After his lead role in the blockbuster movie, Prince Caspian, the second installment of C. S. Lewis book, The Chronicles of Narnia, he put himself a chance to take a role in Noel Coward’s play called Easy Virtue, opposing Jessica Biel, Collin Firth and Kristin Scott – Thomas.

“I studied literature in school and I’d read a fair amount of Coward, but I had never heard of this play. Probably because it was so bad”, said doe-eyed Ben. “I was really skeptical about taking the part until I realized that they had changed basically everything”.

Ben was a little resistant in playing the character. “Originally because I thought he was weak and I thought he was a bit mama’s boy. I thought he was a bit unsympathetic and I thought he won’t care about the relationship”. He gets frustrated with John Whittaker, “ I want to shake him and slap him and teach him some street smarts”. But actually he thinks that’s the acting challenge.

Colin Firth, who played Jim Whittaker, John’s sad-eyed father, thought Ben was a very nice guy when he met him for the first time. “You think pretty boys like that cannot possibly have any substance”. When Ben started acting, Collin thought it was a fluke. It sounded real. He had this resonant, confident, easy-type delivery. “Oh, he’s probably having a little moment.” And he did it again. “It was him acting. He took what could have been the most chinless role in the world, unsympathetic and dull, because there are so many wicked characters in this story, and he really isn’t one of them. Ben is a very funny guy, and it was painful for him to play a rather stuck-up, troubled kid, but I think he gave it flair that very few people could’ve done. He had a confidence and grace, which doesn’t come that easily”.

His decision to take the role in Easy Virtue not only gave him an acting challenge. In the original script, his character, John Whittaker didn’t sing much but once Stephen Elliot, the director learned of his lead’s vocal proficiency, it became a prominent part of proceedings. Elliot remembers how he decided that Barnes should sing in the movie, “After a few glasses of Ealing [Studios’] cheekiest chardonnay, Ben Barnes began to serenade a lovely waitress and accidentally let out his dirty little secret. He’s got one hell of a set of lungs on him”.

Really Mr. Barnes? You serenade the lovely waitress? I wonder what you sang for her ^_^

His excellent singing voice has also been confirmed by Carla Hay, in her report for Examiner. “If you’re really lucky, Barnes will start singing while he’s having a conversation with you — like he did several times when I was talking with him in this one-on-one interview. (Trust me: I didn’t ask him to sing; he just spontaneously broke into song.) And if you hear him sing, there’s no need to cover your ears, since he really does have great vocal chops that match his versatile acting. Ben Barnes sings a few jazzy tunes on the “Easy Virtue” soundtrack, but in real life, his vocal style is more akin to the soulful pop of Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway, two of his musical heroes”.

As for myself, his baritone voice singing for the soundtracks, delighting my heart and made me dance every time I hear it.

Easy Virtue was not a cheesy piece of drama movie, the movie got positive reviews including from the Noel Coward’s society and won Audience Prize at 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.

The road to a great acting career is often paved with the classics — and that’s a path that’s working so far for Ben Barnes, It doesn’t mean he won’t do films that aren’t based on previously written literary works, but his choice indicates that quality stories are a top priority for him as an actor, rather than taking the easier route of doing hack work that cashes in “flavor of the month” trends.

I write so I can share what I see through my heart, my personal point of view and my own analysis.

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Ben Barnes was a massive fan of Narnia books. He still can’t believe that he’s playing the main character from one of his favorite childhood tales. “I found my original copy that I had in 1989, so I know that I read the stories when I was 8 years old because the book had my writing on the front. There was a little sticker with a picture of a bear and I had written “I can’t BEAR to be without my book. The book belongs to Benjamin Barnes” with eight year old hand writing”. He found out that he got the role of Prince Caspian about 3 AM and He was running around the house and screaming. “It was just one of those life-changing moment” he said. “My mom and dad are quite cool. When I told them I got the part, they weren’t screaming or anything. But I was”.

Becoming the lead role in the blockbuster movie adaptation of the Narnia sequel, Prince Caspian, propelled him to stardom. As down-to-earth actor, he might say “I honestly don’t know what they saw in me during auditions, I think it was probably a case of “we have to make this film” So who ever walks in the door next, we’ll pick him” Or he might say that his foreign looks was the reason, but the truth was more than that.

If it was only looks Andrew Adamson, the director of Prince Caspian was going for, it would be taken him less than 13 months traveling from Argentina, Italy, France, Spain and England to find the right person to fill the role of piratical Telmarines prince. “Well, I am sure you’ve seen his charm,” the director said. “He understood Prince Caspian. He had a love of the book and the character. He so wanted to do it and he just kind of sold me on him I guess. He has got a very youthful exuberance and he loves horse riding, sword playing and all that kind of stuff. He’s been great”.

