Favorite Performances
 

My little discussion with Greg regarding Ellen Burstyn got me wondering about what performances from actors others found to be exceptional out of all the movies they've seen. What are yours?

Mine:

Ellen Burstyn in Requiem For A Dream
Sally Kirkland in Anna
Katharine Hepburn in The African Queen
Spencer Tracy in Guess Who's Coming To Dinner
Ruby Dee in A Raisin In the Sun
Jack Nicholson in About Schmidt
Jessica Lange in Frances
Paul Giamatti in Sideways
Griffin Dunne in After Hours
Faye Dunaway in Network
Nicole Kidman in Dogville
Jake Weber in Wendigo
Bette Davis in The Little Foxes
Julianne Moore in Safe
Jack Lemmon in Short Cuts
Shelley Duvall in 3 Women

And many more...

Cher in Mask
Lorraine Bracco in Goodfellas
Tom Hanks in Big
Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights
Katherine Hepburn in Guess Who's Coming To Dinner? and Little Women
Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs
Laura Linney in Kinsey (just saw this - loved her in it!)
Will Farrell in Old School :cool:
Debra Winger in Urban Cowboy
Shirley McClaine in Terms of Endearment

A few more:

Bjork in Dancer In the Dark
Isabelle Huppert in The School of Flesh
Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast
Sigourney Weaver in Death and the Maiden
Donald Sutherland in Don't Look Now

That movie is such a guilty pleasure, but I think that scene between her and Nicholson in her bedroom is just brilliantly done. Love it! I also thought she was divine in The Apartment.

Bette Davis - All About Eve
Parker Posey - Party Girl
Isabelle Adjani - L'ete Murtrier (One deadly summer) this one is big. BIG!
Faye Dunaway - Network ;)
Bette Davis - The Letter (since you already mentioned Little Foxes....that one almost turns me on! :laugh: )
Bette Davis - Jezebel (be still my heart)
Julianne Moore - Far From Heaven. Oh, who am I kidding? Julianne Moore in Everything! Boogie Nights is a fave.)
Bette Davis - Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte
Bette Davis - What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
Parker Posey - House of Yes
Isabelle Adjani - Queen Margot
Anne Baxter - All About Eve (A very underrated performance!)
Jodi Foster - The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane
Joan Allen - The Ice Storm
Kathy Bates - most stuff. anything.
Jack Nicholson - Anything
Kevin Kline - Anything
Oops - Jack Lemmon - always, but Some Like It Hot. but really, always.
Oop - George Sanders, All About Eve.
I know it only appears I've seen five movies, but that's actually not true... :p

Sir Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs
Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven
Robert DeNiro in Taxi Driver
Jodie Foster in The Accused

I know I'm forgetting alot, but my brain is stuttering.

Jeff Bridges - The Big Lebowski
John Goodman - The Big Lebowski

:cool:

I was going to say that, but it seemed cliche (plus I think Little Foxes is even better). :laugh: If you love All About Eve, you should definitely check out Anna with Sally Kirkland, then. It's got a similar plot, but it's a true story (based on Elzbieta Czyzewska and Joanna Pacula) and she is just...indescribable in it. Your jaw will be on the floor as you watch her.

All great choices. :laugh: Kline in Dave is perfection.

awww. You are so sweet about my dorky choices! I know, I've been meaning to rent Anna, but it's just not in the ol' budget. I haven't rented a movie for like, two months!
I think Kevin Kline is always perfect. My favorite? That's right...it was hard to pick, but...SOAPDISH!!!! :laugh:
p.s. All About Eve is very obvious, but deserving none the less.

I agree with all of these as well, Even though they are not all my faves. Isn't it great there are so many awesome performances!!!!
Anthony Hopkins, though - he almost made it. mmmmm.
I love you for putting Farrell in for Old School! :xoxo: Score!

Here's some info on it for when you get around to it: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092569/

I think I might have to watch it this weekend. :D Sally Kirkland was robbed of that Oscar, dammit. If she had only won it, she would have been a huge star.

I LOVE Sally Field and Kevin Kline in Soapdish! :laugh: That movie KILLS ME!

"You can't kiss her! She's your DAUGHTER!"

Just wait for Romy to see this thread, she'll list every performance of his. And she'll hopefully list Midler since I actually left her off by accident. :eek:

Wait, Wait, Wait - Did you just vote for Griffin Dunne??? :lol:
Okay, I'm adding Linda Fiorentino - THE LAST SEDUCTION
to my list. Should'a been on there in the first place. :cool: if that's not a performance, i don't know what is....

:lol: :lol:
I've already read that Anna thing.
Soapdish is greatness. Even Hatcher is great. I could watch it again and again. And have. I wish I could rent it right now. :lol:
Kevin is so good at being cheesy/self absorbed. But, he's good at being any way!!!!

