list-o-mania
from the cluttered wishing to be categorized brain of Nathaniel R
Compiled in February 2006 using a complex mathematical formula [snort] involving number of films, clarity of obsession, quality of work, and other *undefinables* (such as previous films, awards show appearances, publicity, tv, & stage work) that influence me even though the list is meant to be about 2000 through 2005 only for more on the workings of this list -check out the introduction
Actors of the "Aughts" 20-11 |
20 Mark Ruffalo
For most moviegoers the first taste of Mark Ruffalo was fine dining indeed. He was revelatory and perfectly in synch with his screen sister Laura Linney in the touching You Can Count on Me (2000). (Heath Ledger's work in Brokeback Mountain was not the only performance this decade that caused critics to toss out "Brando" comparisons.) Roles as complex and films as fine as You Can Count on Me don't come along often though. Nothing since then has truly satiated in quite the way many of us were expecting. This is not really Ruffalo's fault --he's always as good or better than his material. He's been in demand and consistently delivering in films as diverse as My Life Without Me, In the Cut (2003), We Don't Live Here Anymore, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Collateral (2004). For reasons not entirely clear to this writer he has also been making annual forays into romantic comedies (View From the Top in 2003, 13 Going on 30 in 2004 and Just Like Heaven in 2005). Yet, the taste of that breakthrough performance lingers. Most of us are still waiting for his next great dish.
19 Paul Bettany
The breakthrough for this actor's career (at least in America) involved a rowdy muddy ass-bearing moment in A Knight's Tale (2000). That much discussed entrance aside, this career has been more middlebrow than low. He parlayed that moment into a role as imaginary friend to Russell Crowe in A Beautiful Mind (2001). The actor met his real life wife Jennifer Connelly in the process though they weren't performing together given the nature of Bettany's role. His chemistry with Crowe onscreen was so fine that Peter Weir wisely capitalized on it in Master and Commander (2003) to even more stunning effect. Bettany was robbed of an Oscar nomination there despite the film's multiple nomination tally. (He fared better in the FB Awards). His mainstream follow up, the romantic comedy Wimbledon (2004) was mostly ignored but for the lucky ones who saw it they watched Bettany morph into a possible successor to Hugh Grant's throne. That same year, Bettany worked wonders stretching in the opposite direction of the movie spectrum as the morally dubious Tom Edison in Lars Von Trier's incendiary Dogville. His performance was the movie's secret weapon --Edison its stealth villain. Filmmakers wise to this new peek at Mr. Connelly's range have bombarded him with regular evil roles in new films like Firewall and The DaVinci Code (2006). Now he's in talks for one of the greatest antagonist roles of all: He could play "The Joker" in the next Batman film. That sounds like a hoot but I hope Hollywood remembers that this terrific actor has already shown that he has plentiful tricks up his sleeve, not all of them dirty.
18 Colin Farrell
Like Lindsay Lohan on the actress list, his celebrity has always eclipsed his actual work. And like her he only has himself to blame. Still, that's a shame. It ends up skewering perceptions about talent or lack thereof. I'm absolutely confident in saying that if he was as private an actor as, say, Daniel Day-Lewis (#82) or less of a windfall for paparazzi, people would notice that he can actually act. No one argues that he doesn't have screen presence. Not everyone pops onscreen playing opposite mega-watt stars like Tom Cruise (#65) which he definitely did in Minority Report (2002). Not every star as well known as Farrell challenges himself to stretch but he has been doing just that in the controversial and flop-filled past couple of years. I'm not of the mind that his performances in Alexander and A Home at the End of the World (2004) or The New World (2005) were 100% successful (or even 90%) but I admire them anyway. Even in their wobblier moments you can feel him reaching for an actual complete characterization rather than a paycheck. He's not coasting on star magnetism just yet even though he could. The stardom and big paychecks obviously came too soon but this actor has always been a mixed blessing. He was terrific in 2000's Tigerland (blessing) which started the fame and money snowballing (curse) and thus his very existence as an in-demand screen commodity forces us to admit that director Joel Schmuacher doesn't do everything wrong (major curse). See what I mean about a mixed blessing? But back to the Lohan comparison --the next few years will tell the tale. He'll either nosedive or get it together in some major way. Your guess is as good as mine.