It also helped that he was good with accents, so he was able to nail the Iberian accent very well. Later Andrew also said that there was a line that everyone else had one way, but which Ben said differently. Ben had emphasized a certain words that nobody else had done. During some interviews, it was confirmed several times that his Spanish accent was convincing and flawless.

“Ben flew to Los Angeles straight after a Saturday performance (the History Boys) and it was pretty clear right away that we had found our man, said Mark Johnson, the producer. “Ben is like a movie star in the old tradition. He’s tremendously good looking (agreed to that ^_^) and has a real intensity and charisma about him”. Wendy Rogers, the special effect supervisor, been charmed by Ben’s charisma said, “He’s such a nice guy and he’s very cute obviously (I still not sure that cute was the right word to describe Ben). He looks terrific on film. I love his delivery in some other lines. He has this kind of sense of humor under the surface that I find really endearing”

And above all that was of course, the smooth entrance to the tight-bounded Pevensies. He connects really well with them. William Moseley said that Ben has been great & a real laugh. “I am happy they chose him. He is sort of on Pevensie wave length and fits right in”. Skandar Keynes called him the “fifth Pevensie”. Anna Popplewell thinks that they were really anxious about meeting Prince Caspian and Geogie Henley confirmed that they were all worried that they wouldn’t like Prince Caspian, but after meeting Ben she said, “we love him. We all thinks he’s wonderful”

Though his mother still can’t hear the word ‘Ben’ and ‘horse’ in the same sentence without getting the giggles, he showed us that he’s the high-skilled Telmarine prince Caspian who was able to swim horses through rivers, slalom through pillars and mastering the sword fighting, speaks Iberian accent and delivered the role of vulnerable and naïve young prince convincingly. Ben Barnes, with his strong personality and talents, has proved that Andrew’s choice of making him the leading role for Prince Caspian was absolutely perfect.

related post:
Ben Barnes, another pretty face or real talent?

I write so I can share what I see through my heart, my personal point of view and my own analysis.

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No copyright infringement intended.

To many of his fans, the British actor, Ben Barnes was perfect or well, almost perfect as an actor as well as a gentleman. Of course I have no objections at all, because I am one of his freaking crazy overdosed fan. Who can resist his well-proportioned unforgettable handsome face and his charming attitude? Almost no one. Seeing his face was enough to caught your attention. Dig deeper to his personality, it will drag you to like him more.

But he’s not someone who entered the hall of fame by sudden either. His journey to finally reached that stage of being famous was long and not easy. But is it really because he’s talented? is there any real talent along with his aristocratic face and charming personality? Would his package be enough to make him a good and award-winning actor? To make his name a guarantee to great movies? How long can he stay in this business? These are the serial writings on what other people said about his talents and some on his personality, which I think could be strong points of being a great actor.

Sabine White – assistant head teacher from Homefield Preparatory School, Sutton says they are all thrilled about Ben’s success. “Ben is remembered by all his teachers at Homefield as a good student, keen to be involved with all aspects of school life. He always strong at drama and music”

Philip Swan – head of drama & directors of the School theater at King’s College School in Wimbledon recalls that Ben was already showing great promise. “Ben had an excellent singing voice and was keen on acting as a young boy. So I suggested he be in the ensemble for a production of Salomon Pavey, which was to be directed by Jeremy Taylor the founder of the National Youth Music Theater. With his good looks and outstanding talents, a great future was always likely to await him”.

He graduated from Kingston University in 2004, where he studied drama and English, specializing in Children’s literature. Frank Whately – Head of Kingston University School of performance & screen studies remembered him as one of their most talented students “Ben was one of the first student to read drama at Kingston University. As well as being a fine actor and director, he was intellectually outstanding. He’s the first student to be awarded first class honors in drama (with English). He was a dashing Don Juan in the Spanish Golden Age play by Tirso de Molina, among many other roles. He directed several productions too”.

Ben Barnes was proud of being a choir boy, doing the Messiah at Saint Martin’s in the fields. “I was proud of the musical theater that I’ve done with the National Youth Music theater for 6 years and I am very proud of the function band stuff that I did. I did Sinatra tribute concert and funky Stevie Wonder stuff at graduation”.

His first job was on stage in production of Bugsy Malone, where he played drums. Ben also a keen supporter of the Rose theater in Kingston. He performed a monologue in Judi Dench & friends back in 2004 to help raise funds for the venue. Wondering if there were recordings or videos on his previous projects. It would be very interesting to see him on stage while he was on school and college.

It was clear that, Ben Barnes was not entering the big screen and becoming one of the most endearing British heart throb without preparation. His backgrounds showed that he had always strong at drama and music. He had an excellent singing voice. He was one of the most talented students and intellectually outstanding. His talents have been admitted. Along with his knowledge in drama and literature, he has the strong combination to support his acting career. Ben Barnes is not just another pretty face. He has the real talents.

related posts:
From leafy Wimbledon to Hall of Fame
Ben Barnes, aristocratic handsome with strong personality

I write so I can share what I see through my heart, my personal point of view and my own analysis.

