Top 5 Actors of All Time?

[afaceforradio]

After discussing the acting talent of one of my favourites in the News Room, I decided to start this one and see what your opinions are. Name your Top 5 (doesn't have to be in any particular order) actors/actresses of all time. You can state what your favourite films of theirs were if you like, or explain why they make The List; would be interesting to hear!

Here's mine - again, in no particular order:

1. Johnny Depp
(Secret Window, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and the first PotC are three of my favourite films)

2. Nicholas Cage
(Lots of films, couldn't pinpoint one)

3. John Cusack
(I've liked practically everything he's ever done, High Fidelity being one of my favourite performances of his)

4. Antonio Banderas
(I loved Zorro, depspite the lack of acting by Zeta 'I'm Ameriwelsh' Jones) he just has a screen presence, especially in Desperado, loved him in that!

5. Bruce Willis (I don't think I need to explain this. He's fucking John McLean!)

I think if I had to watch films with only these five people in for the rest of my days then I'd be a very, very happy girl indeed.

I know there's no favourite actresses on there, but some of my favourites (Christina Ricci, Keira Knightley, Jemima Rooper) have made mostly bad stuff with a few gems, the people above I could watch practically anything they've made, even the bad stuff, and thoroughly enjoy it.

 

[Frequen-Z]

From bottom to top:

5: Clive Owen
His yarn in Sin City was stellar, and while Children of Men sucked, his acting was good.

4: Brad Pitt
He was pretty good in Fight Club, True Romance, and Benjamin Button

3: Robert Downey Jr.
Zodiac, the Iron Man films.

2: Will Smith
I really don't like the guy, he is a Scientologist after all, but I can't deny that I Am Legend, Hancock, Fresh Prince, etc were all great.

1: Edward Norton
You just can't beat him, Pride and Glory, Fight Club, The Illusionist, The Incredible Hulk, 25th Hour, American History X, Red Dragon, they're all brilliant films.

 

[ultra_v_89]

Oh my, Nicolas Cage? Really? I kinda thought it was universally acknowledged that he is a terrible, terrible actor, I mean, look at Ghost Rider, Con Air and The Wicker Man. Still, I give him props for Big Daddy in Kick Ass, he was actually pretty perfect for that role. Mine (along with the movies I thought they were best in) would be
1) Robert Downey Jr-> Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
2) Johnny Depp-> Sweeney Todd
3) Brad Pitt-> Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4) Edward Norton-> Fight Club
5) Bruce Willis-> The Fifth Element

 

[LiquidGrape]

Renée Falconetti
I've only seen her in one film, but that one film was all it took. Plays the eponymous role in Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc and does it flawlessly. It's the single most brilliant performance I could ever hope to see on celluloid.
Silent cinema remains sorely underrated for its acting.
Any performer can repeat a page of dialogue. An actor must be able to embody those words without uttering a single sentence.

Spoiler: Excerpt from La Passion de Jeanne D'Arc.

Tilda Swinton
An actress in the spirit of Falconetti, but with the added responsibility of talking. She does it seemingly without effort.
Ranging from obscure arthouse work with Derek Jarman to commercial successes such as Michael Clayton and the first Narnia filmatisation; (which she singlehandedly managed to render watchable, by the way) Swinton is a veritable goldmine of subtle expression.

Spoiler: Orlando - My personal favourite.

Bruno Ganz
This man has played an angel, and he's played Hitler. Ironically, channelled through him, both come off as essentially human.
You won't find a more gracious and empathic screen presence than Ganz. When I see him, I see the embodiment of human kindness.

Spoiler: A wonderful passage from Wender's Der Himmel uber Berlin.

Michelle Pfeiffer
A dramatic performer through and through; but always capable of grasping a level of credibility which few of her peers seem even remotely susceptible to.
Even her blatantly sensual roles are profound studies of character. As evidenced by largely every comic book adaptation made since 1992, few could pull off skin-tight vinyl and a whip and make it a believable persona.

Spoiler: Exuberant, wanton destruction in Batman Returns. Honestly. I cannot see anyone replicate that.

Viggo Mortensen - as directed by David Cronenberg.
Had it not been for the already mentioned Ganz, I would dub Mortensen the greatest sympathetic face in modern cinema. Fighting Chechnyan assassins in the nude or crying into his meatloaf over a solemn dinner table; he's always intriguing, always likeable.
A de Niro for this generation.

