Actors that can't act...

[VoidWanderer]

We all know them, those actors who have as much acting ability as a rock pretending to be a dinosaur. But I want you to defend you to defend them. As much as we can mock Keanu's... 'talent', I want you to say that he can act.

I know Ashton Kutcher gets a lot of crap about his acting, but have you watched 'The Butterfly Effect'?

What do you guys think?

 

[Angie7F]

Although I am tired on johhny depp, I know that most actors actually are really good at their jobs.
Sometimes it is hard to get new roles that are different from other roles that they have been famous for.

 

[Ferisar]

I like Keanu Reeves. I even like him as an actor sometimes. I just think his strengths all lie in only one type of acting. When he is cast for something he cannot do it just ends up looking, well, bad.

That's not really a bad thing, though. I mean, we see this every so often with many movie stars. They just know when to not do something they can't do.

The worst that can happen is an actor becoming a huge hit when all they can do is one type, or them taking on multiple roles with the exact same interpretation. As above, Depp, is one of those, as of recent. The man can act on multiple levels, yet recently all we've seen is Jack Sparrow.

 

[krazykidd]

Tom cruise . I'm not sure if it's Movie bob that said this but , someone mentionned that in tom cruise only knows how to play himself . It's more of a tom cruise IN [ insert movie here ] rather than Tom cruise AS [ insert movie here ]. And i agree.

 

[shrekfan246]

I know Ashton Kutcher gets a lot of crap about his acting, but have you watched 'The Butterfly Effect'?

Yeah, I don't know why The Butterfly Effect gets such harsh criticism. Fire away at its awful sequels, but the first one was genuinely interesting, disturbing, and had a pretty decent script that was really well cast and acted.

Plus it didn't have random relatively graphic sex scenes thrown in for no reason.

OT: I dunno, it's been a while since I saw a film performer that I thought just straight couldn't act. Tom Cruise is really flat and plays different variations on the same character in most of his films, but he still plays that character relatively well.

I don't know, maybe Chris Pine? I won't take any low blows at him, lord knows other Trek fans do that enough, but he really doesn't show any of the charisma that Shatner put into the role of Captain Kirk. But then, the Abrams Trek films are the only things I've really seen him in, so I don't have enough reference to really judge.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I don't know, maybe Chris Pine? I won't take any low blows at him, lord knows other Trek fans do that enough, but he really doesn't show any of the charisma that Shatner put into the role of Captain Kirk. But then, the Abrams Trek films are the only things I've really seen him in, so I don't have enough reference to really judge.

He also has a face that's too small for his head. I can never not see that whenever he's on screen.

OT: It's recently come to my attention that Kim Basinger got away with not being able to act her entire career. Even going so far as to win a Oscar.

 

[Galletea]

I find Ryan Reynolds is the only one I can see no redeeming features in. At least some of the others look good. Hayden Christiansen is another. "You can try?" was a wonderful line in ep 3.
Tom Cruise always plays the same guy, but is never laughably awful at it, same with a lot of actors actually.
And I find very few women are particularly good, Gemma Arterton appears to be flavour of the month and I don't find her very believable at all.

 

[Legion]

I know Ashton Kutcher gets a lot of crap about his acting, but have you watched 'The Butterfly Effect'?

I quite liked that film to be honest. I think it was the first film I saw him in, and I don't think he was that bad.

I like Keanu Reeves. I even like him as an actor sometimes. I just think his strengths all lie in only one type of acting. When he is cast for something he cannot do it just ends up looking, well, bad.

That is the case with most well known "bad" actors I think. It's not so much that they are terrible, it's that they lack the skills to play different kinds of roles. Stick them in their safe zone and they can pull it off, but don't try them with anything else.

Or in the case of Tom Cruise, as was already mentioned, he is always "Tom Cruise". The exception being Tropic Thunder, but then again he was playing a caricature more than an actual character.

And I find very few women are particularly good, Gemma Arterton appears to be flavour of the month and I don't find her very believable at all.

I find the problem tends to be that with most of the "younger" generation, they are too wooden, and can't display emotions properly. The older generation (Judie Dench, Maggie Smith and so on) can play such diverse roles that they are fantastic.

Although we were supposed to be defending them...

Okay, Kristen Stewart. She plays Bella Swan perfectly. [small][small][small][small]Because Bella Swan has the personality of a piece of cardboard.[/small][/small][/small][/small]

On a side note: Does anybody feel that television actors and actresses are in general a hell of a lot better in terms of actual ability? I think it's often the case.

