THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 29, 1994 TAG: 9409290043
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 113 lines
BRENDAN FRASER is a big boy.
In fact, he is the hottest new young actor on the brink of stardom.
At 6 feet 2 inches, he might bemoan the fact that he will never be cast as Hamlet: Big guys never get to play the vulnerable roles. (Ask Charlton Heston and Boris Karloff).
Nonetheless, he has performed the unusual feat of becoming both a teen heart throb and the toast of the critics. It's not an easy double act to balance.
He's received rave reviews for everything from playing the teen cave guy in ``Encino Man'' to a Jewish football player who faces anti-semitism in ``School Ties.'' As a concerned college student in ``With Honors,'' he stole the film from veteran Joe Pesci and proved that being uptight can be dramatically interesting. Even in the flop ``Airheads,'' he scored a critical coup with his portrayal of a long-haired rock singer who invades a radio station in an effort to get his band heard.
Now, he's taking to the pitcher's mound in ``The Scout,'' the surprisingly off-centered drama-comedy opening Friday at local theaters. It's being advertised as a raucous comedy but may surprise viewers - it's actually a psychological study.
Fraser plays Steve Nebraska, a powerhouse pitcher and hitter who comes from nowhere to be branded ``the greatest natural player in the history of baseball.'' But there's something strange about him. He acts like a child. He fears the press and public but badly needs the attention of a father figure.
``I'm attracted to playing fish out of water,'' Fraser said as he contemplated the link among his roles.
``Most of them are kinda lost guys. I like those scripts. I was a geek in high school. Still am. My family moved a lot, and I was always the guy with his nose pushed up against the window, trying to get in. I guess that's why I can play these parts.''
Nonetheless, the hordes of teenage girls who mobbed the 25-year-old actor outside the New York City theater at the premiere of ``The Scout'' created such a scene that even the usually blase Times Square crowd stopped to see what was happening. Fraser merely looked embarrassed as he stopped to sign autographs.
``I thought this movie would just be a chance to get some fresh air and have some fun,'' he said the next morning. ``Plus it was a chance to go to Mexico. On my time off, I visited the pyramid ruins. At first, I wasn't so sold on this script. I didn't want to meddle with someone who needed psychological treatment but wasn't getting it. Then the script was changed. It isn't centered as much on Steve's psychological makeup.''
Albert Brooks, who wrote and starred in such critically acclaimed social satires as ``Lost in America,'' ``Modern Romance'' and ``Defending Your Life,'' also wrote and co-stars in this one.
``Brendan has no idea how funny he is,'' Brooks said at the premiere. ``He is a dramatic actor, but he's very droll. As a singer, well, as a singer, he's a good actor.''
Fraser laughed when asked if he had any real athletic ability. ``I am strong like a bull,'' he said, adding with a laugh, ``I've only played Little League baseball, and I was on the bench most of the time there. I had to learn to pitch for the part. I learned to throw the ball, but I have no control. Everyone got out of the way. They were in danger of getting beaned when I wound up.''
``Albert is like a snow plow,'' Fraser said. ``He plows right through the part. I'm his caboose man. We take no prisoners.''
Fraser's father was a travel-tour official in Canada. Some of his youth was spent in Amsterdam.
``From there, I traveled all over Europe. I got to learn a lot about the world at a young age. Finally, my family settled in Seattle. I consider Seattle my home,'' he said.
His family insisted he get a college degree. His major was acting. His first starring role was as a blue-collar kid wrongly imprisoned in the acclaimed TV movie ``Guilty Until Proven Innocent,'' opposite Martin Sheen. Teen stardom followed with the unlikely hit ``Encino Man.''
``I was glad to move on from that,'' he said. ``For a while, I thought I was stuck with that identity forever.''
In ``The Scout,'' the character of Steve Nebraska takes on aspects of Forrest Gump in his innocence and simplicity. There is a comedic, and yet quirky, scene in which Steve interrupts a Tony Bennett performance by singing, off-key, an imitation of Bennett.
``My mom met Tony Bennett in 1962, and she was thrilled when I called and told her he was in the movie,'' Fraser said. ``I felt as if I was blaspheming by trashing that song. I mean, Tony Bennett is a hep cat. He's a hit all over again now. But Steve actually thinks he can sing well, even though he's off-key. Steve loves to sing.''
The film is intriguing in that it leaves Steve's child-like exterior largely unexplained.
``I think it's better that way,'' Fraser said. ``Steve plays baseball simply because he's good at it, and it's the only thing he's good at. But he's traumatized in some way. There was abuse in his past. He can throw the ball 120 mph, but there's something troubling in his background.''
Fraser's just back from Germany, where he filmed ``The Passion of Darkly Noon,'' yet another of what he calls ``lost guy'' roles. He plays a misfit who falls in love with a woman, played by Ashley Judd, who can't quite accept him.
``I want to be careful about what I choose next,'' he said. ``I like contradictions, like the fact that `The Scout' isn't really a baseball movie at all.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
20TH CENTURY FOX
Brendan Fraser is a fireballing pitching prospect discovered by
Albert Brooks in ``The Scout,'' which opens Friday.
Photo
Brendan Fraser portrayed of a rock singer in ``Airheads.''
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