138 replies to this topic

[Alexcremers]

I don't see Clark Gable, Sean Connery or Cary Grant as everyday Joes. Is Ford one of the last every day Joes of the silver screen?

[Quint]

Jimmy Stewart personified that role throughout his career, which isn't news.

[Alexcremers]

He often played everyday characters but he does have a very unusual and distinctive, larger than life persona. Not the average Joe in the street at all. Hanks disappears in the crowd. Stewart stands out. It's like light comes out of him. Stewart can wear Indiana Jones' hat, Hanks would look foolish with it.

[Quint]

That's just facial characteristics. Hanks has always looked ever-so-slightly dorky, that's all. I do think Stewart was the average Joe in the street, though. He did stand out, yes, because he had a very empathic face and because he himself had very sympathetic physical and vocal traits. People like that exist "on the street" , Alex. Stewart was their veritable filmic spokesperson.

[Alexcremers]

Well, you are convinced about Hanks, I'm not. He doesn't have what I do see in the others mentioned in this thread. He misses the classic glamour factor. To me he's more of an actor actor.

[Quint]

Ah, I think we misunderstand each other a little - I'm actually with you on the 'presence' aspect of Hanks. He's a good lead and I like him, but he is NOT on the screen charisma level of Grant, Stewart, Bogart, etc. Not in a million years. But then again, I don't think he's trying to be.

[Joey]

Hanks is the everyday Joe today, he is the closest we have to a Jimmy Stewart. I'd love to see him play a villain.

[Wojo]

I agree, but he might not want to wreck his "I'm always the nice guy" image.

Well, he was certainly antagonistic in "The Ladykillers," which is one of the least enjoyable movies I have ever seen. I would gladly have my tonsils removed again -- the doctors will think of something -- before rewatching this film.

He was also the anti-hero of "Catch Me If You Can," in that our protagonist (Leo) was clearly doing illegal activities and Hanks was out to catch him in a cat-and-mouse, cops-and-robbers chase that roughly paralleled a father-son relationship, but neither character was truly "villainous."

[Joey]

Physically he's a large man. I mean sure against M. D. Clarke in Green Mile he's not but who is. But yeah I want to see him be really nasty and vile. Playing against type as I've said several times in this thread can produce some awesome performances.

[Quint]

Got to tread carefully though, because it can quite easily become a selling point, or a 'gimmick'.

[Wojo]

I don't recall Harrison Ford playing a villain either, to be honest.

[Joey]

well some people are quite upset when their hero character/actor plays the villain. They can't handle it. lets face it villains have more fun. Look at Alan Rickman, two Iconic villain roles under his belt, Snape and Hans Gruber, now quickly name a name a memorable non-villain role......you have to think about it.

I don't recall Harrison Ford playing a villain either, to be honest.

you've not seen What Lies Beneath?

[Wojo]

well some people are quite upset when their hero character/actor plays the villain. They can't handle it. lets face it villains have more fun. Look at Alan Rickman, two Iconic villain roles under his belt, Snape and Hans Gruber, now quickly name a name a memorable non-villain role......you have to think about it.

Three. I would think of the Sheriff of Nottingham as a villain before Snape when viewing the entire saga, but that's beside the point. For a non-villain, I would think of Dogma's Metatron or the alien he played in Galaxy Quest. That didn't require much thought.

I don't recall Harrison Ford playing a villain either, to be honest.

you've not seen What Lies Beneath?

No, I never looked beneath wherever you're talking about.

[Richard]

The Mosquito Coast

Agreed. That, and "Witness". Two very sensitive performances. He should work with Peter Wier more often.

[Koray Savas]

Physically he's a large man. I mean sure against M. D. Clarke in Green Mile he's not but who is. But yeah I want to see him be really nasty and vile. Playing against type as I've said several times in this thread can produce some awesome performances.

Agreed, I think DiCaprio is gonna be great in Django Unchained. I always thought Jackie Chan would be a cool villain.

Sean Connery needs to go out with a bang by returning to Bond as the villain. League Of Extraordinary Men shouldn't be his last film.

[Chaac]

Sean Connery deserves that to be his last film after ruining it. Fuck the guy.

[Quint]

[king mark]

Physically he's a large man. I mean sure against M. D. Clarke in Green Mile he's not but who is. But yeah I want to see him be really nasty and vile. Playing against type as I've said several times in this thread can produce some awesome performances.

Agreed, I think DiCaprio is gonna be great in Django Unchained. I always thought Jackie Chan would be a cool villain.

