Johnny Depp should come back to more serious films

[Digifruitella]

I wonder why he keeps on taking these weird, whimsical Burtonesque films along with just in general sticking to light material.

Anyone else actually sick of him just piling up on this stuff? A bit of variety doesn't hurt but lately, he seems to love the weird / comedic.

[adamjohnson]

He's doing it for his kids. He wants to leave them a legacy. And a truckload of cash.

[The Gunslinger]

Still think he and Leo should reteam for another drama. Loved those two's chemistry in What's Eating Gilbert Grape?

[jaw2929]

I agree with this. Depp in movies like The Libertine, From Hell & Blow are awesome. He can be really fantastic in more serious roles like those.

I'm so NOT into his Burton related films, or the Pirates movies. I could care less about shit like that.

[ilovemovies]

The Libertine was garbage IMO.

However, I will say that I do think Depp's best performance still remains in Donnie Brascoe. Stellar performance in a great movie.

I'm also a big fan of Nick of Time. Thought that was a cool thriller.

[Digifruitella]

Yeah the legacy bit I don't know about that. Did he say that or are you speculating. Truckload of cash for kids is understandable though. Still sucks that he doesn't really find it interesting to do serious films anymore. He's great in them anyway.

I think he's got The Thin Man remake up, though whether he'll be in it ?

[Gordon]

As much as I agree with you, he has been doing these films because he really enjoys playing these sorts of less serious weird characters and I can't really blame him for that.

[ilovemovies]

I'm actually looking forward to The Lone Ranger. It sounds like it could be a cool movie although who knows if any of the budget cuts ends up taking away from that.

[echo_bravo]

Has anyone else seen The Rum Diary? I thought it was alright. Definitely not in the same league as Fear & Loathing (which is one of my all time favorites) but it was refreshing to see Depp not in a family film.

I just want him to dump Burton and maybe make another gritty film like Donnie Brasco or something.

Oh and I will say that Rango was the shit. Such a great animated film but yeah I agree with ya Digifruitella, Depp needs to do some serious films asap.

[MisoGenie]

Originally Posted by jaw2929

I agree with this. Depp in movies like The Libertine, From Hell & Blow are awesome. He can be really fantastic in more serious roles like those.

I'm so NOT into his Burton related films, or the Pirates movies. I could care less about shit like that.

This is pretty much how I feel. Not just this quote, but the entire Thread. I have a personal bias against Burton and his films (I think that they are formulaic and not nearly as "whimsy" as they beg to be considered), but if Depp only stared in a few it really wouldn't bother me. To star in every freaking one gets irritating, though, especially knowing what great range Depp has as an actor!

[adamjohnson]

Originally Posted by Digifruitella

Yeah the legacy bit I don't know about that. Did he say that or are you speculating. Truckload of cash for kids is understandable though. Still sucks that he doesn't really find it interesting to do serious films anymore. He's great in them anyway.

I think he's got The Thin Man remake up, though whether he'll be in it ?

He said it around the time he did his very first sequel, Pirates 2. He had always resisted being a "franchise" up to that point.

[adamjohnson]

Dead Man is also a favorite.

[Erroneous]

Originally Posted by Digifruitella

I wonder why he keeps on taking these weird, whimsical Burtonesque films along with just in general sticking to light material.

Anyone else actually sick of him just piling up on this stuff? A bit of variety doesn't hurt but lately, he seems to love the weird / comedic.

What do you mean? This IS who he is. He never did many mainstream big box office movies until Pirates and that was not projected to be what it turned out to be. The only reason he keeps doing it is, because Jack is one of the best characters EVER.

I love the fact that he does a lot of movies and does so many different types. He does not just do one type of film over and over. He keeps doing Burton movies, but I am totally cool with that, because at least they are different and fun. Depp is living the dream and looks like he has a lot of fun doing what he is doing. Besides most of his mainstream efforts don't do so well. The Tourist bombed. Public Enemies bombed. The Astronaut's Wife mega bomb.

[Digifruitella]

Originally Posted by Erroneous

What do you mean? This IS who he is.

I'm not arguing that he should stop it. I'm saying he should do some more serious films cause he's good in those roles too. He's kinda at that age too where he could use some nice serious in tone roles. The Tourist bombed cause it sucked flat out not because of Depp, though his role was half serious / half comedic in it anyway. Public Enemies is a good film, bombed or not (3 million short BIIIIG BOMB), the other two you brought up aren't good examples. They're selective. Finding Neverland was serious yet it didn't bomb. Either way who gives a fuck about BO. So what? He won't disappear if his other more mature films "bomb" - did he after Public Enemies? No, those films he does with Burton are guaranteed to always succeed based on their collaboration alone.

Still, we have no power over him doing more dramatic film - but we can wish.

[Bourne101]

I dare say, the last great performance he gave was in Fear and Loathing. The dude is talented, but everything he has done since Fear and Loathing is just too easy for him. And when he branches out a bit, like with Public Enemies, I feel like he doesn't go all the way with it. It ends up turning out flat. The Pirates schtick is old, but it also wasn't all that impressive to begin with. It was basically just a Keith Richards impression. I was never wowed by it like many were.

