|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Feb 21, 2020 15:07:00 GMT
George C. Scott was one of the great journeymen actors of the 20th century, able to confidently do both comedy and drama, and for a while he seemed destined to be one of the great leading men, although his career went in a slightly different direction. You mentioned The Hospital, and it's a good example of what I'm talking about. It's such a great strange satirical comedy / drama, and C. Scott is at the center really helping to make it work as well it does.
Also Taps is a good film. I was actually talking about it earlier, with some people I know, mostly in the context of its young stars. George C. Scott is basically reprising his hard stern Patton General role, but there's nothing wrong with that. I'm actually surprised he largely stuck to TV after, given it was a fairly successful movie.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 3, 2020 20:22:37 GMT
Charles Bronson
Genre: Action Revenge Movies
Charles Bronson’s film career is the kind of career that a lot of actors strive to have. Not so much because of the quality, because let's be honest a lot of his later flicks were pretty bad, but more so the late resurgence from a young supporting character actor to a middle-aged high paying badass, who goes after people because they pissed him off. Think of Liam Neeson's recent run of action films, only featuring a less respected better actor, as a comparison from today.
One of the things that makes Charles Bronson such an effective screen presence is that while he’s limited as far as direct acting abilities goes, like it’s hard to see him delivering a Shakespeare soliloquy, he’s an incredible physical presence. There were very few actors in Bronson’s day who could come off as being muscular and threatening at the same time, this was just around the era that Hong Kong films started to became popular in the west (Bronson himself built up his leading man credentials in Europe, taking cues from his friend Clint Eastwood). Take The Mechanic for example, which is a classic action protege turned betrayal film. Bronson enters the picture, and you know for his appearance that he’s the perfect hitman, and you don’t want to mess with him, or Mr. Majestyk where he’s a mellen farmer driven to extremes by the mob. Anytime Bronson’s on screen, you know he’s out for justice.
His 80 trashy Cannon films really pushed the revenge angle to his ninth arguably disgusting degree. 10 to Midnight, The Evil That Men Do,Murphy’s Law, The Death Wish Sequels, Assassination etc… These are all movies built on a conservative logic of taking things into your hands, when nobody else will help, and resorting to nonstop carnage and violence. I can’t say I enjoy all if any of these movies, as somebody who leans considerably left, they often can be a bit too much for me, but I can’t deny there is a recurring effectiveness as far as depictions of over the top violence goes. Eventually audiences got tired of Bronson doing the same thing (look at the opening box office drop from Murphy’s Law to Assassination for example), but for a while he was the effective executioner in these types of films, that people could weirdly root for.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Mar 4, 2020 15:41:47 GMT
Charles BronsonGenre: Action Revenge MoviesCharles Bronson’s film career is the kind of career that a lot of actors strive to have. Not so much because of the quality, because let's be honest a lot of his later flicks were pretty bad, but more so the late resurgence from a young supporting character actor to a middle-aged high paying badass, who goes after people because they pissed him off. Think of Liam Neeson's recent run of action films, only featuring a less respected better actor, as a comparison from today. One of the things that makes Charles Bronson such an effective screen presence is that while he’s limited as far as direct acting abilities goes, like it’s hard to see him delivering a Shakespeare soliloquy, he’s an incredible physical presence. There were very few actors in Bronson’s day who could come off as being muscular and threatening at the same time, this was just around the era that Hong Kong films started to became popular in the west (Bronson himself built up his leading man credentials in Europe, taking cues from his friend Clint Eastwood). Take The Mechanic for example, which is a classic action protege turned betrayal film. Bronson enters the picture, and you know for his appearance that he’s the perfect hitman, and you don’t want to mess with him, or Mr. Majestyk where he’s a mellen farmer driven to extremes by the mob. Anytime Bronson’s on screen, you know he’s out for justice. His 80 trashy Cannon films really pushed the revenge angle to his ninth arguably disgusting degree. 10 to Midnight, The Evil That Men Do, Murphy’s Law, The Death Wish Sequels, Assassination etc… These are all movies built on a conservative logic of taking things into your hands, when nobody else will help, and resorting to nonstop carnage and violence. I can’t say I enjoy all if any of these movies, as somebody who leans considerably left, they often can be a bit too much for me, but I can’t deny there is a recurring effectiveness as far as depictions of over the top violence goes. Eventually audiences got tired of Bronson doing the same thing (look at the opening box office drop from Murphy’s Law to Assassination for example), but for a while he was the effective executioner in these types of films, that people could weirdly root for. Brilliant write-up my friend You are right about Bronson's strengths (and weaknesses) as an an actor. His range is probably non-existent (terse, monosyllabic tough guy), but his ability to convey intention through minimal dialogue and with his physicality is a hugely effective and prized attribute in screen actors (maybe moreso Movie Stars). Actors like Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford, who don't neccesarily have huge emotional range, have that kind of minimalist physical conviction as actors. Those guys ended up far more respected actors, in part due to the choices they made. But when you look at the early trajectory of Bronson, he was more than holding his own with great stars like Steve McQueen ( The Great Escape) and Henry Fonda (Once Upon A Time In The West) in more prestigous action films. Bronson settled for typecasting and endless Death Wish sequels and similarly themed revenge pictures. It's possible he could have had a more Eastwood-esqe career if he had tried to switch things up a bit (even Eastwood's switch into silly comedies with Organgutan co-stars broadened his career options), but Eastwood's taste and ability as a filmmaker means he always had more going for him. Still, Bronson while he never achieved much in terms of prestige, is far more remembered than many prestige performers, and is a great study for less is more physical actors in those type of action/revenge films.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 4, 2020 16:13:52 GMT
