BAM Column: Rinko Kikuchi steals the show in “The Brothers Bloom”
Rinko Kikuchi in “The Brothers Bloom.”
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
Star’s scene-stealing ability makes up for actress’s lack of words
DALLAS – Rinko Kikuchi doesn’t need many words to steal the show.
The Japanese actress pulls it off in “The Brothers Bloom,” writer-director Rian Johnson’s (”Brick”) magical con men caper opening today in Oklahoma City. She plays the enigmatic Bang Bang, a fashion-savvy explosives expert who assists the titular confidence artists, played by Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo.
As Bang Bang, Kikuchi only has two lines in the whole film, but those memorable moments show off her impeccable comic timing and onscreen charisma. Johnson said he conceived the character as a way to force himself to reign in the dialogue and think more visually. He was thrilled at how beautifully Kikuchi, 20, brought Bang Bang to life.
“Even though the character had no dialogue, that doesn’t mean the character wasn’t completely engaged in every single scene. … Rinko she would come in as prepared as she would if she had lines between there. She knew exactly how she going to react and how she was gonna ride every single line (of her co-stars),” he said during a question-and-answer session after a screening of the film this spring at the AFI Dallas International Film Festival.
Kikuchi, who flew from Hong Kong to Texas for the festival, managed to steal the show from Johnson and her co-star Adrien Brody there, too. Asked to help introduce the film, she haltingly thanked the packed house for coming, said she had a great time making the movie, and then spun excitedly in a circle with her black hair and black ruffled dress fluttering.
“I was happy to get here, to come here. I only have two lines in this film. But I don’t speak English right now,” she told the crowd.
“It was really hard to me when I was in the shoot, but I had a great experience from you guys. You guys are like my brothers; you guys helped me a lot,” she said to Brody and Johnson.
Despite her shaky grasp of the English language, Kikuchi has managed to make herself known to American movie audiences. She was nominated for a supporting actress Oscar for playing a troubled deaf-mute teenager in the acclaimed 2006 drama “Babel.” Brody, an Oscar winner for “The Pianist,” described her as a gifted and beautiful scene-stealer who doesn’t let the language barrier stop her from turning in a stellar performance.
“Just wind her up and let her go,” Brody said. “And the camera just follows her.”
The actress became such a favorite on set that Johnson had special T-shirts made to honor her.
“The last day, everyone came to set wearing a shirt that said ‘More Rinko,’” Johnson said. “(I) haven’t seen Rinko since the shoot, and, aw, I love Rinko.”
-BAM
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