I'd like to see him team up with someone like Scorsese, Fincher or PTA. I feel like they could get another great performance out of him.

[Digifruitella]

Originally Posted by Bourne101

I'd like to see him team up with someone like Scorsese, Fincher or PTA. I feel like they could get another great performance out of him.

Exactly, that's what I'd love to see, even if it's one film with any of them.

[bigred760]

Wasn't Public Enemies made not too long ago? I thought it was a pretty good movie with Depp delivering an impressive performance as John Dillinger.

[FailSafe]

I don't really care if he gets back to making more serious movies, but I do hope he goes back to making better movies. The two sequels to the original Pirates movies really stretched my patience; Sweeney Todd was pretty awful; The Tourist was just so damn boring and plain; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory felt totally unnecessary; ditto Alice In Wonderland - I could go on, but I won't. Rango is the best movie he's made in years (although Public Enemies was pretty good, it never came together as a great film for me).

[Bondgirl]

Well l have noticed that Johnny Depp has been doing alot od very dark fims instead of doing something which is diffrent

Maybe as time goes on he might get a script that might have him doing something else

Also maybe he si not getting a mixture of diffrent things

[Dirtyfrog]

the public demands a Johnny Depp & Vanessa Paradis sex tape

[ilovemovies]

Originally Posted by echo_bravo

Has anyone else seen The Rum Diary? I thought it was alright.

I loved The Rum Diary. IMO, the only thing that kept it from being a great movie was that it had no ending. But I still love the movie!

[daltonio823]

I definitely agree with this thread.

[Beard_of_Meat]

Originally Posted by ilovemovies

The Libertine was garbage IMO.

I 2nd that


Personally though I like Depp as an actor and I usually enjoy almost anything he is in..Though I would really love to see him back in prime form and really agree that he needs to do a movie with someone that will bring that out because he has really seemed to have slipped into a comfort zone lately on films that really don't tax him as an actor.

[Bondgirl]

I would like to see Johnny Depp in a few more comedy roles..

This guy is a great actor and l can tell yuo there is not many who have much talent these days

[Flimmaker1473]

Johnny Depp is a great character actor. I applaud him for not taking those pretty boy leading roles that he could easily take.

I would like to see him in more dramas like Public Enemies or even Blow.

[corran horn]

I'm inclined to agree as well. The last Burton/Depp collaboration I really enjoyed was Sweeney Todd, and I think it is past time that Depp started widening his range. He has the talent but seems to lack the motivation. I don't mind him doing eccentric roles, but I wish he'd do them with someone else besides Burton.

Perhaps his upcoming collaboration with Wes Anderson will do the trick?

[magjournal]

I'm fine with Johnny Depp being weird because even in Tim Burton's recent piles of shit he's been good. He just needs better material to work with and Tim Burton's self-indulgent sense of wackiness is not providing that material for Depp to work with.

[Hubbs]

Two things, the man has most certainly sold out to the lure of the blockbuster, and he seems to be playing the same damn character in every film these days.

His next blockbuster 'The Lone Ranger' just looks like yet another 'Jack Sparrow' varient.

[Matchbox225]

Originally Posted by FailSafe

I don't really care if he gets back to making more serious movies, but I do hope he goes back to making better movies.

This.

Still, moving away from Tim Burton, at least for now, would be a step in the right direction. Burton just seems to not give a shit anymore. In fact, his last really good movie didn't have Depp in it.

[magjournal]

I think he's good at weird movies, but he should try more competent weird directors. He should do a film with Terry Gilliam or David Cronenberg or David Lynch (should he make another film).

[Matchbox225]

Depp is just one of several actors, including Robert Downey Jr. and Leonardo DiCaprio, who were for me, much more interesting actors in the 90's.

When Depp and Downey Jr. got really popular, they just ended up doing the easy franchise films and other blockbusters. If that's what they want to do, that's fine, but I'm getting bored with it.

[ilovemovies]

I can understand Depp, but Downey and especially Dicaprio have been awesome. Especially Leo. The movies he's been making the past decade easily top the movies he did in the 90s! Not saying he didn't do good stuff in the 90s. Titanic was great, I enjoyed The Man in the Iron Mask. Still need to see What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Marvin's Room. But with a couple of exceptions (Body of Lies being one of them) his work this past decade has been absolutely stellar.

[Matchbox225]

I found DiCaprio more natural and even charming in his earlier stuff. He was great in Catch Me If You Can, Revolutionary Road, and even The Departed, though I'd put several other performances before his. I'm not saying he was bad in any of his other 2000's output. I'm just not excited by him like I was in the 90's. I want to see other sides of him, not just the intense serious side that he usually does. I'd like to see him do a comedy. I would like to see a goofier side to him in a film.

I'm excited for Django though because he hasn't done a villain yet. That will be different.