Michael Josh Douglas, better known to by his stage name of Michael Keaton, has been acting in film for almost 30 years. At this point he has starred as everything from a drug addict to a snowman. The high energy performer recently celebrated his 60th birthday, which makes it a perfect occasion to take a look back at his finest moments on the big screen.
"Mr. Mom"
Following his breakout performance in "Night Shift" Keaton took on this gender role reversal comedy with great enthusiasm. He plays Jack Butler, a laid off engineer turned stay at home dad. With his life flipped upside down Jack realizes to his horror that he can barely even use the vacuum cleaner. The performance mixes stress with a sincere desire to do right by his family and the results are wonderful. Keaton would tap into aspects of this performance again when he did "Multiplicity" some years later.
Up to this point Keaton's manic energy had been channeled into comedic roles, but here is where he showed his dramatic chops. Here he plays a real estate broker who is too deeply hampered by a cocaine addiction to even recognize that he has a problem. He finds himself at a rehab clinic because he has nowhere else to go, but it forces him to open his eyes to what has happened to his life. Keaton brought his usual high energy when he is on cocaine but also showed impressive dramatic abilities as the character started to sober up. This was the first role to really bring to light the depths that Keaton is capable of as an actor
Despite having the least screen time of any major character in the film, Keaton completely owns this bizarre flick. As the titular "ghost with the most" his usual manic energy is ramped up to the max and he is completely let loose. Improvising most of his dialogue Keaton creates a character that is simultaneously repulsive and endlessly watchable. Beetlejuice is never endearing but it's impossible not to love him all the same. There was word of a sequel for years but it never materialized.
"Batman"
When Keaton was first cast in this role there was fan outrage because nobody thought he could do it. Critics were quickly silenced when they saw the film. Though somewhat overshadowed by Jack Nicholson's Joker, Keaton was able to convey a great deal of inner pain without words, even when under the mask. This version of Batman was very tightly wound, quietly seething below the surface but rarely letting that show. It was a quietly intense take on the character that is more layered and nuanced than Keaton is usually given credit for.
In more recent years Keaton has been lying low, taking supporting roles in family films for the most part. However he nearly stole the show with his voice work for Ken in this film. From his very first appearance Ken brings wonderful humor to the often dark overtones of the film. Keaton captures the character's self centeredness and love of fashion wonderfully, making him easily the best new character in the film and even outshining some of the series regulars. Keaton will continue to give Ken his hilarious voice in a series of short films that Pixar is producing starring him and Barbie.
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