This will be the start of a new series of reviews of actors called “Actors Who…”. They may be actors who are terrible that continue do bad work, actors who have not done well until recent years, actors who do all genres and do them well, and today’s list, actors who class every movie they are in.
There are just many actors out there that are so good that they are the redeeming factor in a horribly made picture. Most of these actors that I will state choose their movies carefully and don’t just do a movie for the pay check, but some don’t, but are still masters of their art. Here they are in alphabetical order:
Cate Blanchette: Anything that Miss Blanchette has done in her life is spot on. I have not been disappointed with her huge resumé of works. Elizabeth I, Maid Marion, Katherine Hepburn, Bob Dylan, and Lady Galadriel are all amazing roles in which she shows her class. Many other roles of hers are just perfect for her in not so perfect movies like Notes on a Scandal, Indiana Jones 4, or The Missing.
Anthony Hopkins: I don’t need to say much. Every movie Mr. Hopkins is in, he gives it certain flair. Remains of the Day, Shadowlands, The Silence of the Lambs, Nixon, Legends of the Fall, Amistad, Fracture, and the future Thor are all his best performances to date. He also did a decent job in All The King’s Men, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Beowulf, and The Wolfman, but all of those films weren’t nearly as good as they could have been.
Jeremy Irons: Mr. Irons is one of the greats. Most would not know him by name, but then I say names like Scar from The Lion King, or Brom from the atrocious Eragon, or Aramis in The Man in the Iron Mask. He has done his fair share of great movies, and bad ones as well. His most notable in my mind are his performances in The Mission (with Robert de Niro), Kingdom of Heaven (the Orlando Bloom/Ridley Scott team up), and Antonio the Merchant in the film adaptation of The Merchant of Venice (starring Al Pacino as Shylock the Jew). Good or bad films, Irons is always great.
Jason Isaacs: There aren’t very many bad movies that Mr. Isaacs has been a part of in his career. I just thought that I should mention him because of his extraordinary talent. The only movie that I can say is bad in which he was a part of would be the newer Peter Pan (he plays Captain Hook and George Darling, the father). Green Zone, Black Hawk Down, Harry Potter, and The Patriot are all of the movies I have seen him and he does not disappoint.
Alfred Molina: If this year was any proof of how great Alfred Molina is, then I don’t know what else could. He is the redeeming factor in every one of his terrible films. And in his great films, he still steals the show. This year he was in three films in which he did his natural scene-stealing magic: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Prince of Persia, and The Tempest. Other films that he has done that are bad are Dudley Do-right (funny, but bad), Spiderman 2, The Da Vinci Code, and Pink Panther 2. His great films consist of An Education, As You Like It, Chocolat, Luther, and Frida.
Gary Oldman: Most of my friends know that Gary Oldman is my favorite actor. He hardly does any bad films and when he does, he brings his best to make up for the badness of the film. The three most blaringly obvious bad films are The Fifth Element, JFK, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. His great performances are too many to say, but I’ll try to give most of them: Air Force One, Harry Potter, Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise, The Book of Eli, Immortal Beloved, Sid and Nancy, and The Professional.
Ryan Reynolds: This man hasn’t made a good movie yet that I have seen. Blade: Trinity, Smokin’ Aces, The Proposal, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine are he only four movies I have seen him in and he is fantastic in all of them, but the movies SUCKED! This is why I am so looking forward to Green Lantern because if it is good, then it will be his first great film I have seen him in. But no matter how bad the films are, if you see Ryan Reynolds, you know that he will be good.
Michael Sheen: Like Gary Oldman or Jason Isaacs, I have not seen Mr. Sheen in any bad films. He is on the top of his game in every film he is in, whether it be competing against Helen Mirren in the Queen, or only hearing his voice as the White Rabbit in the latest Alice in Wonderland film, or only seeing him in a few scenes in the latest Tron escapade, he is always acting his butt off. Every time I see Michael Sheen’s name on a movie credit, I have to see it because I know how great this actor is. If you want more movies to see Michael Sheen in, watch The Damned United (greatest sports film ever), Unthinkable, The Special Relationship, Frost/Nixon, Underworld franchise, and Laws of Attraction (a not so great movie, but he and Parker Posey steal the whole movie).
Next time: Actors Who Need To Leave Acting
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