The Best of the Best

We were just talking about the greatest actors the other day, so this felt like the perfect excuse for a thread. Since we already get annual lists and "best of" announcements, why not try to dissect the absolute cream of the crop? 🙂

Is Denzel Washington actually better than Ben Kingsley? Is Anthony Hopkins superior to Nick Nolte?

Dustin Hoffman versus Hoffman?

Or maybe Jack Nicholson is better than his own past performances?

It’s always the same debate—two greats at once, one should have won, "this guy deserved it more," political correctness, recycling old arguments, or even government subsidies to get people watching the classics...

Here is the list, including all the nominees: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academ...for_Best_Actor

Anyway, you get the idea... 🙂

I've set the poll up chronologically...

Christoph Waltz disclaimer: Just so no woman thinks this is some chauvinistic topic—I'll preemptively settle that by letting a lady lead the discussion on ladies 😳—besides, Adrien Brody is on the list... 😁

Setting up a poll—please bear with me for a moment...

damn 🤦🤣

velvetbear372 said:I'm putting together a poll, please bear with me for a moment...

God, I just hope she doesn't turn out to be anything like a Donald Pleasence character. 🙂

Mark Cruz15 said:I just hope she doesn't turn out to be like Donald Pleasence. 🙂

Forgive me, 😢

It felt like I was hauling a bag of cement up eight flights of stairs. 😬

Unfortunately, I haven't caught most of the flicks on this list—so I’m putting my votes in for F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hanks. 😁

As for the ones I haven't seen yet, I'd really love to check out Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Daniel Day-Lewis in My Left Foot, and Tom Hanks in Philadelphia.

Yeah, the "problem" is that most of us haven't sat through the whole thing. But, let's be honest—I tried a few, and I just couldn't finish them without nodding off... -.-

I've watched 41/89

Robert De Niro has always been—I don't know how to put it—just an ordinary actor to me. Boring.

And everyone keeps comparing him to Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Tom Hanks, or Al Pacino... wtf? For instance, Denzel Washington is 🤣, so I'd give that to Russell Crowe—take his performance in Gladiator—and then pair him with Ed Harris for Pollock; Forest Whitaker is 🤦

Daniel Day-Lewis, say, exclusively in There Will Be Blood... and he's a triple Oscar winner, the only one on this list who is truly top-tier.

Jack Nicholson was unbeatable in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, but kind of meh in Good, Bad, and Ugly—though still good.

...

And this group of people:

Colin Firth (The King's Speech) - 2010
Jean Dujardin (The Artist) - 2011
Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) - 2012
Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) - 2013
Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) - 2014
Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant) - 2015

As for the movies...

A complete systemic collapse. 🤦

Personally, I thought Dallas Buyers Club was absolutely fantastic, but I actually turned off The Revenant after just twenty minutes... It really all comes down to individual taste, doesn't it? Just because a film doesn't click for you doesn't mean it's objectively bad.
I haven't seen that other one yet.

I didn't say they were absolute garbage, but compared to that powerhouse era from 1988 to 1994—to me, they just fall short.

Of course, it’s all subjective—but honestly, Hollywood's self-destruction and total lack of innovation have hit a breaking point. We were practically expecting this bell curve to dip—I truly fear we're looking at nothing but junk for the next few decades.

velvetbear372 said:Yeah, the "problem" is most of us haven't sat through the whole list. But, honestly? I tried a few and just couldn't make it through—I would've fallen asleep halfway. -.-

I've watched 41 out of 89.

Robert De Niro always felt... I don't know... just an average actor to me. A bit dull.

And most people compare him to Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Tom Hanks, Al Pacino... wtf? For instance, Denzel Washington is 🤣, so if I were picking, I'd give it to Russell Crowe—specifically his role in Gladiator—and then pair him with Ed Harris for his take on Jackson Pollock. As for Forest Whitaker, he's 🤦

Take Daniel Day-Lewis, for example. Just and exclusively in There Will Be Blood... and he's a three-time Oscar winner, the only one on this list who actually qualifies as a true legend.

Jack Nicholson was unbeatable in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, but kind of meh in Good, Bad, and Ugly, even if he's still good.

...

Jack Nicholson should really just take this poll based on One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest alone. Unbeatable performance. He’s good in Good, Bad, and Ugly, but About Schmidt is pure fantasy. Such a shame he didn't snag an Oscar for that one.

If he had won for Chinatown, I'd vote for that role too, because those two—One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and Chinatown—are easily his two best performances in history.

