BENNIFER NO MORE
Affleck clinches return to respectability
The career regeneration of Ben Affleck continues with his starring role in Gone Girl. His lapse into “Bennifer” banality is now a distant memory.
He reinvented himself with 2006’s Hollywoodland and his 2007 directorial debut Gone Baby Gone, followed by his double turn as star and director of The Town (2010). His Oscar-winning Argo in 2012 clinched a return to respectable glory almost a decade after his relationship with Jennifer Lopez became a running gag on the late-night talk shows. After Gone Girl, he will play Batman in Batman v Superman, slated for 2016. Five things to know about the new and improved Affleck:
1 Gone Girl was on his must-do list
Playing the charming yet suspicious husband in the film version of Gillian Flynn’s popular novel was a high priority. Affleck was close to beginning his latest directorial effort, Live by Night, when doing Gone Girl presented itself and he delayed Live By Night to do it.
2 His famous-for-being-famous Bennifer past caught up with him in a positive way
Gone Girl director David Fincher hesitated when Affleck showed interest in the role, fearing the actor would be too recognizable. Later, Fincher realized there was no better choice for an actor who had to define a character suffering from the glare of the media’s bright focus.
3 He enrolled in the David Fincher school of cinema
Affleck paid close attention to the filmmaker on set. And before directing each of his own three films, Affleck screened Fincher’s thriller Seven to get inspired. “I feel like (Seven) is the most perfectly meticulous thing,” Affleck has said. Despite Fincher’s reputation as a demanding director, “It was a pleasure to be around him and a true learning experience,” Affleck said. “(He) is also, despite his reputation, very funny and a nice guy, not just a demon. He’s smart and sweet.”
4 He was peaking with Pike
British actress Rosamund Pike introduced herself to North American movie audiences with co-starring roles in Die Another Day and Pride & Prejudice. Indeed, Pike might be Oscar-bound for her portrayal of the manipulative wife. Affleck said “it was easy to play opposite her” while moving toward the dark places in the Gone Girl story. “(Pike) definitely had the courage to go toward that,” he said.
5 He’s still relishing the career do-over
“Whatever this is,” Affleck said, “I am enjoying it.”