Many Faces of Johnny Depp: Five Best Roles
On June 9th, the famous actor turned 59 years old. Let's remember his most outstanding works in cinema.
As a Hollywood chameleon, Johnny Depp, until recently, had no shortage of offers from major studios. He was especially fond of being invited for strange, "gothic" roles. Over time, the American actor, producer and musician has become one of the world's biggest movie stars. And all thanks to his artistic honesty, over the top cinematic genius and humble charm. Though he is not a winner of high film awards, his on-screen personages continue to live on and excite the audience's imagination.
Johnny Depp began his screen career with the image of a teenage heartthrob in such films as "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984) and the popular television series "21 Jump Street" (1987-1991). He made it to major roles rather quickly. Many of his most bizarre images were born out of a long-running collaboration with director Tim Burton. From 2000 to 2010, Johnny was in short supply. And even though Hollywood has recently grown cold to him, as it turned out, because of the slander of his ex-wife Amber Heard, no one denies that he has created an incredible film portfolio over the years. In this review, five unforgettable Johnny Depp roles.
Captain Jack Sparrow.
The captain of the "Internet" pirates, Jack Sparrow was portrayed by Johnny Depp for 14 years (2003-2017) in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" (2003), "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (2006), "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (2007), "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (2011) and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge" (2017).
Depp's career changed dramatically after he crossed paths with his character, performing perhaps his most striking role and embodying the most colorful character in movie history. According to the actor, the inspiration for the role he drew from Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, presented in a constantly drunk, strangely feminine and sometimes lustful image. But Jack Sparrow is also the smartest and luckiest pirate in the world. And no doubt as iconic a hero as, for example, Indiana Jones.
Edward Scissorhands
In this 1990 Frankenstein tale, Johnny Depp and Tim Burton played dress-up for the first time, laying the groundwork for a long-term collaboration. Edward Scissorhands is none other than a man with scissors instead of hands, whipped hair and a scrawny build in a tight suit. Depp played the oddball character with such innocence and purity that it couldn't help but "break hearts." As story tolds Inventor Vincent Price created him and raised him with fairy tales, poetry, and etiquette, all Edward wanted was to conform to his creator's intent and be magical.
Willy Wonka.
The controversial remake of the 1971 classic film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is packed with witty jokes and in some ways even surpasses the original. Here again Depp gives a terrific performance as Willy Wonka, the chocolatier. His character is a grown man in a state of stunted development, his personality shaped by a confusing relationship with his father, the famous dentist Wilbur. For Wonka, the actor received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy. Renowned film critic Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly noted, "Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka may be an impenetrable freak, but he's also one of Burton's classic crazy magicians, like Beetlejuice or Ed Wood."
Mad Hatter/Tarrant Hightopp.
One of the most remarkable transformations ever seen, Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter or Tarrant Cylinder surpassed Willy Wonka. The Mad Hatter, a grotesque-looking creature with a nightmare vibe, allowed the actor to display his eccentricity. The Mad Hatter became a definite historical character for Depp. The picture certainly has its flaws, but it never seemed like a copy of the animated version. The unique visual style successfully created in it gave the character of Johnny much more than just a desire to have a mad tea party.
Gellert Grindewald.
Johnny Depp's Grindewald is one of the most colorful villains in movie history. He appears at the end of the first part and shows his full power in the second "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" (2018). Grindewald is somewhat reminiscent of Voldemort on screen, and it should be noted, the former's presence was the best part of a depressingly cluttered and understated film. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Depp revealed that he read the books and watched Joan Rowling's movies with his children, eventually labeling Grindewald "interesting and complex" for himself.
*****
Of course, Johnny Depp's filmography is not limited to the roles listed. He has other work for which he is remembered and known. They include Tonto in "The Lone Ranger" (2013), and Sweeney Todd in "Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (2007), and Sands in "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" (2003), and James M. Barry in "Magic Land" (2004), and Edward D. Wood in "Ed Wood," and Barnabas Collins in "Gloomy Shadows" (2012), and Ichabod Crane in "Sleepy Hollow" (1999). Let's hope that the recent lawsuit will win back the trust of today's birthday boy from the big movie studios, and he will still please us with new, original, roles.