:eek: :eek: :eek:
Not Possible!!!!!! Though, you have to admit, she's not the quintessential actress/actress. I'm sure you'll find something, though. ;)

He is BRILLIANT in After Hours! That whole cast is! Fiorentino, Teri Garr, Catherine O'Hara, John Heard, Verna Bloom, Cheech and Chong, etc. :laugh: I loooooove that movie so much.

She's so sexy and ice cold in that movie. *shiver*

Mmm. I love Hopkins too. I should have listed Remains of the Day, Shadowlands, and Howard's End --Emma Thompson was also great in that.

Is that a confirmation that it may be added to your list? :p It's totally brazilliant!


I'll have to "do" after hours again, only done it once. Shame on me.

Ever seen The Rose? I can't believe Gidget was awarded the Oscar over Midler. That bitch. :laugh:

I think as a comic actress, she almost unparalleled, in my opinion (Catherine O'Hara is mighty close). I'm still shocked that, of all critics, Pauline Kael compared to her to Chaplin.

Good Call. He's very "on my list" in general.... ;) yum.

Totally. I love The Fiorentino. Even in Jade. :eek:

Did you know that one of the endings tossed around involved Dunne crawling into Verna Bloom's womb and then her giving birth to him in front of his office building? :laugh:

I did see The Rose, and I agree, and you know I don't like Midler. Tour de Force.
I disagree about the whole comic actress thing, although, you may have a point b/c right now I am not able to come up with another that's better, on such a consistent basis... :shrug:
Except, of course, Parker Posey... :cool: :laugh: :nod: Not as much material, but way more funny, to me.
Oh, wait! - Madeliene Khan!!!!!!!! funniest woman ever!!!

Posey had me on the floor in House of Yes. What a loony bitch. :woohoo:

A few are repeats.

Henry Fonda -- On Golden Pond
Katharine Hepburn -- On Golden Pond
Julianne Moore -- Far From Heaven
Nicole Kidman -- Moulin Rouge
Jack Nicholson -- As Good as it Gets
Kathy Bates -- Misery
Marlon Brando -- A Streetcar Named Desire (fans self)
Montgomery Clift -- The Misfits
Judi Dench -- Just about everything she's ever done
Paul Giamatti -- Sideways
Paul Newman -- The Verdict
Faye Dunaway -- Mommie Dearest (just to see if you were paying attention) ;)

It...the...it...the...flames...flames...flames...on the side of my face...breathing...breathless...heaving breaths...

Good Call with the Clift, the Newman, and the Dunaway. :D
I would actually also have to submit that Tony Curtis had his best performance in SLIH, even though it's not on my list...

No one has ever been funnier than she has been, so consistently, I'd bet someone's house on it. :angel: That's a hellavuh R.I.P. as far as I'm concerned.

Curtis is fab in SLIH. ;)

I just adore Clift in The Misfits. That scene when he is in the telephone booth talking to his mother is superb.

Hobbling. :eek:

She kills me in Primary Colors. "Hello, **** for brains!"

Yep. that's why I said her in Everything, it's pretty true. :cool:

Swanson - Sunset Blvd. or Rain

Bette Davis - Now Voyager

Ellen B. - Ressurection

Harrison Ford - Indiana Jones (sheebus)

Catherine D. - Indochine (WHITE hot :eek: )

Catherine D. - The Hunger (not that I am aware of Miriam)

and sooooooo many more!!!!!!!!!!!

Mae Marsh in Griffith's Intolerance
Ina Claire in Sherman's The Greeks Had A Word For Them
Raymond Walburn in Sturges's Hail The Conquering Hero
Nadia Sibirskaya in Kirsanov's Menilmontant
Agnes Moorehead in Welles's The Magnificent Ambersons
Art Evans in Jewison's A Soldier's Story
Danielle Darrieux in Ophuls's The Earrings of Madame De . . .
Yvonne de Bray in Cocteau's Les Parents Terrible
Henry Fonda in Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West

Not necessarily the best I've seen...but favourites:

Sissy Spacek in Carrie

Mery Streep in Death Becomes Her (I love her in comedies)

Kathy Bates in Misery

Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest (seriously! It's so over the top it's almost a work of art!)

Kathleen Turner in Serial Mom

Crawford and Davis in What Ever Happened To Baby Jane?

Joan Crawford in Queen Bee

YES! I do. Liked that movie alot, and she was the best.

SOAPDISH? Classic! Love it!

Cathy Moriarity to RD Jr. - "David?"
RD Jr. to CM - "Milton."

Yes!!!
 