Charles BronsonGenre: Action Revenge MoviesCharles Bronson’s film career is the kind of career that a lot of actors strive to have. Not so much because of the quality, because let's be honest a lot of his later flicks were pretty bad, but more so the late resurgence from a young supporting character actor to a middle-aged high paying badass, who goes after people because they pissed him off. Think of Liam Neeson's recent run of action films, only featuring a less respected better actor, as a comparison from today. One of the things that makes Charles Bronson such an effective screen presence is that while he’s limited as far as direct acting abilities goes, like it’s hard to see him delivering a Shakespeare soliloquy, he’s an incredible physical presence. There were very few actors in Bronson’s day who could come off as being muscular and threatening at the same time, this was just around the era that Hong Kong films started to became popular in the west (Bronson himself built up his leading man credentials in Europe, taking cues from his friend Clint Eastwood). Take The Mechanic for example, which is a classic action protege turned betrayal film. Bronson enters the picture, and you know for his appearance that he’s the perfect hitman, and you don’t want to mess with him, or Mr. Majestyk where he’s a mellen farmer driven to extremes by the mob. Anytime Bronson’s on screen, you know he’s out for justice. His 80 trashy Cannon films really pushed the revenge angle to his ninth arguably disgusting degree. 10 to Midnight, The Evil That Men Do, Murphy’s Law, The Death Wish Sequels, Assassination etc… These are all movies built on a conservative logic of taking things into your hands, when nobody else will help, and resorting to nonstop carnage and violence. I can’t say I enjoy all if any of these movies, as somebody who leans considerably left, they often can be a bit too much for me, but I can’t deny there is a recurring effectiveness as far as depictions of over the top violence goes. Eventually audiences got tired of Bronson doing the same thing (look at the opening box office drop from Murphy’s Law to Assassination for example), but for a while he was the effective executioner in these types of films, that people could weirdly root for. Brilliant write-up my friend You are right about Bronson's strengths (and weaknesses) as an an actor. His range is probably non-existent (terse, monosyllabic tough guy), but his ability to convey intention through minimal dialogue and with his physicality is a hugely effective and prized attribute in screen actors (maybe moreso Movie Stars). Actors like Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford, who don't neccesarily have huge emotional range, have that kind of minimalist physical conviction as actors. Those guys ended up far more respected actors, in part due to the choices they made. But when you look at the early trajectory of Bronson, he was more than holding his own with great stars like Steve McQueen ( The Great Escape) and Henry Fonda (Once Upon A Time In The West) in more prestigous action films. Bronson settled for typecasting and endless Death Wish sequels and similarly themed revenge pictures. It's possible he could have had a more Eastwood-esqe career if he had tried to switch things up a bit (even Eastwood's switch into silly comedies with Organgutan co-stars broadened his career options), but Eastwood's taste and ability as a filmmaker means he always had more going for him. Still, Bronson while he never achieved much in terms of prestige, is far more remembered than many prestige performers, and is a great study for less is more physical actors in those type of action/revenge films. Thanks. He actually lived in my home state of Vermont by the time of his death, which was awesome to learn. I'd had been meaning to write about Bronson for a while now. He's actually a favorite of mine, at least his seventies fair goes. I didn't mention the film (because it's not an action movie), but Hard Times is my favorite performance of his, and it basically details everything that I enjoy about him as a performer, both good and bad. His mid to late 60s run is really good too. The Great Escape, Once Upon a Time in The West etc.. These are the movies he did building up to becoming a leading man in European fare. He's a great study in how to be a limited range actor, but also how to work around those limitations. Think of later guys like Arnold, only with an actual acting background and over a decade of experience of acting to go by it. Not the most well-spoken, but they had presence, and they definitely knew how to make an entrance. When I think of later day Bronson, tired is probably the best word to describe it. Not so much his performances, because well they kinda fit the sleaziness of the Cannon films he did, but more because those movies themselves kinda jell together. Largely directed by J. Lee Thompson, and centering around Bronson wanting vengeance, they are definitely not the most well thought-out films. Eventually, he was basically doing TV movies by that end. He did however manage to get one last solid performance in Sean Penn's The Indian Runner, where he played a father full of seeming longing regrets. It wouldn't be his last theatrical role, as Death Wish V managed to slip through the cracks later, but it was a good way to cap off his career, and it was good to see him play something other then a badass for a change.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 5, 2020 5:29:01 GMT
Steve Martin Genre: Comedy, particularly of the “smart” variety
I’m a big fan of Steve Martin. I have been ever since my dad introduced me to one of his favorite movies, Planes, Trains & Automobiles. I later learned to appreciate The Jerk, after checking it out from the library. I also grew up on the Cheaper By The Dozen movies, but that was me experiencing a different later more fatherly figure Steve Martin.
