约翰尼·德普：拥有男主角外貌的个性演员

Several years back， Johnny Depps longtime partner Tim Burton famously called him “a character actor in a leading mans body”. The description is so simple that its tempting to suggest that Johnny Depps works containing just those eight words alongside a photographic history of the actors career would be a respectable undertaking. Hopefully， however， there is something more to be gleaned from this retrospective of Depps cinematic works.

So what can one hope to learn about Johnny Depp？ Its fair to say that we have never seen Depps like before—this is a film star who has repeatedly shown himself capable of turning mainstream films into global blockbusters， but who still seems unwilling to use these hit movies as career building blocks in any conventional manner.

Any other actor blessed with Depps Apollonian looks would likely have set his sights on trying to become the next Paul Newman （an archetypal model that only a handful of todays male stars could even aspire to）. But each of the potential actors is burdened with at least one disqualifying role： George Clooney？ Looks the part， but too knowing. Ryan Gosling？ A peerless young actor who lacks the iconic presence of a genuine movie star—not that hes likely to lose any sleep over that. Matt Damon？ Too “everyman”. Brad Pitt？ A heavyweight talent smothered by tabloid attention.

Johnny Depp， on the other hand， seems to earn “Best Actor of His Generation” plaudits whenever he takes on a serious dramatic role—but he seems equally engaged by the challenge of giving new life to Captain Jack Sparrow， the weird and cowardly “hero” of Pirates of the Caribbean. Even though Depp turns 50， there is still something of the teenager about him： a distinct sense that he chooses projects according to how much fun hell have making them， and in many cases how much confusion they will cause among his followers， and the countless media experts who are paid to impose a rational pattern on the “choices” made by stars of Depps wattage.

Searching for some long-term pattern within Depps body of work is a fairly thankless task； perhaps because of the haphazard manner in which he entered the movie industry， he seems positively to revel in the random， picking out his projects with the proverbial whim of iron， which is just as likely to lead to a questionable remake like Tim Burtons Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as it is to Depps arresting dual-character cameo in Before Night Falls.

几年前，约翰尼·德普的老搭档蒂姆·伯顿曾形容他是一位“拥有男主角外貌的个性演员”。这句简明有力的评价让人们相信，约翰尼·德普的作品不仅是他英俊的外表与个性鲜明的完美融合，更是一份对于德普演艺生涯的影视珍藏。但是，我们从德普的影视作品中看到了更多。

那么，我们可以期待从约翰尼·德普的身上学到什么呢？公正地讲，约翰尼·德普绝对算得上是一位开创了先例的演员。他总能将一部主流电影化为世界级大片，但他却似乎不愿像其他人一样，将这些成功的电影简单地当作自己演艺道路上的奠基石。

任何一个幸运地拥有德普那阿波罗般外貌的演员总会将自己的目标定为下一个保罗·纽曼（一位即使在现在，也只有很少几位男明星可以望其项背的模范）。而这些有潜力的演员或多或少都会扮演过那么一两个不怎么样的角色：乔治·克鲁尼，风格单一，一眼看穿；瑞恩·高斯林，一位非凡的演员，但缺少作为电影明星应具备的存在感标志，而他本人却并不以为意；马特·达蒙，未免普通了些；布拉德·皮特，称得上一位重量级巨星，可正被狗仔队逼得抓狂了。

而另一方面，约翰尼·德普呢？似乎他的每一次出演，都会获得“当代最佳男演员”的称赞。但他却直面挑战，接手了杰克·斯帕罗船长这样一个加勒比海上古怪又有点懦弱的另类英雄角色，并为其注入了新的生命。尽管德普已年逾五十，但他始终保留着自己孩子气的一面：挑选角色时，总会本能地选择那些有趣的角色，这角色能在影迷中引起多大的反响？能让媒体多么的费尽脑汁来给这个德普式选择加上一个合理的解释呢？

要想从德普的影视作品中找出一个他固守的长期模式绝对是一件吃力不讨好的事情。也许我们该把这归结为他进入电影行业后所展现的偶然性。他总是一时兴起，靠自己拿众所周知的灵光一闪选择剧本，这也就是为什么他会不管其他人的质疑，选择已被观众熟知的角色再造的原因。例如蒂姆·伯顿指导的电影《查理和他的巧克力工厂》，也就可以解释，他在《夜幕降临前》中所饰演的配角身上那抓人眼球的双重性格了。