Probably there is no person on Earth who would not watch the cult film "The Fifth Element". So, in this film there is a very bright character - General Munro, who was played by the famous American actor Brion James. Of course, he is known not only from this picture.
In the filmography of the actor, one hundred sixty-one films, and the best films are the films “My Enemy” (1985), “Tango and Cash” (1989), “The Fifth Element” (1997), “Blade Runner” (1982), “Flesh + blood "(1985).
James also starred in the series, the best of which were recognized as Sledgehammer (1986-1988), Team A (1983-1987), Spawn (1997-1999), Tales from the Crypt (1989-1996), The Millennium (1996-1999).
In his interview, the actor said that there are at least one hundred episodes of television series where he was shot.
He played mainly supporting roles, but if not for these roles, any of the films would have lost much. The best proof of this is that after his death, James was dedicated to the movie "The King is Alive" (2000).
Biography
The future actor was born in 1945 in the city of Redlens. Soon after his birth, the James family moved to the city of Beaumont in California, where Brion spent his childhood. His parents adored the movie and everything connected with it, and the boy could not help but adopt this love from them. Moreover, in Beaumont, his father bought a small cinema, where in the evenings, as they used to say, "they played movies."
The fact is that the equipment was old: huge spools of film were spinning on the driving gears, from which the image was displayed on the screen. This sight fascinated Brion, and he dreamed that someday his face would appear on the screen.
It can be said that throughout his life, the actor watched how the sound film changed from combining images with a gramophone to the most modern digital technologies. However, the cinema in Beaumont was the starting point that determined his choice of profession.
When James graduated from high school and went to study at the University of San Diego, he realized that he was not mistaken, that he decided to become an actor. Of course, it was difficult for a young man from a provincial city to immediately get accustomed to the world of art, but gradually he found his playing style, his niche and began to master the basics of acting.
After graduation, Brion went to New York - a city where all dreams come true. And he had only one dream: to act in films, and as much as possible.
However, this was not so simple. In fact, the young graduate of the university has gone the way of many young people who wanted to get into the film industry. At first he worked where he had to, and who would have to earn money for basic housing and food, while he did not have roles, fees and a contract with a film studio. After all, he came to New York almost destitute. However, the idea of an actor’s career helped to overcome all difficulties. He even served in the National Guard - that’s why the role of general in The Fifth Element came to him like that.
He also worked without a salary as a cook for actress and teacher Stella Adler, and she helped him improve his acting skills.
Actor's career
In 1973, James moved to Los Angeles and began to go through endless auditions. Finally, in 1974, he managed to get a role on television - it was the Walton television series, and James starred in just one episode.
However, this was enough for other directors to notice an almost two-meter charming actor twenty-five years old. In 1974-1975, the actor played many episodic roles in paintings of various genres.
Gradually, he developed a certain role - he played mainly either a charismatic bandit or a nearby warrior.
In 1976, the actor got a small role in Walter Hill’s movie “Hard Times, ” where the great actor Charles Bronson played the main role. This is a picture of the Great Depression in the United States and how people tried to survive this cruel time.
Another notable film in the portfolio of James - the tape "Path to Glory." This is a biographical film about the protest singer Woodrow Wiloson Guthrie. The film received two Oscars, and this was the modest contribution of the young actor, which he was very happy about.
The peak of James' fame came in the seventies, eighties and nineties of the twentieth century. It happened that he starred in three or four films in the same year, and it was a huge load.
One of Brion's striking works is the role of Leon's replicant in Ridley Scott's film Blade Runner (1982). This is a fantastic picture about artificially created people who were just toys in the hands of earthlings. Once replicants rebelled against what they use and kill when they want, and began to flee from their colonies. It was difficult to distinguish them from people, so it was difficult to detect and detain. The main roles in the film, except for James, were played by Harrison Ford, Sean Young, Rutger Hauer, Edward James Olmos, Daryl Hannah.
The actor also starred in the films of Luc Besson, Andrei Konchalovsky and other famous directors. And, as a rule, after the first meeting, they invited him to their other projects.
