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Acting performances that surprised you? - DeeBye - 07-24-2005
Lots of film actors are typecast into certain roles. It doesn't seem to matter much what movie they are in. They same to play the same character over and over again.
Every now and then, I'll watch a movie and an acting performance by an established star will make me go :blink: . Just when you think you've got them figured out, they pull something else out of the acting bag and make you rethink.
John Candy in JFK
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102138/
![[Image: candyjfk3pw.jpg]](http://img347.imageshack.us/img347/9523/candyjfk3pw.jpg)
Before his role in JFK, John Candy was a comedic actor. He was a brilliant comedic actor, but I could never take him seriously. His previous roles consisted of SCTV, Uncle Buck, Spaceballs, and I could go on and on. In JFK, he played a red-faced crab-eating hipster. His role was brief, angry, and scared. It was totally serious and quite a break from his usual onscreen performance. I loved it and I wish that he had the opportunity to do more serious films.
Jet Li in Unleashed
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0342258/
![[Image: jetliunleashed3yb.jpg]](http://img325.imageshack.us/img325/3859/jetliunleashed3yb.jpg)
I never liked Jet Li films before I saw Unleashed. Sure, the action was always great and who doesn't like a good ass kicking? Jet Li's performance in Unleashed surprised me though, and very pleasantly. Yeah, he does get to kick butt and take names, but he also portrays a character with a very child-like mind. Jet Li can act when given the proper character. I loved this film. Surrounding him with great actors like Morgan Freeman and Bob Hoskins sure helped, but Jet Li was no slouch.
SUPER BONUS REVERSE OPTION!
Leonardo DiCaprio in What's Eating Gilbert Grape
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108550/
![[Image: dicapriogilbert0ed.jpg]](http://img331.imageshack.us/img331/6317/dicapriogilbert0ed.jpg)
This is the reverse option because the very first time I saw Leonardo DiCaprio was when I watched What's Eating Gilbert Grape. At the time I honestly thought they cast a mentally retarded boy for his part. His acting performance was THAT good. Everything since then with the exception of The Aviator really let me down. What's Eating Gilbert Grape proves to me that Leonardo DiCaprio is a brilliant actor, but he seems to choose crappy roles that do not highlight his acting ability.
There are a few more :blink: acting performances that I would have touched upon, but I think that this is enough to get the ball rolling.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Hammerskjold - 07-24-2005
Vin Diesel in Iron Giant. 2 of his lines always gets me, 'I am -not- a gun', and 'superman...'.
Sly Stallone in the first Rocky. And finally, Pat Morita in the first Karate Kid. Yeah I'm showing some of my 80's nostalgia bias, but I stand by them.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Griselda - 07-24-2005
I had no idea that was Leonardo DiCaprio in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape"! I might have to reconsider my blanket refusal to watch any movie with Leonardo DiCaprio in it (although that's been a good policy for every movie since Gilbert Grape).
I also refuse to watch any movie with Jim Carrey in it, although it seems like I would have liked "A Series of Unfortunate Events". Does anybody know if Carrey was as annoying as he usually is in that movie?
As for actors changing genres, I will also admit that I've been reluctant to watch any movie with Bill Murray in it that's not comedy (yes, I skipped "Lost in Translation" for that reason). It's not that I don't like him; I just can't picture him in that sort of role. I was really surprised when I heard that he would star in an upcoming Jim Jarmusch movie- and that the part had been created with Bill Murray in mind. This still sounds like some "other dimension" Bill Murray that I can't quite understand, but I'm looking forward to the movie to see if it changes my mind.
For a more on-topic reply, I liked Mark Hamill's voice acting in "Castle in the Sky". I didn't realize he could do anything but whine. :P Poor guy- he *still* can't appear onscreen in person without making everyone think of Luke Skywalker!
