Shiner
Notes from Andy Serkis
Billy
"Shiner" Simpson (Michael Caine) is seeing his dreams come true. After
years of promoting unlicensed fights, he's finally going to present a
prestigious legal fight, and to top it all his son "Golden Boy" is in
the ring. This is the night of Billy's life. He needs extra protection,
much to the annoyance of his old minder, ex-bare-knuckles fighter Stoney
(Frank Harper). I play the new recruit, Mel, who doesn't fit in with the
crew as they might have hoped.
The big night turns sour, and recriminations are in order. Mel tops the list of suspects who could have betrayed Billy, and as Billy's state of mind rapidly deteriorates, he lashes out at all those around him.
Mel
is an annoying little terrier of a man. Ex-army (dishonorably
discharged), he has a huge problem being told what to do by anybody. He
also has a huge problem keeping a straight face - his uncontrollable
enjoyment of others' ill fortunes shows up as a permanent grin. He's
sadistic, vicious, and impulsive, and he's also about to become a dad.
This is what attracted me to the part. Scott Cherry's script always
remembers that gangsters are real people who have families and lives
that are ordinary and at times banal. The writer has provided an unusual
double-act in Mel and Stoney - the driving antagonism between them is
their lack of history - they just don't know each other at all and are
constantly vying for the upper hand. Their relationship is summed up by
dialogue in one scene where both of them refuse to open the door of
Billy's stretch limo. "I ain't got your style," says Mel. "I ain't got
your smile," replies Stoney.
Michael, Frank, and I spent every Sunday for ten weeks driving around London in a Jaguar. - Andy Serkis, December 2000
