Top 5 Performances by Russell Crowe?

1. The Insider
2. Gladiator
3. 3:10 to Yuma
4. L.A. Confidential
5. The Nice Guys

Big HM to Master and Commander.

The Insider
LA Confidential
Gladiator
A Beautiful Mind
Cinderella Man
The Nice Guys

1. The Insider (one of the best perfs of the 90s)
2. A Beautiful Mind
3. Master and Commander
4. 3:10 to Yuma

and I guess Gladiator for that final spot with a shout-out for Boy Erased.

Looooooove him ! He makes me believe and care about his characters like very very few actors can, a magnificent actor.

The Insider
Gladiator
A Beautiful Mind
LA Confidential
State of Play

The 5th spot could have been taken by 5 others performances but I think he's wonderful and under-appreciated in State of Play as well as The Next Three Days (arguably the last 2 times I saw the great Rusty at work in a leading role. He's very moving and try his best in Fathers & Daughters tho.). These aren't great movies or great characters but he sells them admirably and it's sometimes very telling about an actor full capabilities.

Interesting no one else has listed ANY of the acclaimed-bigger Aussie work (?) - as I said above I'm not a big fan of his and don't think he's been great for almost 20 years but that early stuff I do quite like and I think Romper Stomper and Proof are clearly in his top 5.

Maybe they haven't been seen? Romper Stomper I think was basically the template for Ed Norton's American History X performance even and if you take Proof/Romper Stomper together you also have a bit of foreshadowing Heath Ledger extreme range of performance types too.

Yeah he really is and I love how credible and believeable he is as a journalist. Generally in movies, we tend to judge actors at how good they are at bringing/projecting characters emotions, intensity, etc... first and foremost as human confronted to situations and all, and how good and credible they are as the character's occupation can be seen as secondary/less important (and in some way, in some movies, it is) but it's amazing to see an actor so spot on about it too. For example Denzel is fascinating when it comes to it in my opinion, whether it is in his cops roles or say, an action movie like Unstoppable, he nails this part of the performance. One of my best friends has the same job as his in Unstoppable and he tells me, in his attitude, his body language, etc... he's clearly one of us. It's hours and hours of research, observing real pros, tons of "homework", etc... and I find Russell Crowe here to be amazing at it too.

1. Gladiator
2. 3:10 to Yuma
3. Romper Stomper
4. The Insider
5. Noah
(HM: LA Confidential & Body of Lies
Fantastic actor and I dug his directing work with The Water Diviner as well.

Come to think of it , the only film that he starred in that I didn't particularly care for would be in Sir Ridley Scott's Robin Hood. He sleepwalked thru the role was just looked too old for the origin story imo.

Pretty great watch.