by Nathaniel R
Mo: He came slammin' into my shop...
Freddie: Who struck the first blow?
Whitey: The first blow -- what are you kidding? -- there was only one blow.
Do you enjoy against-type casting? I couldn't stop thinking of this practice while watching Boys Town (1938) the other night to fill in a notable Best Actor gap (Spencer Tracy won the Oscar as do-gooder Father Flanagan who started the titular home for abandoned / delinquent boys). In the film Mickey Rooney's "Whitey" tests Father Flanagan's theory that 'there are no bad boys' and his tough guy shtick feels very over the top especially coming from a teen star who was then best known for boisterous enthusiasm in comedy and song and dance. But then a funny thing happened. Halfway through the picture, while still bristling against this relentless posturing, it suddenly worked for the movie; OF COURSE Father Flanagan is right and Whitey's tough guy callousness is a performance. This little jerk acts tough but he's actually a softie beneath the sneering.
Do you like watching actors playing the opposite of their typical persona, whether or not they succeed? What's your go to example of this sort of thing.