Obviously, Sean Astin came a long way from "The Goonies" with his portrayal of Samwise Gamgee. He's an actor that I'd really like to see be a bit more discriminating about the roles he accepts.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Bun-Bun - 07-24-2005
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 02:54 AM Wrote:For a more on-topic reply, I liked Mark Hamill's voice acting in "Castle in the Sky". I didn't realize he could do anything but whine. :P Poor guy- he *still* can't appear onscreen in person without making everyone think of Luke Skywalker!
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Hamill was a voice actor even before Star Wars. He was in Bakshi's "Wizards", for example. He also seems like a very patient and unassuming guy from very glancing acquaintance.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Ninjadruid - 07-24-2005
Ashton Kutcher in the Butterfly Effect.
Val Kilmer in Masked and Anonymous.
Adrien Brody in the Pianist.
And Kevin Spacey in everything he's ever in. He's always a good suprise!
Acting performances that surprised you? - [wcip]Angel - 07-24-2005
I was shocked, horrified and gleely amused by Elijah Wood's performance in Sin City.
![[Image: Elijah.jpg]](http://www.home.no/lzp/Elijah.jpg)
I saw the movie on Friday, and although I had prepared myself for the fact that Elijah's role in Sin City would be completely different from the role he played in that movie about that ring, "Kevin" was truly a horrific creature. Eat your heart out, Gollum!
Acting performances that surprised you? - Wyrm - 07-24-2005
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 03:54 AM Wrote:For a more on-topic reply, I liked Mark Hamill's voice acting in "Castle in the Sky". I didn't realize he could do anything but whine. :P Poor guy- he *still* can't appear onscreen in person without making everyone think of Luke Skywalker!Hamill has been the voice of the Joker in most of the animated Batman series, pretty much every one where Kevin Conroy is the voice of Wayne/Batman (aka the good ones). He even had a cameo appearance on the show "Birds of Prey" as the Joker.
Quote:Obviously, Sean Astin came a long way from "The Goonies" with his portrayal of Samwise Gamgee. He's an actor that I'd really like to see be a bit more discriminating about the roles he accepts.He had a small part in the recent TNT production "Into the West" that was pretty good. He was a miner trying to strike it big during the gold rush.
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Val Kilmer was great in "Willow," which isn't really the type of movie you'd expect to see him in.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Tyderian - 07-24-2005
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 12:54 AM Wrote:I also refuse to watch any movie with Jim Carrey in it, although it seems like I would have liked "A Series of Unfortunate Events". Does anybody know if Carrey was as annoying as he usually is in that movie?I thought he was pretty good, although there were a few things that reminded me of Ace Ventura. They were definitely there to make you think "Hey, it's Jim Carrey!" and not because they contributed to the character.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Yogi_Baar - 07-24-2005
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 08:54 AM Wrote:Obviously, Sean Astin came a long way from "The Goonies" with his portrayal of Samwise Gamgee. He's an actor that I'd really like to see be a bit more discriminating about the roles he accepts.But... but then we'd never have "Encino Man"!
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Acting performances that surprised you? - Griselda - 07-24-2005
Yogi_Baar,Jul 24 2005, 03:26 PM Wrote:But... but then we'd never have "Encino Man"!
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Exactly.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Guest - 07-25-2005
"The Truman Show " - annoying?
You might not want to talk about how someone "ussually" is if you never have seen their movies.
That said Sickets is a real let down. The plot is animic (kids movie or not). The only high points are the set design and Jim Carrey playing weirdos(if you like Jim Carrey.)
Acting performances that surprised you? - Rhydderch Hael - 07-25-2005
Bruce Campbell in Bubba Ho-Tep was not "Ash in another costume" as you'd expect from his other performances. He became the part (Elvis impersonating an Elvis impersonator) submerged to the point you no longer saw just the chin (well, technically, you could see the chin, but it was buried beneath makeup).
