Michael Parks makes dialogue sound as though it has only just occurred to him. We value his unforced authority, though Kill Bill: Vol. 2 gives him more time than the story needs.
Fi1m perspective
Earl McGraw surveys a crime scene in Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004) with the air of a sheriff who has seen worse and would rather not say where. Michael Parks gives him a weary, conversational voice, without making a speech of his experience. We warmed to him because that tone suggests a working life beyond the scene. Parks is worth listening to even when his character has little business left to do.
His later supporting parts followed an earlier period as a leading man. The television series Then Came Bronson (1969–70) gave him a lead, before smaller roles and television work occupied much of the 1970s. His return to prominence included Jean Renault in Twin Peaks (1990–91). The smaller parts of his later career suited a performer who could establish a character through the way he spoke.
Robert Rodriguez cast him as Texas Ranger Earl McGraw in the opening of From Dusk Till Dawn (1996). His naturalism helps establish a credible human presence in a crime-and-horror film much given to excess. We prefer its hostage-taking to its second half, and Parks belongs to that more persuasive early stretch. Tarantino brought McGraw back in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003).
Kill Bill: Vol. 2 also exposes the limit of giving a good actor extra room. Parks additionally plays Esteban Vihaio, a brothel-keeper under a wig, in a detour that adds five pleasant but unnecessary minutes. The film is already longer than it needs to be, and another enjoyable character does not help it move. We like Parks here without finding any reason the scene has to stay.
Kevin Smith made Parks more central, writing the villain Abin Cooper in Red State (2011) specifically for him and returning to him for Howard Howe in Tusk (2014). Those parts make sense for an actor whose delivery can make familiar dialogue sound unexpected. For a first encounter, though, start with From Dusk Till Dawn: it gives him room without keeping him around for the sake of it.
Biography
Michael Parks (born Harry Samuel Parks) was an American actor and singer. Born on 24 April 1940 in Corona, California, he died on 9 May 2017 in Los Angeles. He began his career in the early 1960s with television appearances and films including The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966), and starred as the lead in the series Then Came Bronson (1969–1970).
Parks was known in later decades for character roles in independent films. He appeared as Texas Ranger Earl McGraw in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) and reprised the part in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) and Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004), where he also played Esteban Vihaio. He worked repeatedly with directors Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez and Kevin Smith, including in Grindhouse (2007), Red State (2011) and Tusk (2014). His son, James Parks, is also an actor.