I’ve done a write-up of Bill Murray already, and we’ve talked about Martin in this thread already, but what makes him particularly stand out for me is that especially in the mid 80s and early 90s, he was a very sophisticated comedian of sorts. He had started out with his wild & crazy persona, but gradually got farther and farther away from that as he progressed into doing more and more movies. He’s an accomplished writer, and his best films tend to be written by himself, but he’s also capable of elevating potentially subpar material if need be. His impact on comedy can’t be overstated, he brought a very wacky down to earth reliability to just about every role he was in, whether he was the straight man in Planes Train & Automobiles, or playing a romantic lead in Roxanne.
And his run in the 80s is almost borderly legendary, and might just be my favorite run of any actor from that period, comedian or otherwise. Pennies From Heaven (not a hit, but his first real stab at drama), Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, The Man With Two Brains, All of Me, his scene stealing role in Little Shop of Horrors, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Parenthood etc… culminating in the 90s in what I consider his masterpiece L.A. Story. A wistful satirical charming look at early 1990s Los Angeles lifestyle, and a movie that Steve Martin spent years writing and researching. Not all of these films work 100%, but they show a performer willing to experiment and try different things.
Sadly Steve Martin did not keep up his pace in the 90s or especially the 2000s as much. While he did star and write great comedy classics like Bowfinger, and even a great dramatic turn in David Mamet’s The Spanish Prisoner, the quality of his films deceased expediently, and he seemed more interested in art and banjo playing, then he did starring in movies. Still he left behind a legacy of great movies, many of which are considered comedy classics, and still watched regularly to this day. Not bad for a guy who started out selling guide books at Disneyland.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Mar 5, 2020 22:06:35 GMT
Steve MartinGenre: Comedy, particularly of the “smart” variety I’m a big fan of Steve Martin. I have been ever since my dad introduced me to one of his favorite movies, Planes, Trains & Automobiles. I later learned to appreciate The Jerk, after checking it out from the library. I also grew up on the Cheaper By The Dozen movies, but that was me experiencing a different later more fatherly figure Steve Martin. I’ve done a write-up of Bill Murray already, and we’ve talked about Martin in this thread already, but what makes him particularly stand out for me is that especially in the mid 80s and early 90s, he was a very sophisticated comedian of sorts. He had started out with his wild & crazy persona, but gradually got farther and farther away from that as he progressed into doing more and more movies. He’s an accomplished writer, and his best films tend to be written by himself, but he’s also capable of elevating potentially subpar material if need be. His impact on comedy can’t be overstated, he brought a very wacky down to earth reliability to just about every role he was in, whether he was the straight man in Planes Train & Automobiles, or playing a romantic lead in Roxanne. And his run in the 80s is almost borderly legendary, and might just be my favorite run of any actor from that period, comedian or otherwise. Pennies From Heaven (not a hit, but his first real stab at drama), Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, The Man With Two Brains, All of Me, his scene stealing role in Little Shop of Horrors, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Parenthood etc… culminating in the 90s in what I consider his masterpiece L.A. Story. A wistful satirical charming look at early 1990s Los Angeles lifestyle, and a movie that Steve Martin spent years writing and researching. Not all of these films work 100%, but they show a performer willing to experiment and try different things. Sadly Steve Martin did not keep up his pace in the 90s or especially the 2000s as much. While he did star and write great comedy classics like Bowfinger, and even a great dramatic turn in David Mamet’s The Spanish Prisoner, the quality of his films deceased expediently, and he seemed more interested in art and banjo playing, then he did starring in movies. Still he left behind a legacy of great movies, many of which are considered comedy classics, and still watched regularly to this day. Not bad for a guy who started out selling guide books at Disneyland. Martin for me is the second greatest comedy star/actor of his generation after Eddie Murphy. Martin was a special talent whom as you say, evolved in very interesting ways. From the "wild and crazy guy" of his early work, to the more considered, even gentle stuff he did later in things like Parenthood and to an extent Roxanne.He did indeed aspire to a certain brand of "smart" comedy, which was reflective of his own intelligence and ability as a writer. I would not attribute the decline of him as a comedic performer specifically to that, but it's notoriously difficult for comedic actors to retain their appeal and ability to make audiences laugh indefinitely. Audiences tastes in humor changes, the performers themselves may lose a bit of spark...whatever the reason, it happens, and Martin as you say didn't really keep pace for most of the 90's and in the 21st century. But his 80's work is pretty spectacular and mostly holds up pretty easily.
