In praise of Colin Farrell

I think this is my favorite picture of Colin Farrell. He looks like possibly the sleaziest guy ever. But come ON, you KNOW you would still hit that! This picture is perfect: It sums up his (very strong) appeal, but also his drawbacks.

First things first: The New World. I’ve been a follower of Terrence Malick for awhile, and was extremely excited and agitated when I saw the first theatrical trailer for The New World. The trailer was beautiful, and breathtaking, and… Colin Farrell? Huh? My exact thoughts were, “Oh well, Terrence Malick knows what he’s doing, and I’m going to trust him on this one…”

When I saw The New World for the first time in the theater, I was really transported to a completely different time and place. The first shot of Colin Farrell in the movie is so perfect that all doubts I had about the casting were immediately erased. It’s not just that he has a gorgeous face and is a decent actor; there really is no other actor who could have played the part of John Smith so perfectly. Trust me, when you watch this movie, his sex tape is the last thing in your mind. The film is an immersion into a totally foreign experience. I mean The New World, not the Sex Tape. Oh, this is where the drawbacks come into play.

When I find a new actor or director that I’m interested in, I follow a typical pattern: I watch every damn thing they’re even remotely connected to. And I found out something interesting about Colin Farrell that not everybody is aware of: He’s actually a really good actor. Not all of his movies are good, but he doesn’t give a bad performance in any of them. He chooses unusual projects, and is definitely not afraid of looking bad, or gay. He’ll apparently take off his pants anytime a director asks him to (ask any woman, this is not a bad trait). Yeah, he goes overboard with the drunken public celebrity persona… but you know damn well that if you ran into him on the street, he would stop and talk to you. Who cares if it’s because he’s an attention whore? He’s Colin Farrell, and he’s talking to you!

All I can say is, go back to the picture. He’s Colin Farrell, and he’s drunk, and smoking, and on a boat, and possessing great, beefy arms. Would you really pretend that you’re too good to be on that boat with him?