Earlier today we posted an interview with Rebecca Hall, the first in our series of interviews with the cast of Iron Man 3. Next up is Sir Ben Kingsley, who talks about finding the character of The Mandarin, joining the Iron Man team and how the industry has changed during the course of his career.
His love of the Iron Man franchise
It’s that constant irony and wit and humour that builds tension then diffuses it, and builds tension and diffuses it. The relationships between Pepper Potts and Don Cheadle’s role, and Robert. There’s something genuine at the heart of them, what I call ‘the human dance’ or patterns of human behaviour. Even genuine mythology. There are only about six or seven original stories, apparently, upon which all others are based, there’s something about this franchise that has a very confident style, but definitely has a heart, and it’s that that I feel so attractive – about the team and about the work that they do. They are a wonderful team. The team, when you work with them, reflect this; they’re very caring and love life and what they do for a living. They’re not cynical.
Preparing for the ‘broadcasts’
We all have seen – I wouldn’t say a part of my research was to specifically look at these broadcasts, but when I have seen them, what I am struck with is the lack of histrionics, the total calm, the conviction, the almost paternalistic approach to the viewer, it’s almost prefaced with ‘I’m sorry to have to say this, but it’s true’ and then go on to demolish our way of life and culture with complete security.
I didn’t look at any of this footage in preparation, I just made this observation, perhaps as an actor or perhaps as a viewer: you have such a sense of righteousness in the way you’re speaking, and how you’re speaking, that I wanted to use that in The Mandarin, so that one doesn’t – although you say it’s classic – one doesn’t play him villainous or evil, one plays him with that very disconcerting sense of righteousness. And in many political speeches that we would find revolting, you can go back to 1930 and look at stuff on the screen, the overwhelming thing is you think that you’re so right. It’s conviction.
The Mandarin’s voice
I got the voice from the script. I don’t know whether it’s still in the screenplay, but there’s a point where Tony Stark, having seen a broadcast, describes the mixture that he’s seeing. One of the phrases is ‘Mid-West preacher, something else and something else’, and it was the preacher aspect that helped me and helped enhance that sense of almost – I say this guardedly, but you’ll interpret it how you wish – “religiousity” about it, so that it has a solemnity and a truth to it. I believe he uses the word ‘lesson’; that also is preaching, and it’s that element of ‘for your own good’ that’s so disconcerting when a profoundly distorted mind says, ‘look, this is for your own good, we’re going to torture you’. It’s terrifying, rather than screaming like a villain.
The Mandarin’s ethnicity
I think that perhaps his ethnicity is chosen to illustrate the man and the mask and how he’s manipulated rather than making a political statement that might affect the outcome of the film. I think it’s rooted more in, ‘is it the mask or is it the man?’ I think that’s what Kevin, when he came to talk to me about it, was really keen to explore, and I think that, maybe, if it were cast differently the distinction between the mask and the man may not be that obvious, might not be that easily recognisable.
How much of him is in the character
I once saw a beautiful documentary of Richard Burton, made by a friend of mine, Tony Palmer, a great documentary filmmaker and narrative, dramatic filmmaker. There were some interviews with Richard, and anecdotal stuff on Richard, but what he finally did was take tiny bits of his films, and it was a mosaic of Richard, a little fragment here, a little fragment there, and when you put it together you did see some path of the man there. So there has to be by virtue of my limits, there has to be something in everything I play, of me. And if there’s not, it probably won’t be a performance that will communicate anything. So yes, there has to be some essence. I don’t’ know what it is, it might be very buried in the subconscious, but I think perhaps there’s stories coiled up inside, waiting to be uncoiled and come out in everything that I feel I’ve played with some degree of communication to an audience.
The differences between his version of The Mandarin and the one in the comic
I really don’t know. Because – although Kevin did present me with some wonderful material to look at, the costume made by Louise [Frogley], our brilliant designer was more or less a fait accompli; the tattoo on the back of the neck, the hair, the rings, the mixture of American urban wear, street wear, military wear and the Chinese garb, were all there, but they fitted the character, they seemed perfect to me. I don’t know how the screenings have gone with the aficionados of Marvel comics, but possibly the role might illustrate that, if you want to explore the kind of – in a modern context – the kind of chap that this guy represents, then an element of ‘he’s manipulated as well’ perhaps might kick into it. That dimension perhaps is not in the comics because he is a law unto himself, perhaps if you step back historically you think: ah, well you’re being manipulated by somebody else. Either it’s a belief system or it’s an individual, you are a victim of manipulation. Even though you’re saying that we all are, you are as well.