Acting performances that surprised you? - Doc - 07-25-2005
Leonardo was awfully good in the Basketball Diaries, playing the part of Jim Caroll. It wasn't completely accurate to the book, but, meh, what is? Very few people can play the role of totally trashed heroin junkie and pull it off with some flair and realism.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Copadope - 07-26-2005
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 02:54 AM Wrote:I also refuse to watch any movie with Jim Carrey in it, although it seems like I would have liked "A Series of Unfortunate Events". Does anybody know if Carrey was as annoying as he usually is in that movie?If you're open to the idea of changing your perception of Jim Carrey, you might want to check out Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's not a comedy and there are no "this is goofy Jim Carrey" moments. You really have to pay attention and think while you're watching it. It can be somewhat difficult to follow (like Memento), but once you understand what's going on it's definitely worth it. My roommate hated it, but I thought it was a great movie.
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YMMV.
Acting performances that surprised you? - DeeBye - 07-27-2005
Ninjadruid,Jul 24 2005, 01:48 PM Wrote:Val Kilmer in Masked and Anonymous.
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Val Kilmer doesn't count because he's always awesome. Same goes for Johnny Depp :wub:
Griselda,Jul 24 2005, 03:54 AM Wrote:I also refuse to watch any movie with Jim Carrey in it, although it seems like I would have liked "A Series of Unfortunate Events". Does anybody know if Carrey was as annoying as he usually is in that movie?
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If you don't like Jim Carrey's overboard antics, you'll HATE "A Series of Unfortunate Events".
I thought that Man on the Moon was a pretty good Jim Carrey movie.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Doc - 07-27-2005
DeeBye,Jul 26 2005, 10:27 PM Wrote:Val Kilmer doesn't count because he's always awesome. Same goes for Johnny Depp :wub:
If you don't like Jim Carrey's overboard antics, you'll HATE "A Series of Unfortunate Events".
I thought that Man on the Moon was a pretty good Jim Carrey movie.
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I really, really miss Andy. It makes me more than a little sad to think about him. He made me laugh during some very dark times in my life. Never, ever failed to make me crack a smile.
Thinking about him all these years later is still terribly painful.
He was a truly funny human being and the world lost a little something when he left.
He and Phil both.
Acting performances that surprised you? - deathsnake2 - 07-28-2005
Jamie Foxx in Collateral. That was another performance where the actor seemed to be the character, rather than play it.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Roland - 07-28-2005
deathsnake2,Jul 27 2005, 09:06 PM Wrote:Jamie Foxx in Collateral. That was another performance where the actor seemed to be the character, rather than play it.
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I love that movie. LOVE IT! :D
And I love Tom Cruise. Jamey Foxx is up and down with me, but he fit beautifully into that movie.
I was somewhat surprised by Man on Fire. Having read the book, I expected the world. I was delivered the "third world", so to speak (those who've seen the movie and read the book will know what I'm talking about). The whole movie was somewhat drab compared to what I expected, although Denzel did do well enough. But, overall, I was suprisingly disappointed with the movie, including the acting. It was THE perfect role for Denzel, and somehow they scripted him into boredom almost. So sad.
Acting performances that surprised you? - Rhydderch Hael - 07-28-2005
deathsnake2,Jul 27 2005, 06:06 PM Wrote:Jamie Foxx in Collateral. That was another performance where the actor seemed to be the character, rather than play it.It seemed very unfair to me that Jamie Foxx was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe for his perfomance in that movie. No, folks, I'm not deriding his performanceâ just the title of Supporting Actor.
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Foxx's character in the movie was the lead player of the film. Had the most screen time in the film (more than top-billed Tom Cruise), the plot was accessed through his experiences, and he was the little thing we call the PROTAGONIST of the movie... so why was he up for a Supporting Actor Golden Globe? Stupid.
Acting performances that surprised you? - jahcs - 08-07-2005
I also vouch for Jamie Foxx in Collateral.
How about the movie Silverado? Quite a few noteworthy actors in that one. It's got a younger Kevin Costner who doesn't play the typical Kevin Costner role.
The Academy also needs a slap upside the head for missing Val Kilmer in Tombstone.
Eternal Sunshine... Jim Carrey is a big step away from Ace Ventura or The Mask in that one.
Brad Pitt in Snatch and a few other movies. He is able to take diverse roles and even make the audience laugh.
Meatloaf. Several of the movies he appears in aren't just for cameo shots.