Sir Ben looked to bad guys for his Iron Man 3 villain
LOS ANGELES There was a time when being a part of a comic-bookbased movie was considered little more than a way to earn a paycheque. Not anymore.
Ben Kingsley, Michael Caine and Kenneth Branagh share more in common than just being actors from the United Kingdom. All three have been knighted, either won or been nominated for an Oscar and are part of comic-book movies. Caine was Alfred in the Batman movies; Branagh directed Thor.
Sir Ben’s venture into the evergrowing genre has him playing The Mandarin in Iron Man 3. The character first appears in a series of threatening video messages that promise to rain down a terrorist hell on America. It’s up to the armoured avenger Iron Man to stop him.
Kingsley’s seen an evolution in moviemaking to include more indepth characters in superhero stories, which is why he was willing to take on the role in the big summer movie.
“The offer of doing a comic book movie franchise many years ago would not be as anything attractive as it is now,” he says.
Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr., points out just how critical it is to have someone with Kingsley’s acting gravitas. “The movie is only as good as its bad guy. Once we cast Sir Ben, half our troubles went away,” Downey says.
Because many of Kingsley’s roles have been set in the period of the Second World War, he has watched hours of newsreel footage of the infamous leaders of that time.
What he observed was that all of the dictators had an unswerving sense that their actions were right and they had been selected to lead the world. “There’s an oddly benign tone to his voice as if he’s teaching you something for your own good. However deplorable the politics of what he’s saying is, The Mandarin has to convey a sense of complete righteousness, a belief in himself, a belief in his message,” Kinsley said.