# Not your favorite actor, but who is or was the best working actor, in your opinion?



## Gaer (Apr 12, 2020)

Who do you think was or is the best male actor?


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## Pinky (Apr 12, 2020)

Marlon Brando, I liked in his earlier movies .. Gene Hackman. There are others. Can't narrow it down to just one.


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## Sassycakes (Apr 12, 2020)

*Cary Grant comes to mind and also Clark Gable ,Jack Nicholson,Joe Pesci .*


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## JustBonee (Apr 12, 2020)

Too many great ones   ...  Jack Nicholson and Marlon Brando are probably my two favorite


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## AnnieA (Apr 12, 2020)

Daniel Day Lewis for range.


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## Pinky (Apr 12, 2020)

Of more recent actors, both demised - Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robin Williams.


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## Gaer (Apr 12, 2020)

I know this is a strange name to bandy about but I saw Don Johnson in "Word of Honor" and his acting made me cry!  Also, "In Pursuit of Honor", so, I'd have to say Don Johnson!  He's not my favorite actor but he's really a great actor!


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## fmdog44 (Apr 12, 2020)

Brando in "A Street Car Named Desire" was the best performance by an actor followed by Dustin Hoffman in "Death Of A Salesman". I would have loved to see Philip Seymore Hoffman do "Death Of A Salesman" on stage. Daniel Day Lewis is a f-n genius.


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## Gaer (Apr 12, 2020)

Pinky said:


> Of more recent actors, both demised - Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robin Williams.


Both my favorites!  Well Pinky, We agree on THIS!


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## gennie (Apr 12, 2020)

Anthony Hopkins, Robin Williams


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## Pepper (Apr 12, 2020)

Paul Newman, my favorite and best.


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## Ken N Tx (Apr 13, 2020)

DeNero  hands down..


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## moviequeen1 (Apr 13, 2020)

Jack Lemmon,Gregory Peck,Daniel Day Lewis
# 1 favorite hands down,Gene Hackman


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## MarkinPhx (Apr 13, 2020)

Gene Hackman would be my definition of the meaning of "working actor".


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## Geezerette (Apr 13, 2020)

Brando, Bogart


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## Gaer (Apr 13, 2020)

Markin and movie queen:  Gene Hackman is awesome!!! So sexy!!!  good choice!!!


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## RadishRose (Apr 13, 2020)

John Lithgow
 (also Al Pacino and Christopher Walken)


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## fmdog44 (Apr 13, 2020)

I missed naming Gregory Peck. His roles were penetrating to say the least from Captain Ahab to "To Kill A Mocking Bird" to opposite Jennifer (?)Jones in Duel In The Sun where he played a ruthless no good $#%&. In Cape Fear he was the only actor that could be seen as someone tough to stand up to psychotic killer Robert Mitchum. Then In Boys From Brazil he played a Nazi wanted for crimes against humanity. Awesome!!


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## Gaer (Apr 13, 2020)

OMG!!!!!! Gregory Peck!!!!! I MELT into a little puddle watching Gregory Peck!!!!


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## Repondering (Apr 13, 2020)

In terms of acting versatility, in no particular order of ranking, Robert deNiro, Alan Rickman and George Sanders.
The last guy never made it really big in the acting business, he's been dead for 30 years or more but he was really versatile and well respected in his profession.


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## rkunsaw (Apr 13, 2020)

Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, James Garner


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## fmdog44 (Apr 13, 2020)

Repondering said:


> In terms of acting versatility, in no particular order of ranking, Robert deNiro, Alan Rickman and George Sanders.
> The last guy never made it really big in the acting business, he's been dead for 30 years or more but he was really versatile and well respected in his profession.


George Sanders is one of my favorite actors of all time. Karl Malden is another. George Sanders committed suicide when he knew he had Alzheimer's. If I have the story straight he wrote a letter stating he would rather die than lose his mind. He then took poison. Can't say I blame him.


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## Keesha (Apr 13, 2020)

Robert DeNero 
Anthony Hopkins 
Will Smith 
Chris Hemsworth ( as eye candy )


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## Pinky (Apr 13, 2020)

Keesha said:


> Anthony Hopkins


I can't imagine anyone other than Anthony Hopkins in Silence Of The Lambs. He was sooo good.


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## Gaer (Apr 13, 2020)

keesha, Yes,  Anthony Hopkins is TREMENDOUS!  Everyone keeps saying Robert Dinero, but he reminds me so much of my horrid first husband, I don't even want to watch him!  That's just personal though.  He probably is a great actor.  Don't know.  Don't watch him!


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## johndoe (Apr 13, 2020)

Are actors really acting or are they just reciting lines while being thenselves? When I see one being interviewed on TV, there is almost no difference from their real self and the role they play. Their personality shines through in either situation, for instance Jack Nicholson is Jack Nicholson all the time.


