Our viewing of A Streetcar Named Desire in class was the second time I had seen the movie. Each time I am captivated by the intense emotions in a film with such a limited cast and setting. This speaks highly to the acting in the film, and as many classmates have pointed out in their posts from this week, A Streetcar Named Desire is the prime example of method acting versus melodramatic acting. As a film student, it is extremely interesting to compare Marlon Brando's style with Vivien Leigh's acting because clear schools of acting are right on the screen. In the past, I have felt that this is distracting to the story in A Streetcar Named Desire, since I am so focused on Vivien Leigh's drama as contrasted with Brando's method acting. Yet this is a great way to begin to understand the differences between the two styles.
I learned even more about method acting in a Q&A with Jason Isaacs this week and thought I would share the insight with the class. It's not much, but since I am not an actor I have wondered why some actors choose method acting. We have heard the crazy stories of Daniel Day Lewis being Lincoln all day long, etc. and to many people it seems absurd looking at it from the outside. In this Q&A, Jason Isaacs explained that he tries to embody a character all day during the shoot because when the director yells "Action!" you don't want to have to "put on" and entire character. Imagine being yourself and then in three seconds changing your entire persona and accent. He says it is much more helpful to just carry the persona with you during the day (such as mannerisms and accent) so that he can pay attention to smaller details of each scene.
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