Is Christian Bale the next Johnny Depp? Or is he actually a new, improved version?

Bale’s latest film, “Rescue Dawn,” which opens next Friday, may be a major indicator. In it he plays a Vietnam fighter pilot who’s shot down and taken to a vile prison camp, where he engineers an escape. It’s a physically wrenching and demanding role which Bale imbues with his own decidedly unique personality, and his performance is already generating Oscar buzz.

And yes, it’s the kind of role you might have imagined Johnny Depp taking a decade ago. Both actors started out in film while young. Bale was 13 when he made “Empire of the Sun” with Steven Spielberg, Depp was 21 in “Nightmare on Elm Street.” And each has spent most of his career working in obscure films or commercial flops before moving into a blockbuster franchise.
There were exceptions, to be sure. Depp had “Edward Scissorhands,” and even if things like “Ed Wood” didn’t make real money, they at least earned him notice and respect. Bale surfaced in “Little Women” and “Shaft” over the years, but for the most part he opted for odd endeavors like “The Machinist” and “American Psycho” — not exactly the sort of films that endear you to either the public or critics.

Then Depp signed on for the first “Pirates of the Caribbean” at age 40, and suddenly he was everybody’s favorite Keith Richards impersonator, as well as a bankable star. Since “Pirates” in 2003 he’s made precisely one successful film that was anything like an artistic success, “Finding Neverland” in 2004. Otherwise he’s mainly been a pirate.

Bale signed on as Batman for “Batman Begins” at age 31 in 2005. And then he immediately used his increased clout to artistic advantage. Director Werner Herzog soon found financing for “Rescue Dawn,” a film that manages to be mainstream at the same time it’s challenging, with Bale as the star. Bale has also appeared in the lush “The New World” and the dazzling magician drama “The Prestige” since donning his superhero cape.

Next up is “3:10 to Yuma,” with Russell Crowe, and “I’m Not There,” in which he plays Bob Dylan, before he returns to the bat suit in “The Dark Knight” next year. Bale, in other words, is still stretching, while Depp appears to be cruising.

Not that there’s anything wrong with cruising. For a while. And Depp has certainly turned in a career’s worth of great performances. But why stop now? Christian Bale certainly hasn’t.

Source: Det News

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