The Film Thread

[Cappy]

Personally I love Tom Hanks in comedic fare like Dragnet, Big, The Burbs, A League OF Their Own, etc. But beyond that, most of his roles just exude too much everyman blandness for me.

 

[Cappy]

Just had a horrible thought: a world where Tom Hanks plays a charmless version of Agent Cooper, who becomes apoplectic and shouts in every scene.

 

[Jordan Cole]

Saw TAR last night. Wow. Anyone else?

 

[Tulpa]

Saw TAR last night. Wow. Anyone else?

Soon!

 

[Stavrogyn]

Not to say that he’s a bad actor, I think he’s really good, but he’s one of those guys like Pacino, or even Bogart, who has a very distinctive voice and mannerisms (not that I think he’s as good as those guys!).

I've seen over 20 Bogart films, and I have to admit that he basically played the same character in most of them, except for the fact that in the 1930s he was usually cast in supporting roles and played villains, while in the 40s and 50s he mostly played protagonists. But he had such charisma and a powerful screen presence that it didn't matter. He'll be an icon forever.

As for Hanks, he's like a modern-day James Stewart to me, and, in my opinion, his acting fits in most of his films, except when he treads outside of his comfort zone, like in Elvis, and, for example, Cloud Atlas.

However, I don't really agree about Al Pacino. Even though he does have a very distinctive voice and mannerisms, I think that his range is much wider, which was especially evident before the 1990s, if you compare films like The Godfather, Dog Day Afternoon, and Scarface, for example. (But it doesn't help that most of his well-known roles were in gangster films.)

 

[Stavrogyn]

Saw TAR last night. Wow. Anyone else?

I think that it's still not available where I live, but I'm looking forward to it very much.

 

[Mr. Reindeer]

I've seen over 20 Bogart films, and I have to admit that he basically played the same character in most of them, except for the fact that in the 1930s he was usually cast in supporting roles and played villains, while in the 40s and 50s he mostly played protagonists. But he had such charisma and a powerful screen presence that it didn't matter. He'll be an icon forever.

As for Hanks, he's like a modern-day James Stewart to me, and, in my opinion, his acting fits in most of his films, except when he treads outside of his comfort zone, like in Elvis, and, for example, Cloud Atlas.

However, I don't really agree about Al Pacino. Even though he does have a very distinctive voice and mannerisms, I think that his range is much wider, which was especially evident before the 1990s, if you compare films like The Godfather, Dog Day Afternoon, and Scarface, for example. (But it doesn't help that most of his well-known roles were in gangster films.)

I agree with all of that, especially Stewart being the more apt comparison for Hanks. While I was certainly thinking moreso of latter-day Pacino, I’d still argue that even in his prime, he was always very recognizably within a certain persona (the attempted accent in Scarface aside)…but that’s not to take away from his emotional range and sheer power he displayed within that persona. His acting in Dog Day Afternoon is one of my all time favorite film performances. I guess my point is that Hanks isn’t a chameleon the way, say, a Gary Oldman is, and it’s weird that he keeps getting cast as people who we’re very familiar with from their own public appearances!

 

[Stavrogyn]

I guess my point is that Hanks isn’t a chameleon the way, say, a Gary Oldman is, and it’s weird that he keeps getting cast as people who we’re very familiar with from their own public appearances!

I guess I'm a little bit biased regarding Pacino because I've considered him my favorite actor for at least half my life now. But I get what you're saying, and yes, you do have a point.

Sometimes I feel that many great actors don't really change much from one role to another. Like, let's say, Marlon Brando (another favorite of mine). Of course, his characters in A Streetcar Named Desire and The Godfather have nothing in common, but he made a lot of films and in many of them you can still feel that "Brando persona"; it's not like he disappears completely.

The most recent film of his that I've seen was The Fugitive Kind, and even though he played a much kinder character than in his previous Tennessee Williams film, it was still obviously Marlon Brando, at least to me.

 

[Mr. Reindeer]

I guess I'm a little bit biased regarding Pacino because I've considered him my favorite actor for at least half my life now. But I get what you're saying, and yes, you do have a point.

