A Late Bloomer

No, the title of this post doesn't refer to Russell himself, but to Jeffrey M. Anderson over at Cinematical, who has come to appreciate Russell through his more recent films!

400 Screens, 400 Blows - As the Crowe Flies

"...Crowe was equally commanding, in 3:10 to Yuma (2007), American Gangster (2007) and State of Play. In the latter two, and also last year's Body of Lies, he began to adopt a ragged, scruffy look. He seemed to have packed on a little weight, but he moved comfortably in his own skin. Like Captain Aubrey, he still had the powerful physical presence to keep others in check. His delivery no longer had the calculated, one-note quality of his Oscar-friendly films, but now seemed to come from some private place where things were secretly amusing -- and we were now in on the joke. He had put something of himself into his work, rather than putting up a wall. Yet he keeps something commanding and mysterious, just out of reach, just to keep us interested and make us want to keep searching."