Go back to previous topic
Forum namePass The Popcorn
Topic subjectWhat are the best and worst Actor's choices you can think of?
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=6&topic_id=742145
742145, What are the best and worst Actor's choices you can think of?
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Wed Sep-22-21 03:06 PM
If folks need an explanation of what an Actor's choices are this is a pretty good explanation.

http://theatredoconacting.blogspot.com/2010/11/acting-choices.html?m=1


For some of the best that come to mind I think of Johnny Depp playing Jack Sparrow as Mick Jagger. Just about all the choices Heath Ledger made for depicting the joker (speech pattern, walk, etc.). Val Kilmer's speech pattern for Doc Holiday in Tombstone.

For some of the worst I think of Don Cheadles British accent in the ocean 11 movies. Damon Wayan's performance in Bamboozled as an uptight uppity brother (this may be more miscasting then poor choices though). Initially I hated Daniel Craig's Southern Drawl in Knives Out but now on repeat I just see it as camp.

What comes to mind for you?
742146, Gylenhaal’s mannerisms as Loki in Prisoners
Posted by Nodima, Wed Sep-22-21 04:30 PM
Everything about that character, on paper, isn’t all that interesting aside from his name. But Jake manages to turn him into a character every bit as untrustworthy and weird as everyone else in that movie, despite the script making it clear he’s such a straight forward cop dude.

~~~~~~~~~
"This is the streets, and I am the trap." � Jay Bilas
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/archive/contributor/517
Hip Hop Handbook: http://tinyurl.com/ll4kzz
742147, Don't know it but its on Hulu. Will check it out.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Wed Sep-22-21 04:56 PM

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742171, Such a good movie. Great cast as well.
Posted by Sofian_Hadi, Fri Sep-24-21 11:14 AM
742200, I watched again this weekend. I had forgotten I had seen it before.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Mon Sep-27-21 01:27 PM
It was really good. Villeneuve really elevated a pretty simple genre story. So did the leads.

Really good restrained performance by JG. I was wondering did they cut out a whole backstory for his character or did they never really get into why he was so tatted up and a cop.


**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742206, He asked for them as part of the character's orphan backstory
Posted by Nodima, Mon Sep-27-21 09:29 PM
It's been a while since I've seen it so I don't remember if there's even more than a single line of dialogue about him coming up in foster homes (or was it juvenile detention) and that's why he takes the case so personally but that's kind of what I mean, he had the experience with Denis on Enemy and knew what he likes and brought a lot of his own ideas to the character.


It's really a movie full of good/interesting acting choices, I've been obsessed with David Dastmalchian since this movie also.


~~~~~~~~~
"This is the streets, and I am the trap." � Jay Bilas
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/archive/contributor/517
Hip Hop Handbook: http://tinyurl.com/ll4kzz
742191, I agree. as a counterpoint, everything he did in Okja
Posted by will_5198, Sun Sep-26-21 06:43 PM
742149, a bad one that comes to mind: brad pitt's "insane asylum guy" in 12 Monkeys
Posted by Robert, Thu Sep-23-21 08:49 AM
he definitely could've dug deeper to make the character more unhinged.. it was like watching his pot-smoking character in True Romance, maybe just hopped up on a lot of caffeine?
742151, I actually liked that!
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Thu Sep-23-21 09:30 AM

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742152, .
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Thu Sep-23-21 09:30 AM
**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742154, I forgot Bencio Del Toro's Fenster in the Usual Supsects.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Thu Sep-23-21 09:40 AM
I wasn't familiar with BDT so I thought he was that guy and those were his mannerism. Now I have to go research where he came up with all of that.


**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742203, Vocally, he was channeling Thelonious Monk
Posted by mrhood75, Mon Sep-27-21 02:11 PM
>Now I have to go research where he came up with all of that.

Seriously, watch the documentary "Straight No Chaser." At least a line of two from "Usual" were taken from that film.
742156, It's funny you mentioned Cheadle and Craig...
Posted by soulfunk, Thu Sep-23-21 09:58 AM
Because I DEFINITELY saw Cheadle's accent as camp. That character was hyperbole even in universe with him playing a character, so the campy accent totally fits to me.


>For some of the worst I think of Don Cheadles British accent
>in the ocean 11 movies.
>Initially I hated
>Daniel Craig's Southern Drawl in Knives Out but now on repeat
>I just see it as camp.