Robert Preston in Victor/Victoria
Liz Taylor in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Madeline Kahn in The History of the World, Part I
Kathy Bates in Dolores Claiborne
Rita Moreno in The Four Seasons
Judy Garland in A Star is Born
Jane Fonda in 9 to 5
Rosalind Russell in The Women
Clevon Little in Blazing Saddles
Cloris Leachman in The North Avenue Irregulars
Dame Judith Anderson in Rebecca
Guy Pearce in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

I don't think you've understood much of me...

ANTHONY HOPKINS :D : , not in order, just some: Silence Of The Lambs, Hannibal, Remains Of The Day, The Elephant Man, Nixon, Magic, Titus, Howards End, 84 Charing Cross Road
Emma Thompson: Remains Of The Day, Howards End, Wit, Primary Colors, Much Ado About Nothing
Jodie Foster: The Silence Of The Lambs
Spencer Tracy: Dozens, but especially: Pat And Mike, Adam's Rib,Judgement At Nuremberg, Captains Courageous, Woman of the Year, Fury, Bad Day at Black Rock
Katharine Hepburn: Pat And Mike, Adam's Rib, Woman of the Year, Suddenly Last Summer, The Lion in Winter, The African Queen
Dustin Hoffman: Midnight Cowboy, Wag The Dog, Tootsie
Maggie Smith: California Suite, Gosford Park
Peter Lorre: M
Jack Lemmon: Short Cuts, Missing, Some Like It Hot
Carole Lombard: Mr. and Mrs Smith, Twentieth Century
Peter Finch: Sunday Bloody Sunday, Network
Isabelle Huppert: La Pianiste, Merci pour le Chocolat, Rien ne va plus, La Cérémonie
John Gielgud: Prospero's Books
Gena Rowlands: Gloria, Opening Night, Another Woman
Lisa Kudrow: The Opposite Of Sex
Chow Yun Fat: The Killer, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, A Better Tomorrow
Maggie Cheung: In The Mood For Love, Chungking Express
Tony Leung: In The Mood For Love, Chungking Express
Sigourney Weaver: Map Of The World, The Ice Storm
Philippe Noiret: La Vie Et Rien D'autre
Sabine Azema: La Vie Et Rien D'autre, Le Bonheur est dans le pré, Smoking, No Smoking
Michel Serrault: Nelly et Mr. Arnaud, Rien Ne Va Plus, Le Bonheur est dans le pré
Julianne Moore: Safe, Short Cuts, Magnolia, Hannibal, Boogie Nights, Map Of The World, The End Of The Affair, Far From Heaven, The Hours
Ralph Fiennes: Schindler's List
Judi Dench: 84 Charing Cross Road, Mrs. Brown, Shakespeare In Love
Sean Penn: Mystic River, At Close Range
Bette Midler: The Rose :)
Robert Preston: Victor Victoria
Gloria Swanson: Sunset Boulevard
Orson Welles: Citizen Kane, The Third Man, Touch Of Evil
Katie Bates: Misery, Primary Colors
Erich Von Stroheim: Sunset Boulevard
Bette Davis: All About Eve
Max Schreck: Nosferatu
Joan Allen: Nixon, The Ice Storm, Pleasantville, The Crucible
Alan Rickman: Sense And Sensibility
Nicole Kidman: To Die For, The Portrait Of A Lady, The Hours, Dogville, The Hours, Eyes Wide Shut
James Mason: Lolita, A Star Is Born
Emily Watson: Breaking The Waves, Hilary And Jackie
Amanda Plummer: The Million Dollar Hotel, Butterfly Kiss
Peter Sellers: Lolita, Hollywood Party
Cate Blanchett: The Aviator, Elizabeth, Oscar And Lucinda
Kirk Douglas: Ace In The Hole
Tilda Swinton: Orlando
Geoffrey Rush: Quills, Shakespeare In Love, Elizabeth
Marcello Mastroianni: 8½
Ian McKellen: Edward III, Gods And Monsters
Marcia Gay Harden: Mystic River, Pollock
Javier Bardem: Collateral, Before Night Falls
Kate Winslet: Quills, Sense And Sensibility
Tim Roth: Reservoir Dogs
Terence Stamp: Priscilla
Glenn Close: Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons
Laurence Olivier: Marathon Man, Henry V, Spartacus
Rupert Everett: Another Country
Rachel Griffiths: Hilary And Jackie
Morgan Freeman: Seven
Brenda Blethyn: Secrets & Lies

...and more....

Romy

What a fabulous list, sweetie. :laugh:

I just bought Merci pour le Chocolat (and Flower of Evil) and thought it was fantastic. Huppert is one of the best out there and I think Chabrol is tops. Love both of them.