 

[shootthebandit]

Nick cage. I think thats all i need to say

 

[BrotherRool]

This is the danger of choosing your titles. It's surprising how many people seem to miss the text in an OP sometimes or misread it =D


So in what I'm pretty sure is in the spirit of the OP, I would argue that Nicholas Cage is actually a phenomenal actor. He's won Oscars for it and it's not easy to be able to let yourself go and play that crazy. He works as a unconventional action hero that has a charm over then steely looks and muscle, and no-one plays a psychotic character like he can. Even bad films he raises (very deliberately) to so bad it's good because of the sheer intensity of his acting. Would The Wicker Man be a good film if it didn't have Nicholas Cage? Heck no, the story would suck and we'd still have karate kicking old women and punching people as bears. But Nicholas Cage's performing didn't stop the film from being bad, but it did save it from being boring.


Really he's a niche actor whose broke and so accepts even the very worst jobs for the money and it's not about him being a bad actor, but as an actor who doesn't/can't pick and choose the good films

 

[Hoplon]

Having been taken to a screening of after earth, Jaden Smith is one of the worst actors working today.

 

[BrotherRool]

Having been taken to a screening of after earth, Jaden Smith is one of the worst actors working today.

He did a good job in the Pursuit of Happyness and I think it's fair to say that he's probably being pushed into roles that pretty much no actor his age would be able to pull off, or should be asked to pull off

 

[Hoplon]

Having been taken to a screening of after earth, Jaden Smith is one of the worst actors working today.

He did a good job in the Pursuit of Happyness and I think it's fair to say that he's probably being pushed into roles that pretty much no actor his age would be able to pull off, or should be asked to pull off

There is truth to that, but even just the voice over was wooden and stilted.

 

[Terminate421]

Undoubtedly the worst actor I can think of off the top of my head is Josh Hutcherson.

Watch Bridge to Teribithia and then TRY to tell me otherwise.

 

[an annoyed writer]

Nick cage. I think thats all i need to say

Yeah, he is weird. When he is good, he is great. When he's bad, he is terrible. I loved seeing him in stuff like Kickass and Lord of War, since those harnessed his weirdness perfectly.

 

[Wadders]

This is the danger of choosing your titles. It's surprising how many people seem to miss the text in an OP sometimes or misread it =D


So in what I'm pretty sure is in the spirit of the OP, I would argue that Nicholas Cage is actually a phenomenal actor. He's won Oscars for it and it's not easy to be able to let yourself go and play that crazy. He works as a unconventional action hero that has a charm over then steely looks and muscle, and no-one plays a psychotic character like he can. Even bad films he raises (very deliberately) to so bad it's good because of the sheer intensity of his acting. Would The Wicker Man be a good film if it didn't have Nicholas Cage? Heck no, the story would suck and we'd still have karate kicking old women and punching people as bears. But Nicholas Cage's performing didn't stop the film from being bad, but it did save it from being boring.


Really he's a niche actor whose broke and so accepts even the very worst jobs for the money and it's not about him being a bad actor, but as an actor who doesn't/can't pick and choose the good films

Agreed, Cage is great. Ever seen Bad Lieutenantort of Call New Orleans? Played up to his natural weirdness to an awesome level.

 

[Johnny Impact]

I know Ashton Kutcher gets a lot of crap about his acting, but have you watched 'The Butterfly Effect'?

Yeah, I don't know why The Butterfly Effect gets such harsh criticism. Fire away at its awful sequels, but the first one was genuinely interesting, disturbing, and had a pretty decent script that was really well cast and acted.

Plus it didn't have random relatively graphic sex scenes thrown in for no reason.

Thank you. That movie is kind of a guilty pleasure for me, and I've never understood why I'm expected to feel guilty. It ain't that bad.

OT: Kevin Costner is a block of wood. That statement needs no qualifiers. He has sucked in everything I've seen him in.

Don't care for Keanu Reeves. He has that, I don't know, vacancy I guess? It worked to his advantage in The Matrix. As a messianic figure, Neo was supposed to be more or less a blank slate whom the audience/characters could pin all manner of significance and personal wishes onto.

Jeff Goldblum only plays Jeff Goldblum. The downside is he has no range. The upside is you know precisely, I mean to the angstrom, what you are getting when you cast him. Same with Anthony Hopkins and any number of others.

krazykidd is right, Tom Cruise only plays himself.

 

[80sboy]

Or in the case of Tom Cruise, as was already mentioned, he is always "Tom Cruise". The exception being Tropic Thunder, but then again he was playing a caricature more than an actual character.

Interesting thing about Tommy there is he makes exceptional assholes or villains... his best work is in Collateral.

I think he has a better knack to play an asshole... hmmm... I wonder why?

 

[Shock and Awe]

Gonna catch shit for this, but John Wayne. He doesn't act, he just played John Wayne in everything. Not saying it wasn't great, but he was still John Wayne in everything. This applies to Clint Eastwood to a lesser extent, and I fucking love Clint Eastwood.