 
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
|
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
209.180.234.83
I don't think he was a great actor but he portrayed some characters exceedingly well. He did have a tendency to ham it up a bit with that grin/smirk getting way too much usage. But many of these films were fantastically entertaining and I admit to watching all of them many times, over the years.
"Harper."
"Hombre."
"Left-handed Gun."
"The Philadelphians."
"The Long Hot Summer."
"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof."
"Hud," however, I'd put in a different category, altogether. Excellent film and Paul was brilliant.
Follow Ups:
"Poor People have been voting for Democrats for the last 50 years.......and they are still poor."
So sayeth Charles Barkley
After his son died, his acting became much tamer, and therefore, better.
tits
Newman was a charismatic, iconic actor whose ability went beyond his looks and sex appeal. He had the power to make us care about some fairly unpleasant and mixed up characters. He played his fair share of good guys and conventional heroes, and coasted though more than few roles. But given the chance to play somone more complex, Newman could project a sense of danger lurking behind those baby blues. You always got the feeling there was a lot going on behind those eyes than than Newman revealed. It was fascinating and it made him compusively watchable. If I'd met Hud in person I would've loathed him. But I couldn't take my eyes off Newman's Hud.
Yup, there were times when he could get hammy, especially if he wasn't engaged with the material. Sometimes he couldn't resist flashing those baby blues for effect. You could say Newman wasn't the most versatile actor and he didn't "disappear" into his roles the way a classical actor might, but he was damn fine at what he did. Newman was in his share of popcorn movies, but he was fairly adventurous when he felt like it, working with Robert Altman, the Coens and Sam Mendes.
Newman had the ability to affect audiences deeply through his roles. He dsiplayed a fine intensity and economy of means in his early films and brought an easy confidence and power to his late movie where "less' became way "more". Overall, that's not too shabby. I actually think Newman was underrated in his latter days.
My favorite Newman films are The Hustler, Hud (as much for Patricia Neal as for Newman), Mr. and Mrs. Bridge, Nobody's Fool and The Road to Perdition. I enjoy Cool Hand Luke, Slapshot and The Verdict. Butch and Sundance has not aged well for me. I avoid it.
I met Newman a couple times - he had a daughter who showed horses, and he and Joanne were very low key at shows. He could play "anonymous" very when he wanted, and you might not even know he was on the grounds unless you got a flash of those eyes a certain way. Newman was also an avid race car fan and regularly attended the Indy 500. He used to come into my friend's parent's French restaurant during May. He was a very classy guy - I always think a good barometer of class is how a celebrity treats the help. He was a good tipper too.
It doesn't seem right discussing him in the past tense :-(
he had a Volvo station wagon up in CT (960) with a blown 5-liter Ford V8 under the hood.
you got to admire someone with that refined a sense of humor.
N. Wisconsin, he had a VW with a Porsche engine in it!
Never talked to him, I was in too much awe...
I think what you have wrote here, is absolutely correct and true.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
films I can watch more than once (just for their performances) and Newman had many (see my earlier post) which I enjoyed, repeatedly.
His wife is a terrific actress, too.
In some TV bio Newman was compared as something polar to Steve McQueen, in that Paul Newman didn't come from the "other side of the tracks" and projected something polished.
Great filmic presence, "iconic" as you said, and much to be appreciated.
I need to see "The Color of Money" again to compare with "The Hustler".
He was fairly even, possibly never great in the best tradition of the few truly great actors, but always superb.
The Verdict,Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,The Sting.
Paul Newman as Doc Hudson
but he seemed to embody every role he played. He WAS that person.
I remember and identify him in Cool Hand Luke.
Though one of his worse films, I liked him in The Verdict too.
thanks
Phil
True - the Verdict isn't really very good, and it's entirely predictable. But Newman makes you care, it's a guilty pleasure.
"The Sting."
I tend to think of The Sting as Redford's film. A very likeable movie to be sure...
thanks
Phil
(nt)
I always felt Paul would have been best suited for comedic roles with the dry deadpan thing.
SlapShot is one of my favorite comedies about the world of hockey and Paul was great here.
This one often gets overlooked in the U.S. perhaps because it's not about a sport that is as popular. But I have zero interest in basketball and yet I liked Hoosiers immensely.
So if you have not seen Slap Shot and you don;t mind an incredible amount of swearing this is one to rent.
There really can be no question he was a star of the first order. Hud,
The Hustler, Cool Hand Luke, Long Hot Summer, Slapshot and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof are my favorite Newman films.
-Wendell
.
.
Baba-Booey to you all!
One of my favorites, and an underrated film IMO.
...Hustler: Piper Laurie, Jackie Gleeson, George C. Scott et al.- what a cast!C.H.L.: George Kennedy et al. - cool '60's message moviemaking.
I'm with you on "Cat..." too: Burl Ives and Judith Anderson smoked the screen along with the leads.
Will miss that "ol' Luke smile".
The Verdict
Nobody's Fool
--------------
Music will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no music!
.
| FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
Top of Page ]
[ Contact Us ]
[ Support/Wish List ]
[ Copyright © 2025, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
