In praise of O'Hare

Roger Ebert once said that any film featuring M. Emmet Walsh or Harry Dean Stanton can't be all bad. Now I want to add the name of Denis O'Hare to that list. Mr. O'Hare first came to my attention about 15 years ago when I first saw him in an episode of Law & Order. He made three other appearances on that television series over the years, playing three distinctly different characters. I have also seem him in brief screen appearances in 21 Grams, Garden State, Derailed and Half Nelson. He had a small but amazingly poignant appearance as the father of the hero in Rocket Science, and that same year (2007) he also appeared in A Mighty Heart, Charlie Wilson's War and Michael Clayton.

But last year he really seemed to come to the head of the character actor's class, first as the head doctor in the asylum where Angelina Jolie's character is sent in Clint Eastwood's Changeling. Then last night, while re-watching the excellent Milk with My Hero, I marveled at his take on the homophobic State Senator John Briggs. (He also had a nice turn playing a doctor in Baby Mama last year.)

I bring this up because O'Hare's appearance in a film, Duplicity, is one reason I will be looking forward to seeing this movie. Another reason is the first paragraph of A.O. Scott's review of the film that appeared in today's New York Times:

"Duplicity: the title suggests something with two sides, but the film itself, the second (after Michael Clayton) written and directed by Tony Gilroy, has many more layers and facets. Its densely coiled plot and splintered chronology reveal a cascade of familiar genres and styles. It’s a caper movie, a love story — with Clive Owen and Julia Roberts, no less — an extra-dry corporate satire. However you describe it, Duplicity is superior entertainment, the most elegantly pleasurable movie of its kind to come around in a very long time."