Sean Connery needs to go out with a bang by returning to Bond as the villain. League Of Extraordinary Men shouldn't be his last film.

He looks really really old now

[Trent Bennett]

Speaking of villain parts.... Harrison Ford said that Gary Oldman was his best on screen nemesis when Air Force One was made. Off screen Gary Oldman would be joking a lot and funny but once filming resumed for scenes started up again he'd go back into his creepy Russian persona.

[Koray Savas]

Oldman is the greatest villainous actor.

[Alexcremers]

The Mosquito Coast

Agreed. That, and "Witness". Two very sensitive performances. He should work with Peter Wier more often.

When I was a young laddie, I really liked The Mosquito Coast but a few years ago I watch it again and I realized it's certainly not as good as I once thought it was. Even Ford overdoes it. Having said that, yes, Witness stands the test of time.

Alex

[MSM]

Btw how is he in Sabrina?

[Joey]

Oldman is the greatest villainous actor.

you don't support your thoughts well with this picture, what a piss poor villain. Besides Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber was better. As was his Snape and Sheriff.

[Pasi Tiitinen]

Witness.

Easily.

[Koray Savas]

Oldman is the greatest villainous actor.

you don't support your thoughts well with this picture, what a piss poor villain. Besides Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber was better. As was his Snape and Sheriff.

You dare question Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg? Rickman is perfect as Gruber, but Oldman is on an entirely different level with his villains. Snape is boring as hell, at least through the first 5 films when he's not even the villain.

[Quint]

I'd have forgotten Oldman's role in Fifth Element altogether it weren't for the endless re-runs on tv. Rubbish baddie in a rubbish movie.

[Thor]

Gary Oldman is in my Top 5 list of alltime favourite actors. He's just brilliant, whatever he plays in (and whether it's baddie or good guy or anything inbetween).

[KK.]

Gary Oldman is in my Top 5 list of alltime favourite actors. He's just brilliant, whatever he plays in (and whether it's baddie or good guy or anything inbetween).

He was candidate out of the nominees last year in the Oscars...it was supposed to be his Oscar! Curse you Academy politics!!!

[king mark]

He also played Dr. Smith.

[E.T. & Elliott]

No one will agree with me, but I think Dr. Smith was his best role by far, especially as far as villains go.

Btw how is he in Sabrina?

Quite good, I think. I empathized more with Ford's Linus than Bogart's original. There's an added dimension to him. He's also quite funny with Greg Kinnear and the other cast. Yeah, I dug him in that movie.

[king mark]

No one will agree with me, but I think Dr. Smith was his best role by far, especially as far as villains go.

Except he didn't come close to the original Dr. Smith

[Wojo]

Uh, the remake didn't come close to anything but sucking.

[Joey]

No one will agree with me, but I think Dr. Smith was his best role by far, especially as far as villains go.

Btw how is he in Sabrina?

Quite good, I think. I empathized more with Ford's Linus than Bogart's original. There's an added dimension to him. He's also quite funny with Greg Kinnear and the other cast. Yeah, I dug him in that movie.

Jason, Jason, curse you, I want to laugh. I am in the real world. Oh the pain, the pain.

[Koray Savas]

Gary Oldman is in my Top 5 list of alltime favourite actors. He's just brilliant, whatever he plays in (and whether it's baddie or good guy or anything inbetween).

Agreed. He even makes the shit that is The Book Of Eli watchable.

[Joey]

Denzel makes Book of Eli watchable, Oldman is just cliched and recylced in that movie.

[Thor]

We're moving off-topic here, but I kinda liked BOOK OF ELI. Then again, I'm a sucker for post-apocalyptic films and pretty much suck up everything I can find. But it obviously pales to something like THE ROAD, which was my favourite film that year.

[Koray Savas]

I'm a fan of post-apocalyptic stuff too. It's just the ending is insanely ridiculous. If the film explored more of "It's not a book it's a weapon!" then it would have been much more taboo. Using religion to control people, hey, that sounds familiar.

[Chaac]

We're moving off-topic here, but I kinda liked BOOK OF ELI. Then again, I'm a sucker for post-apocalyptic films and pretty much suck up everything I can find. But it obviously pales to something like THE ROAD, which was my favourite film that year.

I thought Inglorious Basterds was your favourite film of that year.

[Quint]

There aren't many blokes who don't love post-apocalyptic fiction

[Michael]

How about Morning Glory? Is he any good in there?