Josh Harnett in "Rain Man"

Liking the hair curl.. Perhaps an attempt to look like Raymond?

I was starting to think the world had forgotten good ol' Josh.. I mean, didn't he do that "Pearl Harbor" movie like a decade ago, and then more or less we haven't seen him?

Looked him up on Google.. recent movies include a French film called "I Come with the Rain" and a 2005 movie called "Mozart and the Whale". Sweet :) He WAS in "Sin City".. actually he's the narrator voice that introduces the whole movie.

Ahh well, old ghosts must resurface every few years or so. To be honest, I didn't even remember who Josh Harnett was until one of my friends told me about him in the context of a drama in Leicester Square's Apollo Theatre: Rain Man starring Josh Harnett!! Can't miss that! This is what London's all about!!

Really? I get to watch one of my favorite movies with some unknown teen heart-throb trying to pretend he's an actor and probably being hopelessly outclassed by the guy playing Raymond?

For 12 pounds, I'm in.

And it was everything I wanted it to be. To be honest, the story of Raymond (the Rain Man) is rather heartwarming and fuzzy inside. Josh Harnett was perfect in the role of Charlie Babbit (Raymond's younger brother who discovers that he has an idiot-savant brother only after his father, who he hasn't spoken to for years, dies). The character Charlie is generally angry, cusses a lot, and stands with his hands against his hips (Peter Pan style) showing off his Armani suit every chance he gets, even when he first discovers that he has a brother... I think somewhere in there poor Josh forgot his lines, and just sat there, looking confused. Thankfully, that was precisely the emotion the moment called for.

Not that Josh is a bad actor.. he's probably perfect for movies, where you get to re-do the 30 second scene over and over until it's perfect. Stage acting is a different kind of high-octane animal though, and it was obvious that Mr. Harnett was up against his own limits in a few scenes. We've gotta give him kudos for trying though-- he's probably already got more money than god, and is definitely trying to become a better actor. I would have been truly impressed, of course, to see him play Raymond.

And of course, whoever it was who did play Raymond (Adam Godley is his name) DID completely outclass poor ol' Josh. I felt a bit savanted by the time I left the play, though it was gratifying to see Mr. Godley come out for the credits walking like a fully-functional human being, and taking a bow..

Mr. Godley behind Mr. Harnett.. 5 stars to the Britt :)

Mr. Godley's best scene: I would have to say the whole play.

Mr. Harnett's: Whenever he's pissed off with his hands on his hips (oh wait.. the whole play) and of course the makeout scene with his hot blonde girlfriend..

The beauty of the whole enterprise is that no matter how poorly or well Mr. Harnett acts, the play will succeed because poor suckers such as myself can't help being curious. I've never seen so many people take pictures of a stage actor as he bowed in my entire life. Also, the director of the enterprise was clever enough to play off Mr. Harnett's star qualities by sliding the sets on and off the stage and using the curtains to create scene cuts very similar to what one would see in an actual movie...

My favorite part: The Haagen Dahz confection stand.. why don't we have Haagen Dahz in the theatres back at home? It makes you feel like you're in your house on the couch watching Pearl Harbor.. especially the part where Mr. Harnett takes his shirt off.

I suppose this is what we all paid to see..

I'm sure Mr. Harnett is gratified to know he gets to take off his

shirt for an audience some 3-5 times a week.

Kudos.