Just wondering who you rate the highest and why….
I used to hate Leonardo DiCaprio, but has convinced me in the last view years.

harrison ford. indiana jones is a legend.

clint eastwood
morgan freeman

Daniel Day Lewis is one of my favourites for:

My Left Foot
There Will Be Blood

And of course Jeff Bridges

denzel washington
watch training day, fallen,the hurricane, john q, american ganster etc to see why

Arnie. Perfect for playing a robot.

The bloke what used to play Big Ron in EastEnders.

Clint, I have to tell you why!

Martin Sheen just for Apocalypse Now.

If anyone wonders why Charlie Sheen is going crazy-ape mental, then just watch Hearts of Darkness and see his dad go crazy-ape mental, drink two bottle of Jack Daniels, have a nervous breakdown, punch a mirror, cover himself in his own blood then a massive heart attack live on camera!

I believe the family has ‘form’

Agree with Clint. Legend.

Klaus Kinski deserves a mention.

Think I’ll go Gary Oldman though, terrific actor. I think Tom Hardy is going to be brilliant as well.

Paddy Considine, cos he’s always absolutely believable.

Alastair Sim, most expressive face ever.

Ingrid Bergman for sheer beauty.

Maxine Peake, for the same reasons as Paddy C. Not seen ‘Silk’ yet though.

I like Kevin Spacey and Steve Buschemi personally 🙂

Chistopher Walken but lots of good calls above, can’t stand Denzel though, you just know he has to check a script before taking the role to see if it makes him look good.

John Malkovic.

Samuel L Jackson

Nick Cage

Christian Bale

No deep insight into why – I just like them.

Did no one mention Steve McQueen? Class!

The dad in Rita Sue and Bob Too.

Gerrout!

THREAD CLOSED

Bill Murray: whose characters are never able to take anything seriously.

Jennifer Connelly: whose characters always take everything too seriously, thus inspiring me to make believe that I could cheer her up.

Good calls for Harrison Ford & Arnie too 🙂

Another Martin Sheen fan here

I have to confess liking Ben Afleck in Dogma also, which brings me also to Alan Rickman

You know, I didn’t know the answer to this question until I read the other answers here.

Gary Oldman and Steve Buscemi are personal favourites also.

But in terms of “if I were a leading actor, who would I absolutely not want as a supporting actor cos then I’d buggered if he was” there really is only one answer. In the pool of current mainstream actors, Alan Rickman can act anyone else off the screen.

Christian Bale
Ewan McGregor
Sammy L Jackson
Clint Eastwood
Anthony Hopkins

Probably in that order…… maybe…. might change next week! 😀

Paul Newman – because of Cool Hand Luke.
Donald Sutherland – because of Oddball in Kellys Heroes.
Emily watson – because of Breaking The Waves
Christopher Walken – Just because!

Steve Buschemi is a Good Call!

edit: hang on.. Jack Nicholson, Sean Penn, samantha Morton, …this could be long list!..

Gene Hackman – outstanding in roles like Popeye Doyle in the French Connection, and Mississipi Burning

oh, good one philby, he’s ace in so many films. proper paranoid in The Conversation!

Those from Hammer Horror.

🙂

Clint Eastwood? seriously? have you seen Gran Torino.
I’d say he’s one of the coolest film stars, but I wouldn’t rate him that highly as an actor.
.
I love de Niro, apart from all the Fockers crap he’s made, along with anything where he isn’t a gangster or a psycho.
Bruce Willis gets my vote as action hero.
Johnny Depp is also someone who is incredibly cool and I like his acting, especially lately (apart from Pirates where they’re scraping the barrel).
.
When it comes to female actors I could admire the qualities of scarlett johansson until it fell off…

First post on stw for ages…

Philby & kevev

Yup – Hackman (note authoritative use of surname only)

So underrated, the conversation, amazing!

Have posted about it before on stw.

How about jeff bridges, the dude?

Too many box office actors being quoted here.

The two finest actors on the planet….
Edward Norton
Heath Ledger (although admittedly, no longer with us)

Anthony Hopkins is pretty good too.