|
|
thomasjerome
Based
Posts: 3,098
Likes: 2,723
Member is Online
|
Post by thomasjerome on Mar 5, 2020 22:59:47 GMT
That's a great write-up, Steve doesn't often get a mention here even though most of his 80s catalogue are brilliant and deserves every accolade there is. Good luck to Chris Evans but that'll be really hard to top what he does in "Little Shop of Horrors". Also, I was always impressed by his range as an actor. It's amazing how he was this wild comedy guy in his early films, then turned out to be more of a gentle, mature presence in "Father of the Bride" and suddenly pulled off a mysterious villain effectively in "The Spanish Prisoner". I'd also like to give a shout-out to hilarious turns in rather underrated stuff "My Blue Heaven" and "HouseSitter" (I just like his chemistry with Goldie Hawn) and other very fine dramatic turns in "Shopgirl" and "Grand Canyon". Such a massively talented actor/comedian all around. Really miss to see him in films.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 6, 2020 2:32:59 GMT
Steve MartinGenre: Comedy, particularly of the “smart” variety I’m a big fan of Steve Martin. I have been ever since my dad introduced me to one of his favorite movies, Planes, Trains & Automobiles. I later learned to appreciate The Jerk, after checking it out from the library. I also grew up on the Cheaper By The Dozen movies, but that was me experiencing a different later more fatherly figure Steve Martin. I’ve done a write-up of Bill Murray already, and we’ve talked about Martin in this thread already, but what makes him particularly stand out for me is that especially in the mid 80s and early 90s, he was a very sophisticated comedian of sorts. He had started out with his wild & crazy persona, but gradually got farther and farther away from that as he progressed into doing more and more movies. He’s an accomplished writer, and his best films tend to be written by himself, but he’s also capable of elevating potentially subpar material if need be. His impact on comedy can’t be overstated, he brought a very wacky down to earth reliability to just about every role he was in, whether he was the straight man in Planes Train & Automobiles, or playing a romantic lead in Roxanne. And his run in the 80s is almost borderly legendary, and might just be my favorite run of any actor from that period, comedian or otherwise. Pennies From Heaven (not a hit, but his first real stab at drama), Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, The Man With Two Brains, All of Me, his scene stealing role in Little Shop of Horrors, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Parenthood etc… culminating in the 90s in what I consider his masterpiece L.A. Story. A wistful satirical charming look at early 1990s Los Angeles lifestyle, and a movie that Steve Martin spent years writing and researching. Not all of these films work 100%, but they show a performer willing to experiment and try different things. Sadly Steve Martin did not keep up his pace in the 90s or especially the 2000s as much. While he did star and write great comedy classics like Bowfinger, and even a great dramatic turn in David Mamet’s The Spanish Prisoner, the quality of his films deceased expediently, and he seemed more interested in art and banjo playing, then he did starring in movies. Still he left behind a legacy of great movies, many of which are considered comedy classics, and still watched regularly to this day. Not bad for a guy who started out selling guide books at Disneyland. Martin for me is the second greatest comedy star/actor of his generation after Eddie Murphy. Martin was a special talent whom as you say, evolved in very interesting ways. From the "wild and crazy guy" of his early work, to the more considered, even gentle stuff he did later in things like Parenthood and to an extent Roxanne.He did indeed aspire to a certain brand of "smart" comedy, which was reflective of his own intelligence and ability as a writer. I would not attribute the decline of him as a comedic performer specifically to that, but it's notoriously difficult for comedic actors to retain their appeal and ability to make audiences laugh indefinitely. Audiences tastes in humor changes, the performers themselves may lose a bit of spark...whatever the reason, it happens, and Martin as you say didn't really keep pace for most of the 90's and in the 21st century. But his 80's work is pretty spectacular and mostly holds up pretty easily. He always been a huge influence on my comedy, and my own of sense of humor. Martin is also a terrific novelist. If you haven't checked it out yet, I highly recommend his autobiography Born Standing Up. It's an engaging thoughtful examination of his early comedy career, and life, though it only briefly touches on his own film career. While I wouldn't ascribe his decline in the 90s to a fall in his own writing (two of the three movies he wrote in the 90s were great), I'd say it was more a combination of a lack of interest, and pursuing other hobbies. When he went the family comedy route similar to Eddie Murphy with Cheaper By The Dozen and The Pink Panther films, it felt like he just agreed to be in the movies, so he could get funding for his own art collection. His 80s run is nearly flawless though. Even his only true failure in my eyes, from that period, The Lonely Guy is like half of a good movie.
|
|
|
Post by TerryMontana on Mar 6, 2020 6:22:05 GMT
His 80s run is nearly flawless though. Even his only true failure in my eyes, from that period, The Lonely Guy is like half of a good movie. Have I mentioned I looooove that movie?
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 6, 2020 7:03:44 GMT
His 80s run is nearly flawless though. Even his only true failure in my eyes, from that period, The Lonely Guy is like half of a good movie. Have I mentioned I looooove that movie? No, you have not. It's a very enjoyable comedy, that runs considerably out of steam by the end. Martin is hilarious in it, as a real sad sack. "If you like to play fetch don't get a fast dog. All they want to do is show off and they don't care about your stick. If they don't comeback by sundown you're out three hundred dollars."
|
|
|
Post by TerryMontana on Mar 6, 2020 9:33:29 GMT
Have I mentioned I looooove that movie? No, you have not. It's a very enjoyable comedy, that runs considerably out of steam by the end. Martin is hilarious in it, as a real sad sack. "If you like to play fetch don't get a fast dog. All they want to do is show off and they don't care about your stick. If they don't comeback by sundown you're out three hundred dollars." Really funny movie. Yes, it's not great but has some very memorable scenes.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Mar 9, 2020 16:26:07 GMT
Walter Matthau Genre: Comedy
I’ve already done Jack Lemmon, so it seemed only fair Walter Matthau would be somebody I would wanna cover eventually. Walter Matthau is a great actor, who my mom turned me on to, but looking back Matthau is the essential “New Hollywood” type leading man. He spent over a decade as a prominent third lead character actor in movies like Charade and A Face in The Crowd, but his breakout role wouldn’t come until his terrific Oscar winning supporting role as Jack Lemmon’s “boozey gambling” brother in Billy Wilder’s The Fortune Cookie. The success of the film started a classic Hollywood duo, and helped to push Matthau into the surprising echelon of one of Hollywood’s top leading men. With his “non traditionally handsome” doughy features Matthau didn’t strike people as particularly great looking, or that he would work as a romantic lead in any real capacity, but he surprised everyone with his charismatic and generally frumpy but good hearted nature. He was also a damn good actor, and great at comedic timing.
