Yes, of course there are examples of both sides of the fense, but let's face it, a whole lot of people are remembered and one of those contributing factors is he or she are beloved people offscreen. It's certainly not a rule, but it can help a lot. Oh, great example there. What the hell went wrong with her career? That's a really tough one. My heart thinks Ford mostly cause I can't stand Russell Crowe, but you can't take his fame away from him, y'know?
For most of the 90's, it seemed like Kevin Spacey could do no wrong (Glengarry Glen Ross, American Beauty, The Usual Suspects, LA Confidential... hell, even The Negotiator had its moments), but the K-PAX/Pay it Forward one-two punch of suck seems to have effectively torpedoed his career. Edward Norton seemed like he was going to be huge, but he never really lived up to the hype of Fight Club.
Ford's place in history is assured, if anything just because Han Solo and Indiana Jones are two of the most beloved characters of the last 30 years.
Yeah, I do completely agree with that. I think I was more just commenting on my inabillity to remove my personal hatred from the equasion when considering Crowe.
In the case of Uma Thurman, I think it's because she's basically tied together with one director in the film-going audience's minds. While that approach led to immortality in the case of, say, Toshiro Mifune, it's a bit more risky in this case because Tarantino isn't half the filmmaker that Kurosawa was. And most of the Asian film buffs that I know, self included, are already starting to tire of Zhang Ziyi. I think her absurdly drawn out death scene in House of Flying Daggers had a lot to do with that.
I am surprised that no one said Costner for Field of Dreams, or Stallone for a couple of movie series. First Blood or Rocky. What no Arnohld?? Cruise, and Hanks I could see as well. Streep or Demi Moore? Naw I didn't think so either.
First, America's Sweetheart ditched her all-American husband and father-of-her-children for a rakish foreigner. Then she made, you know, that one ************ movie. You know, that one movie. That sucked.
And it doesn't help that she's now a vampire. "Look deeply into my eyes...when I snap my fingers, you will remember nothing..."
Just to respond generally... -- Every time I see a critic go off on this idea, they laud Sean Penn. He's the sort of actor that actors love. Of course, he's also the guy who made I Am Sam, so take that for what it's worth. -- Forgive me among the Hanks lovers, but for every decent film he's been in (the aforementioned Big, plus Splash, plus Philadelphia among others), there's an equal and opposite clunker throughout his career. It's been this way for 20 years with him. He followed Bachelor Party -- one of the all-time great R-rated comedies, IMHO -- with a string of awful films, including Volunteers and The Man With One Red Shoe. More recently he had a good year in 2002 with The Road To Perdition and Catch Me If You Can, skipped 2003 entirely, and then had a series of clunkers in '04 (The Terminal, The Ladykillers and the god-awful Polar Express). And don't get me started on Forrest Gump. Basically I'm still pissed at him and Zemeckis for that load of crap. -- I can't think of a single American actress who fits in this thread. Cate Blanchett is not a bad choice when your competition includes Demi Moore and Meg Ryan. Maybe you make a case for Julia Roberts on star power, but the woman barely acts. Basically, I'm sticking with Depp. That's the list.
But if you look at famous actors and actresses from the past and ask people to name their great movies, they'll come up with a list that's pretty similar to everyone else's list. On the flip side, they omit the same movies everyone else omits. So basically, people with staying power simply get past their clunkers without any problem whatsoever. Marlon Brando will not forever be known as a great actor because he was the guy that fed carots to a horse straight from his lips then sung him a lullabye and trash talked a donkey in Missouri Breaks. Julia Roberts is a great suggestion. She fits the traditional mold pretty well - beloved by many people, has been in many blockbuster hits, has never really been praised for her acting skill, yet gets huge roles anyway. Acting skill certainly isn't the most important trait to consider when thinking about staying power, that's for sure. Basically, I'm sticking with Depp. That's the list.[/QUOTE]
I'm afraid you're on to something with Roberts. I can't stand her; I don't like her; I don't like what she does in movies. But I'm apparently in the clear minority on that one. I'm still holding out hope for Catherine-Zeta Jones, but I know it isn't likely.
You gotta give me more hints here. That hostage movie with Crowe? The boxing movie with the black guy who isn't Taye Diggs? The time travel movie with Hugh Jackman?
What went wrong with her career is that she started playing the same role half a dozen times. Sleepless in Seattle, You've got mail, Kate & Leopold, City of Angels... How many times can you play a romance-seeking, overly romantic girl/woman and get away with it? The fact that the few movies she strayed away from her typecast roles didn't do so greatly didn't exactly help either. Ashley Judd has the same problem, to a lesser extent. After Kiss the girls and Heat, it seemed all she got cast for are these strong, independent woman types. Which is great in itself, and these parts are infinitely richer and more colorfull than most of what Ryan has done, but they still are a limitation if they become the only roles you seem to play/get offered.
She's as drop-dead gorgeous and photogenic a movie star as I've seen in, I don't know, EVER. And in Chicago, she really seemed like a star, to me anyway. But I agree, for some reason, the public just likes Julia Roberts better. I can't figure it.
I'm no fan of Tom Hanks, but his place in the canon is assured. It's even a cliche to note that he's the Jimmy Stewart of this generation . . . except not as good. Russel Crowe gets a bad rap, but he's in fact a damn fine actor in roles that require gravitas (e.g., LA Confidential), something that few actors can claim to have. The fact that he took the crazy person role pathway to an Oscar is a stain on his career.
What happened to Jodie Foster? She did great work as a child actor and as an adult. A brilliant actress, her performance in Silence of the Lambs is sublime. Why isn't she acting? The last film I remember her in was Contact and she was very good. Another actor that has kept a low profile, but was brilliant was Daniel Day Lewis. My Left Foot, the Unbearable Lightness of Being and the Last of the Mohicans. What ever happened to him?
For all the fluff, Hanks place is assured. Crowe is a very good actor. I loved him in LA Confidential.
Agreed. Ryan has limited acting abilities and it reflects in the roles. She is also now too old to play certain roles. Judd has talent, she just seems to pick odd roles. I can't recall if any of her films have enjoyed critical and boxoffice success.
A couple of things: 1) I don't buy Julia Roberts' staying power overall. Erin Brockovich might last, as might one or two of her romantic comedies. Other than that, will she have that many memorable roles. I don't think so. 2) One thing we seem to be ignoring is directors. Humanities professors love to go on about John Wayne as an American icon for good or ill. One thing that they don't discuss about his staying power is how many films he made with John Ford and Howard Hawks. That helps. 3) Ansen, at least for this article, seems to accept that star power is the only thing that will last. I think the system is now present where art house films can live on in their own separate sphere without being forgotten. I mean, who watches a lot of old films really? The special effects easy digestion crowd is always goingto be focused on what's new anyway.
I don't like Roberts, but will give her props for her performance in Erin Brockovich. Agree with others that Depp is a great actor.
Ewan McGregor may prove to have some staying power, but he's shown a disturbing tendency to go for the quick buck in silly movies (Down With Love, Moulin Rouge).
Foster had some great roles late 80s and early 90s. Then Nell happened. She has a new film coming out called Flightplan with a terrific trailer. We'll see about the movie. She's getting played into the "mother bear" parts, like Panic Room. She'll be an interesting case. Lewis is a dark horse.
One actor that should move up as he becomes more known is Don Cheadle. He has been in some killer movies. The only thing that might keep him fomr making the leap, is that he plays in a lot of ensemble movies.