Sometimes I feel that many great actors don't really change much from one role to another. Like, let's say, Marlon Brando (another favorite of mine). Of course, his characters in A Streetcar Named Desire and The Godfather have nothing in common, but he made a lot of films and in many of them you can still feel that "Brando persona"; it's not like he disappears completely.

The most recent film of his that I've seen was The Fugitive Kind, and even though he played a much kinder character than in his previous Tennessee Williams film, it was still obviously Marlon Brando, at least to me.

Once again, agreed on all points, and Pacino is quite possibly my favorite film actor as well. I saw him in Merchant of Venice on Broadway years ago, and briefly got to meet him afterward when he was signing for the crowd. He was a madman and an absolute delight.

 

[Stavrogyn]

I saw him in Merchant of Venice on Broadway years ago, and briefly got to meet him afterward when he was signing for the crowd. He was a madman and an absolute delight.

Oh, my, you met Al Pacino! Sometimes I really regret not living in the United States... But I'm glad to hear this, he always seemed like a nice and fun person (at least that's what I gathered from the interviews and the internet).

I saw him in the film version of The Merchant of Venice, if that counts

 

[Jordan Cole]

Oh, my, you met Al Pacino! Sometimes I really regret not living in the United States...

Hey, I live in the United States and haven't met Al Pacino yet. What a ripoff

 

[Stavrogyn]

Hey, I live in the United States and haven't met Al Pacino yet. What a ripoff

Strange, it's not such a big country. Maybe it should be possible to file a complaint somewhere or something?

But joking aside, what I meant is, as someone who comes from a small country, I always felt that everything happens somewhere else, in cities with bigger concentration of talent and cultural happenings on a worldwide scale, like New York City, Los Angeles, and maybe London and Paris. If I lived in NYC, I could at least go to Broadway, that's what I meant.

It's quite paradoxical, actually. I know much much more about American (pop)cultural heritage than my own, and I'm far from being the only one. And what makes it even worse is that I never set foot there and who knows if I ever will, since it's so expensive to travel abroad and get accomodation.

Of course, there's a lot going on where I live as well, but not so much on an international scale. There are no Pacino-starring shows in local theatres.

Come to think of it, Kevin Spacey did shoot a new film here recently...

 

[Jordan Cole]

Strange, it's not such a big country. Maybe it should be possible to file a complaint somewhere or something?

But joking aside, what I meant is, as someone who comes from a small country, I always felt that everything happens somewhere else, in cities with bigger concentration of talent and cultural happenings on a worldwide scale, like New York City, Los Angeles, and maybe London and Paris. If I lived in NYC, I could at least go to Broadway, that's what I meant.

I live in NYC and you're actually not wrong. I HAVE met tons of celebrities, often just randomly on the street in NY. I used to see them almost every single day when I worked at a popular indie movie theater and also a popular bookstore on Broadway. Also at tons of comedy shows and things like that. I am also routinely on TV and film sets and have even seen celebrities walking by NOT INVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION, but just passing through. It was JK Simmons one time and Tom Noonan another time.

There's always stuff happening in NY, and I'm thankful I'm so close to the action, but anyone who lives here will tell you they fantasize about getting the hell out and relaxing in the country somewhere. I'm just dying to take some trips and getting away from here for a while.

 

[Jordan Cole]

Speaking of which, me (on the left) and Naomi Watts were caught by the paparazzi two days ago:

 

[Tulpa]

Saw TAR last night. Wow. Anyone else?

Outstanding! One of the best films of the year.

What did you think of it?

 

[Jordan Cole]

I liked it a lot but I still think my brain is processing it. I was just glad to see a film that was kind of ambiguous and strange and risky and fairly original. I tend to love really intensive character studies like that.

It's a film where I'm intentionally not looking up anything the director has to say because I just don't want to know.

 

[Stavrogyn]

I was just glad to see a film that was kind of ambiguous and strange and risky and fairly original. I tend to love really intensive character studies like that.

That sounds great!

Since the director has only made a handful of films, I'm thinking of watching all of them in preparation for Tár (in chronological order, of course).

 

[secretlettermkr]

really hyped about the New BRANDON CRONENBERG film

 

[Jordan Cole]

I haaaaated Possessor but I'm always open to giving newer directors another chance. Looks interesting.

 

[secretlettermkr]

POSSESSOR is brilliant!