Ranking Actors: Hoffman, Hackman, Newman, PSH, Lemmon

Wrong board,  but they'll move it so it's not a big deal.   Let's go.


1. Hoffman - By far.   He's the only guy here who checks all the boxes for me.   Most of the times, I see people putting him below Pacino, Brando, and DeNiro.   The Godfather/Coppola/Scorsese/mafia stans usually thinks DeNiro, Pacino, and Brando is above everyone.   But I disagree.   I think Hoffman is right there.   Maybe not quite as good as Pacino.   Maybe less of a power performances actor than DeNiro, but he's a better comedian and light-hearted actor.   I would say he's a lesser entertainer as Pacino or DeNiro, but he's a pretty good entertainer too.   He's definitely a Top actor for me.   I can't think of many modern actors I'd take over Hoffman.   Maybe a couple, but guys like Denzel, Phoenix, DiCaprio, and PSH are not on Hoffman's level.   His top works should tell you so much.    Besides Hoffman, I can take or leave all the other guys, tbh.


2. PSH - He's awesome in Happiness.  Beyond that? He's rarely on my mind at all.   But I give him credit for really developing as an actor and professionally dominating his craft for 20 years.  Am I big fan?   No, but he did die too young.   I don't take that away from him.


3. Lemmon - I used to find him overrated.   Actually maybe he kind still is, but on a repeat watch of Days of Wine and Roses, he has one performance I elevate above all others.   That's a really amazing performance.  He's a good comedian.   He's in the Hanks/Stewart/Smith category of the common good man.   Not to insinuate that Will Smith is the same level of actor as he is, just that in my opinion they play similar roles.   The nice lighthearted lovable guy you end up rooting for in the end.   Besides Days of Wine and Roses, I can't say I think of him as a Hoffman/DeNiro/Pacino/DDL actor tho.   I even think DDL is a bit overrated,  but I can't deny how good and powerful he can be.   


4. Hackman - He's very good.   The authority figure actor.   But do I see him as a Top actor like some of the people here do?   Nah.

5. Newman - I kinda see him like Hackman.   He's definitely done some good stuff, but I never really cared much.   I see him kinda like a John Wayne/Cary Grant.  Not that he's as mediocre as Wayne or as pedestrian as Grant, but he tends to play the same guy again and again.   And the performance that people say is an outlier to that mold.... The Verdict, I don't see much difference tbh.   I mean it's a bit different but that is not a performance that really breaks the mold in my opinion.   It's hardly similar to a Charlize Theron-Monster or Hilary Swank-Boys Don't Cry kind of mold breaking performance from an actor who's usually played one character.... the cool guy - his whole life.  But then, I'm not an expert on this guy.  He's rarely on my mind at all, so I don't know what to say here.

 

1. Dustin Hoffman - easily the best of this bunch for me. Even if his performances got less interesting with time, the highs that he had were simply astounding. Midnight Cowboy, Lenny, Tootsie...wow.

2. Philip Seymour Hoffman - I think he may have been at the top of this list if not for the profound and abrupt tragedy that occurred. He had so much greateness waiting to be unleashed. And that's besides the greatness that he already did unleash. One of his generation's finest.

3. Paul Newman - always extremely watchable and charismatic, often quite brilliant. But he's at #3 here because the two previous guys had more performances that blew me away.

4. Jack Lemmon - like urbanpatrician, I used to think of him as a bit overrated but recently I've changed my tune. I'm still somewhat annoyed by the overeager quality of some of his performances but whenever he settled into a quieter mode, he was amazing. But even when he tried too hard and became a bit overbearing (like in Tribute or Days of Wine and Roses), the obviousness of his talent was still very much on display. And of course his comedic skills are tremendous.

5. Gene Hackman - sort of the same as Newman, just not to that extent. He's always watchable and sometimes he did things that were absolutely great (The Conversation, Scarecrow). But the quantity of merely solid performances overpowers the amazing ones for me.

