Best performance by these actors?

[johnnyboy]

Hey!

I think these are all great actors, but my question is what do you guys think has been the best performance they have given
and why.

Peter Sellers
Marlon Brando
Robert De Niro
Clint Eastwood
Steve Buscemi
Morgan Freeman
Sean Penn
Robert Carlyle
Tim Roth
Samuel L. Jackson
Gary Oldman
James Stewart

Thanks to anyone who finds the time to do this.

[FrustratedPoet]

Robert Carlyle - Trainspotting

Steve Buscemi - Big Lebowski

Sean Penn - Carlito's Way

Robert De Niro - Raging Bull

James Stewart - Vertigo

Gary Oldman - Leon

Marlon Brando - Godfather

Peter Sellars - Dr.Strangelove

Tim Roth - Rosencrantz and Guildernstern Are Dead

[Kontiki]

Peter Sellers - no question, Dr. Strangelove. I can't remember exactly how many characters he plays (I think it's three), but it was just classic!

Morgan Freeman - something of a toss up. His role in Driving Miss Daisy was critically acclaimed, but I think his best may have been in The Shawshank Redemption.

[monkspider]

I'll agree with those choices FP.
"RC and GS are dead" is an existentialist classic.

Who all does Sellers play in Dr. Strangelove? I think it's Dr. Strangelove, the President, and the RAF guy, Col. Mandrake. But I wouldn't swear to it.

[FrustratedPoet]

Originally posted by monkspider
"RC and GS are dead" is an existentialist classic.

The guy who plays Hamlet in the film sucks, although Roth and Oldman are great in the lead roles.

The scene near the beginning with the travelling theatre troupe is a stunning comedy representation of Renaissance theatre. As a student of that period I found it hysterically accurate.
The description of Shakespearean theatre as "transvestite melodrama" always cracks me up.

also, the "play within a play within a play within play" scene is devilishly clever.

[Zkribbler]

Youse guys ain't been answerin' da "why" part of da question.

Peter Sellers: Shot in the Dark ...wherein Sellers creates the Cluseau character...a totally deadpan mocking of all the super-cool detectives of the era. For example, unknowingly dabbing his nose into the cold cream while he's explaining why he's such a great detective

Clint Eastwood: Fistful of Dollars Clint did the unthinkable for an actor...he went through the script with a blue pencil and chopped out dozens of pages of his own dialogue. The result: one of the greatest anti-heros of all time!

Sean Penn: Colors I'm blown away but a small bit at the end where he's telling the joke about the two bulls and he messes it up. Purposely messing up a joke is really hard to do convincingly.

Gary Oldman: State of Grace He plays a mentally retarded killer who has to act to save his brother. But his best "friend" (Sean Penn) starts playing mind games with him. Oldman knows he's right but he has such complete faith in Penn and such little faith in himself, that he's psychologically ripped in two. A great scene!

James Stewart: It's a Wonderful Life Seeing Steward plunges about two leagues down into the Sea of Dispare and then fighting his way back to the surface is unforgettable

Hmmm, bolding the stars' names is such a great idea that I predict Sikander will use it in the very next post.

[Sikander]

Re: Best performance by these actors?

Peter Sellers - Tough one, as he has been so good in so many films, but I have to agree with the consensus and select "Dr. Strangelove", where he cracked me up as three different characters.

Marlon Brando - Another tough one, mainly because he made many films that I have never seen. I'll select "The Young Lions" just to be contrarian, as I wasn't all that impressed with Brando in anything I have seen him in since the 1950s anyway.

Robert De Niro - It's hard to admit, but I've never seen "Raging Bull", so take my opinion with a grain of salt (those who don't discount it out of hand habitually). I'm going to choose "Taxi Driver", which had a big impact on me when it came out.

Clint Eastwood - I like a lot of his films, and have always felt that he really brought something to the cinema with his ability to make silence work for him, as has already been lauded above. I'll select "Where Eagles Dare", where he showed his ability early on to share the stage with a great actor (Burton) in a performance that made the most of both actors abilities.

Steve Buscemi - I liked him a lot as "Donny" in "The Big Lebowski" too, but I have to pick him as Mr. Pink in "Reservoir Dogs", which is the role that really put him on the map for me, and a favorite.

Morgan Freeman - Another actor who has done a lot of important work that I haven't seen. So my probably ignorant selection for him is "Glory.

Sean Penn - Another actor who has done a lot of impressive work, as well as one who has been in a lot of acclaimed films that I have missed.

Samuel L. Jackson - Again, I am sure that there are some awesome performances that I have missed, but my favorite of what I have seen is "Pulp Fiction"

Gary Oldman - I reallly like this guy, in "The Professional", "Bram Stoker's Dracula", "True Romance", but I'm going to select his role as Zorg in "The Fifth Element".

James Stewart - God, so many films, many of them great, and many great performances. I'll go with "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence".

