Skin Like Toilet-Seat Porcelain

Blogger was being "difficult" this morning and trashed my already-written post on Young Adult Fantasy Literature, so I'll tide everyone (meaning me) over by having some fun with a strange appreciation for the way Daniel Radcliffe takes pictures (or rather has pictures taken of himself). But first! Release Dates of the next 2 movies!

Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix: July 13, 2007; Directed by David Yates

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: November 21, 2008; To be directed by Michael Hoffman (a woman, please! grrr.)

I also feel the need to tell anyone who doesn't know that he's portraying Alan Strang in a Spring 2007 West-End production of Equus, which for those of you who aren't familiar means that he will be appearing in his birthday suit on-stage. Not bad for a Potter kid who was discovered for that role (which wasn't his first on-screen) while he and his parents were attending a theatre production when he was 11.

I must admit to getting this "old soul" vibe to all the photos. Yes, he's faux-jamming on a guitar, but he's staring at the camera with an "I know something you don't" look. Also, I wonder how "Elijah Wood" he is--not that I'm admitting to thinking Elijah Wood has an "old soul" by any means.

Methinks Tyra might crown him America's Next Top-British-Born Male Model under 18. I can just think of the critique she'd give of each picture: natural, honest, etc. . . Okay, so I'm not so eloquent when it comes to analyzing the way someone takes a good picture, but I can say that this kid makes doing just about anything look good: rehearsed, yet casual (a phrase much akin to "funny, yet serious"). And man am I ever glad he got to work with Alfonso Cuaron. Thank goodness for turning points in acting careers.

This is best illustrated in the following series of pictures (from unforgivablecurse.net). You can see that Daniel is "casually" acting out the atmostphere surrounding the "task" of spraypainting the wall, but he's also completely posed. A good comparison can be made by looking at Rupert Grint and Emma Watson on the right side of the pictures. Watson might be the most "unnatural" (which makes sense considering she's the Potter kid least interested in sticking around in the acting world after she signs on for the last film--which is still up in the air). Grint is a bit one-note, but I really do think that's the only face he can make.

What can I say, Radcliffe knows how to work a camera. . .

PS Daniel on Rick Gervais's Extras.