very seldom does an actor manage to encompass a role so entirely, to the point where you think that the director must be capturing sheer madness on film. nil by mouth, directed by gary oldman, is a gritty and intense chronicling, semi-autobiography if you will, of his early life in seedy east london. he enlisted winstone to portray ray, a violent alcoholic who dabbles in drugs and petty crime, and brings forth a performance of epic proportion. ray as ray is a mean brute, famously beating his wife (kathy burke) to the point where she miscarries their child, and for the rest of the picture, desperately tries to pursue her after the fact -- in an attempt to further control her or seek reconciliation? we aren't exactly sure -- regardless, he goes a little mad, as highlighted in numerous scenes where ray delivers rambling, non-sensical monologues as his wife and daughter have packed up and left. what is most chilling about winstone's role is the similarity his character shares with many real men of the time. violent, drunk, angry family men -- this is not only another performance, it is the performance.
greatest moment: see below
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