A Feeble, Twisted Thought Before Bed: Jack Nicholson

[Gaucho]

Re: Actors with range?

SIGOURNEY WEAVER (I was totally surprised by her role in Galaxy Quest)

Bye her role or her boobs? Yowza!

 

[Gaucho]

Re: Any day of the week and twice on Sunday...

As Good As It Gets, Cuckoo's Nest, Terms of Endearment, A Few Good Men, Batman (YES! I said BATMAN), Chinatown, Carnal Knowledge, Easy Rider....these are worth a Wolf here and there to me. And...I hate to admit it...but I didn't mind Wolf. It was the kind of movie you can keep on in the background while you're mopping the floor and not worry about missing anything.

The one scene I really love with Jack is the scene in The Shining where he lectures his wife on the evils of interrupting him while he's writing. That, for me, is the one grace note that shines through an otherwise perfectly awful movie.

And I liked Wolf. The ending sucked but the setup was fine. And Michelle Pfeiffer has never looked better. Yum.

Finally, who says Clint keeps playing the same character? I watched Dirty Harry again the other day and I swear he squinted differently.

Really. Compare it to Unforgiven and you'll see what I mean.

 

[Problem Child]

Derya...

Good list, although I can't stand Whoopi Goldberg, but that's based more on here politics and personality rather than her ability as an actor.

I can't believe I forgot Denzel Washington! I will watch anything that man is in.

BTW, since this started out as a critique of Nickolson, has antone seen "The Pledge"?

If you haven't, don't bother.....it SUCKED!

Just MHO.

 

[RonG]

Jack Nicholson was awesome in Little Shop of Horrors. Unfortunately, the quality of material he has been connected with since (Chinatown, The Last Detail, Terms of Endearment, A Few Good Men, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest) has lacked the sophistication of his debut.

Seriously, De Niro probably wins among the moderns in my book for range - Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver to Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull.

The all-time champ is Humphrey Bogart. Treasure of Sierra Madre, Casablanca, Beat The Devil, The Maltese Falcon, The Harder They Fall, The Big Sleep, The African Queen, The Petrified Forest, The Desparate Hours, To Have and Have Not. Hard to top that list for range.

To me the great old actor who seemed to always be the same was Cary Grant.

 

[Gaucho]

Jack Nicholson was awesome in Little Shop of Horrors. Unfortunately, the quality of material he has been connected with since (Chinatown, The Last Detail, Terms of Endearment, A Few Good Men, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest) has lacked the sophistication of his debut.

Sorry, RonG, but on this one I have to disagree. Chinatown, in particular, is one of the best mystery/film noir flicks ever made. Expertly written (Robert Towne), acted (Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston) and directed (Roman Polanski), IMHO, it stands as one of the high points of Nicholson's career.

Those other movies you've mentioned aren't exactly chopped liver, either.

 

[insideShiraz]

Did I see Tom Hanks in here anywhere?

And wut about the Great Rick Springfield from General Hospital? lol...
Who didn't think Pitt wuz doing great comedy in 12 Monkeys?
Did anyone mention Lon Chaney?

 

[Laurel]

Pitt was awesome in '12 Monkeys'. So was Bruce Willis - that was the first time I watched him without remembering those Seagrams Wine Cooler ads he did in the 80's. He was pretty decent in 'Fight Club', too. (Pitt, not Willis, lol.) He's not a Genius Actor - I think he gets too many pretty boy roles for that - but he can be damn good with the right director (i.e. Terry Gilliam) and the right material.

Agree with RonG on Cary Grant. He always played Cary Grant, the same way Nicholson always plays Nicholson. Not to say that either of them aren't enjoyable to watch. Same with James Stewart, to some degree. I love 'Harvey'. And when Jack's in a frenzy, it makes the hair on my neck stand on end. But it's still always...Jack. He's a one-trick pony. One outstanding trick, to be sure, but it's still one trick.

Now Faye Dunaway...THERE'S an actress with one helluva range who'll get your blood going. Watched 'Arizona Dream' last night. If I were a man, she'd be my dream girl.

 

[insideShiraz]

Laurel, did you ever see Dead Man?...

I thought Arizona Dream was a good film, and I love Faye (Barflies, e.g.), but Johnny Depp is so under-appreciated.

 

[RonG]

Jack Nicholson was awesome in Little Shop of Horrors. Unfortunately, the quality of material he has been connected with since (Chinatown, The Last Detail, Terms of Endearment, A Few Good Men, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest) has lacked the sophistication of his debut.

