Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Police Procedurals Predators serial killers True Detective TV

True Detective {2014}: Rust Cohle.

Portrayed memorably by actor Matthew McConaughey, detective/profiler Rust Cohle is as troubled and enigmatic as he is brilliant. Haunted by his past (and present), Cohle is an insomniac, an alcoholic, and experiences profound episodes of paralyzing synesthesia. He’s singularly obsessed with his work, which in this case involves a sadistic, ritualistic serial killer amidst an eerie Louisiana landscape of unsettling, tantalizing suspects.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Anthony Hopkins Film

Lambs, The Silence Of. {1991}

1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, directed by Jonathan Demme, still unquestionably stands as a landmark of psychological terror. Jodi Foster, Anthony Hopkins, and Ted Levine all turn in remarkable, iconic performances. This immortal film features some of the most intense, memorable dialogue ever committed to the medium.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Anthony Hopkins Film Hannibal photography

Hannibal {2001}.

Ridley Scott‘s psychological thriller Hannibal features Anthony Hopkins, Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore, and Giancarlo Giannini, who all turn in memorable performances. Stylishly directed by Mr. Scott, this film features some seriously dark humor to both lighten yet enhance the considerable sense of dread. Masterfully done by one and all.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness photography Police Procedurals

Prime Suspect.

This gripping police procedural details the travails and triumphs of Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren), and features chilling perpetrators, such as George Marlow (John Bowe) and Milan Lukic (Oleg Menshikov).

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Film Humphrey Bogart photography

The Maltese Falcon {1941}.

This film noir from John Huston features Humphrey Bogart, in a truly iconic, star-making performance, and the great Sydney Greenstreet, in his debut on the big screen. Peter Lorre, Mary Astor, and Elisha Cook, Jr. are also all brilliant, with the latter portraying the “Gunsel” (a term author Dashiell Hammett snuck by the Powers That Be).

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness photography TV videos X-Files

X-Files: A Potpourri of Great Moments.

Iconic scenes from Pusher, Elegy, and Jose Chung’s From Outer Space. Featuring Robert Wisden, Nancy Fish, and Charles Nelson Reilly.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Crispin Glover Film photography

Willard {2003}.

This chilling remake of the 1971 film features Crispin Glover at the very height of his mighty powers. R. Lee Ermey also provides a top-notch performance as Willard’s less than sympathetic boss. Certain people get what’s coming to them. In the first vid, Willard (Glover), in total impotent outrage, shakes his metaphorical fist at the gods of futility and unfairness, with William S. Taylor as the messenger of said dreadful gods. A meltdown of ΓΌber proportions. The subsequent clip involves Willard informing Mr. Martin, in no uncertain terms, who is now in charge.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Brad Dourif Film

The Exorcist III {1990}.

This extremely undervalued film features a fascinating, rather offbeat and unsettling screenplay by author William Peter Blatty, and top-notch performances by George C. Scott, Nancy Fish, and Scott Wilson. Brad Dourif’s mesmerizing tour de force as the Gemini Killer is iconic and unforgettable.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Crispin Glover Film

River’s Edge {1986}.

This quirky, moody, disturbing, occasionally hysterical crime drama boasts a fine ensemble cast, but Crispin Glover steals the show with a stunning, unforgettable performance as druggy ringleader-of-sorts Layne. Iconic, a tour de force. Keanu Reeves is very good as Matt, a relatively sane teenager. Dennis Hopper has a nice turn as dealer/murderer/weirdo Feck.

Categories
Actors Actors of Greatness Film

Michael Clayton {2007}.

A legal thriller from 2007, brilliantly directed by Tony Gilroy, Michael Clayton chiefly revolves around the relationship between the title character, a “fixer”, and Arthur Edens, a brilliant attorney who is suffering a breakdown but also grasps more of the truth than is perhaps good for him. George Clooney and Tom Wilkinson star, along with Tilda Swinton, who portrays a ruthless general counsel and chief antagonist. All provide memorable performances, with Wilkinson at the height of his powers as the bipolar Edens.