Anne Heche ruined this movie
-
Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Donnie Brasco
Senor_Frickin_Braggis — 11 years ago(March 11, 2015 06:34 PM)
You have a fully loaded cast for a great gangster flick. Depp, Pacino, Paul Giamatti, Michael Madsen as a vicious mobster, etc. and then you have Anne Heche. She had less than zero chemistry with Depp, looked lost in her part and her accent was terrible.
I know she was inexplicably popular (again for reasons beyond me) but a better actress who had actual chemisty with Depp was needed to show why he was torn between the gangster life and his family. -
CincyDude — 11 years ago(March 23, 2015 09:27 PM)
She was popular at the time or, rather, well known because of her relationship with Ellen Degeneres. Lesbian relationships weren't so public back then, even in the entertainment business. I think that she was a curiosity due to her very public personal life, not her acting prowess. I, personally, had never heard of her until she showed up along side Ellen.
-
-
puschit-1 — 10 years ago(April 22, 2015 08:48 PM)
I don't see any problems in her performance whatsoever. No chemistry between her and Depp? Well, first off, this isn't a love story and their relationship as well as her character was merely a subplot (at best - you could argue that their relationship was just a device to show how dedicated Joe is and how he slowly turns into a gangster himself).
Secondly, their marriage was failing, right? So, "no chemistry" helps. And she "looked lost" because that's what her character was: Left alone with her kids and problems because her husband is never at home, doesn't keep promises and slowly turns into a schizophrenic. You'd be lost, too. -
korevette — 10 years ago(June 02, 2015 09:56 AM)
I keep reading in this forum, among others, about movies where the 2 leading stars ( usually male and female ) had no chemistry. The dialogue for any 'couple' that shows no chemistry, is because the lack of it in the script?
-
-
manage-932-700755 — 10 years ago(September 14, 2015 10:46 AM)
I've always liked Anne Heche, if I forget she hits it both ways. She has a nice little body and nice breasts. I thought she was a decent match with Depp. Who would you expect- Scarlett Johannsen or Angelina Jolie? FBI agents and mob soldiers rarely have beautiful wives.
-
SALTER-pt — 10 years ago(October 18, 2015 02:45 AM)
I thought she was fine.
As for chemistry between her and Depp, I thought there was, as in an uneasy tension between the two - which is precisely what their relationship called for.
The female mind is, after all solely tuned to being self-serving - rjfme -
NotForMeThanks — 9 years ago(June 10, 2016 02:34 AM)
I felt the same way about her when I watched this movie a bunch of times back in the day. Just something about her didnt feel right. Anne freaking Heche? I was used to my mob movies with authentic New Yorkers and Anne Heche was so far from that. Her image at the time, I don't know. There was something just wrong with her being there.
But as I watch when I'm older, she actually did a good job. Her accent wasn't bad, much better than that disaster show of an in and out accent, complete caricature of a New York house wife Lawerence did in American Hustle and actually got nominated for an Oscar for.
Heche didn't play her role as a caricature like Lawerence did. Her crying scenes were believable. I felt her anger, frustration, nagging, etc was actually portrayed rather well in this movie.
I guess maybe because I have forgotten all about her and don't really care to have an opinion about her anymore, I was able to judge her acting on its own and she did good.
But I can still agree that something about her presence in the film itself felt off. -
1989Joker1989 — 8 months ago(July 21, 2025 06:36 PM)
Actually, she played the part perfectly! She played a wife who was losing her husband because he was undercover for five years. Yes, in real life, Donnie Brasco was undercover for five years. It was ruining their marriage and he was ruining his relationship with his kids as well because of this job.
The magic they once had was evaporating because of his job. He was dedicated to getting some of the worst scumbags off the street and in prison where they belonged and it almost cost him his marriage in real life. In the movie, they get divorced.