Sorry, RonG, but on this one I have to disagree. Chinatown, in particular, is one of the best mystery/film noir flicks ever made. Expertly written (Robert Towne), acted (Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston) and directed (Roman Polanski), IMHO, it stands as one of the high points of Nicholson's career.

Those other movies you've mentioned aren't exactly chopped liver, either.

To avoid confusion due to a misplaced sense of irony, hopefully most folks recognized the five movies I mentioned from Jack Nicholson are among the best films made since 1970. Juxtaposing them with the misplaced fawning over Little Shop of Horrors, I thought, would have been enough. Starting the next paragraph with the word "Seriously" was also intended to hint that the preceding was tongue-in-cheek (if foreshadowing comes after the point, is it rearshadowing? Sounds like a job for a private dick.).

I actually do like Jack Nicholson but I probably like his movies better than I like him. Chinatown is a perfect example.

 

[insideShiraz]

Huh?...

oh, and Huh?...

 

[Derya]

feedback more feedback

Problem Child: thanks for the review on PLEDGE. I was considering seeing it, but another friend also told me it wasn't so great. They said they did not like the ending at all.

Gaucho: I believe you are definitely right the Clint Squint was different in Absolute Power than in Tightrope. And regarding Sigourney Weaver, her whole look of blond beauty in Galaxy Quest surprised me. Being a female the boobs didn't do a whole lot for me, but I've always thought her acting was superb, but did not ever have a glamorous, beauty image in mind with her and in Galaxy Quest she was sporting that Blonde Bombshell look. Gotta say she's got range.

insideShiraz & CRaZy: Johnny Depp is most definitely underappreciated. He is sexy as all get out and a good actor too. May I highly recommend Chocolat. It is a wonderful movie. Maybe a little more of a chickflick but so beautifully filmed and sensual. And Johnny Depp is just so scrumptuous....hmmmm...give me some chocolate.....mmmmm....give me some Depp.

Whispersecret: Alan Rickman does have a certain sex appeal. What did you think of him in Galaxy Quest? Kind of a different role for him. For a somewhat comedic turn with Brad Pitt may I recommend Snatch which is currently out. It is a kind of dark comedy flick and if you haven't heard Pitt's character can hardly be understood in the film, but is still entertaining and humorous. It's a different kind of movie. Fight Club is another interesting Brad Pitt movie. It'll surprise you.

 

[Guest]

Now, as MP can attest, Alan Richtman (sp?) is hot and versatile (Die Hard vs. Sense and Sensibility)

Ms. Secret,

While I am flattered, I am forced to remind you that I already have a restraining order against you - what MORE does an Englishman with a lisp have to do to discourage you? I turn your attention to the papers served to you which state clearly that you are expressly restricted from discussing me on the Literotica BB. As you well know, my dick is already locked in MP's box.

Yours,

Alan

 

[Whispersecret]

Ms. Secret,

While I am flattered, I am forced to remind you that I already have a restraining order against you - what MORE does an Englishman with a lisp have to do to discourage you? I turn your attention to the papers served to you which state clearly that you are expressly restricted from discussing me on the Literotica BB. As you well know, my dick is already locked in MP's box.

Yours,

Alan

Alan, my darling, my little crumpet, my little scone with clotted cream,

MP's box is highly over-rated, as I'm sure you've already found out. All I need to do now is wait for you to tire of blackened microwave pizza. She's a sickly girl, too, prone to protracted illness.

As for the restraining order, I ripped up those papers into tiny bits, because I know you love me as much as I adore you. Come to me. Eat like a king, bask in the steamy, wet confines of my Chinese puzzle box. It's difficult to gain entry to, but I am sure you can find the secrets to unlocking me.

Yours,
Whisper

 

[Whispersecret]

I thought Alan was hilarious in GalaxyQuest. So droll.

Brad still has some way to go before he'll convince me he's sexy or versatile.

Tom Hanks. Remember him in that sitcom where he played a cross-dresser named Buffy? He's come a long way.

 

[Svedish_Chef]

Ms. Secret,

While I am flattered, I am forced to remind you that I already have a restraining order against you - what MORE does an Englishman with a lisp have to do to discourage you? I turn your attention to the papers served to you which state clearly that you are expressly restricted from discussing me on the Literotica BB. As you well know, my dick is already locked in MP's box.

Yours,

Alan

While you are here Mr Rickman, tell me was Dogma really as fun to make as it is to watch? PS You were awesome