Tag Archives: Lincoln

Men of Action: Daniel Day-Lewis Makes Oscar History With Third Best Actor Win

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First came the Golden Globe. Then came the SAG awards. Then the BAFTA. And now Daniel Day-Lewis has made cinema history by being the only man to win three Best Leading Man Oscars.

Daniel Day-Lewis accepts his third Best Actor Academy Award making Oscar history (Image by Disney ABC Television Group, via Flickr Creative Commons)

Daniel Day-Lewis accepts his third Best Actor Academy Award making Oscar history (Image by Disney ABC Television Group, via Flickr Creative Commons)

At the Academy Awards last night, he echoed the success he’s seen during this year’s awards season:

‘I really don’t know how any of this happened. I do know that I’ve received so much more than my fair share of good fortune in my life and I’m so grateful to the Academy for this beautiful honour’

Courage
We think we have an idea how this happened. He’s been acting since the age of 14 has come to every role with a hugh level of respect and ambition for what may lay a head. When he accepted the role of Abraham Lincoln he found it had a ‘paralysing quality’ to it and the prospect of portraying one of the great American heroes was daunting. He initially declined the role, but his courageous spirit won out and he soon set to work researching the American President.

Commitment
Daniel Daniel-Lewis is infamous for the intensity he brings to his roles. His method acting has lead to him learning to build canoes and hunt for The Last of the Mohicans, studying as a butcher for Gangs of New York and visiting disabled people at Dublin’s Sandymount School Clinic for his role in My Left Foot, for which he won his first Academy award. While visiting Sandymount he built strong relationships with those at the clinic.

However, this intensity hasn’t diminished his charm. In all his acceptance speeches this year he has displayed a humble gratitude and respect for all his colleagues. When accepting the Oscar for Lincoln, he paid tribute to the ‘mysteriously beautiful mind, body and spirit of Abraham Lincoln’

Flight
Daniel Day-Lewis has always been ambitious and horizons ever widening. When he was younger he was enthralled by Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, with lit a fire in him to explore American stories:

‘I just kept going back – I didn’t know America, but that was a glimpse of what America might be, and I realised that, contrary to expectation, I wanted to tell American stories’

By bringing to life one of the country’s greatest leaders he has certainly achieved this. No force seems to be able to quell Day-Lewis’ ambition and has made a significant impact on a culture he admires and loves. Just like a true Wild Geese.

 

Men of Action: Daniel Day-Lewis Delivers Speech of a Lifetime at BAFTAs

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‘And the BAFTA goes to…’ read Sarah Jessica Parker. And we waited.

Seconds later Daniel Day-Lewis has risen to the stage and in front of an admiring audience  delivered one of the more amusing, yet still humbling acceptance speeches of the night. For those of you who missed it, the Oscar hopeful made the speech of a lifetime, referencing his famous method acting, while gently making fun:

‘Just on the chance I might one day have to speak on an evening such as this I’ve actually stayed in character as myself for the last 55 years and had a various selection of Bafta sets downscaled, dating from the late fifties, placed in every single room of every house I’ve ever lived in and every time I rise from a chair it spontaneously unleashes a soundtrack of thunderous applause, with a few boos and drunken hecklers’

But there were no boos. Joking aside, his commitment to a character clearly works. Once again, his ability to bring a story to life has been recognised by the industry. Last month he picked up the Golden Globe and SAG awards for the same role. He’s now added his fourth BAFTA to that growing list, thanking Steven Spielberg for his time working on Lincoln and wishing they were ‘still on the expedition together’. Just one more step towards the Academy awards.

George Clooney at Toronto Film Festival 2008 (Photo by Josh Jensen via Flickr)

George Clooney at Toronto Film Festival 2008 (Photo by Josh Jensen via Flickr)

Another very nice surprise of the evening was when another of today’s Wild Geese turned up. The always dashing George Clooney attended in his producer role on Argo which was awarded Best Film. Sporting a healthy beard, we’re betting guys from London to LA will be growing facial hair to match his style.

Clooney has done some monumental work behind the camera in the past few years, so it was incredibly gratifying to see him pick up the BAFTA for Best Film with director Ben Afflect and co-producer Grant Heslov.

In his acceptance speech Clooney had nothing but praise for his director:

‘You’re smart and you know what you want but more important, you love what you’re doing’

 

 

Men of Action: Daniel Day-Lewis Hot Favourite for BAFTAs

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The movies awards season is heating up, as the best of the best gather in London this Sunday for the annual BAFTA awards. As one of the final stops on the road to the Academy Awards, its a big deal to be recognised at the BAFTAs, which attract attention from all over the world.

Daniel Day-Lewis in 2008 (Photo by chloe004, via Flickr Creative Commons)

Photo by chloe004, via Flickr Creative Commons

Amongst the glitz and glamour, the bookmakers have named Daniel Day-Lewis favourite to win the Best Actor Award for Lincoln, following his success at the Golden Globes in January. Being recognised in this category is special for any actor and this is Day-Lewis’ sixth nomination. Victory on Sunday would be his forth BAFTA win.

Daniel Day-Lewis is one of today’s Wild Geese. His father is of Irish descent and in 1993 Day-Lewis returned to Ireland, moving to Wicklow, where he has been able to centre himself:

‘I’ve always felt, more than any other place that I’ve been, that Wicklow is in harmony, complete harmony, with the demands that life has made’

He has realised Patrick Sarsfield’s dream of one day returning to Ireland. We celebrate this.

Daniel Day-Lewis’ success overseas and return to Ireland is a modern day telling of the story of The Wild Geese. Its what our brand celebrates. We’re looking forward to seeing the results this Sunday!

Men of Action: ‘An Experience that I’ll Treasure’, Daniel Day-Lewis On The Path To Oscar Glory (Again!)

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Photo by chloe004, via Flickr (Creative Commons)

The awards season is well and truly underway, with the annual Golden Globes taking place this past Sunday in Beverley Hills, California.

The Golden Globes are a celebration of some of the movie industry’s top talent and this year was no exception. One performer at the forefront of awards conversations this year has been Daniel Day-Lewis, who left the Golden Globes with the award for Best Actor (Drama).

Day-Lewis’ performance in Steve Spielberg’s latest biopic ‘Lincoln’, sees him play the renowned 16th president of the United States and has been thrilling audiences and critics alike over the in US.

As he accepted the Golden Globe (his 7th nomination at the awards) he thanked Spielberg for ‘an experience that I’ll treasure until the end of my life’.

Widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest actors, Day-Lewis is a true example of what we can achieve with the right level of determination. He currently lives in Co. Wicklow, Ireland and like The Wild Geese, has experienced the majority of his success overseas, and awards like the Globes are testament to how far he has come.

Some see the Globes as an indicator to the Oscar results. Although this wasn’t the case last year for George Clooney, the last time Daniel Day-Lewis won a Golden Globe was for his role in ‘There Will Be Blood’ in January 2007. We all know what happened a few weeks later at the Oscars, so we could soon see this great actor win his third.