Spoiler: Spoilers beware - A History of Violence

 

[afaceforradio]

From bottom to top:

5: Clive Owen
His yarn in Sin City was stellar, and while Children of Men sucked, his acting was good.

4: Brad Pitt
He was pretty good in Fight Club, True Romance, and Benjamin Button

3: Robert Downey Jr.
Zodiac, the Iron Man films.

2: Will Smith
I really don't like the guy, he is a Scientologist after all, but I can't deny that I Am Legend, Hancock, Fresh Prince, etc were all great.

1: Edward Norton
You just can't beat him, Pride and Glory, Fight Club, The Illusionist, The Incredible Hulk, 25th Hour, American History X, Red Dragon, they're all brilliant films.

Damn, I totally forgot about Norton and Downey! Can I have a Top 7? ;o)

 

[Willis_D]

1) Robert Downey Jnr. He is just fantastic. I love seeing him in films. (Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man 1 & 2)
2) Liam Neeson. Also quite awesome. Awesome voice too. (Taken)
3) Tom Hanks. Fantastic, he is. (Forest Gump, Green Mile, Catch Me If You Can)
4) Leonardo DiCaprio. Again, I think he is awesome. (Shutter Isle, Catch Me If You Can)
5) Sharlto Copley. Basing this solely on District 9. Awesome, he is.

 

[ldbmikey86]

Jake Gyllenhaal (notable faves: Donnie Darko, Brothers)
Bill Murray (everything he's in, and especially Wes Anderson movies)
Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski, Iron Man, Tron...pretty much the same as Bill Murray)
Christian Bale (tough to say this for any other actor but, watch the Machinist. He nails the entire spectrum of emotion without even saying a word in parts of the movie)
Daniel Day-Lewis (Gangs of New York, There Will Be Blood; he's the best villain, hands down, and I doubt he'll ever be beaten)

For now, at least.

 

[afaceforradio]

1) Robert Downey Jnr. He is just fantastic. I love seeing him in films. (Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man 1 & 2)
2) Liam Neeson. Also quite awesome. Awesome voice too. (Taken)
3) Tom Hanks. Fantastic, he is. (Forest Gump, Green Mile, Catch Me If You Can)
4) Leonardo DiCaprio. Again, I think he is awesome. (Good Will Hunting, Shutter Isle, Catch Me If You Can)
5) Sharlto Copley. Basing this solely on District 9. Awesome, he is.

DiCaprio wasn't in Good Will Hunting, was he??

 

[Lukeje]

4) Leonardo DiCaprio. Again, I think he is awesome. (Good Will Hunting, Shutter Isle, Catch Me If You Can)

Leonardo DiCaprio wasn't in Good Will Hunting as far as I can remember...

Edit: Ninjas... they're everywhere!

 

[Willis_D]

1) Robert Downey Jnr. He is just fantastic. I love seeing him in films. (Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man 1 & 2)
2) Liam Neeson. Also quite awesome. Awesome voice too. (Taken)
3) Tom Hanks. Fantastic, he is. (Forest Gump, Green Mile, Catch Me If You Can)
4) Leonardo DiCaprio. Again, I think he is awesome. (Good Will Hunting, Shutter Isle, Catch Me If You Can)
5) Sharlto Copley. Basing this solely on District 9. Awesome, he is.

DiCaprio wasn't in Good Will Hunting, was he??

You're right, my bad. That was Matt Damon. Woops.
I fixed it now.

 

[afaceforradio]

4) Leonardo DiCaprio. Again, I think he is awesome. (Good Will Hunting, Shutter Isle, Catch Me If You Can)

Leonardo DiCaprio wasn't in Good Will Hunting as far as I can remember...

Edit: Ninjas... they're everywhere!

I am fast and can kill a man with nothing but a spork and a pipe cleaner.

 

[Jack_Uzi]

1. Al Pacino. This guy can do more than only play a wiseguy in movies (must admit that he's casted for that gimmic most of the time), but he also does a bit of theater.

2. Johnny Depp. I think he's a human Chameleon. I've seen a few movies he acted in, but someone had to tell me that HE was playing H. S. Thompson in fear and loahting in Las Vegas, and did a VERY good job!

