It is Friday again and that is ALWAYS a great thing, isn’t it? The weekend has arrived and “Friday Spotlight” is back after a week’s hiatus for a trip home to see the folks. Well, as I have been recently highlighting some of the true megastars in the Hollywood pantheon, I decided to go with at least one more. Now, some people might argue that with this actor’s overall recent fall from grace within the Hollywood ranks, it might cause me NOT to include him in this kind of profile…but…as is evident, that is NOT the case. While his personal life has indeed taken some drastic turns, and that is very unfortunate, I still cannot help but look at the body of work I’ve seen him do and there is no denying his acting abilities and screen presence are sorely missed. With that said, I give you…..Mel Gibson.
Even though Mel has been acting since at least 1976, when he was in an Australian TV show “The Sullivans” and two smaller Aussie film productions in 1977’s “Summer City” and 1979’s TV film “The Hero“, there is no doubt the FIRST thing most people will recall seeing him the FIRST time is his major film debut, 1979’s “Mad Max“, playing a rough and ready cop in a post-apocalyptic wasteland out to avenge the death of his best friend, wife, and child at the hands of a ruthless motorcycle gang. Hard charging and very visceral, especially for the era it arrived in, Gibson didn’t take long to show how much raw energy he could exude playing this type of character and honestly while much of the film is so over-the-top, Gibson made it a role to remember, and hence, put him on the map of people’s minds. After the success of “Max”, several films came to Gibson which I have never seen personally including 1979’s “Tim” and 1981’s “Gallipoli“. However, 1981 also brought the much anticipated sequel, “Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior“, where he again takes on the Max character with all the bravado of the first, this time helping a community of people defend their gas-refinery based home against another band of wasteland barbarians. Yes, it was ALSO over-the-top, but Gibson milks this role SO well, that despite the harshness of the story, you cannot help but root for the guy! And again,. the film brought ongoing success, and paved the way for the next several years following, with films like 1982’s “Attack Force Z” and “The Year of Living Dangerously“, and 1984’s “The Bounty“, “The River“, and “Mrs. Soffel“. 1985 brought the next film I personally saw Gibson in, which, how funny, was the third installment in the Mad Max series, “Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome“. Unfortunately, though, I did NOT like this film at ALL. And I am at a loss to really get into and detail about it, other than it just felt…forced. The story about Max being taken hostage and condemned to die the barbarian-controlled desert and his subsequent fight to survive that while rescuing a group of forgotten children just didn’t work for the character and it kind of fizzled out the whole raw-ness of the world Max inhabited. Again, that was just me. BUT….as the 80’s decade was coming to its end, THIS was the time that one of THE most iconic roles Gibson would take on emerged, and the film would DEFINE a whole new concept in films.
1987 brought us Gibson’s excellently entertaining (and intense!) turn as Detective Martin Riggs in director Richard Donner‘s CLASSIC movie, “Lethal Weapon“. The young, broken, and suicidal Riggs is ultimately teamed up with a by-the-books, veteran L.A. PD Detective, Roger Murtaugh (the equally excellent Danny Glover), to investigate and take down a drug smuggling operation, much to the chagrin of both men, as they HATE working with partners. To say the comic situations and chemistry between the two is good would be a SERIOUS understatement. The characters are SO totally opposite of each other that seeing them come together and actually make it work was simply extraordinary. Gibson’s rash, impulsive Riggs and Glover’s straight-laced Murtaugh end up COMPLIMENTING each other throughout the story, and in the midst of all the craziness, they find some genuine moments of pathos and drama that are truly believable. And THIS film was the REAL chance for Gibson to REALLY show us his acting chops….the emotional ranges he demonstrates with Riggs’ persona was awesome. Following this, Gibson chose a character on the OTHER side of the law in 1988’s “Tequila Sunrise“, in which he plays a drug-runner, Mac McKussic whose best friend, Nick Fescia (Kurt Russell), has become a cop who ends up out to bring McKussic to justice. Throw in an attractive restaurateur Mac becomes enamored with, Jo Ann (Michelle Pfeiffer) and things spin out of control between the two men quickly. I wouldn’t say Gibson was up to the same level as in “Lethal Weapon”, but he did this role solid. And having Russell and Pfeiffer as support didn’t hurt. BUT…let’s jump to 1989 and the sequel everyone wanted, “Lethal Weapon 2“. Once again, Gibson embodies Riggs and plays him to that same level of intensity and comedy that we enjoyed the first time around, as he and Murtaugh chase several South African diplomats who are utilizing their immunity as a front for crimes. And this film ALSO got to introduce us to a supporting character that would be quite the mixture of hilarious AND annoying at times, Leo Getz (played wonderfully by Joe Pesci). Anyone who’s seen this film knows that I mean! But we are watching for the ongoing antics of opposites Riggs and Murtaugh and we get that crazy chemistry on full display again.
