FS2: Stars

A. What makes an actor a star?

In pairs or small groups discuss your favourite film star whose image youhave brought to class. Try to uncover reasons why that person has movedfrom being merely a film actor to being termed a film "star" and presentthem in a spidergram with their image in the centre.

What are their special qualities?

B. Contemporary Stars

The construction of stars is essentially an industry led phenomenon. Thequalities of the actors become joined with the qualities of the charactersthat they play.

Look at the contemporary stars cards.

How does this work with your chosen film star?Create a contemporary star card for your chosen film star.

C. Star Theories

According to Richard Dyer, a "star" can be defined from the followingelements:

PROMOTION: What the producers of a film let be known about the star.Maybe details of where they've come from. This is of course moreinteresting when a star has apparently been plucked from obscurity.

PUBLICITY: What is known about the star from newspaper clippings,magazine articles or interviews in a range of media. A key aspect of TomCruise's star status, often referred to in publicity, was his marriage tothe Australian actress Nicole Kidman. What does this informationcontribute to your understanding of him as a star?

FILMS: The kind of roles made to draw out the "star" qualities, such asArnold Schwarzenegger's film roles using his special qualities as a bodybuilder.

CRITICISM & COMMENTARY: This is the "currency" or "value" of thestar. To what extent is their work critically acclaimed? How are theydebated as a star? As a fantastic actor? As a brilliant screen presence?As a professional stunt person?

Other critics have argued that a star is best defined as someonepositioned between the ordinary and the extraordinary, representing atthe same time the ordinariness of someone we may know and theextraordinariness of someone we would aspire to know.

Most of the audience know of film stars in 2 main ways

• The star made available to the audience via the films they star in.• The star made available to the audience via the various publicity in

which they appear.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Ex Mr Universe, a muscle bound actor whobecame a star by playing "musclebound" parts.The potential for humour in this huge manplaying more sensitive figures was attempted infilms such as "Junior" (1994) and "Twins" (1998),but was it successful?

The audience expects a display of physicalprowess from Schwarzenegger. Would it workfor him to play a serious role where his strengthand physicality were not important?

Tom Hanks

Plays the role of the sensitive American man inmany different genres of film from "SleeplessIn Seattle" (1993) to "Forrest Gump" (1994) to"Saving Private Ryan" (1997) to "The GreenMile" (2000).

In each of these films he plays an essentiallygood character struggling with questions ofmorality and the greater good. Could anaudience read him as a conventional villain?

Leonardo Di Caprio

Made his film debut playing a retarded oy in"what's eating Gilbert Grape" (1993), a lowbudget film about family and community andwent on to play Romeo in WilliamShakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" (1991) andJack Dawson in "Titanic" (1999).

Di Caprio is essentially an object of romanticinterest for young women. How does this fitwith your view of him as a star?

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