Walter Matthau made a lot of comedies, he even tried his attempt at a crime trilogy of sorts including the terrific Charley Varrick, but he was generally associated with humorish roles. In particular he starred in a lot of Neil Simon adaptations, more so than even Jack Lemmon, from The Odd Couple to Plaza Suite to The Sunshine Boys, Matthau was one of the best actors when it came to delivering Simon’s stagey comedic dialogue. His sourpuss persona of sorts also fit right in with Simon’s often boorish characters. Outside of Simon though Matthau succeeded in a lot of other roles, Cactus Flower with Ingrid Bergman, and Goldie Hawn, where he played a man who faked a marriage in order to avoid commitment, but winds up falling in love anyway, and a personal favorite of mine A New Leaf with Elaine May, which is an uproarious black comedy where he starts out well-intended, but eventually everything leads to attempted murder. Matthau comes off as a bit out of his element or mind in these movies, and that’s part of why he’s so appealing in these types of roles.
After the 1970s Matthau struggled in terms of picking good projects. Films that looked promising on paper like The Survivors with Robin Williams, and Movers and Shakers turned out to be financial and critical duds. He did manage to make a comeback of sorts as an older statesmen paired with his old onscreen partner Jack Lemmon in The Grumpy Old Men movies, but these films obviously could not recapture those "glory years". His run in the sixties and mid seventies is heavily noteworthy regardless. Not everything was a hit, but just about all the movies he did in that period are at least worth talking about.
|
|
|
Post by hugobolso on Jan 17, 2021 16:45:49 GMT
Laura Antonelli. European Classy Sexy Dramas and Commedies.
In the 70s there were lot of starlets that show their body erotic giallo, thrillers, horror, sexy commedies and even porn. Usually they were consider average at best actress. And only the survivors like 20, 30 or 40 years later show their talent mostly in supporting roles on TV and Films. However, there was an actress in the 70s that had it all. She was beautiful, with sad eyes, a beautiful sweet voice and a body of hell, not only but she was also one of the European money makers, but also one of the most awarded italian actresses, her name was Laura Antonelli. One of the most tragic lives of European stardom. She was born in Pulla Kingdom of Italy in 1941, After the war, her parents fled what was then Yugoslavia, lived in Italian refugee camps and eventually settled in Naples, where her father found work as a hospital administrator. Because she had very low autostime, their parent encourage her to takes hours of gym classes. The girl also was pretty smart and had a degree in Gym and wanted to be a mathematician, when her modelling career take off. In her middle twenties started in films, because of her beauty she was highly promocionated in leading roles, but all these films flopped, sometimes for being censurated for her sex scenes. However her luck change in the 70s, before turning 30, for being the leading lady of Lando Buzzanca and France Enfant Terrible Jean Paul Belmondo (who was her partner), she shows to be a great commediant, a trully funny lady, and not just a beautiful women with a hell body, who has 30 seccond to show that with the propper material she could be funny.- In 1973 she have finally a commercial succeed of her own, in the Sexy Commedy Malizia as a Angela Housekeeper who is the object of desire of a widower and his elder 2 sons, the last a underage. This was costared by Alessandro Momo who made another sexy commedy with Antonelli Peccato Veniale, before he died in a car accident at 17.- She was awarded as the best actress of 1973 from her Malizia Rol and 7 years later for Chaste and Pure. Her success in box office in sexy commedies, allowed her to work in more serious films, so she worked with Lucchino Visconti in L'innocente, opposite Academy Award Nominee Giancarlo Giannini and based on a Gabriel D'Annunzio novel. She also had the lead opposite Marcello Mastroianni in Mogliamante. And in Moliere film adaptations co-staring Alberto Sordi. When the European and specially Italian cinema collapsed in the late 70s, early 80s, she was one of the few, that continue working, and even receive a nomination for best actress in Ettore Scola Passione d'amore. Her last succesful erotic movie was la Venexiana co-staring Jason Connery, as a Venetian widow, she still has a wonderful movie in her middle 40s.- If she made lesser appareance in the 80s has much more to do with the Belmondo Split, that with the abscence of work.- In the last half of the 80s and early 90s she stared more in succesful all star -cast and TV series.- When suddenly, just before her 50s birthday she was involved in two bizarre events that ended her career. First they found cocaine in her home, and then a awful plastic cirgury that apparently destroyed her face. She appealed and won the abuse-substance charges, 10 years later and was compensated, but that was too late. . She fell in deppression,she got fat, she regret her films, and dissappeared on public life. She lived her last 24, in reclussion more like an old fat clarise than a Glamorous Greta Garbo, she died at 73. She still had Friends like Lino Banfi who was worried about Her. Her death was a great mourn in Italy, because when you become a star, you always be a star.-
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Jul 8, 2021 9:42:23 GMT
Been awhile, as these profiles require some actual work/effort, but figured I'm refreshed enough to knock out a few more:
Jaime Lee Curtis
Genre: Comedy
The daughter of two Hollywood icons, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, Jaime Lee Curtis is an incredibly successful second generation movie star, who has always felt kind of underrated, in spite of her incredible success. While she has won major awards (a BAFTA and 2 Golden Globes) she was arguably never truly perceived as a "prestige" actress for most of her career. Probably because she made her Big breakthrough in horror films like Halloween, a genre she still works in today, where she can be considered an icon . But that is for another day and another profile. For me, Curtis may be one of the most underrated comedienne s in film. She easily held her own with arguably the GOAT comedy actor at the peak of his powers Eddie Murphy, in Trading Places (not to mention Dan Aykroyd who was no slouch in the comedy department). Her work as part of the ensemble in A Fish Called Wanda was just as sublime. Her comic timing was used to great effect in the action comedy True Lies. Curtis later did great work in the hugely successful body swap comedy Freaky Friday opposite Lindsay Lohan. Most recently her comedy chops were put to good use in Knives Out. Curtis traversed different genres with ease, but her natural ability and ease in comedy probably deserved a bit more recognition! Though perhaps because she rarely headlined comedies in the same way someone like Goldie Hawn did, she did get quite that rating as a pure comedy star.