742173, That's how they justified it as well.
Posted by Sofian_Hadi, Fri Sep-24-21 11:40 AM
A super campy cockney accent. He pulled it off much better in Ocean's 13.
742166, I think Philip Seymour Hoffman (RIP) consistently made great choices
Posted by obsidianchrysalis, Thu Sep-23-21 11:08 PM
His performance in Capote came to mind. He brought Capote to life in a way that didn't come off as mimicry.

Chiwetel makes great choices as well. Each performance is different and he distinctly embodies his characters.

Of course, Meryl is a GOAT. I generally like Cate Blanchett's performances. I haven't seen much of her lately, but she was a beast in Blue Jasmine. She really nailed anxiety and depression and a dependent personality.

I wracked my brain for a while to think of bad acting choices. The only one that finally came to mind was DeNiro and Pacino in The Irishman. I didn't connect enough to the movie to have a real sense of the reason their performances fell flat - their choices or the script. But I was very disappointed by their choices. Pesci however turned in one of his best performances.

742168, Johnny Depp in...
Posted by herbiehowsermc, Fri Sep-24-21 10:53 AM
...
742170, Spacey in House of Cards
Posted by spenzalii, Fri Sep-24-21 11:09 AM
A bit of Midnight in the Garden of Evil in his southern twang but I couldn't seen anyone else bringing Frank Underwood to life
742192, I’m still salty we didn’t get to see where that was going.
Posted by soulfunk, Sun Sep-26-21 08:41 PM
Of course I understand why and they handled it as best they could, but man…
742193, imo they handled it the worst they could
Posted by pretentious username, Sun Sep-26-21 11:24 PM
>Of course I understand why and they handled it as best they
>could, but man…

They murdered frank underwood (cool), declared it claire's show (great)... then all they ever talked about was frank underwood and his "legacy" (wtf?). That last season was a MESS, even for that show.
742202, Yeah - I meant in terms of the decision, not the execution.
Posted by soulfunk, Mon Sep-27-21 01:34 PM
To your point the execution was sloppy. They should have killed him off, moved to Claire, and completely ignored him.


>They murdered frank underwood (cool), declared it claire's
>show (great)... then all they ever talked about was frank
>underwood and his "legacy" (wtf?). That last season was a
>MESS, even for that show.
742198, Might as well add Robin Wright's take on Claire as well
Posted by kfine, Mon Sep-27-21 09:29 AM
There's been a lot of political wives and First Lady's roles in tv and film, and I have to say she found a unique balance of sexy, stateswoman, and serial killer

I can't think of another political wife/First Lady role where the actress went so dark in *both* the character's personality and physicality

Robin made Claire way scarier than Frank, but in a way that turned Frank (and viewers lol) on
742172, Emma Stone as an Asian/Hawaiian woman.
Posted by Sofian_Hadi, Fri Sep-24-21 11:36 AM
She came extremely close, but couldn't quite pull it off.
742174, Mike Myers in The Love Guru.
Posted by Sofian_Hadi, Fri Sep-24-21 11:56 AM
Literally destroyed his own career and never recovered.
742179, Johnny Depp and BDT in Fear and Loathing were great
Posted by calij81, Fri Sep-24-21 11:08 PM
742180, Johnny Depp really owns this post.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Sat Sep-25-21 07:08 AM
I wonder if he's bad choices that people think didn't work.

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742182, Travolta's version of Robert Shapiro was... different
Posted by Mynoriti, Sat Sep-25-21 04:06 PM
it didn't seem anything like I remembered the actual Robert Shapiro to be, but it completely fit the style of the series.
742194, agreed, it was bizarre.
Posted by pretentious username, Sun Sep-26-21 11:25 PM
>it didn't seem anything like I remembered the actual Robert
>Shapiro to be, but it completely fit the style of the series.
>

actually Cuba was really weird as OJ too. Still fucking loved that show though. Couldn't get enough.
742190, Al Pacino has never recovered from Scent of a Woman
Posted by will_5198, Sun Sep-26-21 06:41 PM
742242, lol
Posted by spades, Thu Sep-30-21 09:23 AM
742195, We could make this post just about Joker performances
Posted by pretentious username, Sun Sep-26-21 11:33 PM
Nicholson, Ledger, and Joaquin were all great in their own way, even if you don't love those movies. Shit, throw in Mark Hamill and Cesar Romero with his painted over mustache too.