I don’t have any particular favourite, but many I appreciate, most of them up there ?, but I would like to add John Cusack, who’s never disappointed in any rôle I’ve seen him in, but particularly Grosse Point Blank, Sigourney Weaver, because, well just because, dammit, and Angelina Jolie, who always looks spectacular, and always seems to be actually enjoying whatever it is she’s doing at the time. Oh, and Michelle Pfeiffer.

that pic should be all the reason I need, but I do actually think she’s a damn fine actress;
The Red House, Frankie And Johnny, The Fabulous Baker Boys, as examples.

heavens, there’s some good suggestions on here.
i’ll mention johnny depp and benicio del toro as being reliably good, with bonus points that i didn’t recognise either of them the first time i watched fear and loathing (i was the requisite amount of stoned for enjoying the film at the time though).

for my money, the favourite film star tag goes to whoever can make me watch a film when i’m flicking through the telly just because they’re in it. that man is lee marvin – whenever he’s on screen, everyone else is in the background. oooh, think i’ll watch emperor of the north pole tonight thanks to this thread (honourable mention for ernest borgnine).

on this note, i’ve been wondering for a good while now “what makes an actor good/great?” but haven’t yet got an answer that i can use as a template. i’m not big on films and the like, so i’ve been quizzing friends who are, and now you bunch…
whilst it’s easy enough to spot a bad actor, what really constitutes good? to use heath ledger’s joker as an example of one leading to critical jizz dripping from the ceiling – how much of that was good acting, and how much good direction? presumably, whilst the actor has a certain amount of leeway to interpret a role, the main part should be portraying what the director demands. how do we know who decided he should try to lick his eyeball at every opportunity? i honestly can’t work out the mechanics of the thing, and wonder how people do without having been there during filming. any ideas?

with ref to my suggestions above – the first two because i couldn’t tell it was them, becoming pure tools of the story type thing. and lee i choose irrespective of acting ability – he’s just a gravel voiced bruiser, playing roles i like in films i’ll probably like.

Cusack, good choice.

+1 Cusack

Although he does fail in Con Air.

Christopher Eccleston – He’s great.

Don Cheadle. Superb actor, even if his cockney accent is shite.

Michael Fassbender is destined for big things and rightly so. Superb in Hunger.

Best performance ever – Eric Bana in Chopper was excellent.

John Goodman, a **** legend!!

brakes – Member

Clint Eastwood? seriously? have you seen Gran Torino.
I’d say he’s one of the coolest film stars, but I wouldn’t rate him that highly as an actor.
.
I love de Niro, apart from all the Fockers crap he’s made, along with anything where he isn’t a gangster or a psycho.
Bruce Willis gets my vote as action hero.
Johnny Depp is also someone who is incredibly cool and I like his acting, especially lately (apart from Pirates where they’re scraping the barrel).
.
When it comes to female actors I could admire the qualities of scarlett johansson until it fell off…

And it’s at Bruce Willis where your credibility as a critic fell off… 😆

Has anyone mentioned Nicholas Cage yet?

BIG 😉

Actors that’d make me watch a film purely because they’re in the cast and the first film i think of when i think of them being great actors)

Kevin Spacey (Kpax)
Edward Norton (American History X)
Leonardo dDiCaprio (Blood diamond)
Sam Rockwell (Moon)
Denzel WAshington (American Gangster)
Robin Williams (Good Will Hunting)
Tom Hardy (Bronson)
Heath Ledger (Batman era)
Daniel Day Lewis (There will be blood)
Ricci Harnet (Rise of the Footsoldier)
Eric Bana (Chopper)
Jean Reno (Leon)
Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski)
Tim Robbins (Arlington Road)
Benicio Del Toro (21 Grams)
Christian Bale (The Machinist)
Willem Dafoe (Anamorph))
Dustin Hoffman (Hook)
Liam Neeson (Schindlers list)
Sean Penn (Milk)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Charlie Wilson’s War)
Will Smith (The Persuit of Happiness)
Adriaen Brody (The Pianist)
Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator)
Michael Sheen (Frost v Nixon)
Ewan McGregor (trainspotting)
Steve Buschemi (Con Air)
Gary Oldman (Leon)

i could go on, but my brains hurting staring at too many dvds

Pete Postlethwaite.

Even Speilberg called him the “best actor in the world”

Brassed Off makes me cry like a baby

Tommy Lee Jones

Gene Hackman

Timothy Spall

Given the above choices I have no hesitation in trumping you all with Linda Boreman. If acting implies being able to play a role other than oneself and being charismatic then I’ll suggest Richard Burton and Isabelle Adjani.

Brad Pitt – specifically in 12 Monkeys, Se7en and Snatch.