Hoffman
Newman
Lemmon
PSH
Hackman

They're all great and each have individual talents that set them apart from everyone else.

1. Jack Lemmon (his versatility puts him slightly over the top for me)
2. Gene Hackman (the best of the '70s gang)
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman (could conceivably have been #1 had he lived longer; he seemed to embody all four of these guys to some degree or another)
4. Paul Newman (aged like fine wine in both looks and talent)
5. Dustin Hoffman (some good performances but easily my least favorite of those vaunted greats of that era)

Very true. I think Phil Hoffman was the closest we had to a George C. Scott. Another one of my favourites. My biggest gripe with Hackman, who is my favorite, was his pay check tendency which he even admits to the point where he turned down some truly great roles which would have enhanced his standing big time. He was one of the few people asked to play Jack's role in Cuckoo's Nest which turned out to be great the way it was but still wtf Gene!

Dustin Hoffman
PSH
Gene Hackman
Jack Lemmon
Paul Newman

1. Dustin Hoffman - an easy #1. His singularity puts him way above these other guys. No one in the history of acting could've done The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, Lenny, Straight Time, or Tootsie quite like he did... let alone all 5 of them (and I could've listed more than 5 performances).

2. Gene Hackman - an easy #2. Probably the sturdiest actor of all time. Could carry a film stronger than most... and was equally good as a tough sunnuvabitch or when tapping into his sensitive side. Also underrated in the number of great supporting performances he had.

3. Paul Newman - an easy #3. Obviously unparalleled in the charm/longevity combo, great in both comedy and drama... but he's behind the top 2 because he could sometimes be bland in a way those two never were.

4. Philip Seymour Hoffman - A powerhouse who did great work in a wide variety of different types of films... but even if he lived longer, I don't think he would've rivaled the top 3 here.

5. Jack Lemmon - I still love him... and he was magic in the right role... but at times he could be grating and unwatchable in a way that not many of the all-time greats ever could.

1)Lex Luthor
2) Streep Harassement
3) Matthau Friend
4) Mr. Joan Woodward






5) Doritos

1. Dustin Hoffman
2. Philip Seymour Hoffman
3. Paul Newman
4. Gene Hackman
5. Jack Lemmon

2-4 could shuffle depending on exact argument...I'm projecting for PSH a little bc he's a favorite and I think he would've eventually been there, so he's there on talent. Hackman rarely if ever failed as an actor, you could depend on strong plausible work every time out but outside of '73-75, you might only need one hand to count his other great perfs. Newman has at least as many great perfs plus other underrated leads and a special star charm - he has his share of weak perfs (more than Hackman) but I don't consider them a negative.

Glad all the smart people put Hoffman as #1. I'm guessing those are the guys who've seen Straight Time, Lenny, and Death of a Salesman.


Hoffman has more movies than just Tootsie, The Graduate, Kramer vs Kramer, and Rain Man. He was in Marathon Man too, tho that was more Olivier was awesome than Hoffman was awesome.

I could give a shit what World Of Reel thinks about anything, but back in the IMDB days I was stubbornly putting Hackman at or near the top of the 70's era Greats for years, when most people were still insistent that The Big 4 of the 70's generation was DeNiro, Pacino, Nicholson and Hoffman, and Hackman wasn't great enough to be in that lofty, elite club. It was a lonely battle, which I think wallsofjericho remembers . It's been perceptible to me for a long while that Hoffman's reputation was fading a little with younger generations/critics compared to his peers, while Hackman's reputation kept growing ( perhaps in part because he maintained relevance in the 90's and 2000's with things like Unforgiven and The Royal Tenembaums before retiring).

So it's not really a revelation that Hackman is arguably held in greater esteem than Hoffman today. It's been obvious in articles written about them in the last 20 years. It was even obvious last year when Empire Magazine readers voted for the 50 Greatest Actors Of All Time, and Hackman made the cut ( with Pacino, DeNiro and Nicholson) while Hoffman didn't.