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## Gaer (Apr 13, 2020)

I agree most of the time but wouldn't it depend on the part they're playing and the WAY they say the lines? That's why i said Don Johnson.  In "Word of Honor"  the veins in his forehead stood out and his face turned red when he said the lines that made me gasp.  I think if an actor can invoke a reaction like that, he's got to be pretty good. (just my opinion)  Matt Damon was great in Saving Private Ryan, in particular parts of the movie.   (just sayin')


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## Keesha (Apr 13, 2020)

Pinky said:


> I can't imagine anyone other than Anthony Hopkins in Silence Of The Lambs. He was sooo good.


That’s probably the movie he was most famous for. He played the spooky psycho so well but he plays an adorable sweet guy in a movie about a man who races an Indian motorcycle 🏍 and makes a world record. Maybe it’s because I like motorcycles but he played a super likeable guy. Everyone adored him.


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## Keesha (Apr 13, 2020)

johndoe said:


> Are actors really acting or are they just reciting lines while being thenselves? When I see one being interviewed on TV, there is almost no difference from their real self and the role they play. Their personality shines through in either situation, for instance Jack Nicholson is Jack Nicholson all the time.


Isn’t that type casting though. That’s the very reason why I stated that Anthony Hopkins played a true humanitarian in the ‘the worlds fastest indian’ ( a true story ) as well as he did playing a psycho killer in ‘Silence of the lambs.’


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## Gaer (Apr 13, 2020)

Keesha said:


> That’s probably the movie he was most famous for. He played the spooky psycho so well but he plays an adorable sweet guy in a movie about a man who races an Indian motorcycle 🏍 and makes a world record. Maybe it’s because I like motorcycles but he played a super likeable guy. Everyone adored him.


I adored that movie!  Anthony Hopkins is amazing!


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## peppermint (Apr 13, 2020)

I'm not much of liking any actor....I tried to think who would it be!!  But I can't give an answer....
I don't go to movies anymore....

I do think Jack Nicholson is hysterical....But have not seen him in a while....Or I didn't care....
I rather read a book....

What about Doris Day....We lost her I think this year....


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## Marlene (Apr 13, 2020)

johndoe said:


> Are actors really acting or are they just reciting lines while being thenselves? When I see one being interviewed on TV, there is almost no difference from their real self and the role they play. Their personality shines through in either situation, for instance Jack Nicholson is Jack Nicholson all the time.


I totally agree on Nicholson.  He was actually cast correctly in most of his films and was fabulous in As Good As It Gets with Helen Hunt , but when he played himself in The Shining, I though it was the worst case of miscasting I had ever seen.  He was NOTHING like the character in the book which ruined the film for me.


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## terry123 (Apr 13, 2020)

Love all of those mentioned. Especially Pacino in "Scent of a Woman".  I love the tango scenes. He played a blind man to perfection!


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## drifter (Apr 13, 2020)

James Garner


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## C'est Moi (Apr 13, 2020)

johndoe said:


> Are actors really acting or are they just reciting lines while being thenselves? When I see one being interviewed on TV, there is almost no difference from their real self and the role they play. Their personality shines through in either situation, for instance Jack Nicholson is Jack Nicholson all the time.


Agree about Nicholson.  I also believe the same about Tom Hanks; he's always just Tom Hanks.


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## Gary O' (Apr 13, 2020)

*Not your favorite actor, but who is or was the best working actor, in your opinion?*


Strother Martin


Sure, he was good  in Cool Hand Luke

But, I liked most all the roles he played in other movies

He's one I'd like to've sat down with


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## C'est Moi (Apr 13, 2020)

I'm going to go with Robert Duvall, though Anthony Hopkins is certainly up there in the top 4.   (Along with Morgan Freeman and Philip Seymour Hoffman. )


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## Pecos (Apr 18, 2020)

Robert Mitchum, followed by William Holden, Robert Duvall, and Al Pacino


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## Gaer (Apr 18, 2020)

Gary O'?    Strother Martin?  That's an intriguing answer!  Interesting!!!


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## Lashann (Apr 21, 2020)

Anthony Hopkins gets my vote.


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## Pinky (Apr 22, 2020)

Glenn Close was so good as the bunny boiler in Fatal Attraction


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## Pink Biz (Apr 22, 2020)

*James Stewart*


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## Gary O' (Apr 22, 2020)

Gaer said:


> Gary O'? Strother Martin? That's an intriguing answer! Interesting!!!


He cracked me up in *True Grit*
and found him especially entertaining in the little known movie* The Ballad of Cable Hogue*
A light flick for enjoyment with a bit of sage to it


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## JimBob1952 (Apr 22, 2020)

Steve McQueen was the coolest guy who ever lived.  

