Friday OT #1 - Breaking the Mold
- Thread starter Angie
- Start date
Yes Angie!
Mine are Leo for What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Winona Rider in Beetlejuice.
Mine are Leo for What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Winona Rider in Beetlejuice.
There were a lot of famous later people in America Graffiti.
Tom Hanks as the karate guy on 'Happy Days'.
Pretty sure 'Dazed and Confused' launched a few careers as well.
Pretty sure 'Dazed and Confused' launched a few careers as well.
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This one is a bit off the radar but one I think of is Dwight Yoakum in Sling Blade.
Norton in 'American History X' is one of the best performances I've seen.
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon weren't really a thing until Good Will Hunting.
Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth I in Elizabeth.
Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone.
Sigourney Weaver in Alien.
Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver.
Christian Bale in Empire of the Sun.
Sandra Bullock wasn't a thing until she was "the Wildcat" in Speed.
Brad Pitt wasn't a thing until Thelma and Louise.
Natalie Portman and The Professional. A lot of these are child actors who grew into stars.
Meryl Streep was made by The Deer Hunter. Which is ironic because she appeared in the movie so she could spend time with her boyfriend, John Cazale, as he was dying of cancer.
I don't remember much Bradley Cooper until after The Hangover.
Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth I in Elizabeth.
Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone.
Sigourney Weaver in Alien.
Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver.
Christian Bale in Empire of the Sun.
Sandra Bullock wasn't a thing until she was "the Wildcat" in Speed.
Brad Pitt wasn't a thing until Thelma and Louise.
Natalie Portman and The Professional. A lot of these are child actors who grew into stars.
Meryl Streep was made by The Deer Hunter. Which is ironic because she appeared in the movie so she could spend time with her boyfriend, John Cazale, as he was dying of cancer.
I don't remember much Bradley Cooper until after The Hangover.
My first thought was Bale in Empire of the Sun, but I thought he got a lot of young actor award recognition for his role so I'm not sure how underrated it actually was.
I watched Angels in the Outfield recently with little JM. The cast of the movie was just insane. Multiples in there that were before they're prime.
It's amazing that not only did they write that, but it kicked off 2 A-list careers. Minnie Driver was also successful after that. I'm not sure if she had already broken through though.
True, but I think he's mostly known for American Psycho as the "start" of his career.
The guy has been on an absolute tear for 30 years --
Empire of the Sun
Henry V (the Kenneth Branagh version)
Little Women (the 1994 version with Winona Ryder)
A Midsummer Night's Dream (the one with Calista Flockhart)
American Psycho
Equilibrium
The Machinist
Howl's Moving Castle (as Howl in the English dub)
Batman Begins
The Prestige
3:10 to Yuma
The Dark Knight
The Fighter
American Hustle
Ford v. Ferrari
I am probably leaving a few off. There's been some misfires (e.g., Terminator Salvation) but I don't know if there is an actor at their midcareer peak with a more impressive set of films under them.
I suppose there are two others I could add where I liked Bale's performance but disliked the films --
The Big Short (I didn't really like the movie, but I enjoyed Bale as Michael Burry.)
Vice (I have never seen the point of "historical" films about events everybody knows about that are within everybody's living memory, but Bale puts in an excellent performance.)
No argument about his career. I just thought the performances had to be underrated.
Afleck might work for Good Will Hunting, but Damon was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar as well as a whole truckload of other awards for the role. The only way he could have been rated any higher is if he had actually won the Oscar and Golden Globe.
I think you had quite a list, I am just looking for the underrated...