http://www.aolcdn.com/tmz_audio/020209_christianbale.mp3

I forgot to mention that you should listen until close to the end... it's starts to get better after he basically starts swinging punches at the dude.

The media make too big of a deal about this.

He is shooting a film. That means hard work, concentration, long hours, etc. Bale is a committed actor - just look at the weight he lost for his role in The Machinist. He obviously takes is seriously and gets into character. It must be very frustrating to have someone distracting you when you are trying to perform, and when you combine that with the likelihood that he was having a hard day, it doesn't seem too bad to me.

I am not saying it's an acceptable way to behave, just that I won't judge him based on it because I don't know the full story and everyone gets mad sometimes, it just doesn't always get recorded and publicised.

I'm ok with basically everything up until he goes after him to fight. That's a little stupid.

I didn't hear/see anything about an actual fight. I heard threats, but haven't seen any proof that it amounted to physical violence.

All I heard was "fuck" a million times

It's hard to pinpoint because my quicktime player doesn't have time markers, but at about 65-70% of the way through, he says, "I'm gonna kick your f-ing ass" and is clearly running towards him, as his breathing changes. There is also a ton of commotion in the background as I'm sure people are coming in to prevent a melee.

I honestly don't care either way, it's just interesting.

I don't know, it sounds pretty bad. It's hard for me to imagine a situation leading to this kind of tirade that doesn't involve a chronic anger problem on his part.

Also, he was arrested recently for allegedly assaulting his mother and sister.

An associate producer for the forthcoming Terminator Salvation movie has defended Christian Bale's alleged on-set rant, insisting the actor was a "consummate professional" during filming. A man said to be actor Bale can be heard angrily screaming and using profanity at the movie's director of photography, Shane Hurlbut, for distracting him during shooting by walking into his field of vision.

In the four-minute tirade, Bale reportedly shouts: "I'm trying to do a f**king scene here and I'm going, 'Why the f**k is Shane walking in there? What's he doing there?' Do you understand my mind is not in the scene if you're doing that?"

The man later promises to "kick his f**king ass" before threatening to quit the film unless Hurlbut was fired.

But Bruce Franklin, an assistant director and associate producer on the fourth Terminator film, insists the star was only upset for a short period of time before his "moment" passed.

Franklin tells E! Online, "If you are working in a very intense scene and someone takes you out of your groove... It was the most emotional scene in the movie. And for him to get stopped in the middle of it - he is very intensely involved in his character. He didn't walk around like that all day long. It was just a moment and it passed."

And Franklin is adamant the rant has only been released to slander Bale, who he worked with on the 2000 movie Shaft: "This was my second movie with Christian, and it has always been a good experience with him. He is so dedicated to the craft. I think someone is begging to make some noise (controversy) about this, but I don't think it's fair. The art of acting is not paint by numbers, it's an art form."

The audio clip, allegedly recorded in July 2008, was obtained by TMZ.com, which claims the film's executives sent the tape to their insurance company in case Bale didn't finish filming the movie.

The 35-year-old actor was arrested in July in London - just days after the recording was said to be taken - over accusations he attacked his mother and sister at the city's Dorchester Hotel before the British premiere of The Dark Knight.

Remix. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTihsJQHt48

Bale is badass.

This just makes me like him more...

is the fucking man.

/thread

I disagree completely. I don't think you ever treat people beneath you like that, ever. It's abusive. I hate this sort of bully mentality, that allows you to abuse people under you, who can either eat sht and take it, or lose their job. And he's a fcking actor. He's batman. Get the fck over yourself.

I think the only thing that would have made this better would be hearing a chainsaw starting in the background, a la American Psycho.

Didn't you see the ESPN clip of Chris Berman flipping out on a guy for doing the same thing basically.

yeah.. I mean, I think it's funny to watch, but I think berman's an ahole for doing it

So its not just DDL you just don't empathise with method actors

I was just pointing out that this seems fairly common in this line of work.

Now we're getting somewhere.

...and some Phil Collins.

I'm not sure what being a method actor has anything to do with it. He wasn't staying in character when he yelled at that photography director. I have a problem with actors who live in a bubble of privilege allowing them to treat their underlings like shit.

I have to admit, I laughed when somebody apparently suggests that Bale take a walk to calm down before continuing and he says, "No, I don't need any fucking walking! He needs to STOP walking, I aint the one walking!"

lol that was golden.

