I loved Burn This when it was originally on Broadway. To this day, I can't decide if I liked Malkovich's performance, which was about as histrionic a performance as I have ever seen, including Al Pacino's lot. I thoroughly enjoyed the performance, just couldn't decide if it was good or bad for the play. As I recall, it was a respectable hit.
Joan Allen, in a fairly straightforward role, won the Tony that year and he wasn't even nominated, which makes me assume without looking back that the actress category was light and the actor was either heavy or people did not like his choices. Either was, it was a very entertaining evening.
It would be very interesting to see Gyllenhaal do this. Some of his best performances were very quiet, and even his showy ones, e.g., Nightcrawler, do not lead him to chew any scenery.
York, I think he is a terrific actor. You liked him in Nightcrawler (I thought he should have won the Oscar that year and he wasn't even nominated), but not Brokeback Mountain, Zodiac, Prisoners, End of Watch or Brothers?