Of looks and other things

It was several years ago when I read an article about the most good-looking man in the world for that year. It was my first experience with such metrics and never had I came across such labels and tags, which became quite common place in last decade or so. The man in picture was Denzel Washington who hadn’t won his Oscar then and was featuring on many a hit movie. “Crimson tide” was the first movie that I saw featuring Denzel, which was spoken about well at that time. I saw the movie a good ten years after it was released, but the persona which he carried on screen lingered for a while. He came across as an irritated frustrated soul who was literally a moment away from punching his captain, still managing to control his emotions and do his duty to the best of his ability. The next movie that I saw of him was “Training day” that I happened to see on IIT Madras Amphitheatre. It was the only movie that I saw on IIT campus and contrary to the previous one, was not so impressed with Denzel as the story was quite dark in nature and honestly, I couldn’t much follow what was happening as I was still in awe of the venue. And then I saw “Bone collector” on Star movies which took me back to that article about best looking man in the world, for he played the role of a cop who was paralyzed from neck down. Except for the initial ten minutes before the accident that cripples him, throughout the movie he remains bedridden with almost every scene involving him being a close-up – meaning he must perform only with his face!! His scenes with Angelina Jolie were rocking sizzling with both mastering each other on expressions and non-vocal responses. It was chemistry of a different kind that they managed to demonstrate on screen which made me realize I liked Denzel more than Jolie (Sacrilege!!). He was so believable as the helpless yet brainy cop who utterly relies on others to do anything and everything for him that as an audience it made it tough to root for the hero who barely moves a muscle with all the action stuff owned by the heroine character. Coming back to the good looks part, unlike those dime a dozen lists that occupy whole pages in News supplements nowadays, that article showed some scientific explanation as to why and how Denzel got picked. Apparently, he is one of the meager world populaces, with near symmetrical face. Meaning his left and right side of the face are almost in symmetry and people with such facial structures invariably happen to be captivating! As a movie “Bone collector” was a dabba one, which remains mysterious till the time the “why” is revealed. It does hold your attention till the reveal though! Denzel became a quick favorite, and I started watching his movies. Be it “Remember the titans”, “Inside man”, “Courage under fire”, “Philadelphia” (for Tom Hanks), “Pelican brief”, “Manchurian candidate” – his performance was always very rigid and downright serious. His “Equalizer” franchise confirmed the descent and how he has also resorted to mindless mayhem of violence to keep his bank balance happy.

For someone touted as the best-looking person in the world, he almost always chose roles that required very few facial muscles being put in use and was downright serious in most of his movies! Wonder if any magazine or newspaper would launch an actor who has played most number of serious characters on screen. It may again be Denzel!!! But my all-time favorite actor would always be Tom Hanks. Till date there is not one actor who can match his charisma, versatility, or screen presence.