There are only so many actors who could make you sit up and go, “Oh my goodness, who is this guy?” That handful is often whittled down after they then go on to do a handful of travesties and then disappear without a trace after one Oscar win or nomination. Not Oscar Isaac. Not this guy. He is one of those actors who whiffs of critical acclaim and statuette polish (I should know, I’ve waited for a lift with him). While choosing to ignore The Academy for not acknowledging his performances this year, whenever you see his films, you know that gold is in his future.
With Ex_Machina, out today, and J.C Chandor’s A Most Violent Year, out later this week, alone, Oscar Isaac is the man of the moment and will continue to be so with fervent success.
Much like his counterpart Domnhall Gleeson in Ex_Machina, Oscar Isaac has been a face in many prominent movies and slowly made his rise to the glory he is achieving now. He came to prominence after graduating from New York’s prestigious school Julliard (where he became best friends with Jessica Chastain – and that’s adorable). His first film was All About The Benjamins but he really grasped attentions in The Nativity Story as Joseph. Since then, he has had part roles in Che: Part One, Body of Lies, Sucker Punch and Robin Hood. In the phenomenal Australian film Babilo, winning praise for his work as Jose Ramos-Hortas, Isaac excelled further in the film climate and gave a brilliant supporting role for Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive playing Standard who is the tender criminal who cares for his family but gets embroiled in the shady Los Angeles gangland.
Isaac’s famed performances would have you barely recognising him unless you paid attention to the slight twang in his tones. He is able to allusively transform into these different characters and gift them with the visceral backbone needed to be electrifying on screen. He is commanding, daring and undeniably powerful. Isaac is an astute character actor who can enthuse personality, backstory and nuances to each of his performances that makes him a vital actor in this cinematic climate, and one to invest in for your movie going pleasure (as in, if you see his name on the movie poster, go and bleeding watch that movie because he is going to be superb).
The future looks bright and geeky for Isaac, who will be heading to Star Wars: The Force Awakens as Poe Dameron (and you can see him in the trailer), and the titular villain X-Men: Apolocalypse. With his role as the unnerving Nathan in Ex_Machina and Abel Morales in A Most Violent Year, Isaac is kicking off 2015 in a fantastic way. Let’s hope this year more people, including the awarding body, will see him for the utterly genius actor he is and let him keep giving so much to cinema completely.
Want To Read More?
Read our review of Ex_Machina
Or catch up with Rising Star: Domnhall Gleeson
Keep your eyes peeled for more on Alicia Vikander and Our Top Movie Robots!!
Ex_Machina is out today with A Most Violent Year out on Friday