DENZEL WASHINGTON NEWS



7/16/2006


The following article appeared in the April 2006 issue of Essence Magazine





The following article appeared in the April 18, 2005 issue of Newsweek Magazine





The following article appeared in the April 11, 2005 issue of Jet Magazine





4/11/2005


The following article appeared in the January 2005 issue of Ebony Magazine





12/5/2004


The following article appeared in the October 22, 2004 issue of Entertainment Weekly Magazine





10/10/2004


The following article appeared in the August 9, 2004 issue of People Magazine





In Denzel Washington we trust

An actor so good that he can make even a ludicrous film watchable

COMMENTARY

By Michael Ventre
MSNBC contributor


It is a mistake to conclude that what turns an actor into a movie star is a certain indefinable something. It is explained that way because in truth there are too many factors, making a simple definition impossible.

Likeability figures into it. A sense of dignity is present. One would hope talent is involved, as well as hard work and passion for the craft. A pleasing physical presence helps tremendously. Nuances involving humor, intelligence, pathos, strength, chutzpah and others enter into the equation.

What makes Denzel Washington one of the greatest actors working today is that he possesses all of these gifts and more.

His performance in “The Manchurian Candidate” is the latest evidence. As Ben Marco, an Army major who is tormented by bad dreams and slowly uncovers a nefarious plot to take over the White House, Washington is incredible in an understated and effortless way. He straddles the line between madness and clarity. He firmly anchors a film based on an outlandish premise. In a Hollywood thriller that could have been head-shakingly awful in the wrong hands, Washington provides the gravitas in the lead performance that keeps it all in the realm of believability.

We trust Denzel. He has built that trust over many years, and he never lets us down.


Breakout roles


There are certain touchstone roles throughout his career that come to mind whenever he is mentioned, beginning with Dr. Philip Chandler on “St. Elsewhere.” It was an ensemble, so there was no one star around which the rest orbited. St. Eligius Hospital in Boston was populated by the likes of Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, Ed Begley Jr., Howie Mandel, Terence Knox, Mark Harmon and Ellen Bry. But it was Washington who broke out with a character who embodied class, heart and ethics. After six years on the show, he was ready for movie stardom. His small amount of time on the small screen nevertheless promised bigger things to come.

While in the midst of “St. Elsewhere,” he would moonlight in features. It was “Cry Freedom” in 1987, as South African activist Steve Biko, that garnered his first of five career Academy Award nominations. Then in 1989, at the end of the show’s run, he took a role as Private Trip, a member of an all-black unit during the Civil War, in Ed Zwick’s “Glory.” Trip was bitter and angry, but also courageous and strong, and Washington devoured it. Trip remains one of Denzel’s most important roles, because it came in a historically significant picture and presented an opportunity to play a multi-layered character. When Hollywood saw the results, Denzel Washington’s name forced its way on the A-list. He won an best-supporting actor Oscar that year in a field that included Marlon Brando and Martin Landau.

From there, his choices widened, and he mixed in weighty roles with typical studio fare. He made three movies with Spike Lee, including “Malcolm X,” which snagged him a best actor nomination. In 1996, he appeared in another film by Zwick, “Courage Under Fire,” which catapulted him into the $10 million salary stratosphere. His career momentum just kept building.


Rising to the challenges


One of the measures of his success is his ability to transcend stinkers. Even the films he appeared in that did not do well either critically or commercially or both — “Mississippi Masala,” “Virtuosity,” “The Preacher’s Wife” and “Fallen” come to mind — did not cause his star to flicker. He proved not only to be credible and respectable, but also bankable.

It may have something to do with his desire to take on work that bears some cultural significance. In “Cry Freedom,” “Glory,” “Malcolm X” and later as director and co-star in “Antwone Fisher,” Washington demonstrates his knack for accepting projects that may not have boffo box office written on them, then raising their value by his mere presence.

He continued that trend with “The Hurricane” in 1999. He played former boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, a man wrongly imprisoned for murder whose spirit is battered by a long incarceration but not broken. Like his characters in “Cry Freedom,” “Glory” and “Malcolm X,” it is injustice caused by racism that serves to drive the story and provides a platform for his considerable abilities.

That Washington takes on these roles and executes them to near perfection is no small feat. In the hands of a lesser actor, a character embittered by outside forces or wronged by the establishment could come off as too strident to be believed, or so treacly as to ruin the message. With Washington, such material is in the hands of a once-in-a-generation professional, so audiences feel assured when they bear witness.

