Best Performances From Any Actor/Actress
12-04-02 | 04:39 PM
#26
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I think these are the greatest acting performances I've ever seen. Performances which are absolutely convincing to me. I think I'll stick with the past 30 years, and restrict it to male performances (males generally get the better roles in cinema) to keep the list a bit shorter.
-Robert DeNiro in Raging Bull
-F. Murray Abraham in Amadeus
-Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange
-Al Pacino's portrayal of frank Serpico
-Gene Hackman in The French Connection
-John Travolta in Pulp Fiction
-Harrison Ford in The Mosquito Coast
-Robert DeNiro in Raging Bull
-F. Murray Abraham in Amadeus
-Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange
-Al Pacino's portrayal of frank Serpico
-Gene Hackman in The French Connection
-John Travolta in Pulp Fiction
-Harrison Ford in The Mosquito Coast
12-04-02 | 10:41 PM
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From: I'll be in my bunk
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Originally posted by jetflair
Bill Pullman in ID4
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Wow, opinions do vary. I consider this to be one of the more unbelievable roles (in a bad way) in recent film history, in large part because of Pullman's performance.
I am a pretty big fan of his, btw, but not in ID4. Of course, the film is pretty dreadful with or without him.
Pullman is outstanding in The Accidental Tourist.
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Tom Hanks in The Green Mile
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I don't think this measures up to the "best ever" category, even among Hanks performances, but I am in awe of his triumphant scene in the bathroom. Terrific facial acting there.
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Pierce Brosnan in The Thomas Crown Affair
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Still to this day, I think my favorite Brosnan film performance was in The Fourth Protocol.
Originally posted by jetflair
Bill Pullman in ID4
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Wow, opinions do vary. I consider this to be one of the more unbelievable roles (in a bad way) in recent film history, in large part because of Pullman's performance.
I am a pretty big fan of his, btw, but not in ID4. Of course, the film is pretty dreadful with or without him.
Pullman is outstanding in The Accidental Tourist.
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Tom Hanks in The Green Mile
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I don't think this measures up to the "best ever" category, even among Hanks performances, but I am in awe of his triumphant scene in the bathroom. Terrific facial acting there.
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Pierce Brosnan in The Thomas Crown Affair
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Still to this day, I think my favorite Brosnan film performance was in The Fourth Protocol.
You know, it's been so long since I've seen The Accidental Tourist that I don't even remember Pullman being in it!
I seem to be in the minority, but I liked ID4. I didn't neccesarily find Pullman's role in it believable, but I can easily forgive that because the whole movie was unbelievable! I found his role compelling because he portrays the the President as a capable and compassionate person bearing up under overwhelming odds and personal grief. I am a Pullman fan myself, but I often find his acting skills lacking in other roles, making ID4 an standout for him.
I've never seen The Fourth Protocol...guess I've got a new one to watch!
BTW, I read the question to mean "pick any actor....what is his/her best performance?" not "what is the best performance ever in the history of film?" I wouldn't nominate my picks as world-class acting, merely the best performances given by the handful of actors that sprung to my mind.
12-05-02 | 10:40 AM
#31
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Orson Welles in Citizen Kane
Alec Guiness in Bridge on the River Kwai
Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird
Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Al Pacino in The Godfather
Tom Hanks in Big
Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man
Bill Murray in Scrooged
Alec Guiness in Bridge on the River Kwai
Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird
Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Al Pacino in The Godfather
Tom Hanks in Big
Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man
Bill Murray in Scrooged
12-05-02 | 11:34 PM
#32
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Having just watched the whole mini series the last two nights, I have to say that Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones's jobs in Lonesome Dove were far and away the best work of their careers - Especially for Jones. Duvall has been excellent in many films, but his portrayal of Gus in LD was simply phenomenal....I was extremely impressed all around (and will now go eat my crow for having summarily dismissed this for a decade simply because it was made for tv 
)
)
12-06-02 | 02:05 PM
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Off the top of my head:
George C. Scott was Patton
Ben Kingsley was Gandhi
Alec Guiness is amazing in Bridge on the River Kwai
Tom Hanks in Cast Away - single-handedly carries the movie for so long, tremendous
Ed Norton in American History X - he has you hating him then empathizing with him, and believably
George C. Scott was Patton
Ben Kingsley was Gandhi
Alec Guiness is amazing in Bridge on the River Kwai
Tom Hanks in Cast Away - single-handedly carries the movie for so long, tremendous
Ed Norton in American History X - he has you hating him then empathizing with him, and believably
12-07-02 | 05:09 AM
#35
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From: Montreal, Canada
Jim..
All your choices were excellent
One of my all time favourites than rarely gets mentioned is:
Eric Roberts as that psycho Paul Snider in STAR 80
He was so freakin creepy but what a brilliant performance he gave!
All your choices were excellent
One of my all time favourites than rarely gets mentioned is:
Eric Roberts as that psycho Paul Snider in STAR 80
He was so freakin creepy but what a brilliant performance he gave!
12-07-02 | 05:16 AM
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From: Montreal, Canada
..as for for females well..
I guess were suppose to pick by "default" Meryl Streep or Susan Sarandon...Well I won't!.. because we all know they're great actresses..
I'm gonna choose Faye Dunaway in Mommy Dearest!
Yeah I know it's campy and way over the top but I thaught it was great acting
Everytime I come across a Joan Crawford movie late at night I'm always comparing her to Faye's performance to see which one is scarier so that must tell you something
I guess were suppose to pick by "default" Meryl Streep or Susan Sarandon...Well I won't!.. because we all know they're great actresses..
I'm gonna choose Faye Dunaway in Mommy Dearest!
Yeah I know it's campy and way over the top but I thaught it was great acting
Everytime I come across a Joan Crawford movie late at night I'm always comparing her to Faye's performance to see which one is scarier so that must tell you something
Last edited by shanester; 12-07-02 at 08:56 AM.
12-07-02 | 05:27 AM
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From: Roscoe, IL USA
Originally posted by LBPound
Tom Hanks in Big
Tom Hanks in Big
I've always thought he played the character a little too young, like most actors do when playing a kid. His friend, who is the same age, certainly seemed a lot more mature than he did.
Haley Joel Osment in The Sixth Sense is one of the most incredible performances I've seen. I don't think any other actor, no matter the age, could have done a better job.