Heading now into the 90’s, Gibson chose to follow up the sequel with two lighter-hearted comedic films in 1990’s “Air America” with “Iron Man” himself, Robert Downey, Jr, and “Bird On A Wire” co-starring Goldie Hawn. Both were fun and ok, but just knowing the acting ability of Gibson being realized in such better ways prior, they just seemed kind of “eh” for me. However, a dramatic turn for Gibson also came in 1990 with his interpretation of the classic Shakespeare play, “Hamlet“. And did he NAIL it. The deep, dark places that the character needs to go in this story of revenge and tragedy were brought to vivid life with Gibson in the lead role and solid supporting turns by Glenn Close, Paul Scofield, Ian Holm, and Helena Bonham Carter. But it was again Gibson’s intensity…that FOCUS…that brought Hamlet’s character to bear…I just FELT everything that was happening when watching it. 1992 brought us the third film in the “Lethal Weapon” series, and for me, this was actually overall the weakest one of the group. Don’t get me wrong, it was STILL good and worth a viewing or two, but it did kind of feel like MAYBE the series was sadly running out of steam. However, it WAS nice to FINALLY introduce Riggs’ character to a love interest that he could COMPLETELY relate to in Lorna Cole (played by Rene Russo) who is just as reckless as Riggs is. The whole “comparing the scars” scene seems to stick in a lot of people’s heads when it comes to the characters finally realizing how they feel. We still get plenty of those crazy moments and bantering between Riggs and Murtaugh, but still….it just felt tired. Gibson made a good choice, in my opinion, as the next films he chose to do were more focused on his dramatic and playfully comedic chops in which he excels so much. 1992 also brought the drama “Forever Young” where he plays test pilot Capt. Daniel McCormick, who, in 1939, pleads with scientist and best friend to allow himself to be the subject of a cryogenic experiment that will put him to sleep for a year so he doesn’t have to bear watching his love endure lying in a coma. But, due to an oversight, he IS re-awoken, but in 1992! Ultimately befriending a local woman Claire Cooper (Jamie Lee Curtis) who gets wrapped up in his incredible story, McCormick deals with this new reality and the search for his lost love. Gibson simply excelled in this type of role. He just emotes SO amazingly well that again, you found yourself completely drawn into the character and everything he is experiencing emotionally. He would do an equally amazing performance, and make his directorial debut, in 1993’s “The Man Without A Face“, playing a reclusive and misunderstood teacher, Justin McLeod, who has been forced to live in exile after a false accusation until a young boy ends up befriending and learning from him….and vice versa. A heart-wrenching AND warming tale that is filled with Gibson’s presence, again sweeping you away into the story. 1994 gave us the fun and playful Mel in “Maverick“, based on the TV show of the same name. Including a superb supporting cast of Jodie Foster, the original TV Maverick, James Garner, plus Graham Greene, Alfred Molina, and James Coburn, it was a comedic gem of a film and allowed Gibson to showcase the boyish charm in the character that he could pull off so well. And the pacing and writing was very solid, and the direction of “Lethal Weapon” collaborator Richard Donner elevated the film even more.
