6 Actors With Exceptionally Expressive Eyes

Before movies had sound, which actors have now come to use to great effect for conjuring strong emotional reactions from their audiences, performances on film were essentially a mime act. So they relied heavily on body language for performers to communicate things. But unlike the vaudeville-type acts you’d see on stage at the time, silent movies could get right in tight on a person’s face, where the most subtle and expressive movements of a person’s face could be captured and projected for all to see, as if they were right next to the person. This was a pretty big deal. And it didn’t take long for people to realize that the most interesting thing to focus on in an actor on film was in those windows to the soul themselves, the performer’s eyes.

Darren Ruecker

Published: Jun 25, 2013 08:18 pm

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[h2]3) Helena Bonham Carter[/h2]

Sweeney Todd

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There is always something interesting going on with Helena Bonham Carter’s face. Another favorite of Tim Burton’s, so much so that the two have been partners for the past decade, while her work on Burton films has been terrific, she has put in fantastic recent performances ranging from the understated role of Queen Elizabeth in The King’s Speech to the comic relief of Madame Thénardier in Les Misérables. Her Les Mis performance was one of the underappreciated highlights on the musical, with subtle flicks of her eyes providing either surprising sympathy or deviant cunning to her sung lyrics.

I’m not sure her face has ever been more devastatingly expressive, however, than playing Mrs. Lovett opposite Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd. The thing about Helena Bonham Carter in these musicals is that she’s not going to overpower anyone with the sheer strength of her voice, but handles the music in a manner at times beautifully delicate and at others delightfully crass. Her Mrs. Lovett seems to fit the latter description for the most part, but the end of the film reveals her rather tragic feelings for Sweeney, expressed with a look on her face that says far more than her words and music could on their own. Also, her demonic portrayal of Bellatrix in the Harry Potter movies was possibly the most enjoyable thing in that entire series.

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Darren Ruecker