I find the hype around Alfred Hitchcock strange. It's a very solid film, sure, but also quite unconvincing. To me, Hitchcock always feels one-dimensional in every single role he takes. It's a famous part, yes, but I don't get why everyone makes such a massive deal out of it.

I’m honestly surprised by Hansel. I mean, his performance in Forrest Gump was great, but let's be real—it doesn't even crack my top 15 from this list. 🤷

Robert De Niro in Raging Bull is a criminally underrated role.

I'm honestly so bummed this isn't a thread dedicated to the movie Good, Bad, and Ugly—and I was really hoping for some shirtless shots of Eric Roberts!

Wait, isn't this list just limited to the Oscar winners?

James Stewart is absolutely stellar in "The Philadelphia Story"—he's just so good—but honestly, I’m having a hard time picking a definitive favorite from the bunch.

It looks like this list is based on the Oscars, but I’d definitely throw Jim Carrey into the mix too. I can't quite settle on just one movie, though maybe Man on the Moon would be my pick.

A list of the greatest actors ever... and there's no Ingrid Bergman???

Interesting topic..

If you’re asking me, here’s how I’d lay it out:
1960 - Anthony Perkins in Psycho
1961 - Paul Newman in The Hustler
1962 - Peter O'Toole in Lawrence of Arabia
1963 - Marcello Mastroianni in 8½
1964 - Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove
1965 - Rod Steiger in Pawnbroker
1966 - Eli Wallach in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
1967 - Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke
1968 - Richard Burton in Classic Hollywood Filmography
1969 - Jon Voight in Midnight Cowboy
1970 - George C. Scott in Patton
1971 - Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange
1972 - Al Pacino in The Godfather
1973 - Jason Miller in The Exorcist
1974 - Gene Hackman in The Conversation
1975 - Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
1976 - Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver
1977 - John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever
1978 - Robert De Niro in The Deer Hunter
1979 - Peter Sellers in Being There
1980 - Robert De Niro in Raging Bull
1981 - Jurgen Prochnow in Das Boot
1982 - Robert De Niro in King of Comedy
1983 - Al Pacino in Scarface
1984 - F. Murray Abraham in Amadeus
1985 - Aleksey Kravchenko in Idi i Smotri
1986 - Gary Oldman in Sid and Nancy
1987 - Max Von Sydow in Pelle the Conquerer
1988 - Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers
1989 - Tom Cruise in Born on the Fourth of July
1990 - Robert De Niro in Awakenings
1991 - Robert De Niro in Cape Fear
1992 - Harvey Keitel in Bad Lieutenant
1993 - Michael Douglas in Falling Down
1994 - Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump
1995 - Kevin Spacey in The Usual Suspects
1996 - William H. Macy in Fargo
1997 - Nick Nolte in The Affliction
1998 - Edward Norton in American History X
1999 - Kevin Spacey in American Beauty
2000 - Christian Bale in American Psycho
2001 - Tom Wilkinson in In the Bedroom
2002 - Daniel Day-Lewis in The Gangs of New York
2003 - Min-Sik Choi in Oldboy
2004 - Kevin Bacon in The Woodsman
2005 - Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain
2006 - Leonardo DiCaprio in The Departed
2007 - Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood
2008 - Tom Hardy in Bronson
2009 - Sam Rockwell in Moon
2010 - Jeff Bridges in True Grit
2011 - Michael Shannon in Take Shelter
2012 - Joaquin Phoenix in The Master
2013 - Bruce Dern in Nebraska
2014 - Jake Gyllenhaal in Nightcrawler
2015 - Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant

Interesting 🙂

A million people have spoken: This is the greatest actor of all time

velvetbear372 said:Interesting... 🙂

A million people have decided: This is the greatest actor of all time

Aside from Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks isn't exactly known for his transformations, and honestly, I feel like that really ought to be one of the primary benchmarks when you're deciding who truly deserves the title.

Once Tom Hanks finally tackles a truly gritty, unapologetic villain, maybe then he’ll actually crack the top 25.

In my book, you can't claim to be an elite actor if you've spent your entire career playing nothing but the hero or the good guy. Take Henry Fonda, Denzel Washington, or Leonardo DiCaprio—they all built massive reputations on those types of roles, but they didn't really prove their range until they stepped into their first real antagonist part.
Also, Paul Newman was absolutely brilliant playing a villainous anti-hero in Hude.