The film I’m Still Here, playing in limited release is about the supposed and much publicized departure from acting and a pursuit of a rap career by Academy Award nominee, Joaquin Phoenix. Shot over two years it has all the trappings of a documentary feature which follows the talented Phoenix as his life seemingly spirals out of control as he goes on drugs binges, chain smokes and has liaisons with prostitutes. For fans of Phoenix many had thought that he had gone ‘Lindsay Lohan’ and thrown his acting career away and the dramatic transformation he sustained for two years only added to the rumors.
Finally the truth has been revealed by his brother-in-law and director of the film Casey Affleck. When he was recently interviewed by the New York Times to promote the film which received scathing reviews, he thought it was time to let people know that it was all an act.
It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of his career
This could therefore be the best acting of the year as his method truly shows his commitment to the role, with the lines of fiction and reality being blurred. If he’d used a another name then people would’ve known it was just a character, but the film goes to great lengths to make the story seem authentic, including home movies both real and fabricated.
When Phoenix appeared on David Letterman last year his behavior made audiences think it was just part of an act, but as the interview continued and much to Letterman’s surprise it was all real, except that’s how Phoenix and Affleck intended and Dave was not in on the joke.
Though as Affleck explained he wanted audiences to experience the film’s narrative, about the disintegration of celebrity, without the clutter of preconceived notions, so Phoenix would say little in interviews.
We wanted to create a space……You believe what’s happening is real.
As the film progresses, Affleck said that there were subtle cues to provide hints of the film”s intention. At the beginning the camera work is raw but as the film progresses the imagery becomes more sophisticated.
There were multiple takes, these are performances.
‘Mr. Affleck said of unsettling sequences in which Mr. Phoenix appears to snort drugs, consort with hookers, and hunt to the ground an assistant who has betrayed him to the press — again, mostly actors.’
Check out a glimpse from the film here.
Phoenix is set to return to Letterman on the 22nd September so we’ll know then how much Affleck was telling the truth and we should see the real Joaquin Phoenix and get some kind of explanation or admission… definitely an episode of Dave to watch or catch online.
source: New York Times
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