The guy definitely went off the deep end but sometimes people need to get there buttholes munched out for screwing up. the director is obviously a complete p*ssy, so I guess he had to do it. **** em, he should get fired, world needs plenty of bar tenders.

Yeah, probably an a-hole, but I still like his movies.

guess I need to start screwing up more often.

No they don't. You can talk to them like a mature adult, instead of an unprofessional child. No one, out side of a war zone, need to be talked to like that. If that man was Bale's Co-star or it was the director or some other equal, bale would never have talked to him like that. He abused someone lower than him, because he could, end of story.



And I still do like bale, and still will watch his movies, but the guy is a douche.

I think this is a pretty patronising view to take. You instantly assume that the director of photography is an "underling". It's actually a very important and skilled position that takes decades of experience to hone. I don't consider that position to be inferior to that of an actor, I think they are equals and I doubt that Christian Bale goes around acting like he is top of the pile either. When you work on a film, everyone is essential. Great acting alone doesn't make for a great movie. As an experienced director of photography, the guy in question should have know not to get in the way like that, and it was his fault. That is why Bale was so angry - this wasn't some random intern or newbie, it was an experienced guy who ought to know how to behave professionally on a set - and that means keeping out of the way during shooting.

LG, did you listen to the tape?

It's quite clear that Bale thinks the DP is beneath him. He basically says he won't go on unless this guy is fired. Sure the DP made a mistake but Bale's reaction was entirely disproportionate, unproductive and out of control, as well as full of arrogance.

I like Bale a lot. He makes every single frame he is in better. He's been a quality actor since he was in that Spielberg movie when he was 10 years old. Yes, he lost it and had an embarassing meltdown at the photo director's expense, but I really don't think the director should have been walking where he was at the time.

At the same time, I think TMZ are a bunch of cunts. Period. TMZ is a huge joke and they are the most extreme version of the paparazzi parasite. They released this clip with little or no context, for example. I hope the entire TMZ staff gets immolated in a nuclear accident.

I listened to the entire tape.

I don't think that is clear. It is not unheard of for actors to disagree with senior crew members. There have been actors that clash with the director of their film, with the producer, etc. Not wanting to work with someone because they disrupted your performance is not necessarily indicative of a superiority complex. You are making assumptions.

I think it is understandable to be angry when you are disrupted whilst method acting. It takes a lot of concentration to get into character, and it is the duty of the crew to be unobtrusive in order to create an environment where the actors are able to flourish. The DP was at fault, and though Bale reacted strongly I don't think it is as big a deal as so many people are treating it.

someone's gonna blow up al...wait that's not right...

rupaul is coming out with an album? that's the biggest news here I think.

Okay, that's a nice and hippy view of a film. But I'll tell you what.. if the DP want's bale fired, and bale wants the DP fired, guess who's going to get fired. If the DP talked to Bale like that, he'd be out of there. That means, they are not equals.

It's one thing to disagree with the crew. It's another to try and get someone fired, to threaten to smashing lights or assault the guy (he was reportedly held back by other crew members).

It's the level of anger that is at issue here, not the fact that he was angry. It's not the first time this guy's temper has gotten him in trouble.

Actually he said if he does this again, he won't continue unless he is fired. He also said this is not the first time the guy has done it.

And

It's really funny to listen to.

oh, you mean, when he got arrested for assaulting his mother?

http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2008/07/..._came_afte.html

Would've been better if he used his Batman voice.

I don't think that's nearly as bad as some people are making it out to be. You also can't hear what the other guy is saying but when Bale is venting and says something about it not being the first time it seems as though the guy says something regarding Bale being really good in the scene and Bale says "what's that...well that's ****ing great cus it can't be used now". If that's the case the guy was being an asshat. Evidently he'd walked into scene more then once, he should've said sorry and walked away to defuse the situation.

He doesn't sound out of control angry to me just a dude who's pissed at the situation and venting. The situation with his family was completely different and was dropped.

