Eric Bana’s darkest hour

MANILA, Philippines - Eric Bana (photo) was first introduced to American audiences in the title role of Mark “Chopper” Read in the feature film Chopper, which premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival and was then released in the US to critical notice after its Australian success. Bana earned awards from the Film Critics Circle of Australia and the Australian Film Institute for his portrayal of Chopper.

Bana was seen co-starring in Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down as Delta Sergeant First Class Norm “Hoot” Gibson, one of a group of elite US soldiers, opposite Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor and Tom Sizemore.

Shortly thereafter, Bana starred as the title role of Bruce Banner in Hulk for director Ang Lee and Universal Pictures, based on the Marvel Comics character. He was also featured as Hector the Prince of Troy in Warner Bros.’ Troy. The following year, he starred in Steven Spielberg’s critically-acclaimed Munich, about the aftermath of the 1972 Munich Olympics. Deadfall marks one of Bana’s darkest roles in recent memory.

In the film, he plays Addison, a heist man who just robbed a casino with his sister (played by Olivia Wilde) near the Canadian border. But when their car is totalled in a blizzard, the two are forced to split up, leading Addison on a murderous rampage as he tries to make the border.

The role required an actor that could paint in shades of grey, who could bring a subtle approach to a mercurial, brutal character. “We were aware that we needed a brilliant actor,” says director Ruzowitzky, “to show these many layers that are in that character, that it’s not a one layer thing, that it’s all on one tone, but all these different sides we see of him.”

Fortunately, Bana read the script and immediately took to the challenge: “Initially, my agent thought I was going to be interested in playing Jay more than Addison, but it was Addison that drew me in,” explains Bana. “This is a very dangerous character and I was immediately drawn to the complexities of playing him.”

Now showing nationwide, Deadfall is released and distributed by Crystalsky Multimedia.