Chameleon!
A profile of one of Hollywood's most talented, yet under-rated actors, Ben Foster!
By Deana Martin

“I'm so sick of sarcasm and irony – I could kill! [laughs] Sincerely, the real root of things is love and sacrifice. Everything else is an illusion. I'm not trying to preach here; I can't tell anybody anything. But I will say, if you're available to them, there are so many great secrets in the world, so many signs. It's when we stop for a moment and listen that the world gets interesting.”

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Examining 28-year-old Ben Foster’s most recent roles as the vampire-obsessed lunatic in 30 Days of Night, the murderous Charlie in 3:10 to Yuma, and the meth-addicted skinhead in Alpha Dog, one might be surprised to hear such positive and uplifting thoughts from the up and coming actor. Foster may have gained notoriety over the past few years playing some of the most convincing villains to hit the screen in a long while, but his career actually began on a much lighter note.

Many of us have fond memories of Ben in his first role as Tucker in the teen show “Flash Forward”, a staple of the Disney Channel in the mid-90s. Even at a young age, Foster had a way of commanding the screen with his comedic timing and complete freedom of over-the-top facial expressions. He perfectly epitomized the kid in your class that you got really annoyed with every day, yet secretly had a crush on.

When Foster made the leap to the big screen in Barry Levinson’s semi-autobiographical Baltimore-based coming-of-age drama, Liberty Heights, Foster proved that he had the chops to share the screen with heavyweights like Adrian Brody, Bebe Neworth and Joe Mantegna. The character of Ben Kurtzman was perfectly suited for Foster, who was able to draw upon his own Jewish upbringing to bring life to the young protagonist who is learning how to balance the social climate of early 50s while dealing with issues of religion, race, crime and good old-fashioned puberty. New Foster fans should make it a point to watch this film, as it shows that at even an early age he knew what it meant to commit to a role 110%, and to fully breathe the character he was given. Watching Foster in this film, you never feel you are seeing a young actor who is just going through the motions. Perhaps it is Ben’s spiritual upbringing that allows him to fully immerse himself in each character he plays.

Raised in Iowa, Ben’s parents, who by his own account are "free-spirited, Vietnam-protesting hippies", introduced Ben at an early age to Transcendental Meditation. Ben describes Transcendental Meditation as

“basically the same technique that was being used by the monks in India for thousands of years. I grew up in a community that taught this kind of meditation in school, so essentially I've been meditating twice a day since I was about 4 years old…meditation, it's not disconnection, it's connecting. It's brought me back, each day, to remember to be aware, to connect with something greater.”

During an interview with Jessica Hundley at Mean Magazine, Ben had this to say on how meditation helps him as an actor:

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Weird or not, Ben’s process seems to be working for him. Over the next few years he graduated to television roles in two critically acclaimed series, first ABC’s cancelled-too-soon Freaks and Geeks and then Showtime’s Six Feet Under. The characters could not have been more different, one being a mentally challenged high schooler and the other a sexually conflicted art student. As a result, Ben became known as one of the go-to young character actors in Hollywood. On his way up, Foster found himself in two comedic lead performances in Get Over it and Big Trouble. These films were not really the big hits he had hoped for, but they did allow audiences to enjoy the comedic side of him we first saw in Flash Forward. His next major role was in the television movie Bang, Bang You’re Dead, which took a full frontal attack on gun violence in high school. This was the role that gave us our first glimpse of Foster’s ability to portray a truly damaged and violent character, while still exposing the humanity behind the character’s actions.

