There doesn?t seem to be much that Tom Hardy, whom Esquire proclaimed as ?the greatest actor of his generation,? can?t do. His madcap antics as ?Britain?s most notorious prisoner? in Bronson; the deliciously dapper identity forger in Inception; a tortured pugilist in the underrated Cain and Abel saga Warrior; that campy, unforgettable turn as anarchic supervillain Bane. In Locke, he spent the entire film trapped in a car on a three-way conference call, and is nothing short of riveting. The claim that he?s this generation?s greatest actor is, well, up for debate. The claim that he?s this generation?s most daring actor is not.
In his latest film, Brian Helgeland?s Legend, Hardy says he ?tested a new muscle? by portraying a pair of twin brothers, bisexual British gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kray, who, with their gang The Firm, terrorized East London during the ?50s and ?60s, committing a laundry list of crimes ranging from armed robberies and drug trafficking to rape and murder. Hardy completely transforms into these two disparate lunatics, delivering not one, but two of the most compelling performances of the year.
