I consider Meryl Streep's performance in Sophie's Choice to be the best ever captured on film, so that one.

OP here... sorry to present such a haphazard poll. I certainly left off a lot of great performances, but the hour was late and at least I included the "other" option.

Thanks for those participating and your feedback in always valued.

Some honorable mentions

Klaus Kinski - Fitzcarraldo
Tatsuya Nakadai - Ran & Kagemusha
John Hurt - The Elephant Man & 1984
Sean Penn - The Falcon & the Snowman
Treat Williams - Prince of the City
John Heard - Cutter's Way
James Caan - Thief
John Travolta - Blow Out
Bob Hoskins - The Long Good Friday & Mona Lisa
Stacy Keach - The Ninth Configuration
Gena Rowlands - Gloria
Theresa Russell - Bad Timing
Jack Lemmon - Missing
Robert DeNiro - The King of Comedy
Robert Duvall - Tender Mercies
Eric Roberts - Star 80
Jon Voight - Runaway Train
Harry Dean Stanton - Paris, Texas
Michael Rooker - Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Max Von Sydow - Pelle the Conqueror
Mickey Rourke - Barfly
Robert Downey Jr. - Less Than Zero
Daniel Day-Lewis - The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Forest Whitaker - Bird
Martin Landau - Crimes and Misdemeanors
Michael Gambon - The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover
Jennifer Jason Leigh - Last Exit to Brooklyn
Anthony Perkins - Crimes of Passion (a bit over the top but I love it)

Henry Fonda - ON GOLDEN POND
Sean Penn - BAD BOYS
Timothy Hutton - TAPS
Ricardo Montalban - STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN

Speaking...

Shatner:
60s-TV
70s-wilderness
80s-cinema

I'm guessing a lot of you haven't seen My Left Foot? Because if you've seen it, you know it's one of the greatest performances not just of the 80's but of all-time.

Fuck you for not including Ogre from Revenge of the Nerds. Also Booger. Also all the nerds.

This one gets a nod from me even though there are a few others I might put in front of this, but still, very underappreciated performance.

I honestly was about to mention this performace. Harrison Ford is scary and completely convincing in this role. An underrated Peter Weir film and by far Ford's most underrated and overlooked performance.

People always say 'Witness' was his best but I've always thought this performance and his in 'Frantic' were better.

Wish he still took roles that demanded ANYTHING at all. Sad really.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8eo70JkZV30

Yes, it's his best performance...and I think the only unsympathetic starring role he has ever undertaken.

Ricardo Montalban in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan


epic!!!!

Glenn Close in Dangerous Liaisons. Just a stunning performance on all levels.
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/e7kwcIImGM8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Love seeing Ogre on all of the Capital One commercials!

And we all know that Poindexter is by far, the best nerd!

I voted De Niro in Raging Bull, but I'd seriously put Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber in Die Hard and Bill Paxton as Chet in Weird Science in my top 10.

Frantic may be my favorite Harrison Ford performance (he's obviously been in better overall movies, but we won't address that). People forget he's in (I believe) EVERY single scene in that film. Probably the closest Polanski's come to channeling Hitchcock.

I chose Donald Sutherland- Ordinary People because I just recently re-watched it and loved how he handled the role, especially the night confession of his doubts about Mary Tyler Moore.