Christian Bale

Overview

Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor known for his many acclaimed roles as well as having reached cult status among many fans.

Career

Christian Bale made his first film debut in Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna in 1986. From there, he had many leading roles in films such as Heart of the CountryandMio in the Land of Faraway. Bale's co-star from Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna, Amy Irving (who was married to Steven Spielberg at the time), suggested Bale for a role in the film Empire of the Sun. Bale's performance earned him worldwide recognition, and was awarded "Best Performance by a Juvenile Actor” by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. After getting so much attention for his role, Bale was ready to give up acting altogether, however, Kenneth Branagh persuaded him to play a role in 1989'sHenry V.

One of Bale's most acclaimed roles was that of serial killer Patrick Batman in American Psycho, which went into production in 1999. Although the film took some liberties, it was generally faithful to the novel of the same name. From 2001 and onward, Bale went on to play an assortment of characters in various roles. Bale starred in three films from 2002-2003, but none were successful at the box office. These films were Laurel Canyon, Reign of Fire and Equilibrium.

In 2004, Bale played Tevor Reznik in The Machinist, an exhausting role where Bale went without rest for prolonged periods as well as not eating properly, as his diet consisted of mostly apples and coffee. Following such an extreme routine got his body weight down 60 pounds (27 kilograms) in only a few months. The Machinistreceived mostly positive reviews.

In 2004, Bale won the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman in Christopher Nolan'sBatman Begins, beating out Jake Gyllenhaal for the part. Due to the extreme diet that Bale had undergone in filming the Machinist, Bale was required to bulk up to play the role of Batman and was given six months to do so. With a personal trainer aiding him, Bale was able to gain a total of 100lbs (46kg), but by the time of shooting his weight had dropped down to 190lbs.

To get a deeper understanding of the character, Bale went on to read various Batman comic books. He had initial complaints about wearing the Batman suit, and stated that he would get numerous headaches while wearing the mask during filming.

Batman Begins was a worldwide success and received positive appraisal from critics everywhere. A videogame based on the film, Batman Begins, was released in June 2005. The game featured voice overs from the cast of the movie, including Bale himself, and followed the film's story very closely. It received average scores.

Bale was able to reprise his role of Batman in the sequel to the film, The Dark Knight. A videogame for The Dark Knight was unofficially announced by G4 in July 2008. The game is now said to have been cancelled, due to scheduling issues.

After Batman

Bale went back to doing independent films and starred as one of leads in Harsh Times. He also played the role of John Rolfe in The New World, a movie inspired by the Pocahontas. The New World was a failure at the United States box office and worldwide box office. In 2006, Bale took on four different projects: The Prestige,I'm Not There,Rescue Dawn, and 3:10 to Yuma.

Bale has been cast for the role of John Conner in the upcoming Terminator Salvation film. Rumors are abound that Bale will be playing the role of Solid Snake in a Metal Gear Solid film adaptation, releasing in 2009, but there has been no confirmation as of yet.

Trivia

• Has a small scar underneath his right eye from a sports accident in high school.
• Was once considered for the role of James Bond before Daniel Craig, but rejected the role stating that "[I] already played a serial killer" and that Bond represented everything wrong about British stereotypes.
• Bale loves animals and is a supporter of animal welfare groups like the World Wildlife Fund and Green Peace.
• At the age of six, after his sister, Louise, read Charlotte's Web to him, Bale became a vegetarian.
• Having admiration of Spirited Away, Bale voiced the main character, Howl, in the English dub over of Howl's Moving Castle.
• He married his girlfriend, Sibi, at the end of January 2000 in a private ceremony. Neither of them had been married before.

References

1.http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/biographies/christian_bale_biog.html

2. http://www.drdrew.com/article.asp?id=644

3. http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/687343/Dark_Knight_Game_Leaks.html

4. http://www.strategyinformer.com/news/2018/rumour-mill-end-is-nigh-for-pandemics-dark-knight-videogame