coppola and Brando bucketloads of plaudits, something you can be doubly impressed with after realising that all they were trying to do was cover up a fat lad.