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In Reply to: RE: Any Steve McQueen fans out there? posted by free.ranger on July 20, 2009 at 12:18:53
That Steve McQueen was what James Dean would have been had he lived.I don't know about that but there is a similarity there. The loner who would rather not be bothered but who would kick your a** if he had to - and he could do it.
I never saw a McQueen performance I didn't like but "The Great Escape", "Nevada Smith", "Bullitt", and "The Getaway" are my favorites. "Tom Horn" is very good.
Edits: 07/22/09Follow Ups:
chops JD did.
McQ had ZERO range, a complete inability to portray personal suffering, or emotional nuance.
He also wasn't at his best with dialogue over a sentence.
Dean was the complete package, even at a young age. He could explode from hurt to white-hot anger in an instant and then reverse to vulnerability.
McQ was a heroic actor in the old sense.
I think his most effective work occurred in those films wherein the character was cool in the face of great danger; his physical presence and grace also were of star quality.
Unfortunately, I think his weakest roles were in more demanding roles such as "Papillon"( a very disappointing and flawed film, anyhow) and the equally bad "The Sand Pebbles."
...your opinion which I respect and value, but what actors might have done better in "Papillon" or "The Sand Pebbles"?
Please, help me picture improvement to these films, flawed as they may be.
d
I respect your opinion but must strongly disagree with you on McQueen's abilities. I'll grant that he was not the most emotive of actors but that was a personal and generational trait that many actors of his generation shared. He internalized his emotions but one could read his moods through his eyes and body language. He was, imho, almost as good as Brando. You will disagree but that is my opinion.As for Dean's abilities, well, they were never in doubt. He was unique.
Edits: 07/23/09 07/23/09
When talking about his worst movies, nobody has yet mentioned "The Towering Inferno", which was so bad that I blocked it out until I read the info linked.
The site also has the statement, "His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s." That helps explain his style and popularity. Timing versus culture.
The zero range characteristic I think is shared by many popular actors who substitute presence for ability: Cruise, Newmann, Stallone, Costner ... others. Some of these, like McQ, tap into a brooding presence; some go for a plastic facade ilke Cruise.
Yeah, "The Towering Inferno" isn't the high spot on his resume but, hey, it was a gig and I'm sure most actors in terrible movies - there were a lot of name actors in THAT MOVIE - don't know it's going to be terrible when they agree to do it. IIRC, McQueen had originally refused to do the movie but the producers kept at him so he named a price he thought they wouldn't meet. They met his price so he had no option but to play Mr. Fire Chief.
It's one of those movies that makes you feel sorry for the cast.
At least it was better than "Earthquake."
Are you referring to Paul 'Newmann'? Wow-you need to rent 'Hud', at one point in his career time line, and 'Nobody's Fool' at the other end, and then see if you can repeat this foolishness. He may not be your favorite actor, but he deserves much better than being grouped in any list that contains Kevin Costner.
"dammit"
"Cool Hand Luke" or "Hombre" or "Hud" or ......
Newman had more than his share of acting chops. That so many of his films are so highly regarded must say something about his abilities.
brilliant.
supported them and visited "the boys" when he became rich and famous. Later, he served in the USMC and was honorably discharged.
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