Below, Jamie Lee Curtis doing her opening monologue while hosting Saturday Night Live with Eddie Murphy during their promotion of Trading Places.
In A Fish Called Wanda.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Jul 8, 2021 13:15:13 GMT
Was wondering when you do another one of these write-ups. I have a bunch of mid-range performers that I could probably talk about, I just haven't been in much of a writing mood lately to bother. Call me lazy, but it what it is.
Good one too. I don't really associate Curtis with comedy off the bat but thinking about it outside of the Halloween movies, most of the most successful films she's been in, have been that kind of genre. A Fish Called Wanda, Trading Places, Freaky Friday, True Lies etc... Also don't forgot she's married to Christopher Guest, while that obviously doesn't make a difference, and they are extremely private about their marriage, that might play a big part in her taste.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Jul 8, 2021 13:42:24 GMT
Was wondering when you do another one of these write-ups. I have a bunch of mid-range performers that I could probably talk about, I just haven't been in much of a writing mood lately to bother. Call me lazy, but it what it is. Good one too. I don't really associate Curtis with comedy off the bat but thinking about it outside of the Halloween movies, most of the most successful films she's been in, have been that kind of genre. A Fish Called Wanda, Trading Places, Freaky Friday, True Lies etc... Also don't forgot she's married to Christopher Guest, while that obviously doesn't make a difference, and they are extremely private about their marriage, that might play a big part in her taste. Yeah, at a certain point doing these profiles started to feel like work (when at first it was fun) , and since I'm not being paid to create this content, I decided to step back for a little bit. So I totally relate to you as well feeling too lazy to keep it up .But I'm feeling a bit more energised now and actually want to write a few profiles. Hopefully that feeling sticks around for awhile before it begins to feel like a chore again. Horror was clearly the most obvious genre for Jamie Lee Curtis, but I personally feel like she's given her best performances in comedies or films with strong comedic elements, which is why I went for that genre with. I might do a Curtis horror write-up at some point, if someone else doesn't get there first. Good call on pointing out her marriage to Christopher Guest....he's seen as one of the great creative minds in comedy, so I don't doubt their relationship played some role on her sensibilities towards comedy.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Jul 8, 2021 13:49:45 GMT
Was wondering when you do another one of these write-ups. I have a bunch of mid-range performers that I could probably talk about, I just haven't been in much of a writing mood lately to bother. Call me lazy, but it what it is. Good one too. I don't really associate Curtis with comedy off the bat but thinking about it outside of the Halloween movies, most of the most successful films she's been in, have been that kind of genre. A Fish Called Wanda, Trading Places, Freaky Friday, True Lies etc... Also don't forgot she's married to Christopher Guest, while that obviously doesn't make a difference, and they are extremely private about their marriage, that might play a big part in her taste. Yeah, at a certain point doing these profiles started to feel like work (when at first it was fun) , and since I'm not being paid to create this content, I decided to step back for a little bit. So I totally relate to you as well feeling too lazy to keep it up .But I'm feeling a bit more energised now and actually want to write a few profiles. Hopefully that feeling sticks around for awhile before it begins to feel like a chore again. Horror was clearly the most obvious genre for Jamie Lee Curtis, but I personally feel like she's given her best performances in comedies or films with strong comedic elements, which is why I went for that genre with. I might do a Curtis horror write-up at some point, if someone else doesn't get there first. Good call on pointing out her marriage to Christopher Guest....he's seen as one of the great creative minds in comedy, so I don't doubt their relationship played some role on her sensibilities towards comedy. I don't really blame you. It's fun to write about certain actors you are fans of, but at the same time it can get tiring after a while, trying to point out the distinctions in an actors career, and what have you. In the case of Curtis, I think you made the right call. Her horror scream queen phase really ends after 1981, and only picks up with the Halloween sequels.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Jul 9, 2021 12:30:34 GMT
Matt Damon
Genre: Psychological Drama
Damon for my money, just might be the best film actor of his generation. It's all pretty debatable (and I still can't say for certain whom I think most deserves that distinction...or maybe they are all on equal footing). The leading film lights of his generation for most are probably Leonardo DiCaprio , Christian Bale and Joaquin Phoenix. Damon never had the same raw heartthrob appeal that had millions of young girls idolise DiCaprio and gave him a solid and consistent fanbase for his whole career. Damon never had the tortured and angsty method stylings of Bale and Phoenix that people often see as true dedication to the art of acting. He's not the most physically transformative actor or a "chameleon ". So he isn't necessarily the "sexy" choice for "film actor of his generation". Damon is just a simple, regular guy, who is also a phenomenal and phenomenally consistent actor. And he does it with less effort than some of the actors people tout over him.
