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By: Jimmy Im
INKED Magazine
Spring 06'
Edition
On film, Mickey
Rourke is a
quiet storm. He
slips in
unexpectedly,
but his dynamics
and edgy
performances
change the
scene. That's
what makes him
who he is, and
it's the reason
he's still
relevant. He
could sell out,
but that's just
not his style.
It may have been
his modest roles
in the early
'80's films like
Diner and
Body Heat
that first gave
us reason to
admire him, but
his slick,
off-kilter
performance in
Nine 1/2
Weeks made
him
unforgettable.
The array of
sensitive, tough
guy characters
that he
portrayed in
complex movies
like Angel
Heart and
Year Of The
Dragon
manifested
naturally from
his already
confident and
masculine
sangfroid.
Perhaps it's no
coincidence that
he studied at
the legendary
Lee Strasberg
Institute, where
other actors of
his brooding
range like
Robert De Niro
and Christopher
Walken are
alums.
When his acting
career took a
slight nosedive
in the early
'90's, he took
the temporary
route as a
professional
boxer, and in
winning the
majority of his
fights, he
proved to the
world that
acting was not
his only gift.
For Rourke,
boxing was a
necessary outlet
to exercise and
exorcise his
inner demons in
a professional
manner, as his
reputation was
not
top-of-the-morning
material (Kim
Basinger, his
Nine 1/2 Weeks
co-star, once
called him the
"human
ashtray".)
Boxing was so
important to him
that he declined
Quentin
Tarantino's
offer to
re-enact the art
as Butch
Coolidge (Bruce
Willis' role) in
Pulp Fiction.
Rourke's tough
guy image is
personified
through his
seven tattoo's,
which include
various Chinese
symbols, a
bull's head, and
a symbol for the
IRA. Through his
artwork, it
isn't hard to
read where he's
at.
True to form,
Rourke's recent
return to the
big screen was
subtle but exact
as his
fearlessness and
macho
disposition
remained intact
for indie films
like Spun
and blockbusters
like Sin City.
Countless left
hooks and years
of partying have
transformed his
smooth, slick
pretty boy looks
into grizzled
and worn down.
It's a face that
only he could
carry with so
much bad-ass
attitude. It was
once thought
that Colin
Farrell had
displaced him as
the number one
Hollywood bad
boy. The truth
is, Rourke never
really left. |