I like Brad Pitt, liked Burt Lancaster a lot, Jack Lemmon, and early Peter Sellers.  James Mason always excelled. But I think the best of all were Alec Guinness and Lawrence Olivier.  

One of my favorite moments was when I talked my then 12 year old son into watching Great Expectations with me.  When Sir Alec (then a very young man playing a supporting role) came on the screen, he sat up and said "that...is obi-wan kenobi."


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## Sasha5113 (Apr 22, 2020)

Let me throw in Spencer Tracy, and ask you to picture him in The Old Man and the Sea.


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## JimBob1952 (Apr 22, 2020)

Pink Biz said:


> *James Stewart*


Of course!  and Tom Hanks as a latter day counterpart. Another awesome character actor is William H. Macy.


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## JimBob1952 (Apr 22, 2020)

Sasha5113 said:


> Let me throw in Spencer Tracy, and ask you to picture him in The Old Man and the Sea.


Another great choice.


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## JimBob1952 (Apr 22, 2020)

Repondering said:


> In terms of acting versatility, in no particular order of ranking, Robert deNiro, Alan Rickman and George Sanders.
> The last guy never made it really big in the acting business, he's been dead for 30 years or more but he was really versatile and well respected in his profession.


George Sanders was amazing.  So was Basil Rathbone.


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## Sasha5113 (Apr 22, 2020)

JimBob1952 said:


> Of course!  and Tom Hanks as a latter day counterpart. Another awesome character actor is William H. Macy.


William H. Macy was ruined for me because of Fargo.


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## Sunny (Apr 22, 2020)

I'll vote for Anthony Hopkins too.  

Also,
Michael Douglas
Tom Hanks
Walter Matthau
Humphrey Bogart


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## oldman (Apr 22, 2020)

Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Clint Eastwood    As for Caine, I don't think he had to work hard at being a great actor. It seems to come natural for him. I also like Owen Wilson, but he's a nut job. A good Caine movie is "Secondhand Lion." 

If we're going back in years, I thought Bogart and Bacall. Cagney was not as good as his pictures made him appear to be. 
K. Hepburn, J. Garland, Hayworth, Keaton and Jessica Tandy for female actresses.  

I was going to include Anthony Hopkins, but I was once told by another Hollywood star that he is very narcissistic and even though that shouldn't exclude him from the list, I don't care for those types. So, that would also exclude one of my favorite actors in Jack Nicholson. Nicholson works hard and is a perfectionist, or at least was when he was still making movies.


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## oldman (Apr 22, 2020)

Sunny said:


> I'll vote for Anthony Hopkins too.
> 
> Also,
> Michael Douglas
> ...


Yes, for Michael Douglas and just like his dad, he is a down to earth type person.


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## Gaer (Apr 22, 2020)

Gary O':  I've never seen "The Ballad of Cable Hogue"  I must watch that!

Old Man: Yes, I've seen "Secondhand Lions" many times.  One of my favorite!  Michael Caine is wonderful!  Never cared for Kirk Douglas though.  I loved Bert Landcaster.  Gregory Peck, Robert Taylor, Herbert Marshall, David Niven, Walter Matthow, Jack Lemmon, Tom Selleck, Monte Wooley, Melvyn Douglas, Gary Cooper, Glenn Ford, Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, William Powell, Brian Donlevy, Harrison Ford,  even Dennis Morgan, (though i don't like musicals)  K.Hepburn is tremendous as an actress.  Oh!   Tom Hanks!  (goes without saying!)  hahaha!  Did I miss anyone?


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## DannyDoughboy (Apr 22, 2020)

Geezerette said:


> Brando, Bogart



Bogart fan here too!  "Play it Sam"


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## Devi (Apr 22, 2020)

And, to name someone a little bit different -- Peter O'Toole. Quite brilliant, in my book.


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## Gaer (Aug 3, 2020)

i forgot to say Harvey Keitel.  He's brilliant!  How could i forget him?


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## MarciKS (Aug 3, 2020)

*I don't think Johnny Depp gets nearly enough credit for all the bizarre character roles he plays. He's my pick.*


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## Warrigal (Aug 3, 2020)

I once heard Sam Neill describe himself as "a jobbing actor" by which I gather he meant that he wasn't too fussy about the roles and would take whatever he was offered. He always puts in a professional effort whether it be comedy, drama or fantasy. He is never puffed up with his own importance and these days he divides his time between acting and grape growing/wine making in New Zealand. Good actor and top bloke IMO.


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## katlupe (Aug 4, 2020)

Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Jack Nicholson and Al Pacino (and many more), The role they are playing makes the difference.


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