[Guynemer]

The only performance that I haven't seen mentioned yet is Gary Oldman in "The Contender". Simply incredible.

[Sava]

Re: Best performance by these actors?

Peter Sellers - don't know him
Marlon Brando - that waterfront movie
Robert De Niro - Heat
Clint Eastwood - can't decide
Steve Buscemi - Resevoir Dogs
Morgan Freeman - Shawshank Redemption
Sean Penn - hmmm I dunno, he sucks
Robert Carlyle - can't recall
Tim Roth - is this the guy from Pulp Fiction? if so, he sucks
Samuel L. Jackson - Jackie Brown
Gary Oldman - The Professional
James Stewart - I never liked him much

[Dis]

Clint Eastwood- Unforgiven. God I love that movie so much.

Steve Buscemi- Fargo

Samual L. Jackson- Pulp Fiction

Mogran Freeman- Unforgiven

Robert De Niro- heat was a good one. But I'll probably stick with Taxi Driver

And I'm not familiar enough with the other actors to select.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Peter Sellers- Dr Strangelove

Marlon Brando- On the waterfront

Robert De Niro- The King of Comedy

Clint Eastwood- High Plains Drifter

Steve Buscemi- Fargo

Morgan Freeman- The Shawshank Redemption

Sean Penn- At Close Range

Robert Carlyle- Cracker

Tim Roth- Vincent and Theo

Samuel L. Jackson- Pulp Fiction

Gary Oldman- ***** up your ears

James Stewart- It's a wonderful life.

[molly bloom]

For Eastwood I would be forced to choose between 'Play Misty For Me', 'The Beguiled' and 'The Unforgiven'. In all of them he acts against his usual characterisation, and I think is the better for it. He's decidedly unsympathetic in 'Misty', and nearing his sell by date in 'Unforgiven' (as the character)- like Wayne in 'True Grit' or 'The Shootist'.

For Brando, I can only choose 'The Wild One'- he oozes sex appeal, to men and women, he epitomizes the essence of freewheeling rebellion and has yet to lapse into mumbling caricature. But he's also dammn fine in 'The Men' too.

De Niro I like for 'Godfather II'. My problem with de Niro for many of his recent films is that he seems to be playing de Niro playing de Niro. In 'Godfather II', he shows the transition from ordinary decent hardworking recent immigre to the embryonic mafia don figure. And he makes it so plausible, almost as though his fate is to inexorably become the gangster.

Morgan Freeman inhabits quietude and silence in 'Seven'. By doing less, he achieves more than the hyperactive Mr. Pitt. If only all screen detectives had Mr. Freeman's 'zone of silence' presence.

Tim Roth has never bested his performance in the teleplay 'Made in England' where he played a neo-nazi skinhead.

Peter Sellers in 'Being There' showed he could be a serious actor- for much of his oeuvre he was the constant nervous joker, wearing disguises, donning accents, and yet in his portrayal of Chance the gardener, he played against type and surprised his usual audience.

Similarly I liked James Stewart in 'Rear Window' and 'Vertigo', wherein he very much doesn't act the folksy 'Our Town' American. In fact, his prurient telephoto lens wielding snoop in 'Rear Window' must be one of his least sympathetic roles.

Gary Oldman was best in '***** Up Your Ears', when he played the gay playwright Joe Orton. Orton's kitchen sink welfare state humour gelled nicely with Oldman's acting, and Oldman had yet to develop the taste for cheese that he showed in 'Dracula' or 'Leon'.

[aaglo]

Peter Sellers - All of the pink panther movies.

Marlon Brando - I have no idea of his best performance.

Robert De Niro - Taxi driver

Clint Eastwood - Dirty Harry

Steve Buscemi - Fargo

Morgan Freeman - Robin Hood (the Kevin Costner version )

Sean Penn - ???

Robert Carlyle - Full Monty

Tim Roth - Reservoir Dogs

Samuel L. Jackson - There are so many for him... Pulp Fiction, Die Hard 3, Unbreakable

Gary Oldman - Bram Stoker's Dracula

James Stewart - North by Northwest

[Dis]

I haven't seen many Sean Penn movies.

But I vote for Fast Times at Ridgemont High

[JohnT]

Re: Best performance by these actors?

No time for Why:

Peter Sellers - Being There
Marlon Brando - On the Waterfront
Robert De Niro - Taxi Driver... no, Raging Bull... no, Taxi Driver... no, Raging...
Clint Eastwood - The Outlaw Josey Wales.
Steve Buscemi - Reservoir Dogs
Morgan Freeman - Shawshank Redemption... but he did make a HELL of a President in "Deep Impact."
Sean Penn - Who cares?
Robert Carlyle - Who?
Tim Roth - Reservoir Dogs
Samuel L. Jackson - Pulp Fiction. No, wait! Unbreakable.
Gary Oldman - Immortal Beloved (I'm not a big Oldman fan)
James Stewart - The Glenn Miller Story.