Jack Nance makes bewilderment painfully easy to recognise. We value the precision of his deadpan acting most in Eraserhead, where he gives David Lynch’s bodily horror a frightened, vulnerable person to care about.
Fi1m perspective
In Eraserhead (1977), Jack Nance’s Henry Spencer takes small, restricted steps in a tight dark suit. His expression scarcely changes, yet his distress is clear even when what happens around him is not. There is something of the silent-film comedian in the way he walks, though the joke seldom offers much relief. Nance makes the ordinary business of becoming a parent look almost beyond endurance. We rate the performance so highly because Henry remains someone to worry about, however difficult the film becomes to watch.
We were horrified by the baby in Eraserhead, then ashamed of recoiling from something helpless. The need to care for it persists even when affection is difficult, and Nance lets us see what that demand costs Henry. He does not have to explain the baby, or any of the film’s other strange sights, to make that responsibility feel real. The sustained bleakness can become tiring; even such a sympathetic performance cannot make it an easy watch.
The career after that lead was largely a succession of smaller parts, many for Lynch: Dune (1984), Blue Velvet (1986) and Wild at Heart (1990). There was work elsewhere, including Barfly (1987) and The Hot Spot (1990), but Lynch remained the director who made the clearest use of his oddness. In Twin Peaks (1990–1991), his fish-loving mill worker Pete Martell gives that deadpan manner more room for humour. The Texas drawl and careful timing make an eccentric line sound like something a person would actually say. His comedy works because he does not seem to be asking for a laugh.
In Lost Highway (1997), where he plays Phil, he is a small part of a film whose main performances belong to Bill Pullman and Patricia Arquette. It is an unsettling noir thriller worth watching, though its slower passages can test patience without deepening the mystery. It is not the place to start if Nance is the reason for watching. Start with Eraserhead, unless bodily horror is likely to end the evening early.
Biography
Jack Nance (born Marvin John Nance) was an American actor known for his collaborations with director David Lynch. He appeared in Lynch's Eraserhead (1977) as Henry Spencer, Dune (1984) as Nefud, Blue Velvet (1986) as Paul, Wild at Heart (1990) as 00 Spool, the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991) as Pete Martell, and Lost Highway (1997) as Phil. His role in the latter was released posthumously.
Nance was born on 21 December 1943 in Boston, Massachusetts, and died on 30 December 1996 in South Pasadena, California. He also had roles in films including Barfly (1987), Colors (1988) and The Blob (1988).