Then we arrive at 1995…now THIS was a serious moment for me and my love of Gibson’s films overall, as he stepped into the actor/director’s spot a second time in the EPIC film, “Braveheart“. May I just start by saying this is STILL to date my overall FAVORITE film that Gibson has ever done and it is also my overall second favorite film of all time. Based on the true accounts of Scottish Highlander and freedom fighter William Wallace, this film just took me to places emotionally AND visually that I had seldom experienced up until that point. It is truly a sweeping story, with Gibson’s incredible ability to emote reaching new heights as events unfold in Wallace’s life that catapult him from being a simple man to one of Scotland’s most revered and fearsome warriors who lead an alliance of clansmen into war with the ruthless King of England, Edward Longshanks (played with SUCH well done acting villainy by veteran Patrick McGoohan) who wants to buy off the Scottish nobles in a bid to control more territory for his empire. If there was ever a film that had such a potent combination of drama, humor, and action, I had not seen it until this. I went through pretty much EVERY emotion possible in watching this, and I know I keep saying it, but Gibson’s efforts with this character was mind-blowing. And the fact that Gibson put that much investment into playing Wallace, on TOP of directing and producing the film as well….wow. And the effort was worth it, as the film nabbed the Best Picture and Best Director Oscars that year. Later in 1995, Gibson voiced John Smith in the Disney animated version of “Pocahontas” which I never saw. Next was the 1996 thriller, “Ransom“, playing Tom Mullen, a rich man whose son is kidnapped but in a strange twist, places a ransom on the heads of the KIDNAPPERS in hopes that it will actually lead to their capture and to the rescue of his son. It was one INTENSE film that found Gibson bringing out some scarily good dramatic chops again as Mullen, who is watching his world starting to come apart after making the decision that he does. Ron Howard‘s directing most certainly assisted in this tale, but it is most definitely NOT a film for everyone. 1997 saw Gibson team up with Richard Donner yet again, this time co-starring with Julia Roberts in the thriller “Conspiracy Theory“, where he played Jerry Fletcher, an off kilter conspiracy theorist whom gets in the crosshairs of shadowy government operative Dr. Jonas (Patrick Stewart) when one of his crazy notions turns out to be true. Ultimately helping him after some not-so-welcome advances and situations Jerry puts her in is Alice Sutton (Roberts) who finds out there’s more to Jerry’s obsession with HER than she knew. Just a fantastically entertaining film and as always, it’s Gibson getting to play unhinged that works so well here with his patented combination of the dramatic and the humorous. Then came 1998 and a film not everyone expected would come along…..”Lethal Weapon 4“. Now I was understandably skeptical about it at first, but let me say, this was actually an IMPROVEMENT over number three for me, probably more so in seeing an aging Riggs still trying to BE, well, Riggs and NOT always BEING successful at it, and then Glover still playing Murtaugh is his typical straight-as-an-arrow way. Plus, with the introduction of Jet Li as main baddie Wah Sing Ku was genius to me, and it set up one whopper of a showdown in the film with the three characters. Add Chris Rock into the mix as Murtaugh’s daughter’s boyfriend…oh my. It was a great (and TRUE) send-off to the series, culminating in a wonderful hospital sequence with Riggs having his first child with Lorna. Even a simple PHOTO op cannot go 100% smoothly! Ending one amazing decade was the 1999 revenge thriller “Payback“. All I can say is that while Gibson playing this type of role DOES work, at the time, the film was just somehow TOO dark in tone for me to say I enjoyed it. HE was solid as always, but just as a whole…no.