Now Damon has shined in a lot of genres, but he does particularly well in psychological dramas. His breakthrough Good Will Hunting has that component, where Damon let's us into the mind of this young genius from an underprivileged Boston neighbourhood. He soon followed that up with an incredible turn as the sociopathic conman Tom Ripley in The Talented Mr Ripley .
Damon is a fairly cerebral actor, who has a skill in allowing audiences to be privy to his thoughts and inner life with minimal action. This is probably why he works so well in roles where there is a psychological component and you have to explore what is happening in the mind of his character s. He used this quality to brilliant effect in The Departed , where he managed to give the best and least histrionic performance in the film.
Even his most famous action thriller role The Bourne Identity fits into this speciality of his, as did his roles in Interstellar and The MartIan. They are moreso about what is going on in his head, even with the physical component of things like Bourne.
Damon will next be seen in Stillwater, another drama that looks to have a psychological component. Damon, predictably is already receiving high praise for his performance after the film just screened at the Cannes Film Festival.
Below, Damon in The Talented Mr Ripley, conning his way into Jude Law's inner circle
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Jul 9, 2021 14:26:26 GMT
Nice stuff. I think Damon has that "all-American" good boy looks, that allows him to be perfect as the avatar of a lot of films that involve a character getting his mind messed with. The Bourne Movies are perfect in this regard because his character is a blank slate, and Damon plays it perfectly. I also think his role in The Good Shepard fits with this sort of idea too, not a particularly great movie and way less mind-bendy, but he's at the emotional core of the story, and it's the sorta thing that he's great at.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Jul 9, 2021 16:06:52 GMT
Nice stuff. I think Damon has that "all-American" good boy looks, that allows him to be perfect as the avatar of a lot of films that involve a character getting his mind messed with. The Bourne Movies are perfect in this regard because his character is a blank slate, and Damon plays it perfectly. I also think his role in The Good Shepard fits with this sort of idea too, not a particularly great movie and way less mind-bendy, but he's at the emotional core of the story, and it's the sorta thing that he's great at. Good call on The Good Shepard 👍. Damon does a really good job there as well. A shame the movie itself is so plodding and the pace stultifying . Robert DeNiro probably wasn't the right choice of director.
|
|
|
Post by countjohn on Jul 9, 2021 16:39:47 GMT
Damon's probably my second favorite actor of that generation besides Edward Norton. Bale would be pretty close too. I like all those guys better than Leo and Phoenix who have pulled away in the public perception.
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Jul 9, 2021 16:53:20 GMT
Nice stuff. I think Damon has that "all-American" good boy looks, that allows him to be perfect as the avatar of a lot of films that involve a character getting his mind messed with. The Bourne Movies are perfect in this regard because his character is a blank slate, and Damon plays it perfectly. I also think his role in The Good Shepard fits with this sort of idea too, not a particularly great movie and way less mind-bendy, but he's at the emotional core of the story, and it's the sorta thing that he's great at. Good call on The Good Shepard 👍. Damon does a really good job there as well. A shame the movie itself is so plodding and the pace stultifying . Robert DeNiro probably wasn't the right choice of director. Honestly the movie isn't even terrible or anything, it's just very very slow maybe deliberately slow. I feel like DeNiro should have made more smaller movies as a director inbetween that and Bronx Tale, before jumping into the more bigger budgeted flick, it hurt the overall quality of the picture, even if it works fine as a TV watch.
|
|
|
Post by pupdurcs on Jul 10, 2021 13:07:44 GMT
The Wayans Family
Genre: Comedy
I deliberated whether to do this write up about an individual member of this family of entertainers, but decided that ultimately their legacy seems more tied to being seen as a family/group of entertainers, more than any one individual in that family. This group of mostly comic Afro-American actors, stand-ups and filmmakers. This dynasty first started rising to prominence in the 80's with older brothers Keenen and Damon finding success in TV and films. Damon first appeared in a small role in Beverly Hills Cop, then went on to do a year on Saturday Night Live before becoming a regular on the iconic Black sketch show In Living Color, created by brother Keenan. Damon had a prolific career a film comedy actor in films like Mo' Money, The Last Boy Scout, The Great White Hype and as the lead in Spike Lee's biting satire Bamboozled.
Keenen was more often seen as the "brains" behind the Wayans operation, often doing much of the writing, producing and directing of projects that involved the family. While Keenen was less prolific in front of the camera than his brothers, he did star in several successful cult comedies like Hollywood Shuffle, Low Down Dirty Shame and I'm Gonna Git You Sucka.
