Daniel Day Lewis' Insane Method Acting
Daniel Day-Lewis is famous for the extreme measures he takes in preparing for film roles.
Which of the following movies do you feel he put in the most amount of effort for?
Discuss the list here
See also: Robert De Niro's Insane Method Acting
Which of the following movies do you feel he put in the most amount of effort for?
Discuss the list here
See also: Robert De Niro's Insane Method Acting
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- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsDaniel Day-LewisJuliette BinocheLena OlinCentral Europe, 1968: A Czech doctor with an active sex life meets a woman who wants monogamy, and then the Soviet invasion further disrupts their lives.Learned the Czech language for the role of Tomas and refused to break character for nearly the entire 8-month shoot.
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisBrenda FrickerAlison WhelanChristy Brown, born with cerebral palsy, learns to paint and write with his only controllable limb - his left foot.While playing the paralyzed poet Christy Brown, he refused to leave his wheelchair and had crew members carry him around the set. He also insisted that all of his meals would be spoon-fed to him.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsDaniel Day-LewisMadeleine StoweRussell MeansThree trappers protect the daughters of a British Colonel in the midst of the French and Indian War.He taught himself how to live as a survivalist and learned how to hunt animals for food. He refused to eat anything that he hadn't killed, whether it was with his flintlock rifle, or a tomahawk both of which he could use very accurately. He also learned how to build a canoe.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsDaniel Day-LewisMichelle PfeifferWinona RyderA tale of nineteenth-century New York high society in which a young lawyer falls in love with a woman separated from her husband, while he is engaged to the woman's cousin.He checked into the Plaza Hotel in New York under his character's name and walked around New York in period clothing.
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisPete PostlethwaiteAlison CrosbieAn Irish man's coerced confession to an I.R.A. bombing he did not commit results in the imprisonment of his father as well. Meanwhile, a British lawyer fights to clear their names and free them.He spent several nights at a time in solitary confinement in the abandoned prison that the film crew were shooting in. He kept himself awake for three days in preparation for an interrogation scene in the film. He also reportedly had crew members randomly throw water on him and verbally abuse him for a realistic IRA prisoner experience.
- DirectorNicholas HytnerStarsDaniel Day-LewisWinona RyderPaul ScofieldA Salem resident attempts to frame her ex-lover's wife for being a witch in the middle of the 1692 witchcraft trials.He didn't wash himself for the duration of the shoot so he could see what living in 17th century hygiene standards was like. He also built the house that his character lived in in the movie and helped build the set. He also spent some time living in one of the replica houses on set with no electricity or running water.
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisEmily WatsonDaragh DonnellyYoung Danny Flynn is released from prison 14 years after "taking the rap" for the IRA and tries to rebuild his life in his old Belfast neighborhood.He trained for 1½ years to be a professional-standard boxer with former heavyweight champion Barry McCuigan. He also tattooed his own hands.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioCameron DiazDaniel Day-LewisIn 1862, Amsterdam Vallon returns to the Five Points area of New York City seeking revenge against Bill the Butcher, his father's killer.He took up lessons as an apprentice butcher and always stayed in character on-set. This included talking in a New York accent and sharpening knives between takes. He refused to wear a warm jacket because according to him, it wasn't in keeping with the period. As a result he caught pneumonia but rejected modern medicine when it was offered to him to help with his illness.
- DirectorRebecca MillerStarsDaniel Day-LewisCatherine KeenerCamilla BelleA father and daughter isolated on an island off the East Coast and living on a once-thriving commune grapple with the limits of family and sexuality.He arranged to live separately from his wife (the director of the film) so he could properly experience the isolation of his character.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsDaniel Day-LewisPaul DanoCiarán HindsA story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness, focusing on a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business.His insistence to stay in character made a fellow actor leave the production. He also learned how to use real oil mining gear for the role, and threw real bowling balls at his co-star Paul Dano in one of the scenes.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDaniel Day-LewisSally FieldDavid StrathairnAs the Civil War rages on, U.S President Abraham Lincoln struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on his decision to emancipate the slaves.He demanded that everyone, including director Steven Spielberg, would refer to him as "Mr. President" and wouldn't let English cast members speak to him (in their own accents) while trying to get Lincoln's voice right, for fear that it might throw him off.