3. Mel Gibson. Must admit that I didn't give him more or less credit than the average actor till I saw him in Hamlet.

4. Jack Nicholson. Same as Mel gibson, till I saw the departed. Most of all, the 'rat' scene in it. Priceless!!

 

[KING POJO]

Just because it's too difficult to pick any as the best here are my favorite:

Jack Nicholson(The Batman, Bucket List)
Morgan Freeman(Dark knight, Bucket List, The F***ing Shawshank Redemption!)
Brad Pitt(Fight Club,Troy, The Ocean's,Inglorious Basterds)
Edward Norton(Fight Club, The Incredible Hulk)
Liam Neeson(Taken, Batman Begins, Darkman)
Heath Ledger(Dark Knight,The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus)

 

[Icecoldcynic]

1) Samuel L Jackson - Sure he's acted in some bad movies, but he still starred in one of my favourite movies of all time. And his presence is enough to make any movie better.

2) Will Smith - He has the power to act well even in a bad movie, this guy is a beastly actor.

3) Sean Connery - Even when he's not playing bond he's still a very memorable actor (The Rock anyone?)

4) Nicolas Cage - I absolutely love this guy. His acting is terrific, and despite starring in some bad movies, he's starred in many good ones (Face/off, The Rock, +)

5) Mel Gibson - Mad Max. 'Nuff Said. I have to admit it was a tough choice between him and Clint Eastwood.

 

[Nemu]

Woof.
I feel like such a snob here.

In no particular order:
Robert De Niro
Liam Neeson
Leonardo DiCaprio
Daniel Day-Louis
Phillip Seymour-Hoffman

 

[antigodoflife]

Best Actors:

1.) Leonardo DiCaprio - (R+J, Titanic, The Aviator, Body of Lies, Inception)
2.) Christian Bale - (Equilibrium, Hauru No Ugoku Shiro, Batman Begins, 3:10 to Yuma, Terminator Salvation, The Dark Knight.)
3.) Matt Damon - (The Oceans Trilogy, The Bourne Trilogy, Dogma, The Departed, Invictus.)
4.) Ben Affleck - (Daredevil, Pay Check, Surviving Christmas, Jersey Girl, Shakespeare in Love.)
5.) Nicolas Cage - (Face/Off, National Treasure, Lord of War, The Ant Bully, Next, The Bad Lieutenant.)


Best Actresses

1.) Jodie Foster - (Freaky Friday, Silence of the Lambs, Contact, Flightplan, The Brave One.)
2.) Sigourney Weaver - (Alien Anthology, Ghostbusters, The Ice Storm, Imaginary Heroes, Holes, Avatar)
3.) Anna Paquin - (X Men Trilogy, True Blood, The Piano, Fly Away Home, Steam Boy, Blue State.)
4.) Ellen Page - (X Men: The Last Stand, Whip It, Juno, Hard Candy, Inception)
5.) Dakota Fanning - (Tonari no Totoro, I Am Sam, Uptown Girls, The Cat In The Hat, Hide and Seek, War of the Worlds, Charlotte's Web, Hound Dog, Twilight Anthology)


========================================
GENERAL INTEREST

Most Popular List ~ (Up for review)

1.) Meryl Streep
2.) Robert De Niro
3.) Tom Hanks
4.) Cate Blanchett
5.) Michael Caine

Highest Paid Actors List:

5.) Orlando Bloom - Worldwide Gross ? $6,554,217,251
4.) Tom Cruise - Worldwide Gross ? $6,642,337,497
3.) Harrison Ford - Worldwide Gross ? $6,657,454,464
2.) Tom Hanks - Worldwide Gross ? $8,007,367,700
1.) Samuel L. Jackson - Worldwide Gross ? $8,640,150,950

 

[Steven McDriverson]

I'm sadden by the lack of Hugh Laurie or Stephan Fry on anyone's list. Sure they're primarily TV but I find them both very talented

 

[weker]

1) John John Cusack
Dont need to write everything else
High fidelity
1408
War inc
Grose point blank
Hot tub time machine (havent seen but know its good)
Being john malcovitch
2012 havent seen but its good action and i know his role is solid

everything he is in is unquie and intresting

 

[Edorf]

My Top 5:
Johnny Depp
Edward Norton
Christian Bale
Brad Pitt
George Clooney

Should also be on the list: Robert Downey Jr.
EDIT: Heath Ledger also deserves a place on the list... AAARGH! I CANNOT PICK ONLY FIVE DAMN YOU
Jake Gyllenhaal was also brilliant in Donnie Darko, probably not top five though :|

 

[LiquidGrape]

I'm sadden by the lack of Hugh Laurie or Stephan Fry on anyone's list. Sure they're primarily TV but I find them both very talented

While they aren't among my very favourite actors, they are easily two of my favourite personalities and comedians.


...okay, after more thorough consideration; they are among my favourite actors.