While Washington was denied a best-actor Academy Award for “The Hurricane,” he finally scored in that category with “Training Day,” playing a corrupt detective who uses an inexperienced partner for his own wicked purposes. What could have been an exploitative turn instead became a riveting and powerful performance, as Washington plumbed the depths of the reverse side of law and order.

He can take just about anything and make it better, because he applies the same tools and instincts to every role, no matter how important the project is perceived to be. “The Manchurian Candidate” sparkles because Washington has embodied Biko, Trip, Malcolm and Hurricane, et al., and has brought a little bit of them all to Ben Marco. He is the better for it, as are the rest of us.



Taking care of Denzel Washington

'Man on Fire' star had more to focus on than acting

By Andy Culpepper

CNN


LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- An easy affability surrounds Denzel Washington, from the firmness of a handshake offered in greeting to the warmth of a follow-up smile. This is a man who likes what he does and who enjoys talking about it with a reporter.

Washington's amiable self-assured demeanor at a recent publicity gathering stands in stark contrast to the man he plays in his latest film, director Tony Scott's fast-paced, often violent drama, "Man On Fire," which debuted at the top of the weekend box office.

His character John Creasy is a down-on-his-luck, burned-out former government operative who takes a job in crime-plagued Mexico City as the bodyguard of a wealthy couple's only daughter, played by Dakota Fanning.

Creasy and a schoolgirl do not make for an easy fit. The one-time Marine wavers between suicide and a bottle. Attempts at friendship by his 9-year-old charge are initially brushed aside. Eventually, the girl breaks through his tough exterior, and he discovers, to his surprise, a paternal nature -- an ability to feel something for the first time in a long time.

"It's a complicated film," says the star. "He's a lost soul. I think he's a very spiritual man who's reaching for help, you know, but he reads a verse of the Bible one day and then sips off the cup the next day."

"He's looking for a balm in Gilead, and he finds it in this 9-year-old girl. Who would have thunk, you know? Sometimes your blessings come in small packages


Handling violence


Some critics -- including CNN's Paul Clinton -- are suggesting "Man On Fire" is two films in one: the first is a character study of a tortured man, while the second is a story about retribution and revenge.

That the second half of the film is violent is undeniable -- so much so, at least one critic has questioned whether an R rating is a strong enough warning for the bloodshed in "Man On Fire."

One scene in particular stands out. Creasy has taped a kidnapping conspirator's hands to a steering wheel with the unfortunate fellow's fingers sticking up within easy reach of a knife. For each unanswered question Creasy poses to his prey, Creasy cuts off a finger. It's grisly business, and the camera captures all of it.

"I was amazed," says Washington. "It was more violent in the earlier cut."

"The women in the test screening -- that was one of their favorite scenes," he continues. "I don't know if it's a mother's instinct or protective instinct or whatever the word is for it. They wanted more. I was like 'wow.' The men seemed to be more squeamish about that scene than the women. That was interesting."

Washington and the cast and crew had more than on-screen violence to worry about. There was the constant threat of trouble off screen, not unlike what is depicted in the script.

Director Scott toyed with several locations -- including Italy and Brazil -- but in the end, it was Mexico City which won out, partly because of the reality the setting lent the story. Mexico has struggled with kidnappings in recent years, some of them high-profile abductions of the wealthy.

Stringent security precautions became part and parcel of the "Man On Fire" shooting schedule.

"Yeah, we all had bodyguards," actress Radha Mitchell remembers. "When I first got there, I was like, 'Why? Why do we have all these bodyguards?' It seemed odd. I mean, that's kind of what the movie's about."


Surrounded by security


It wasn't long before she understood the reasons for what seemed like extreme safety measures.

"I went out of town one weekend," Mitchell adds. "And when I can back, my driver -- his car had been stolen, and he had been held at gunpoint.

"Then I found out that Tony had been held at gunpoint while he was location scouting. And that one of the accountants had been held at gunpoint, and she wouldn't give up her watch. She held on to it," she recalls. "It was very real."

Consequently, Washington, the film's above-the-title star, had more than typical star treatment.

"Armored vehicle, four guys in the car behind me, two guys in the car with me, and I think one or two usually ahead of me," Washington says of his travel detail. "There were usually about six to eight guys with me all the time."

"I got used to the car swinging in front. It was really good, because it was all part of the movie for me, you know."

If Washington was forced into Method acting by the experience, he insists his constant companions didn't keep him from enjoying himself when he wasn't working.

"I never felt in danger," he maintains. "I did sneak out and leave them, more than they knew."

And then he smiles. "Or maybe they knew -- maybe they were following me all along."



1/18/2003


Check out Denzel's interview in the February 25, 2002 issue of Newsweek Magazine. Just click on the pics to read the interview.