Disclaimer: All photographs used in this blog are belongs to their rightful owners, benbarnesonline, benbarnessource and benbarnesfanNo copyright infringement intended.

But

He’s not an actor who’s been catapulted into stardom in one single night. Don’t call him an overnight success, he will get irritated. He’s been working quite hard for the past 10 years. Been on stage since he was 16 years old, he slowly paved his path to become an actor through the small but pivotal role of young Dunstan in Stardust before finally entered the hall of fame as Prince Caspian in 2007.

Ben Barnes might be one of the most gorgeous men you’ll ever see on screen or off,

but don’t let that pretty face fool you. He become one of the hottest young British actor without posing for paparazzi outside dodgy night clubs. He rarely finding himself in gossip magazine, much to his relief. “maybe it’s just because I’ve been private about private life or perhaps I am just not that popular”. Ben prefers a night at the cinema or a gig, over what he calls “the gossip mag-lifestyle” and not envy anybody who has that lifestyle.

Along with his dashing handsome face, comes his strong personality.

Ben was the first actor in his Brit family, because (according to him) he’s the crazy one. His professor of psychiatry father and psychotherapist mother were the most important influences. He’s very much attaching to his family. His parents taught him to think about his reactions. The way they treated him as the first child in the family, made him warm, obliging and usually open about his feelings. In most of his interviews, Ben showed that he is articulate, versatile and charismatic. The way he replied questions were smart but mundane and sincere. He has the sense of genuineness and frankness.

Ben is mature and very well prepared person. He’s no fragile soul. He hides it well. It’s in private. “You should doubt in private”. Though he was facing the craziest moment of having 90 interviews on Prince Caspian in one day, woke up the next morning with no voice, dosed up on a cocktail of vitamin C, honey and lemon and Chinese potion, and realized that he had to face another 60, he’s not complaining. He realized that he has no choice, the film called Prince Caspian, so he has no where to hide.

The 10-storeys poster of Prince Caspian smoldering down the blade of his sword might cause even asexual protozoa to spontaneously divide,

but for Ben it was surreal and also terrifying. Prince Caspian, brought him to his new heartthrob status, but it didn’t jeopardize his life. It was embarrassing, but it brought smile to his face. He is not letting success go to his crown. His parents and brother would slap him if it were ever required.

Though his face was on the bus all over London, it seems like Ben after his role as the timeless gorgeous Dorian, has a better sense on how to operate below radar. Even if Dorian Gray marketed as well as the box office movie, Twilight, it wouldn’t be necessary for him in hiding like Robert Pattinson or surrounded by bodyguards.

No denying that his remarkable aristocratic handsome face and a heart-melting smile could charm any woman around the globe,

But in the world of Botox – injected society that is obsessed with youth and celebrity and cheating clocks also his role as the timeless narcissist Dorian Gray, he has his own heart-thrilling answer, “Never, not even Botox. As an actor you want your face to have it’s full flexibility potential. You want to be able to raise and eyebrow”.

Ben Barnes is intelligent, educated and savvy. In taking roles, he chooses roles that fascinates him, not the ones that make him charming. “Almost every script that I’ve gotten has been for sort of the generic Hollywood type. I haven’t chosen them. All the ones I have chosen are because I’ve been fascinated with the source material or because of the script. And the variety is interesting”. His choices indicate that quality stories are a top priority for him as an actor, rather than taking the easier route of doing work that cashes in “flavor of the month” trends. He just passionate and fascinated with what he does. He wanted to have as many opportunities to play as many different parts as possible. He wanted every experience to be of value.

He is also seeing his working opportunity in clever way. “Even all the big stars, you read their autobiographies and there always seems to be a point where they were penniless and starving. To be working actor at this point in my life is just a tremendous privilege”. With “Carpe diem” as his life motto, he tried to look at things in perspective, trying hard to never forget how lucky he was. He doesn’t want to sound maudlin, but he thinks “it’s very important to be aware of what we have”.

Ben Barnes is a rising and undeniably talented star. He’s working very serious as an actor but if you ask him to choose between a family full of children or an Oscar, he would give a clear statement, “Why not? But if I have to choose between the Oscar or a family full of children, I prefer the second one”. He chose a family full of children more than an Oscar, endearing isn’t it? But it’s also very obvious, the strong combination of classic medieval looks, multi-talents and strong personality could make him the world class award-winning actor. Not just a showcasing star.

Physically he’s the object of embarrassing drool, but in person he’s an affable chap with strikingly strong personality and wisdom. He’s positively fabulous.

I write to share what I see through my heart, my personal point of view and my own analysis.

Disclaimer: All photographs used in this blog are belongs to their rightful owners, benbarnesonline, benbarnessource and benbarnesfan No copyright infringement intended.