Stars are generic. A character actor is specific. Consider Stanley Tucci, the man with the liveliest deadpan on screen. The less he seems to do, the louder you laugh. Take his performance as Paul Child, spouse of the French Chef, in Julie & Julia. He doesn't have a lot of dialogue, but his reaction shots are the bearnaise to Meryl Streep's skirt steak. The movie is unimaginable without him. You could set Greenwich Mean to his timing. In the scene where Julia turns a bushel of onions into a mountain of dice, Tucci's Paul enters the kitchen, and lurches back into the wall in the face of the onion odor, eyes tearing. The move is balletic slapstick, a combination of Mikhail Baryshnikov and Stan Laurel.
It's worth noting that Stanley T played a Stan L-type figure in The Impostors, the hilarious 1998 movie he also wrote and directed, starring opposite Oliver Platt as the Oliver Hardy figure. (The two likewise played slapstick guys in Beethoven, where Tucci was the dogcatcher.) And that he was sublime in The Big Night, the mouthwatering indie he co-wrote, co-directed and co-stars with his high school bud Campbell Scott, about the immigrant restaurateurs who make a dinner for Louis Prima.
With the exception of TV biopics such as Winchell, most of Tucci's starring roles have been in material he initiated. In big-star screen fare such as America's Sweethearts and The Devil Wears Prada, his character literally supports the film. He functions as the fulcrum keeping the movie from seesawing.
While personally this has been a dark year for Tucci -- his wife, Kate, mother of his three children, died of cancer in May -- professionally it looks to be his breakout year. Not only will Julie & Julia likely generate buzz for him come awards time, but his pivotal role in The Lovely Bones likely will, too.
Do you like Tucci as much as I do? Favorite movie?
Three words: JOE GOULD'S SECRET. Tucci directed and starred in this remarkable, heartbreaking film about the New Yorker writer Joe Mitchell (Tucci) who befriended a possibly brilliant/possibly crazy (probably both) bohemian writer (superbly played by Ian Holm). This film confirms Tucci's talents in front of and behind the camera. Not to be missed.— garyk- What I find astonishing about Tucci is his ability to play both villains and heroes; while you've covered many of his great performances, I would like to mention his role in the TV series, "Murder One," which put him on the map, as he played Richard Cross, who might or might not have been the killer.— jonc
- A reader, David, asked me to post this comment on the telefilm, "Conspiracy," which restates the point that Tucci has great dramatic -- as well as comedic -- range: I think that Tucci’s absolute best performance to date was when he played Eichmann in the HBO film about the Wannsee conference that was broadcast several years ago. For all the reasons you describe in your blog, he gave a riveting performance in that piece. He did Hannah Arendt proud.— carrierickey
- Again, Gary got there first: "Joe Gould's Secret" definitely. Also, "Shall We Dance?" (no one plays gay as Tucci can); "Montana," a little-seen gem that he did with Kyra Sedgwick, and "Prelude to a Kiss," in which he plays his first scene with a necktie tied around his head. Memorable. But he always is.— Pash
- The first time I saw Tucci - and I suddenly find myself wanting to break into a Jerome Kern melody - was in the role of Bridget Fonda's louse of an estranged husband in "It Could Happen to You." His deep and very particular love of Macadamian nuts made me laugh out loud. In addition to all the roles already mentioned, I enjoyed him as the dastardly villain in "Kit Kittredge: An American Girl," frustrated to the point of apoplexy by his dim-witted henchman. (It's interesting how often and how well Tucci plays one-half of the equivalent of a great vaudeville comedy team. As you note, in appearance he's the Stan Laurel, but his fabulous slow burn reaction shots are pure Oliver Hardy.) On TV, he was terrific as a Method actor who gets a little too lost in his role as neurotic genius detective Adrian Monk - a role which also gave him a chance to work opposite his "Big Night" partner, Tony Shalhoub.— wwolfe
- The first time i saw tucci was in quick change with bill murray. He has a great deadpan humor.Over the years he has grown into a great character actor who can do both comedy and drama— ewalter
- For me, "Big Night" showed Tucci at his best. He and Tony Shalhoub played off each other brilliantly. Who can forget their wrestling scene toward the end of the film?— pegner
- wwolfe - Tony Shalhoub is Monk, not Stanley Tucci I too first saw ST in 'Murder One'...that and Big Night are my favorites— javafiend
- javafiend - I was referring to a single episode in which Tucci's character is set to star in a movie based on Monk's life. While doing research for the role, Tucci's character gets very, *very* deep into the Monk mindset, with less than happy results. A fun episode.— wwolfe
- I think is character Morty, in Undercover Blues was one of the funniest movie roles that I have ever seen. He was brilliant in that movie.— batman416
- Have to agree with David..the greatest role I have seen him do is Eichman in Conspiracy. I agree that he is versatile and, while I have not seen him in everything he has done, his portrayal of Eichman was brilliant, especially when he talks about learning the language from an old rabbi.— judel
- Big Night is amazing but the Daytrippers is also a nice surprise. He is a gem even in the silly kids movies.— rfabien
- Thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Tucci's impish turn as Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999). Big Night, of course. He is an equal pleasure on stage too: He played the lead in Frankie and Johnnie in the Clair de Lune.— Jennifer Baldino Bonett
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