Leto as Joker though... yeesh.
742196, Vince Vaughn's choices in True Detective 2 we're head-scratching
Posted by obsidianchrysalis, Mon Sep-27-21 01:39 AM
That whole season was weird, mostly in ways that didn't land. But Vince's choice of accent for his character did not work at all. He also didn't seem menacing in any real way.
742199, Wow. This is an all time weird AF choices
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Mon Sep-27-21 01:23 PM
Soooo strange.

I didn't know who to blame, VV or the writer/director.

I guess he was trying to compete with Matthew McCoughahey but that was not it.

Good call back.


**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742223, RE: Wow. This is an all time weird AF choices
Posted by obsidianchrysalis, Wed Sep-29-21 05:35 AM
> I didn't know who to blame, VV or > the writer/director.

You bring up an interesting point here about the right crew member to blame for a bad performance.

Roles/positions on a film crew seem very defined. That being said collaboration is so key.

Yes, it's easy to blame Vince or any actor giving a bad performance for seeming to miss the mark with their character.

But the director is also responsible in some respect because they approved the actor's take on the material.

Maybe the writer's vision was nebulous? That could lead both the director and actor going off in a direction that left the audience disconnected from the story.

Understanding film production is so mysterious to me. I don't know enough about it to form a clear answer about acknowledging the problem.
742204, I'll be the contrarian: I thought he was terrific.
Posted by Frank Longo, Mon Sep-27-21 03:31 PM
742207, I agree, I was on edge of my seat for his scenes every episode
Posted by Nodima, Mon Sep-27-21 09:34 PM
He was the only one that seemed to realize they didn't have the material Season One had and tried to have some fun with it.

Honestly all the leads were really fantastic in that season, they just didn't have an interesting or coherent story to tell and the nonsense dialogue made them come off sillier than they were. And unlike McAdams, Farrell and Kitsch Vaughn kinda leaned into it and seemed like he was having a real good time.

