What are some of your favorite acting performances? A few of mine include
Toni Collette in The Sixth Sense: So delicate. Subtle. Absolutely fantastic. That'll be the day I watch the movie and don't say out loud to myself through my sobbing "damn, she's something else" in the scene in the car.
Mo'Nique in Precious: I'm not usually a fan of Mo'Nique as a comedian so I was surprised I'd adore her as an actress. Seriously terrifying. A well deserved Oscar
Leonardo di Caprio in Gilbert Grape: need I say more?
Vera Farmiga in The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas: How she did not receive even an Oscar nod is beyond me. I know the obvious most powerful scene is the final one but there were so many times she truly amazed me. So many subtle moments
Jessica Chastain in The Help: Cannot put my finger on it, but there was something about her performance that blew me away. She made me laugh and cry.
When I answer this question, I tend to point to specific scenes.
Emma Thompson in the bedroom scene in Love Actually
Imelda Stauton when the police arrive in Vera Drake
Judy Garland the dressing room monologue in A Star Is Born
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
I can immediately come up with three right away - 1. Hillary Swank in Boys Don't Cry. Most notably, the scene in the police precinct when she's being questioned about her rape by those two thugs. That was probably the best acting I've ever seen.
2. Ellen Burstyn in Requiem For a Dream. The entire film but especially the end.
I tend to look at entire performances, not just scenes. That's too isolating for me. It's like saying I loved "blah-blah-singer" because of the way they held one certain note just right.
Not for me.
Off the top of my head, some of my favorite (or "greatest") screen performances:
Elizabeth Taylor in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird Bert Lancaster in Elmer Gantry Dustin Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy Giulietta Messina in Nights of Cabiria F. Murray Abraham in Amadeus Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood Gloria Swanson in Sunset Blvd. Vivien Leigh in Gone With the Wind Bette Davis in All About Eve Geraldine Page in A Trip to Bountiful Annette Bening in American Beauty Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins Mae Robson in Lady For a Day
I'm sure there are many more, but those came to mind!
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire Bette Davis in All About Eve Jennifer Connelly in Requiem for a Dream Sydney Lassick in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
John Lithgow in TWILIGHT ZONE: THE MOVIE and THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI.
Jane Fonda in KLUTE
Albert Finney and Diane Keaton in SHOOT THE MOON.
Julie Harris and company in THE MEMBER OF THE WEDDING.
Lili Taylor in I SHOT ANDY WARHOL.
Lillian Gish in THE WIND and BROKEN BLOSSOMS.
Oliver Reed in THE DEVILS.
Richard Harris and Rachel Roberts in THIS SPORTING LIFE.
"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
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"TheatreDiva90016 - another good reason to frequent these boards less."<<>>
“I hesitate to give this line of discussion the validation it so desperately craves by perpetuating it, but the light from logic is getting further and further away with your every successive post.” <<>>
-whatever2
Agree with so many that have been posted so I'll avoid repeats (though I do have to say Bette Davis in ALL ABOUT EVE is in my top 5 probably): Meryl Streep in SOPHIE'S CHOICE (yes, I know it's a cliche at this point, but it's so good) Joaquin Phoenix in THE MASTER Liza Minnelli in CABARET Natalie Portman in BLACK SWAN Kevin Spacey in AMERICAN BEAUTY (and completely agree with Besty re Annette Bening)
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
Elizabeth Taylor -- Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Vivien Leigh -- Streetcar Vivien Leigh -- Gone with the Wind Sean Penn -- Milk Natalie Portman -- Black Swan Hilary Swank -- Boys Don't Cry Jodie Foster -- Silence of the Lambs Cate Blanchett -- Blue Jasmine Marion Cotillard -- La Vie En Rose Angela Lansbury -- The Manchurian Candidate
So many great performances but these are representative
leading ladies
Maggie Smith The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Anna Magnani The Rose Tattoo Norma Aleandro The Official Story Cate Blanchett Elizabeth Glenda Jackson A Touch of Class Angela Bassett What's Love Got to Do With It? Judy Garland A Star is Born Diane Keaton Marvin's Room Diane Keaton Baby Boom Meryl Streep A Cry in the Dark Barbara Stanwyck The Lady Eve Ingrid Bergman Gaslight Emmanuelle Riva Hiroshima mon amour Audrey Hepburn Roman Holiday Sissy Spacek Coal Miner's Daughter Julie Christie Afterglow Glenn Close Dangerous Liaisons Emma Thompson Remains of the Day and Howard's End Kathleen Turner Serial Mom Angelica Huston The Grifters
leading men
Donald Sutherland Ordinary People Jean Louis Trintignant Amour Haley Joel Osment The Sixth Sense Peter O'Toole The Lion in Winter Charlie Chaplin Modern Times Roberto Benigni Life is Beautiful Leslie Howard Pygmalion Don Cheadle Hotel Rwanda Jimmy Stewart Anatomy of a Murder Daniel Day-Lewis My Left Foot Alastair Sim A Christmas Carol Tom Courtenay The Dresser Max von Sydow The Emigrants/The New Land Ewan MacGregor Beginners Klaus Maria Brandauer Mephisto Dustin Hoffman Little Big Man
supporting women
Barbara Hershey Portrait of a Lady Dianne Wiest Hannah and her Sisters Dianne Wiest Bullets over Broadway Toni Collette The Sixth Sense Marcia Gay Harden Pollock Agnes Moorehead The Magnificent Ambersons Mary Boland The Women Marianne Jean Baptiste Secrets and Lies Thelma Ritter All About Eve Lynn Redgrave gods and Monsters Maureen Stapleton Plaza Suite Renee Taylor Last of the Red Hot Lovers Diane Kruger Inglorious Basterds Emma Thompson Love Actually Emily Watson Gosford Park Angelica Huston Prizzi's Honor Angela Lansbury The Manchurian Candidate and Death on the Nile
supporting men
Edward Norton Primal Fear John Gielgud Arthur Christoph Waltz Inglorious Basterds Morgan Freeman Million Dollar Baby and The Shawshank Redemption Max von Sydow Snow Falling on Cedars and The Exorcist Edmund Gwynn Pride and Prejudice Lionel Barrymore It's A Wonderful Life Dean Stockwell Long Day's Journey into Night and Married to the Mob Ciaran Hinds Persuasion Peter Ustinov Spartacus and Luther Dennis Quaid Far from Heaven Maurice Evans Rosemary's Baby
How could I forget the perfect pairing of Julianne Moore and Dennis Quaid in FAR FROM HEAVEN? Also, I forgot to add Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench in NOTES ON A SCANDAL. All these four performances are incredibly haunting.
