Bad Rufus!

[welshdragon]

I have just watched bad Rufus as Eric Starke in Bless the Child - bad but still lovely somehow!!
I hadn't seen this before - not a great film but worth watching for him. Why do we love him as a bad guy?

[kissmekate]

Well, I think he succeeds in giving even his baddies a certain human depth and makes you wonder what exactly made them what they are now.

With almost every villain he's played I've had the feeling that there is an underlying tragedy that tipped them over the edge and/or that there is a little bit of good deep down inside them.

[lovethemanrs]

Cause he's a very sexy bad guy. Take Helen of Troy. He's pretty evil in that, driven by the Gods and duty, but still sexy and stunning. Luv him xx

[welshdragon]

That's true, he makes you want to kiss him better, and make him good again!

[judypatooty]

I think it's because he makes even the baddies very human, and thus understandable. You can hate them, but you get glimpses of their humanity.

If you haven't seen Downloading Nancy, it's worth a watch just to see how Rufus could make even the horrible, cold, cruel Albert a believable human being.

[wichiwoman]

I agree with all of you. He's been quoted that he doesn't want to do any more bad guy roles but personally I think he's very convincing as a bad guy. Not many actors can pull that off and not come across as comical or cartoonish. I have a feeling that he's being offered lots of these roles and is turning them down. If he gets good reviews for ALVH, maybe he'll change his mind.

[kissmekate]

In that Radio 5 interview last winter he actually said he'd go for a good baddie role at any time if it appealed to him. Wonder if he already had Adam in mind then

[GreenEyesToo]

May 3, 2011 14:56:33 GMT welshdragon said:

Why do we love him as a bad guy?

Because he's so good at it! He just has a way of making his villains more than just 2D characters.

I think he gave even Agamemnon a touch of humanity - even though he sacrificed his daughter, Rufus portrayed it in such a way that you could still feel sorry for him, still feel that he had to do it because he was so in thrall to the gods that, however must it cost him personally, he had no choice. He made me believe that the gods had demanded the one thing Aggie would hesitate about, as a test of his loyalty to them, and that if he hadn't complied his whole nation was doomed. I won't say that made me feel sorry for him, but it did make that act seem less cold-blooded than it would have been in the hands of a less competent actor.

When he told Helen later how he felt, with his despair close to the surface, is one of my favourite scenes in HOT.

[VictoryGirl]

Totally agree with you all.

[francesca]

I have looked everywhere but can't find the quote I read from Heath Ledger regarding Rufus as Adhemar
It goes along the lines of that it doesn't matter how bad Rufus's character is, he always makes you want to like him.
If anyone know where I can find this again, I would love to see it.

[dippyponge]

The first time I saw Rufus on stage was as Macbeth and I came away saying to my friend that he was weak and he couldn't refuse his wife and actually I think deep down he didn't want to kill anyone... I did feel sorry for macbeth and I never have before.

[megagem]

May 19, 2011 22:37:15 GMT francesca said:

I have looked everywhere but can't find the quote I read from Heath Ledger regarding Rufus as Adhemar
It goes along the lines of that it doesn't matter how bad Rufus's character is, he always makes you want to like him.
If anyone know where I can find this again, I would love to see it.

Hi Frannie! Is this the quote you're looking for? (from 3:55-4:05)
youtu.be/6N3Yv8fs-9M