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A scion of a popular acting clan in Spain, Javier Bardem first came to prominence more for his looks and sexy charisma than for his acting ability. Filmmaker Bigas Luna tapped the hunky dark-haired actor in such soft-core projects as `The Ages of Lulu (1990), `Jamon, Jamon’ (1992) and `Golden Balls’ (Huevos de Oro) (1993). In each case, Bardem essayed a stud and brought the requisite sex appeal and charm to his work.
1994 provided a turning point for Bardem who began to stretch in roles like the drugged out snitch in `Dias Contados’ (Numbered Days) and the title law man in `The Detective and Deat’ (El Detective y la Muerte). Finally, in `Boca a Boca’ (Mouth to Mouth) (1995), the actor sent up his image (and displayed a heretofore untapped facility with comedy) as a heartthrob by portraying an aspiring actor who takes a job as a phone sex operator. He further altered his image by playing thuggish characters in `Extasis’ (Ecstasy) (1996) and his English-language debut `Perdita Durango’ (1997).
Pedro Almodovar, who had previously cast him in `High Heels’ (1991) offered Bardem a terrific role as a policeman paralyzed in a shooting who ends up marrying the woman with whom his shooter is infatuated. Although the role allowed the actor to display his trademarked masculine sexuality, it also gave rein to his dramatic abilities. After making his producing debut on `Washington Wolves’ (Los Lobos de Washington) (1999), Bardem delivered back-to-back portrayals of gay men in intriguing projects. `Second Skin’ (Segunda Piel) (2000) cast the actor as the other man--a surgeon engaging in a relationship with a married man. That film may be seen as a warm-up to his stellar work as Cuban author Reinaldo Arenas in `Before Night Falls’ (2000), Julian Schnabel's feature based on Arenas' posthumously published memoirs. Although not as attractive as the openly gay writer (Bardem's pugilistic features mar his handsomeness), he was able to capture the spirit of the man and delivered a relaxed and layered portrait of a societal outcast which earned him unanimous praise and the best actor award at the Venice Film Festival.
The actor next won praise for his performance in his first American feature as a South American police detective dedicated to hunting down a revolutionary guerilla leader in `The Dancer Upstairs’ (2002), the directorial debut of actor John Malkovich. Next was the European entry `Mondays in the Sun’ (Los Lunes al Sol) (2002), which cast a physically transformed Bardem as Santa, the nominal leader of a small group of workers who were laid off by the local shipyards and now live out their days on barstools, drinking and quietly despairing. In 2004 the actor enjoyed a small role in director Michael Mann's crime thriller "Collateral" before appearing in his next acting triumph, writer-director Alejandro Amenabar's `The Sea Inside’ (Mar Adentro) (2004). Bardem played Ramon Sampedro, a quadrapalegic bedridden for over 25 years who begins passionately lobbying for the right to end his life, despite the protestations of his family, friends and the local authorities, and his absorbing, brilliantly believable performance formed the center-piece of a challenging, emotionally involving film built on a thorny moral issue.
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