James Woods
What does he bring to Mississippi? A discriminating performance
"They always want me to play these edgy, intense characters," James Woods complained recently. "I know it sounds terrible, but it's
the thing that I'm least good at doing."
Forgive us if this self-characterization rings a little false to us. Woods, in fact, is so skillful at playing "edgy" and "intense" - not to
mention unlikable (Tricky Dicky loyalist H.R. Haldeman in Oliver Stone's Nixon), sleazy (Sharon Stone's pimp in Casino), and
downright loathsome (the sociopathic cop killer in 1979's The Onion Field) - that his latest incarnation, white supremacist Byron De
La Beckwith in Rob Reiner's Ghosts of Mississippi, seems utterly apt.
As the fearsomely self-righteous hatemonger who murdered civil rights leader Medgar Evers in 1963 (and escaped conviction
until 1994), Woods faced two difficult tasks: first, to age convincingly. And second, to keep the same kernel of absolute evil at the core
of his performance, even as his lean, haggard face was fast-forwarded more than a quarter century with the help of layers of makeup.
Even encased in latex, Woods was able to add the unscripted touches for which the actor has become known. Like Beckwith's bursting
with fiendish incongruity into the civil rights refrain "Free at last!" before he finally faces justice, a moment Woods himself crafted as the
vainglorious assassin's last "gesture of defiance".
Is this kind of outright scene-stealing legal, even for the prototypical bad-guy actor? "The great thing about having played a lot of
supporting roles," Woods noted, "is that you learn how to make sure you make your presence felt. Alec Baldwin said, 'Jimmy's an
acting terrorist. He's got to win every scene.' That kind of competition is healthy." And on Oscar night, it might just give him the winning
edge.
Entertainment Weekly - Special Oscar Guide 1997