My first A at Wabash
This is my first "A" at Wabash college pretty cool in my opinion. Just thought I'd share it with you...see you can improve your writing drastically here. You just need the right mindset and the right professor.
Enjoy :)
Case Study: Robert Downey Jr.
With so many one-hit wonders in Hollywood, what constitutes the rise, the fall and the sheer consistency of today’s comeback stars? Is it perseverance, talent, motivation, a good support system or is it just being in the right place at the right time? With the rollercoaster case of Robert Downey Jr it was all of the above attributes that got him back into the spotlight and out of his drug-induced hell. The likes of River Phoenix and others famous actors could not overcome drug addiction, so what made Downey Jr any different?
The road for Downey Jr. has been far from easy, but having a father who was a film director, made getting into the film business seem inevitable for him. When he was the ripe age of five, Downey Jr made his big screen debut as a puppy in his father’s movie Pound. When a child is subjected to the big screen at such an early age the psychological results will vary greatly. Think of how many child stars never amount to anything once they hit puberty. For every Downey Jr that stays in the headlines, there are many more that slowly fade back to average Joe status. What kept Downey Jr from becoming another burn-out child star? The answer is that Downey Jr has an incredible amount of natural-born talent. As his career had its continuous ups and downs, his ridiculous amount of talent would be the variable that set him apart. Even Downey Jr. admits his gift has accounted for more of his success than anything else. “I know very little about acting. I'm just an incredibly gifted faker,” said Downey Jr. His natural “faking” ability was the key component in his rise to stardom. From Saturday Night Live to Iron Man the curve of his career has been anything but constant, yet he still walks away smiling.
Downey Jr. was one of the up and comers on the Hollywood scene, staring on the SNL for two years, and appearing in numerous movies. But then came the movie Less Than Zero; Downey Jr. played a cocaine addict who racked up debt and shed light on the drug scene in Beverly Hills. Playing the drug addict was something Downey Jr. did often, and these lost and lonely addicts often paralleled his personal life. According to an account from Downey Jr. he said he was introduced to drugs at the age of eight when his parents offered him a joint. From here the gateway to the slippery slope of drug abuse was opened, and it has never been fully closed. He came into Hollywood with a drug habit, and from there the problem only grew. Why has Robert Downey Jr taken so many roles where he played the addict? It could be seen as an indirect cry for help because when the camera catches Julian from Less Than Zero at his lowest point; it was not really Julian in that scene…it was Robert.
Without a doubt Robert Downey Jr. is a talented actor. He is lucky that his drug addiction did not send him down the same path that River Phoenix found himself on. It was this road of drug addiction that ultimately led to his demise. It was luck that kept him in a prison cell instead of a morgue. And when he was walking down that lonely trail of addiction, Downey Jr. began to have legal adventures that did not end up in his favor. From late-night races with the cops to waking up in his neighbor’s bed, Downey Jr. began spiraling out of control. Sadly, his drug addiction only increased with his stardom, sending off plenty of signals that he needed professional help. Unable to face this truth, Downey Jr. ran away from nearly every drug rehab facility that he entered. It cost him his agent, and his friends, and his family. But while his personal life went down in flames around him, his career was actually going up. Downey Jr. was nominated for an Oscar for his role as Charlie Chaplin; an actor who also once had a personal life in shambles. So on top of Downey Jr’s natural talent, he had the advantage of being able to relate to the character. This is why his acting was a cut above the rest.
Instead of using this emotional advantage to break through and become a greater actor, he broke down and became another one of Hollywood’s stars to succumb to the temptations of cocaine. He began to lose everything he had in his personal life, and at this point his career was not far behind. You can only use star power so many times, and once that source runs dry you get hit hard. Downey Jr. found that out when he was slapped with a three year sentence in prison for his drug related offenses. When Downey Jr. describes his addiction, he does it in a way that is, well, purely Downey Jr. “It’s like I have a shotgun in my mouth, and I’ve got my finger on the trigger, and I like the taste of gun metal,” said Downey Jr. When someone is as self-destructive as this, are you really going to want to help them? There was one man, however, who would pick this man up off the ground. Elton John, the man who is always feeling the love tonight, lent out a helping hand to Downey Jr. when no one else would touch him. Elton John offered Downey Jr. a role in his new music video I Want Love. It was Downey’s first role since he got off his three-year probation and he welcomed the employment. So if it were not for the support system that Elton John gave him, Downey Jr. would probably be another child star burn-out who gave into drugs.
But even the best support system cannot make someone come back to their top form. It is something that the person has to want and work for. Downey Jr. did nearly everything possible to destroy his career, and when he finally had gone through enough self-destruction he decided to rebuild. He is not close to getting past that drug addiction, but at least he is moving closer to it. This has led him to do what he had been meant to do…be a movie star. Longevity is one word that can be used to describe Downey Jr; he did cocaine, passed out in his neighbor’s bedroom, threw imaginary rats out his window during late night drug frenzies, and suffered through a divorce. Through it all he came out alive. He just had too much to offer, and his support group would not let him waste it.
Through the fire and flames Downey Jr. came back with a vengeance and has not wasted a day in his marvelous second act. Since he had gone to hell and back he wanted to make the most of this second chance. In his first movie back from jail, Downey Jr. fittingly plays the hero Iron Man. What makes it work is that Tony Stark—Iron Man’s real name—is the hero who publicly denies his heroism, but on the inside he holds a quiet confidence. Both Stark and Downey Jr. overcome near death situations to become larger-than-life figures. Fitting that his second act would open with a hero, who has a change of heart and transforms his life. Another example of how Downey Jr. uses his characters to parallel his own life, this allows him to create a dynamic presence on the screen. But Downey Jr. in an attempt to keep his momentum rolling has made two other films, Tropic Thunder and The Soloist. Because the anticipation of waiting for a movie to flop or succeed can drive an actor crazy Downey Jr. has not stopped working on films since the start of Iron Man. Motivation is now oozing out of Downey Jr. We have been waiting for him to emerge as a prominent actor, and now he has delivered with a vengeance.
From child star to addict to movie star Robert Downey Jr has had an electrifying career. The curve of his career has been up and down. It has recently been on an upswing; but only time will tell where his career goes next. His movies will always be worth watching though. The best part is that his movie-making days are far from over. The sky is truly the limit for this actor and it’s all because of a little perseverance, motivation and a helping hand.