I agree with everythin BigD said. Yeah the DOP is high up in the 'order' - prolly 3rd to Director and Producer, but Bale wouldn't have gone off like that at the other 2. You can live without a DOP (half of V for Vendetta was shot w/o one as he was fired - it can be fixed in post production without too much hassel, same doesn't apply to a lead actor) I reckon he may have even said fu*k or whatever to the director in the moment, but he knows which side his bread is buttered on, he would've bitten his tongue after that. He was just being a cunt

You have no idea of what its like on a set. Do you think its a laid back place where people are cool with each other? Do you know about the film business? Its a place where people and companies are makeing hundreds of millions of dollars. Shit like this probably happens 50 times a day somewhere in Hollywood. Some stupid f*ck DP, has no business, absolutely not one iota, screwing with the million dollar man's work. You could fire him and 100 more like him, but there aint that many Christian Bale's out there. I realize your point is about how people treat others, but its big business before its anything else, and that guy is in a very high state of awareness when he's trying to act a tough scene, just look at the whole Michael Richards fiasco, similar outburst.

How is michael richards dropping racial slurs on a heckler anything like this?

I work on films, same 100mirrion $ business - i've yet to see anyone even raise their voice yet to someone else. Bale still wouldn't go off at the Director like that and that's the point.

There's a clip in The Rock extras where it shows the guy who plays Hummel going off at someone for disturbing him, you can see that he's still in character when he's doing it, but he doesn't go off on a 4minute dialogue/paddy at the guy. I love it how Bale's talking about professionism whilst he's throwing his toys outta the pram - fwiw I think the DOP was being stupid, but there are ways of handling stuff

I'm not anti-Bale at all, he's my favourite actor - I think he's the DeNiro of a new era and the best actor to come to the fore in a long time.

Clearly the only solution here is to call in our very own filmset expert, star of the silver screen HOLLYWOODAFD! He has the most experience working on films of any of us (that I know of) and can tell us his opinion on the matter.

Of course, if it contradicts with my view then I will disregard it.

That's all I'm saying. Bale has a lot of gall to talk about professionalism, when he acts like that.


I was listening to Dan Lebatard talk about this issue, and he said something interesting. Something long the line of " some people say that your true character is revealed when you're destitute, when you're down and out. I don't think that's true. I think your true character is revealed when you're given power. How you treat people when you have power overthem reveals the type of person you are. " And I think Bale has revealed himself to be a cunt.

We have all lost it at some point in our lives and said things we didn't fully mean and done things we regret. I think what the real question here is, what happened after the smoke cleared? When he calmed down, did he go up calmly and apologize but reiterate why he was so upset, if so I don't have a problem with it.

Since I successfully lobbied for full hiring and firing authority at my cardroom, I have fired one dealer a week, every single week, at least 90% of them without cause. Because: what good is power if you can't bandy it about willy-nilly? What good is authority if you can't exercise it with arbitrary, reckless abandon? Answer: none. None good at all.

My subordinates both fear (I will fire them if either of us gets a bad haircut) and love (I will provide them with snacks at random intervals, at no cost to them) me. Some are attracted to me sexually (because I wear a suit -- meaning I must have money -- and because I have real power -- which means I must have a pants-cannon). Some imagine me as the father they never had (Daddy was a drunk, probably, which is ironic in my case). But all are my enemy, something I remember whether my claws are in (snacks) or out (mass layoffs that set production back severely).

Christian Bale's sin is that he lost control of his emotions. He should have smiled and said something self-effacing, and later, when the lights are out and there are no cameras or judgment, let his white-hot, smelting anger smolder and cool, to icy rage and a steely resolve for revenge.

Nobody crosses me, because I do not believe in the notion of "the proportionate response." All damages are repaid 10 fold. All pain is revisited in spades. I am the end, the death of hope.


But hey, so when does the new Terminator movie come out? The third one kinda sucked...

I think the guy who he is yelling at is running his mouth also, but we can't hear him. Bale yells at him to shutup a bunch so I assume the guy is jawing back and forth with him.

(edit) Irishguy also mentions this in his post

You know, I just don't agree. First off, he has a history of having a violent temper (see the incident with his mother) second off, I think apologies mean fck all. People say sorry all the time, and don't mean it at all. This issue is his behavior, not if he feels contrition about his behavior hours later.




LOL at your post in general. As a matter of management style, I think this style is both more professional, and more personally satisfying. Bale's actions are that of a spoiled child, not of a Machiavellian prince.

I am pretty easy going. If someone blows up at me in a high pressure situation, I will take it, expecting an apology later. I have not read the stuff about his mother so I am not taking that into count with my thoughts. I can't really explain it, except that I personally will allow people to express their emotions in the heat of the moment without too much judgment if it does not hurt anyone. (I think the fact he needed to be restrained is an issue).

EDIT: I wanted to write something long winded but it would be pointless and I don't really have the mental acuity at the moment to word it properly.