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Talk about making your critics eat humble pie.
Not only has Mel Gibson's latest bloodlust adventure, Apocalypto, defied all expectations for failure, it was even in the running for the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film recently.
The US$40-million-epic ($61.5 million) made a strong opening in Singapore and debuted at the top of the US box office last December. With the cash register now ringing in at almost US$50 million, Gibson has more than recouped his investment.
Not bad for a film acerbically panned by The New York Observer as "a movie nobody wants to see, featuring hundreds of people nobody has ever heard of, speaking a language nobody can understand".
Considering how much flak Gibson had received for his anti-Semitic outburst following his arrest for drunk driving, it certainly seemed like this mad Aussie phoenix has risen from the ashes.
Which begs the question: When is bad publicity a bad career move?
It really depends on what, who and when. And who else is having a turn oiling the rumour mill. When it comes to adverse public reaction, actors by and large get the full brunt of it. That's because their faces embody the illusion of the story. When that line between the reel and real is broken, confusion and controversy erupts.
Take, for example, Hugh Grant.
To many women swept off their feet by Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), he was the quintessential Brit twerp, a rom-com lead whose charm is as much in his leaden feet as his quick wit. All that fell by the wayside when he was arrested in 1995 for lewd conduct with a prostitute in a public place. The next best thing by way of damage control? Play up his sleaze-ball rep.
Thus, his turn as a cad in Bridget Jones' Diary (2001) and a predatory TV host in last year's American Dreamz. In the upcoming Music and Lyrics, he returns to romantic form as a has-been teen idol making a comeback.
The trick, therefore, is in turning the bad news around.
Directors, on the other hand, seem to have an easier time.
By virtue of their invisible presence behind the lens, they generally attract less attention for their crimes and misdemeanours.
Roman Polanski, for instance, was convicted of unlawful sex with a minor in 1977. He fled to France to avoid prison and has never been back to the US since. But in 2002, he was named Best Director for The Pianist at the 75th Academy Awards.
So, the better-than-expected performance of Apocalypto should be seen in this light. With fresh scandals — whether real or stage-managed — breaking out practically every week, Gibson's loose-cannon tirade may soon be a blast from the past.
As Hollywood biographer and historian Jim Parish noted in an interview with The Chicago Tribune: "There's a fast saturation point these days and a nasty backlash."
Meaning: Turnover is quick. The heat simmers down and people move on with their lives and flip the papers for the next big gossip.
Perhaps popular MediaCorp TV actor Christopher Lee can take heart in this. The 35-year-old Malaysian was recently charged with fleeing in his Mercedes-Benz after knocking down a motorcycle carrying two men last October. He also faces another charge of drunk driving. Is his career over? Well, don't write him off yet.
Just look at how fellow artistes like Terence Cao and Quan Yifeng have bounced back from their own brushes with the law.
For when it comes to celebrities, it's a matter of different strokes for different folks. - TODAY/so
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