After more small character roles in films like The Laramie Project, 11:14 and The Punisher, Foster once again found himself cast as the villain in the Bruce Willis action thriller “Hostage”. This film marked Foster’s most psychotic role to date, as Mars Krupcheck, a seemingly vacant soul of a man who takes Willis’ children hostage in their home. Krupcheck is truly terrifying, and Foster became so immersed in the character that he almost injured himself seriously while filming the fiery climax. This “method acting”--in which an actor deeply analyzes the motivations and emotions of the character in order to portray him or her with psychological realism and emotional authenticity--was evidenced again in his subsequent role as Jake Mazurzky in Nick Cassavetes’ controversial film, Alpha Dog. The script, in which an innocent kid is murdered as a result of a drug-fueled vendetta, is based on a horrific true-life crime. Ben’s character is the drug-dealing brother of a young man who has been kidnapped by his rival and is being held hostage until drug money is repaid. In one scene--in my opinion the most powerful moment in the film--Jake is on the phone with his brother’s captor and goes completely out of control. In an interview with About.com, Ben talked about how method acting played a role in getting to the heart of that scene.

“I don't know what you call it. It was just what it felt like. I mean that's the ideal, I think, of anyone who participates in the arts is that eventually there's a catharsis rather than a damaging aspect. And the idea of the method has been so bastardized by kind of untrained people who watch Brando movies, rather than whatever works in the moment. And that particular moment was I was talking to somebody who had my brother. And by addressing it and going to its center, one is able to ideally release it. And then instead of actors who become fatigue and destroyed and distraught over playing a damaged person, you've actually released something. I thought it was a very cathartic experience.”

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Ben’s next role as Angel in X-Men: The Last Stand was a far cry from the dark realism of his past performances, and a welcome vacation from his previous dramatic roles. As the winged mutant, Foster lived the dream of every red-blooded male as he played a beloved comic book character. Audiences clamored to see the film and were left wanting more, as his character had less than 10 minutes of screen time. The role did, however, launch Ben even further into the golden eye of Hollywood and he soon found himself auditioning for a pivotal role in the remake of 3:10 to Yuma starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. Landing the part of Charlie Prince, another truly evil villain, Foster knew he was in the big time now. Ben discussed his experience acting with these true cinematic heavyweights in this very enlightening interview on Charlie Rose:

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Many wondered if Foster would see his first Academy Award nomination for his role in the film as he was completely captivating and stole the screen whenever the camera was on him. Many reviews of the film noted Ben’s performance as a standout and he proved he could stand toe to toe with two of the best actors out there in Crowe and Bale. 2007 also saw Ben playing another creepy character in the bloody vampire flick 30 Days of Night. Many, including myself, found Ben’s character just as bone chilling as the vampires his character obsesses over.

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Thankfully, Ben’s next film finds him playing someone a lot less terrifying. Ben’s performance in Birds of America, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, is already receiving great reviews. Ben stars alongside Matthew Perry, Lauren Graham and Ginnifer Goodwin in the funny and warm family drama. A wide release date for the film has yet to be announced, but Foster fans will be lining up to see this one for sure.

Whether Foster is playing a psychopath or a sarcastic Jewish kid from Baltimore, he finds a way to draw the audience in and experience all sides of his character. This is an ability that few actors possess and one that will hopefully keep Foster making films for a long time to come.

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References: About.com article on Ben Foster | Wiki on Ben Foster | Charlie Rose show | Content Film article/news | article from Mean Mag @Ben Foster dot org

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Comments (4)

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written by Jan, May 16, 2008

Deana, this was a very well written spotlight on Ben Foster! Also enjoyed the Charlie Rose interview. I wished I would have had the Showtime channel, to see him in Six Feet Under.

I didn't really know much about Ben Foster, or haven't really seen him much in anything, but your interesting spotlight certainly shows he's an actor on the rise and one to watch out for, thanks.

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written by yiddidea, May 16, 2008

Thanks Jan! I have been a fan since Flash Forward, so it has really been great watching him progress and really showcase how great of an actor he is. I remember seeing Liberty Heights and just falling in love with him. I must admit, I never thought he would become so well known for playing such baddies! I really look forward to seeing what he does next.

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written by yiddidea, May 16, 2008

Oh, I would rent Six Feet Under from Netflix. Great show!

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written by rrae, May 21, 2008

NEITHER SHOULD SING FOR TWILIGHT!!!!!!!!!

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