17 Matt Damon
My favorite celebrity divorce of this decade was the separation of Matt Damon from Ben Affleck. At least in terms of public perception. I'm sure they're still friends which I respect (I believe in loyalty). In the 90s due to that enduring friendship, shared pre-fame history, and frequent onscreen pairing (From 1992's School Ties through to their 1997 Oscar-winning duet in Good Will Hunting and beyond --they've appeared in eight films together all told) they were often viewed as a pair, twin stars as it were. But this decade has separated their personas and allowed people to discover what was true all along: Affleck (# unranked) may be a star of sorts but Damon is a quality actor. Whether grounding action films (The Bourne series, 2002, 2004) amusing himself or friends with cameos (TV's "Will & Grace," Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, 2003 plus Eurotrip and Jersey Girl, 2004) or working on interesting projects of varying quality (2001's Oceans 11, 2002's Gerry, 2005's Syriana and The Brothers Grimm) he's never less than watchable and sometimes very good indeed.16 Ralph Fiennes
This is how much I love Ralph Fiennes: I sat through the entirety of Maid in Manhattan (2002). I know. That's true love. Thankfully for devotees of one of the world's greatest actors that is an atypical entry into his filmography. But still he hasn't been working as much as he used to. Or rather he hasn't worked as consistently in quality productions or found roles as rich as those he played in the 90s. Do we really need to see him in Red Dragon (2002) and the aforementioned Maid (2002) when we could have him more White Countesses and Constant Gardeners (2005). I also found it strangely perverse to see him so recently play Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter in the Goblet of Fire (2005). Lord Voldemort is often referred to in the Potter books as 'he who shall not be named.' By contrast I personally wish Ralph Fiennes named was intoned as often as humanly possible --preferrably in the form of casting announcements and annual Oscar ceremonies.15 Bill Murray
I bet you can still his hear his weary but engaging delivery of "Make it Suntory Times" from Lost in Translation. In a great year for the Best Actor Oscar lineup, it's a pity that they couldn't give more than one Oscar. It's difficult to imagine that "Bob," that waning movie star killing time in Tokyo, won't remain his signature role and career peak. Murray's priceless deadpan has been put to great use several times before and probably will be again but "Bob" would be a career peak for any actor. Murray also gave droll support in The Royal Tenenbaums and continued to plumb his signature sad clown persona for more cinematic gold in The Life Aquatic (2004) and Broken Flowers (2005). If 'the sad clown' is starting to feel a tiny bit played out, just pray for a role that challenges this fine comic talent to stretch a teensy bit more next time he's front and center.
14-13 The "Fellowship" MVPs Sir Ian McKellen & Viggo Mortenson
McKellen's Shakespearean gravitas and Mortenson's earthy regal masculinity were undoubtedly huge factors in lifting The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, review) and its sequels The Two Towers (2002) and Return of the King (2003, review) into the definitive film experience of the Aughts for most moviegoers. When dealing with sword & sorcery one simply must put on a straight face and believe. The genre is so often saddled with winky anachronism (think Xena) and budgetary boo-boos that audiences have been justified in rejecting it for years. Peter Jackson, though, is a believer. He couldn't possibly have found better actors for these crucial roles. They make worldwide audiences into believers, too.
Gandalf, in the hands of a lesser talent, would still have been a good role but Sir Ian suffuses the deadly serious depth of the classic character with such surprising and twinkly mirth that Gandalf feels completely real and indelible. You can no longer imagine any other interpretation. Gandalf may have magical powers but it's Ian McKellen who is performing the real wizardry (FB silver medal, 2001). If this weren't enough of an accomplishment Sir Ian also elevated the other big franchise of the Aughts, The X-Men (2000-2006) with bitchier and kitschier wit --hey, the helmet is silly. Sir Ian understands his own camp value as a mutant supervillian but he blissfully never lets it take over the role. And his chemistry with Rebecca Romijn as Mystique makes for a classic screen duo.
