James Mason could make a courteous voice sound dangerous without raising it. We rate him most highly when that composure lets us sense the flawed man underneath, though his presence is no guarantee of a good film.
Fi1m perspective
In North by Northwest (1959), James Mason makes Phillip Vandamm's measured delivery feel more dangerous than shouting. We were unsettled by how little he seemed to need to insist: the calm suggested that he expected to be obeyed. His resonant voice can be pleasurable to listen to even while the character gives us reason for concern. He makes us listen closely to men we have good reason to distrust.
The early British stardom came through Gainsborough melodramas, with the brooding Lord Rohan of The Man in Grey (1943) an important breakthrough. His performance as Johnny McQueen in Carol Reed's Odd Man Out (1947) showed how much complication he could bring to a dramatic lead. The move to Hollywood in the late 1940s brought a different sort of leading man in Norman Maine, the declining actor of A Star Is Born (1954). The sensitive support he provides there is a useful corrective to the idea that his chief business was being an elegant villain.
Lolita (1962), directed by Stanley Kubrick, put that ability to complicate an unsympathetic man to work in Humbert Humbert. From the 1960s, Mason worked increasingly in character parts in Britain and the United States, with the ruthless lawyer Ed Concannon in The Verdict (1982) a late example of his authority. His willingness to take on so much work also left him in undistinguished films. We would not recommend following the credits indiscriminately; a distinctive voice can hold our attention for longer than a weak film deserves.
Return to North by Northwest and the value of a director who knows how to use him becomes clear. Alfred Hitchcock gives Mason's restraint room alongside Cary Grant's comic panic and Eva Marie Saint's poise as Eve Kendall. Grant can make panic funny; Mason's calm gives that panic a sound reason to exist. Vandamm helps keep the danger credible when the plotting asks for indulgence, without abandoning the manners that make the film so enjoyable. Start here for Mason, provided a few liberties with the plotting will not spoil the evening.
Biography
James Mason (1909–1984) was an English actor. He appeared in more than 100 films across a career spanning over 50 years in Britain and the United States.
Mason began as a stage actor in London's West End. He made his film debut in 1935 and rose to prominence in British cinema in the 1940s with leading roles in films including The Seventh Veil (1945) and Odd Man Out (1947).
After moving to Hollywood, he appeared in A Star Is Born (1954), North by Northwest (1959) as Phillip Vandamm, Lolita (1962), The Boys from Brazil (1978) and The Verdict (1982). He received three Academy Award nominations.
