For a long time, Jeremy Irons was known to the public as Charles Ryder in the acclaimed TV version of Brideshead Revisited, which aired on ITV in the United Kingdom in 1981. Watching Irons as an embodiment of Ryder, injecting the role with a strange, intoxicating melancholy, it soon became apparent that he might well be destined for great things. If Jeremy Irons' career - through no fault of his own - hasn't quite delivered on the promise of those early years, few would claim that he hasn't at least made a good go of it. At times, it's as if Hollywood doesn't quite know what to do with him (he is often made to play "exotic" or "European") and - as a result - his career has suffered through periods of inactivity. Cast him in the right role, however, and there are few who can rival his unique screen presence. There is a sense with Irons that he's always in on the joke, which allows him to take his unique brand of seriousness - if you can call it that - into the realms of comedy, drama and everything in-between. He's equally at home delivering hammy exposition as he is wallowing in a mournful monologue; he can play both sympathetic and truly loathsome. And then, of course, there's that voice - his trademark weapon, and the trait that has come to define Irons and his talents: a deeply gravelly tone, it's somehow also smooth as silk. Irons' next role has him as the tyrannical architect Anthony Royal in Ben Wheatley's long-awaited adaptation of J.G Ballard's High-Rise, set for release in UK cinemas today. To celebrate Irons' long and eclectic career, it's time to look back at 5 awesome performances and 5 performances that weren't so successful...
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
