One of the most accomplished actors in Hollywood, Christian Bale is known to most of us from his role in the Batman trilogy, but this actor is far more than one single role. He has been a part of more than 50 movies, and his career is nowhere near stopping. We’ve all heard about his greatest achievements, but what do you know about his less popular roles? In this article, we are going to talk about some of Bale’s most underrated performances, and his overall acting skills.
1. Reign of Fire
In Reign of Fire, released on the 12th of July 2002 and directed by Rob Bowmann, settled in a not that far future, people discover a nest of hibernation dragon that threatens to eliminate humanity. Christian Bale plays a character called Quinn Abercromby, who is a leader of the survivors and alongside his friend, Creedy (Gerard Butler), does anything he can to defeat the dragons and ensure the existence of humanity. This movie may not go well at the box office, but Christian Bale’s performance was nothing but exemplary when it comes to dedication to acting.
2. Shaft
In Shaft released on the 16th of June 2000 and directed by John Singleton, Christian Bale plays a villain who is under investigation by the legendary NYPD Detective Shaft (played by Samuel L. Jackson). Besides the fact that the movie made more than 100 million dollars at the box office, still, the audience was not too happy about the plot of the movie. Even acting beside one of the greatest actors of all time Samuel L. Jackson, Christian Bale’s performances were absolutely astonishing, giving us the thrill and excitement we are searching for.
3. Hostiles
This piece premiered in 2017, and it is considered to be one of the best western movies that came out in the last decade. Bale portrays the role of Capt. Joseph J. Blocker and this is said to be one of his greatest performances.
The film is directed by the recognized Scott J Cooper who was also a part of creating the script. It is a captivating story about the late 1800s and what people are willing to do to make wrong things right. Bale’s performance here is more than exemplary, and through this character, you are going to feel emotions you never knew you had.
4. Public Enemies
In Public Enemies released on July 1, 2009, and directed by Michael Mann, Christian Bale plays FBI Special Agent Melvin Purvis who is tracking one of the most notorious criminals that lived in the USA, John Dillinger, played by Johnny Depp. Even the movie that not went too in the eyes of the audience, with castmates like Depp, Stephen Lang, Marion Cotillard, and Stephen Dorf, Christian Bale once again showed why he is one of the best actors in the world. His performance was spot-on and he showed that he won’t be outshined even by people who have so much more experience than him.
All of these pieces are worth watching, so when you should definitely give them a chance the next time you are looking for a great film to watch.
