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While reading this interview with Christoph Waltz about his his portrayal of Nazi Colonel Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, I felt echoes of Walter Koenig's portrayal of Alfred Bester.
Christoph Waltz Discusses Quentin Tarantino's 'Inglourious Basterds'
By Rebecca Murray, About.com
Christoph Waltz Discusses Quentin Tarantino's 'Inglourious Basterds'
By Rebecca Murray, About.com
... Perhaps one of the most frightening aspects of Waltz' character Hans Landa is that he does evil while outwardly expressing friendliness. "Well, that's a very interesting element, along those lines. Why would evil and friendliness contradict each other? Not at all. Why would evil and a sense of humor contradict each other? Not at all. We just like to see it that way because it makes it easier for us to recognize. So, you know, easy storytelling, easy characterization, cliche stereotypical so that we know exactly the guy with the black hat is the bad guy and the guy with the beige hat is the good guy. Happens so that the guy with the beige hat has a brown horse and the guy with the black hat has a black horse, so now we don't even have to think because we know exactly what's happening. Everything can develop according to our expectations," explained Waltz. "Well, not really in the real world."
"What makes evil evil? Not the raving beast. The raving beast is not evil. The raving beast is ridiculous. The friendly and accommodating and charming and solicitous person who then uses this what he has established trust, for example, or amicability, for a different outcome, and then the outcome might be... So how does one or how do I approach an evil character like that? By discarding the fact that it's evil, by not judging. It's difficult, especially in this context, you know, because this is probably the most evil period of human history." ...
"What makes evil evil? Not the raving beast. The raving beast is not evil. The raving beast is ridiculous. The friendly and accommodating and charming and solicitous person who then uses this what he has established trust, for example, or amicability, for a different outcome, and then the outcome might be... So how does one or how do I approach an evil character like that? By discarding the fact that it's evil, by not judging. It's difficult, especially in this context, you know, because this is probably the most evil period of human history." ...
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