In nearly 20 years as a Hollywood star, Ewan McGregor has been a prominent figure in the world of mainstream and independent cinema. He has successfully accomplished the daunting task of moving between genres without his fanbase or stock levels diminishing greatly, while crafting roles that are masterful, engaging and thrilling. Of course not everything the Scottish actor has done has been critically or commercially successful, but more often than not he has produced acting performances that allow his films to become more than what it should, extending his abilities and enthusing them with a vigour and passion that wouldnt of been possible in anybody elses hands. His latest film Jack The Giant Slayer, based on the fairy tales Jack and The Beanstalk & Jack The Giant Killer, is released in UK cinemas today and while it has gathered average reviews from critics and has been underwhelmed at the US box office, heres hoping that it finds success here and across Europe in the coming weeks. Due to the films release here in the UK today, Ewan McGregor is the latest actor for a close examination of his career as we remember 5 Awesome Performances and 5 That Sucked...
5 Awesome Performances...
5. Big Fish Young Edward Bloom
Tim Burton's most restrained film Big Fish tells the story of Edward Bloom, an enthused storyteller who likes to recount tales that have happened to him over the years that vary from those of generosity, to to those of love. The story begins with an older Edward Bloom, played brilliantly by Albert Finney, recounting the tale of the day he caught the uncatchable fish, leading us to meet Edward Bloom in his youth played by Ewan McGregor. This begins the magical journey that Burton and screenwriter John August take us on for two hours of glorious cinema. Big Fish really is a movie that has to be sat through multiple times in order to fully appreciate. It blends reality and fantasy wonderfully and has a pure heart at its core. McGregor is enigmatic and charming in the lead role, possessing the ability for audiences to feel sympathy and engage with Edward, something particularly crucial when spending so much time in a characters' presence. If youre familiar with Burtons previous work but have missed out on this, give it a try, you may be pleasantly surprised.