A-List: Steve Buscemi
By Josh Spiegel
February 26, 2009
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Buscemi is remembered for his roles in some of producer Jerry Bruckheimer's most famous action films, like 1997's Con Air and 1998's Armageddon, or as one of the actors who always seems to make a memorable appearance in films by Joel and Ethan Coen, like 1992's Barton Fink or 1990's Miller's Crossing. Of course, some people may remember him from his 16-episode stint on the classic HBO mob drama The Sopranos. You are also very likely familiar with his work behind the camera, as he's directed a few episodes of The Sopranos, Oz, and even Tina Fey's hit comedy 30 Rock. His few feature films, including 2007's Interview and his debut feature, Trees Lounge, aren't nearly as successful, but you can't say Buscemi's not consistently working as hard as he can.
The harder he works, the better off we are, folks. Though his most prestigious awards have been Independent Spirit prizes, Buscemi's filmography, totaling over 100 projects, is vast and - for the most part - impressive. Whatever else you can say about the movies he's in (I can't say I'm a big fan of Armageddon, for example), Buscemi is always at the top of his game, and has been so starting with his first major role in a feature film. Since his supporting role in Ghost World, Buscemi's proven that he's more versatile than just a weaselly sneak, a common role he played in his earlier 1990s work.
Buscemi is also the rare character actor who's likely familiar to almost all age groups, thanks to his involvement with people like Bruckheimer or, inexplicably enough, Adam Sandler. Some of Sandler's films, including The Wedding Singer, Mr. Deeds, and I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, have featured cameo performances from Buscemi. My personal favorite remains his drunken, guitar-playing best man in Wedding Singer; it may be a short scene, but there's no counting how often I still laugh at his deranged howling in the parking lot of the reception hall.
From independent films to trailblazing dramas to even colorful kids' movies like Spy Kids 2, Steve Buscemi is easily one of the hardest working and intriguing actors in Hollywood. He elevates even the worst of movies (I'm looking at you, The Island) and is on par with some of the great Hollywood character actors. A word of caution: the Bruckheimer films and a particular Coen cult classic do not show up here; that's not to say they're not fun or, in the case of the Coens' film, good, but Buscemi only does so much there to make his scenes work. With that in mind, the A-List presents the best of Steve Buscemi.
Monsters, Inc.
What did I tell you? Steve Buscemi doesn't just play creepy, villainous characters. See his supporting role in the 2001 Disney-Pixar animated film, where he plays Randall Boggs, a...creepy villain. Okay, so this may not the best example of Buscemi's versatility, but consider who he's playing. Imagine a shifty-eyed lizard-like monster that slithers around everyone he talks to and has the power of invisibility. What other actor would you want to provide the voice for this character, the slimy Randall Boggs? Though Monsters, Inc. isn't Pixar's best work (fast-paced sliding-door climax and Abominable Snowman humor aside, of course), Buscemi makes for a perfect villain. The actor may not make a scary enough monster in live action, but as a computer-animated one, he fits the bill perfectly.
Fargo
In what is easily one of his most well-known roles, Buscemi plays Carl Showalter, a shifty-eyed creep (yes, I know, we'll get to his versatility soon!) hired, along with his quiet Swedish partner (a scary and funny Peter Stormare), to kidnap a Minnesota housewife by the housewife's husband. The intricacies of why someone wants his wife kidnapped don't concern Carl, who's more interested in the ransom money he's meant to get, and talking. As compared with his role in the Coen Brothers' follow-up effort, 1998's The Big Lebowski, which will not appear here (sorry!), Buscemi's Carl never stops talking, even when trying to engage his fellow kidnapper in conversation ("That's a fountain of conversation there, buddy. That's a geyser."). Sure, he ends up with far more of his own blood spilling by the end of the movie; hell, he even inspires the best line in the entire movie ("And I guess that was your accomplice in the wood chipper"), but Buscemi also makes a truly memorable villain here, in what's arguably one of the great crime films of the past 20 or so years.
Ghost World
You may finally stop asking for me to prove how versatile Steve Buscemi can be. What other proof do you need aside from his turn as Seymour, a lonely middle-aged man who connects with a bored and cynical teenager named Enid (Thora Birch) in very nearly disturbing ways. Seymour, of course, has absolutely no interest in Enid sexually, but she finds herself more attracted to him as their friendship progresses. Seymour, for his part, is a sheltered and nerdy man, an avid collector of vinyl records, and hopelessly lost when conversing with women, except for Enid. Buscemi here sells the loneliness in his character's life; unlike previous roles where he plays menacing baddies, Buscemi's Seymour is about as frightening as a wisp of dust. Moreover, when he does get angry, we laugh and sometimes cringe, but not because we're scared. We're embarrassed for Seymour and want him to if not find happiness, get a little further out of his funk.
Reservoir Dogs
It's ironic that Steve Buscemi winds up playing one of the more memorable characters in Quentin Tarantino's first film, Reservoir Dogs" while he ends up with a nearly blink-and-you-miss-it performance as a Buddy Holly look-alike waiter in Tarantino's next picture, Pulp Fiction. What kind of way is this to pay back Buscemi, especially after he steals Reservoir Dogs as the always-chatty Mr. Pink, one of several men hired to rob a jewelry store, and one of only a few who survives the disastrous robbery. In fact, while most everyone in Reservoir Dogs dies bloodily on-screen, Mr. Pink actually makes it out alive. Okay, he doesn't really make it out alive, but Buscemi's the only actor who doesn't die...onscreen. That aside, his many lengthy - whether arguing against tipping waiters and waitresses in the opening scene (adding to the irony of his next role with Tarantino) or wondering exactly how safe the warehouse is with a potential snitch inside, or even expressing his unnerving fear of Mr. Blonde (and who wouldn't be scared of Michael Madsen? - Buscemi brings a hefty amount of humor to his performance, and solidified his status as a staple of independent film.
Airheads
Yeah, you read that right. We're talking about Michael Lehmann's Airheads. It's not a classic comedy at all (I don't care how many times it shows up on Comedy Central, folks), but it is one that's worth watching for many reasons, including Buscemi's performance as Rex, part of a band called The Lone Rangers. This heavy-metal band never gets played on the radio, so they decide to hold the local radio station hostage until the DJ or the uptight radio station manager put their tape on the air. Mayhem and, presumably, comedy ensue. This movie's more fun to watch if you don't expect great laughs, but a lot of actors who you'd normally never see in a movie together, including Buscemi, Brendan Fraser, Joe Mantegna, and Michael Richards (remember when he had something like a career?). Buscemi's maybe not the best comic foil in the world, but his being in this movie makes it all the more palatable, as unmemorable as it may sound.
Paris, je t'aime
The Coen Brothers have said, previously, that with each film Steve Buscemi appears in - past Fargo - he says less and less and gets killed in such gruesome ways that less and less of his body remains after his death. In one of the short pieces making up the compilation film Paris, je t'aime," the Coens direct Buscemi, as he plays a nameless tourist who doesn't say a single word. Unfortunately, while waiting for the next Metro train, he does make the mistake of making eye contact with two strangers on opposite sides of the platform. Buscemi appears to make it out alive of this one, but he does end up quite badly beaten up. The amazing thing is, the whole scene - one of more than 15 in the entire film - is quite funny. The humor's heightened thanks to Buscemi's expressive face, going from blank to confused to scared to blustery to angry in a snap. I can only hope that it won't take eight more years for the Coens and Buscemi to reunite once again.