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
This is a difficult, possibly impossible, question to answer. I'd have to spend days and weeks thinking and really self-limit -- like, make a list of five performances, no more -- to approach anything I'd feel comfortable calling an accuracy of my opinion.
That said -- bestie, I've always said that Gregory Peck in "To Kill a Mockingbird" is the most perfect screen performance I've ever seen.
CHURCH DOOR TOUCAN GAY MARKETING PUPPIES MUSICAL THEATER STAPLES PERIOD OIL BITCHY SNARK HOLES
James Stewart in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" and "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Shenandoah" -In my book, Stewart can do no wrong-he was a very 'real' and 'accessible' actor-he was everyone's brother, father, husband, son-you immediately were drawn to him (he is my all time favorite film actor). He had the ability to make himself the essential Everyman.
Gloria Swanson, "Sunset Boulevard"-Probably the best performance by an actress to not win the Academy Award. She was heartbreaking, beautiful, fragile...the list goes on. (I'd have been fine with a tie with Bette Davis. I personally would have voted for Swanson.)
Glenn Close in "Dangerous Liaisons"-Another Oscar worthy performance-Her Marquise is vicious, conniving, and ends up tangled in her own web. (An interesting facet of her character is that she loves Valmont-which makes her all the more complex.)
Cate Blanchett in "Elizabeth"-She IS Elizabeth-and should have taken the Academy Award for her incredible embodiment of the queen.
Lynne Redgrave in "Gods and Monsters"-She won a ton of pre-Oscars and everyone thought it was her turn. (Not so, apparently-she should have won in my book.) Also-her performance in "Georgy Girl" is pretty special, too.
Faye Dunaway and Jack Nicholson in "Chinatown"-I love the film and these two performances are amazing.
Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke, "The Miracle Worker"-Love the film and the performances are stunning.
And one other that hasn't been mentioned (but it's a lesser known film): Liam Neeson in "Michael Collins"-he was nominated for the Academy Award (I wish he'd won)-He effortlessly became Collins in this film, which tells the story of Ireland gaining some modicum of its independence.
Amy Adams in Junebug... i thought to myself... who the hell is this woman?! she is fantastic!
Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio in Revolutionary Road... i always thought those two were good actors but when I saw this movie I was just blown away by their performances and have been bigger fans of them since...
So many wonderful performances already listed here. I agree with just about every single one. I'd like to add a few more, some that might seem unconventional but really stayed with me either in their hilarity or quiet despair:
Men Kevin Kline in A Fished Called Wanda and Soapdish Hank Azaria in The Birdcage James Stewart in Rear Window Tom Hanks in Big Roy Scheider in All That Jazz John Cameron Mitchell in Hedwig and the Angry Inch Jack Nicholson in As Good as It Gets Mark Wahlberg in the Departed Jack Lemmon in The Apartment and Ulrich Muhe in The Lives of Others
Women: Holly Hunter in Broadcast News and The Piano Anna Paquin in The Piano Audrey Hepburn in Charade Susan Sarandon in Igby Goes Down Teri Garr in Tootsie Isabelle Carre in Romantics Anonymous (Everyone, do yourself a favor and see this PHENOMENAL film) Barbara Stanwyck in Ball of Fire and Dianne Wiest in Parenthood, The Birdcage, Hannah and Her Sisters, Radio Days, Bullets Over Broadway, Rabbit Hole and pretty much every goddamn thing she's ever done.
"Sing the words, Patti!!!!" Stephen Sondheim to Patti LuPone.
"I tend to look at entire performances, not just scenes. That's too isolating for me. It's like saying I loved "blah-blah-singer" because of the way they held one certain note just right."
While I see your point, film acting is not entirely in control of the actor. The director or producer has the final say about which scenes will go into a movie and which take of each scene will go in. Haven't you ever seen a movie where you think the actor is doing a fine job, but you see a scene where you just wonder "What was that all about?"
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.