The Act of Suffering: Intense Performances in Contemporary American Cinema

This thesis proposes a study of dramatic film performance in contemporary US cinema through the lens of intensity. Many famed performances in American film history are noted for their intensity achieved through the actor’s commitment to a level of real suffering. “The Act of Suffering” seeks to unpack the history of the association between suffering and dramatic performance. Each case study in this thesis concerns an actor whose legacy, through the media coverage of their career, has been defined by the intensity of their performances that is framed as resulting from their unique level of artistic commitment. The first chapter on Gena Rowlands in Opening Night (1977) calls for a renewed focus on the actor’s work and argues that her intense performance of a troubled actress emerges from her own working methods and is further developed in collaboration with the cast and crew. The second chapter compares Robert De Niro and Daniel Day-Lewis in Raging Bull (1980) and Gangs of New York (2002) respectively, and argues that their efforts to fully inhabit their historical characters are rooted in a desire to legitimize the labour of performance and distance themselves from their star image. The third chapter on Viola Davis in Fences (2016) and Widows (2018) argues that her balance of strength, vulnerability, and intensity contributes to the growth of opportunities for authentic Black female narratives in Hollywood. Through these analyses, this thesis aims to trace the history of how intensity has become a production value in contemporary US cinema