Two younger brothers, Marlon and Shawn came to prominence in the 90s. Both co-starred as the leads in the very successful spoof film about black ghetto/hood movies , Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood. They then went on to create and star in the phenomenally successful spoof series of Scary Movie that ran for 5 movies. They also starred together in White Chicks.
Now their appears to be a new generation of Wayans Family members making waves in the comedy scene like Damon s son Damon Jr , who has starred in a number of successful sitcoms like Happy Endings and New Girl. It feels like this unstoppable, innovative and influential comedy dynasty might just go on forever in Hollywood!
Trailer for I'm Gonna Git You Sucka
Clip from Mo' Money
Trailer for Bamboozled
Trailer for Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood
Trailer to Scary Movie
|
|
|
Post by therealcomicman117 on Jul 10, 2021 13:13:50 GMT
The Wayans FamilyGenre: Comedy I deliberated whether to do this write up about an individual member of this family of entertainers, but decided that ultimately their legacy seems more tied to being seen as a family/group of entertainers, more than any one individual in that family. This group of mostly comic Afro-American actors, stand-ups and filmmakers. This dynasty first started rising to prominence in the 80's with older brothers Keenen and Damon finding success in TV and films. Damon first appeared in a small role in Beverly Hills Cop, then went on to do a year on Saturday Night Live before becoming a regular on the iconic Black sketch show In Living Color, created by brother Keenan. Damon had a prolific career a film comedy actor in films like Mo' Money, The Last Boy Scout, The Great White Hype and as the lead in Spike Lee's biting satire Bamboozled. Keenen was more often seen as the "brains" behind the Wayans operation, often doing much of the writing, producing and directing of projects that involved the family. While Keenen was less prolific in front of the camera than his brothers, he did star several successful cult comedies like Hollywood Shuffle, Low Down Dirty Shame and I'm Gonna Git You Sucka.Two younger brothers, Marlon and Shawn came to prominence in the 90s. Both co-starred as the leads in the very successful spoof film about black ghetto/hood movies , Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood. They then went on to create and star in the phenomenally successful spoof series of Scary Movie that ran for 5 movies. They also starred together in White Chicks. Now their appears to be a new generation of Wayans Family members making waves in the comedy scene like Damon s son Damon Jr , who has starred in a number of successful sitcoms like Happy Endings and New Girl. It feels like this unstoppable, innovative and influential comedy dynasty might just go on forever in Hollywood! Trailer for I'm Gonna Git You Sucka Clip from Mo' Money Trailer for Bamboozled Trailer for Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood Trailer to Scary Movie Lol, speak of the devil, I had actually had a write-up written and posted at the same time, you did. It was of Diane Lane, and her "romance run", which was something I just noticed. I only deleted it because I wanted to give you a little space. Anyway, I'm young enough to remember the cultural footprint that was Scary Movie. The Wayans humor is in a lot of ways very low-brow and crass, but was also there undeniable entertainment there. The entire family probably deserves huge props, for literally building a successful entertainment brand around there name, and I gotta admit White Chicks is actually bit of a quilty pleasure for me.
|
|
sirchuck23
Based
Bad news dawg...you don't mind if I have some of your 300 dollar a glass shit there would ya?
Posts: 2,672
Likes: 4,772
|
Post by sirchuck23 on Jul 10, 2021 13:20:45 GMT
The Wayans FamilyGenre: Comedy I deliberated whether to do this write up about an individual member of this family of entertainers, but decided that ultimately their legacy seems more tied to being seen as a family/group of entertainers, more than any one individual in that family. This group of mostly comic Afro-American actors, stand-ups and filmmakers. This dynasty first started rising to prominence in the 80's with older brothers Keenen and Damon finding success in TV and films. Damon first appeared in a small role in Beverly Hills Cop, then went on to do a year on Saturday Night Live before becoming a regular on the iconic Black sketch show In Living Color, created by brother Keenan. Damon had a prolific career a film comedy actor in films like Mo' Money, The Last Boy Scout, The Great White Hype and as the lead in Spike Lee's biting satire Bamboozled. Keenen was more often seen as the "brains" behind the Wayans operation, often doing much of the writing, producing and directing of projects that involved the family. While Keenen was less prolific in front of the camera than his brothers, he did star in several successful cult comedies like Hollywood Shuffle, Low Down Dirty Shame and I'm Gonna Git You Sucka.Two younger brothers, Marlon and Shawn came to prominence in the 90s. Both co-starred as the leads in the very successful spoof film about black ghetto/hood movies , Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood. They then went on to create and star in the phenomenally successful spoof series of Scary Movie that ran for 5 movies. They also starred together in White Chicks. Now their appears to be a new generation of Wayans Family members making waves in the comedy scene like Damon s son Damon Jr , who has starred in a number of successful sitcoms like Happy Endings and New Girl. It feels like this unstoppable, innovative and influential comedy dynasty might just go on forever in Hollywood! Trailer for I'm Gonna Git You Sucka Clip from Mo' Money Trailer for Bamboozled Trailer for Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood Trailer to Scary Movie Awesome write-up on The Wayans Family and you made the right call on including them all together. Ultimately the family is their legacy and the groundbreaking stuff they were able to do in Hollywood in the Comedy genre should be celebrated.
|
|