Also, I think in the script that I read, the mask is examined, and I know that Robert was quite keen to explore in Iron Man 3, the man inside the suit of armour, and the Mandarin has his own, quote unquote: “suit of armour”, in his garb, in his voice, in his appearance, in his rings, it’s all created for an effect. More psychological or physical, but we are examining, and this is where – I don’t know how you could interpret this, but this is where Robert said, ‘we are on the same journey’, because ‘you are wearing a mask’, Ben, ‘and I’, Robert, Tony, ‘am wearing a mask. Mine’s Iron, it’s manifestly there. Yours is not quite that obvious’, but where’s the man? Where’s the man? Where’s the mask? How do they meet? How do they work? I think that we’re looking at that as well in the film.
Working with Shane Black
I really enjoyed my relationship with him. He has a lovely perspective and pint of view on life, and I really enjoyed being with him. As a director, most importantly, he’s open to surprises. He doesn’t have a fixed idea of what he wants to see. He’ll place you perfectly in the narrative, but he loves to be surprised, and that’s very stimulating for an actor; it’s very inviting for you to take risks. A good man.
His interaction with Robert Downey Jr.
I think all actors are very related, we’re cousins. We’re all very close, and as soon as you get in that magic space with actors, with fellow actors – if you’re working with non-actors it’s very different –but if you’re working with actors, that discipline of ‘action’ and ‘cut’ is so bonding, and you realise that you’re using exactly the same tools, your body, your voice and your imagination to bring something to life, so Robert and I, and Don, got on so well.
We were finishing each other’s sentences, we were coming up with ideas with the director. A little bit of improvisation off the script, but not a lot – always improvising within what Robert would call, ‘the box’: don’t step outside it because you’ll break the scene; it’ll just be actors having fun, which is useless to the audience, useless, but actors focusing on the story, terrific, and Robert’s a lovely man to work with.
On the way the acting profession has changed over the course of his career
I don’t have a – I’ve yet to have a really strong comparison to make, but you put your finger on a really key element, which is a director saying to me, and I’m sort of making this up, ‘I know you have a great political speech here, just do it to that tennis ball, bobbing around and we’ll put it in later’. I gave a political speech a few years ago now, to 30,000 Indian extras, and my adrenaline – I almost had to be hospitalised. To just walk onto the set and go, it’s extraordinary. No acting needed. My body chemistry changed, my voice changed, every line I’d learned came out differently. In my hotel room I was thinking, ‘da-da-da-de-dur-de-dur-de-dur’, then you’re hit by this wave of enthusiasm and curiosity and heaven knows what: humanity. There’s your fellow actor.
It’s very different from ‘that’ bobbing up and down on a green screen I can tell you. I miss that terribly, and humbly, as a producer, whenever we start our work – and I will be involved as an actor in my own productions – I’m going to beg for as many real human beings as possible on the screen to work with. It’s impossible to work with nothing. We are collaborative by nature, and it’s so dependent on what the other actor or actors are doing to bring the temperature of the scene up.
Also, regrettably, we were taking about the cousins, the tribe of actors, with whom I’m closely related. If some poor man or woman is thrown into the arena with me, just because they look good on a magazine cover, or they have a large social network following, or they’re very good at selling some product or other, it’s very hard on them, and it’s very hard on me. It’s like a tennis court, with those white lines, with the extra white line, with the umpire, with the net, with the ball, and you go, ‘bang’ and nothing comes back. Nothing comes back! At all. And that’s very difficult. And it’s unfair on them, because they are thrown in. Personally I’ve only had this on a very tiny level really, because of the work I’ve chosen to do, and maybe the work I’m offered, I’m not really in that kind of an arena, but it is regrettable.
Iron Man 3 is out today, read our review here.
