5 actors who make films better
Paying homage to moviedom’s best and brightest
Postmedia film critic Jay Stone has seen the best of the best — and the worst of the worst. Lucky for us, he’ll be focusing on the best all summer, as he salutes the industry’s most talented, most sexy, and most entertaining in his High Five series. In this instalment: Five actors who make films better.
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN
Why him: He emerged slowly, with small precise portraits: the privileged roommate in Scent of a Woman (1992), the hapless cop in Nobody’s Fool (1994), the guy who’s stuck on Mark Wahlberg in Boogie Nights (1997), the rich man’s assistant in The Big Lebowski (1998). It wasn’t long before his scenes were stealing movies (Lester Bangs in Almost Famous, 2000) and then became the whole movie (Capote, 2005.) Infinitely malleable, he blends into films and controls them without overwhelming them (The Master, 2012). He’s never been less than great.
Where you’ll see him next: As Plutarch Heavensbee in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and as the head of a German spy unit in the thriller A Most Wanted Man (both Nov. 22)
PAUL GIAMATTI
Why him: Giamatti was in the background of a lot of movies — The Truman Show, Mighty Aphrodite, Saving Private Ryan — until he got the lead in American Splendor, where he played the schlumpy Harvey Pekar (Harvey, looking into a mirror in the morning: “Well, there’s a reliable disappointment.”) He broke out in the 2004 wine comedy Sideways (“I’m not drinking any f--- Merlot”) and turned Barney Pernofsky into a lovable schlumpy alcoholic womanizer — who else could do that? — in Barney’s Version. But he’s not just a dishevelled Everyman. His supporting roles are finely etched miniatures: the smart political insider in The Ides of March helped turn a workaday film into something fast-talking and knowing.
Where you’ll see him next: A voice in animated film Turbo (July 17), Friar Laurence in a new Romeo and Juliet (July 26), supporting Tom Hanks in the Mary Poppins spinoff Saving Mr. Banks (Dec. 13)
RICHARD JENKINS
Why him: When he was nominated for an Oscar for The Visitor (2008) people finally put a name to the face in dozens of films, a face so lived-in that it was hard to believe he was an actor. He’s often a doctor, or a plainclothes policeman, unglamorous and earnest but somehow threatening. It’s a persona that was well used as Rosamund Pike’s father in Jack Reacher and one of the controllers in Cabin in the Woods (both 2012). He’s that guy, but he could be something more as well.
Where you’ll see him next: One of the voices in the animated film Turbo (July 17).
JOHN MALKOVICH
Why him: Malkovich’s screen persona is so eccentric — cool, prissy, hooded — that he inspired his own film, Inside John Malkovich (1999). His sui generis sex appeal makes him the go-to guy for corrupted eroticism (Dangerous Liaisons, 1988) or intelligent sadism (In The Line of Fire 1993; Con Air, 1997) He shares with Christopher Walken and Jeff Goldblum the air of someone who has come down from another planet to be a supporting player.
Where you’ll see him next: As the oddest of the over-the-hill killers in Red 2 (July 19).
SAMUEL L. JACKSON
Why him: He’s been in 100 films and is the highest-grossing actor of all time: a filmography that includes Star Wars movies and Jurassic Park can do that. He’s often a badass with attitude, a role that featured in his much-lauded Jungle Fever and played into the image that was parodied in Snakes On A Plane (“I’ve had it with these m-f- snakes on this m-f- plane.”) In his supporting roles, though, he can still surprise you with the depth of his toughness: his slave in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained was an acid portrait of evil.
Where you’ll see him next: A voice in the animated film Turbo (July 17), a leading role in the remake of the violent Korean mystery Oldboy (Oct. 25).
Honourable mentions: Bruce Greenwood, William Hurt, John Hurt, Ray Liotta, Alan Rickman, Michael Shannon.