I hope TDS2 gets its re-appraisal as an accidentally campy send up of the prestige limited series, it was a huge come down from TDS1 but it was fun in a really unique way.


~~~~~~~~~
"This is the streets, and I am the trap." � Jay Bilas
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/archive/contributor/517
Hip Hop Handbook: http://tinyurl.com/ll4kzz
742220, Yeah, i thought he was good as well
Posted by Mynoriti, Tue Sep-28-21 09:26 PM
It seemed like as soon as it became clear it wasn't gonna live up to S1, a lot of people decided he was the problem, but I thought he did well.

The writing in S2 wasn't great, and that Scooby Doo ass ending probably solidified it as a bust. I don't really think any of the True Detecive endings were very good, but S1 was so good up to that point, it was afterthought.

plus no performance really knocked it out the park the way McConaughey did
742222, We agree to disagree
Posted by obsidianchrysalis, Wed Sep-29-21 05:21 AM
Maybe if I were more sensitive to the nuances of his performance, my satisfaction level with his acting might be different.

I do give him credit for trying a different take on a gangster.

But like I said above, Vaughn's attempt to appear intimidating in scenes that seemed to call for it fell flat to me. I just couldn't believe he was smart or powerful enough to pull off his deal, IIRC.
742241, Wow you guys are giving me TD Season 2 thread flashbacks.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Thu Sep-30-21 09:01 AM
Yall are off your rockers. That ish was terrible including and especially VV.

And I am a VV fan. The Breakup is a grossly underrated RomCom.

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742197, Tom Hardy fan; I liked his approaches to the villains in The Revenant
Posted by kfine, Mon Sep-27-21 09:23 AM

and Dark Knight Rises a lot


I read somewhere that he's really into voices and it was particularly effective in those roles imho, along with his physical transformations


And speaking of the Batman franchise, I think my favorite one has been Michael Keaton although I might give Bale the edge as a more convincing tormented wealthy playboy Wayne


note: I'm rarely in PTP and not that much of a movie head, but this is a compelling topic lol good post
742205, Allen Payne's accent in "Jason's Lyric"
Posted by Castro, Mon Sep-27-21 06:06 PM
742211, RE: What are the best and worst Actor's choices you can think of?
Posted by Original Juice, Tue Sep-28-21 10:50 AM

>For some of the best that come to mind I think of Johnny Depp
>playing Jack Sparrow as Mick Jagger.

It was actually Keith Richards, but yes.. you're right about the point that it was a good choice. It was.
742212, On the fence: Ashton Sanders as RZA in the second season...
Posted by mrhood75, Tue Sep-28-21 11:01 AM
...on Wu-Tang: An American Saga.

In general, he's an excellent actor. His decision to mimic RZA's speech patterns can be... off-putting. I don't think it's bad, but it certainly takes some getting used to, even though I know it's accurate.
742251, It's actually gotten distracting and comes off too "put on"
Posted by WarriorPoet415, Fri Oct-01-21 12:53 PM

______________________________________________________________________________

"To Each His Reach"

but.....

Fuck aliens.
742802, I just started this series
Posted by Adwhizz, Tue Dec-07-21 08:29 PM
2 eps into the second season

Yeah it's odd seeing actors portray people we "know" so well

The Guy playing Rza has a tall order in front of him since Rza IS such an odd dude.

742214, Christian Bale "Bat voice"
Posted by blueeclipse, Tue Sep-28-21 12:30 PM
This has aged so poorly. I hated it at the time and I hate it everytime I go back to the Nolan Batman movies. It's distracting and ridiculous. Especially when he has to deliver meaningful dialogue.
742218, This. Lol was just saying above I don't mind him as Bruce, but as
Posted by kfine, Tue Sep-28-21 05:41 PM

Batman there's just something about his voice and mouth that's off

742219, literally all of this
Posted by Mynoriti, Tue Sep-28-21 08:29 PM
>This has aged so poorly. I hated it at the time and I hate
>it everytime I go back to the Nolan Batman movies. It's
>distracting and ridiculous. Especially when he has to deliver
>meaningful dialogue.
742232, It's not that far off of over bat voices BTW
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Wed Sep-29-21 01:57 PM


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfUc_tQ482M



**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742236, That sounds WAY different than all the others IMO
Posted by pretentious username, Wed Sep-29-21 03:39 PM
>
>
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfUc_tQ482M

None of the others sound like they’re straining, and there were a lot of scenes where it looked like the cowl made it impossible for him to close his mouth.
742240, only one of those sounds like cookie monster
Posted by Mynoriti, Wed Sep-29-21 10:47 PM
the others mostly just lowered their voice a bit
742237, I think this is 50% Nolan’s fault though
Posted by pretentious username, Wed Sep-29-21 03:45 PM
His sound mixing definitely hurt, but I think he’s somewhat behind the choice that Bale made with his voice too.
742243, I blame Nolan.
Posted by Sofian_Hadi, Thu Sep-30-21 10:01 AM
Viewing Nolan's follow up films and refusal to make audio that's actually listenable, there's no way that wasnt his idea or him changing the audio levels.
742250, Mos Def's voice in 16 Blocks
Posted by WarriorPoet415, Fri Oct-01-21 12:52 PM
Shit was bad.
______________________________________________________________________________

"To Each His Reach"

but.....

Fuck aliens.
742252, I actually loved RDJ voice in Tropic Thunder
Posted by Ray_Snill, Fri Oct-01-21 10:26 PM

<=========================================
https://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/PYzh4v9cSf4FDnq3yMQyqNqh79o=/800x0/filters:no_upscale%28%29/cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/4079674/jlio.0.gif
742296, me too
Posted by Ashy Achilles, Tue Oct-12-21 11:29 AM
742294, Depp was channeling Keith Richards, not Jagger.
Posted by Pete Burns, Tue Oct-12-21 03:19 AM
I think of Johnny Depp
>playing Jack Sparrow as Mick Jagger.
742303, Touche.
Posted by Buddy_Gilapagos, Wed Oct-13-21 11:50 AM

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"
742316, Cage in Con Air and Keanu in Devils Advocate
Posted by RobOne4, Thu Oct-14-21 01:13 PM
Maybe Cage's accent is just so bad nobody mentioned it yet because we all universally agree its the worst ever? I recently discovered that the day that he wrapped Con Air he went and started filming Face Off. But for some reason that little piece of trivia kind of makes me think yeah that makes sense for his role in Face Off.

Also I know everyone loves Keanu but I will die on this hill. The man cant act for shit. Dont go bringing up John Wick either. Thats the only one his fans bring up. He is a great human being and works hard. But he cant act. Whoever thought hey lets give this non acting mufucka a southern accent should be shot. Also it comes and goes throughout the whole movie. Like they shot about 1/4 of the movie then decided you know what? The accent isnt working. Lets ditch it fuck continuity.
742326, Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston as Gomez and Morticia
Posted by spenzalii, Fri Oct-15-21 04:18 PM
Nobody is touching them in those roles
742908, THE GODDAMN ROBOTS JOHN!!
Posted by 40thStreetBlack, Wed Dec-15-21 01:13 AM
https://goddamnrobots.ytmnd.com/