We get into the 2000’s and several early films stick out to me here. While I never saw “The Million Dollar Hotel“, I DID catch the THREE other films that Gibson was involved with. First was his voiceover as a VERY over-confident rooster in the animated comedy “Chicken Run” about a group of chickens who suddenly realize that staying in the York’s Farms henhouse may NOT end up well for them at all, prompting a “The Great Escape” attempt to get away from their potential fates. It is a hilarious film, and what better character for Gibson to voice than an arrogant American rooster stuck among a group of British hens led by their stubborn and independently-minded leader Ginger (voiced by Julia Sawalha). Gibson next went full-on dramatic again in the historical epic, “The Patriot“, loosely based on the Revolutionary War hero known as “The Swamp Fox”. Again playing a simple man driven to war by tragedy, Gibson’s Benjamin Martin was just ALL-OUT emotion in every form and as expected, you are pulled right into it all, experiencing every sense that can be had. It is a hard film, yet there are poignant moments SO powerful it defies the overall premise of Martin’s ultimate goals in regard to seeking justice against the British office Col. William Tavington. I defy anyone to NOT tear up during a certain scene involving Martin’s youngest daughter later in the film. The sheer intensity and emotive quality of Gibson’s performance was incredible. And a supporting cast including the likes of Heath Ledger, Joley Richardson, Chris Cooper, Jason Isaacs, Donal Logue, and Tom Wilkinson just adds additional strength to the movie. 2000 also gave us the dramatic comedy, “What Woman Want“, with Gibson starring as Nick Marshall, a SERIOUSLY egotistical and chauvinistic ad exec who, thanks to an accident, can suddenly and literally hear what woman are thinking. The new boss at his ad firm, Darcy Maguire (Helen Hunt) comes along and shakes up the status quo, causing Nick to re-think some things as he starts listening TO what women are about and applying the principals he’s learned, some to GREAT comic effect, others more serious. And seeing Gibson successfully dance through his character’s residence with a HAT RACK to “Fly Me To The Moon”…priceless. That and the exfoliating. It was Gibson being his hammy self that makes the execution of Nick’s persona so addicting and fun. In 2002, the final two films that I have seen Gibson in came out, and both were a real treat. First was the Vietnam War true story, “We Were Soldiers“, in which he played Lt. Col. Hal Moore, who ends up commanding a group of young and inexperienced soldiers into what was one of the first major engagements between Americans and Viet Cong. And it is ONE HARROWING RIDE. The intense, visceral, picture of war that is portrayed here is astounding and just as sobering and gut-wrenching as anything I have ever watched, as you just cannot fathom what it would have ACTUALLY been like to be stuck in the chaos that this group did, much less to have the fortitude that Moore had to lead them into AND out of that mess successfully. It is powerful, potent, in-your-face, realistic in every sense, and SUCH a well-acted film. Gibson AGAIN nails this character and you are feeling the entire range of emotions (and there are PLENTY welling up in this one) he portrays. There is one initial moment early on when the soldiers being deployed are gathering to meet Moore at the bus stop to the airfield for flight to Vietnam and not ONE WORD is said, yet you just KNOW and FEEL what’s going on. Another of Gibson’s truly shining moments of the many he’s had. Again, the supporting cast, including Greg Kinnear and Sam Elliott (whose seriously gruff officer steals certain scenes completely) aids in this film’s success. Finally, there was M. Night Shyamalan‘s film, “Signs“, with Gibson playing Rev. Graham Hess, a man who has lost his faith due to an accident he blames God for and has since become embittered, all while trying to lead his two children (Rory Culkin & Abigail Breslin) and brother (Joaquin Phoenix) on in life in the midst of an alien invasion. And that was the magic of this film, in that it ends up really being ABOUT Graham’s return to faith DUE to the circumstances that happen, with the aliens simply being the ultimate catalyst that brings the whole story together. We already know how well Gibson can play a tortured man, and he does it here with great effect. And sadly, this became the final film I have seen Gibson in since, despite him still managing several theatrical and a few straight-to-video films between 2003-2013, though this would include his VERY potent and thought-provoking 3rd directorial effort, 2004’s “The Passion of the Christ” with Jim Caviezel that, let’s be honest, speaks for itself if you’ve seen the film. And the fact Gibson financed that effort entirely on his own was a testament of his devotion to see the story told the way he felt it should be….the way it was.
So, as I stated at the beginning (which I know, I know, was a LONG way back in this post…so sue me! LOL), this is an actor who has truly encompassed almost every type of character and done so with his incredible charisma and emotive delivery that made so many of those efforts ones to watch again and again. I continue to find myself hoping that, despite the seriousness of the attitudes and choices made recently that have taken him OUT of Hollywood as a whole, Gibson DOES find a way to make the much-needed amends required for his actions and IS able to make a successful return to the big screen for all of us to enjoy again.
As always, this is all for YOUR consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
