Being There

My introduction to the genius of Peter Sellers of course occurred while watching one of the Pink Panther films from the 1970s. It wasn’t until later that I discovered more of his earlier work from the 1960s (the original Pink Panther film as well as The Party). I only heard of Being There because he was nominated for an Oscar for his performance. Over the years, I tried to see the film on TV but missed it several times and it wasn’t until the craze of VHS rentals hit that I eventually got to see it.

Peter Sellers is so subtle here that he stands out like a raving naked man in the middle of the street. I am of the school of a ‘less is more’ performance and you’ll find that I admire and prefer acting performances like these against over-the-top performances. There is so much more to a slight turn of the head, a widening of the eyes, a twitch of the fingers or silence. The tightly coiled, hidden emotion is more powerful than full blown rage. That type of acting, though effective and attractive to today’s audiences, is easy. Truly talented actors are those that use the power of subtly. Peter Sellers’ performance was one of these.

When a powerful businessman takes Chauncey’s simple one-word utterances out of context and into deep economic and political meaning, the film is truly right on the mark on making a statement about the state of economics and politics.