Ukraine Needs a Lot of Things, but Sean Penn’s Drama Isn’t One of Them (Column)

In a career that stretches back 40 years, Sean Penn has had many great roles, from Jeff Spicoli to Harvey Milk, from the surly teen sociopath of “Bad Boys” to the soulful death-row sociopath of “Dead Man Walking.” Yet there’s a role Penn is now playing that he has embraced with fierce commitment and skill, but it still doesn’t look very good on him.

That’s the role of The American Civilian Who Cares About the War in Ukraine More Than You Do.You’ve seen him play the role at press conferences and in interviews with cable-tv news hosts.

Thatchy-haired and beleaguered, sitting there in his green Core Army jacket brandishing his thousand-yard Method stare, his cigarette voice on the verge of cracking in literally every sentence, Penn, gripped with conviction, speaks in a deliberate, ever-so-slightly strangled monotone that makes it sound like he’s working hard to control everything he’s saying.

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