Speaking of chemistry, is there any relationship onscreen involving Viggo that doesn't come across as real? He should be in every ensemble film. His Aragorn is intertwined with so many characters and each connection feels absolutely specific, whether he be friend (Legolas) guardian (Frodo) equal (Gandalf) or soulmate (Tyler). In this actors one great screen opportunity outside of this series in the past few years --I'm speaking of David Cronenberg's excellent A History of Violence (my review) --this ease with chemistry is vital to the success of the movie. Every shift in his bond with Maria Bello who plays his wife (and shifts in identity and relationships are abundant in the film) is handled with surgical precision. Mortenson and Bello make for one of the best screen couples of the decade. His role as Tom Stall is one of the trickiest parts in recent years for a lead performer and this extremely undervalued actor delivers in every scene (FB bronze medalist).
12 Jake Gyllenhaal
Confession that may surprise some readers: I was not a Gyllenhaalic until December 2005. I only casually imbibed the Gyllenhaal prior to my first trip to Brokeback Mountain (2005). So what sent me over the edge. Well, once I was breathing that high altitude mountain air and Jack Twist was staring at Ennis Del Mar with those pleading eyes asking him if he thought he might do this again next summer (?), I was lost. A Gyllenhaal bender followed. That Gyllenhaal just went down so smooth and I couldn't get enough. Doubters may say that the Gyllenhaalics are all about the shallow surface pleasures: the rippling marine muscles in Jarhead (2005) or the puppy dog romantic swoon of his blue eyes as seen in Brokeback and Proof, (2005 and well... all the films before that too) but it's way more than that. Fact: Most people starring in movies are beautiful. You have to bring more than easy-to-look-at to the table. Gyllenhaal is a real actor. In 2001, in the film that started the addiction of the original Gyllenhaalics, he got Donnie Darko's strange mix of drugged complacency and spooky not-quite-thereness just right and, mixed with the sweetness of his natural screen persona the character became even more of a puzzle --a big plus for the film. In 2002 he did triple duty as the young troubled object of desire (The Good Girl, Moonlight Mile, Lovely & Amazing) and if the results were uneven he was still cast perfectly and building his screen persona. These days there are millions of Gyllenhaalics salivating at the prospect of his next screen appearance. The sky may be the limit for this young career.
11 Jim Broadbent
A singular and most surprising joy: watching that fussy uptight WS Gilbert from Topsy Turvy (1999) transform into that desperate aggressive backflipping Harold Zidler in Moulin Rouge! (2001). Both characters are showmen but in neither of them could I have ever imagined seeing the other reflected. And yet! They both spring from the same inspired actor. Prior to Topsy Turvy I hadn't registered Jim Broadbent as an actor of enormous range and talent but afterwards it's been impossible not to treasure his every appearance, even when the part is a throwaway (Chronicles of Narnia, 2005) or a perfectly played tiny cameo (Vera Drake, 2004). When he's given room to work, as he was in his Oscar-winning performance in Iris (2001), he can be enormously moving and make your previous idea of him completely evaporate. Nowhere in that film's gentle John Bayley can I see the business cool of Gilbert or the mania of Zidler. The ruthless upscale Boss Tweed from Gangs of New York (2002) was another unexpected shading from this versatile thespian. Broadbent is busy: he also appeared in the Bridget Jones films (2001, 2004) and Vanity Fair (2004) among a few others --but he's still an underused talent. He can add brilliant color to any movie if the filmmaker is smart enough to include a huge dollop of him on their palette.
next page: 10-6
The List Such As It Is Right Now (February 2006)
100 -91 / 90-81 / 80-71/ 70-61 / 60-51 / 50-41 /
40-31 / 30-21 / 20-11 / 10-6 / 5-1
