Easy Come Easy Gaughin

Lucy Liu

I was really surprised that her numbers are this low; I am guessing that the all-out PR blitz she underwent when she made the move from TV to films, including countless talk show appearances set up a perception in my head that she was more pervasive in films than she really was. I like her as a performer, though most of her work has fallen in the realm of goofy action films. Seems to be in a period of low momentum.

Ten best roles: 10) Guy 9) Ballistic: Ecks vs Sever 8) Chicago 7) 3 Needles 6) Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle 5) Lucky Number Slevin 4) Code Name: The Cleaner 3) Charlie’s Angels 2) Shanghai Noon 1) Kill Bill Vol 1

Percentile rating: 73.65

Peak Period: 2000 - 2003

Neighborhood: Raymond J Barry, Jackie Burroughs, Tim Curry, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jason Isaacs, Ryo Ishibashi

Tea Leoni

OK, for starters, she’s hot. She’s also a talented actor, bringing a light comic touch to most every role she plays. Very charismatic, always fun to watch. Whether he overly frequents naughty internet sites, is overly fond of plush toys, or seeks to replicate the tawdrier scenes from Eyes Wide Shut in his personal life, David Duchovny is a fool.

Ten best roles: 10) People I Know 9) House of D 8) The Family Man 7) Jurassic Park III 6) Spanglish 5) Deep Impact 4) Fun With Dick and Jane 3) Ghost Town 2) You Kill Me 1) Flirting with Disaster

Percentile rating: 84.53

Peak Period: 2004 - now

Neighborhood: Sean Astin, Matthieu Carriere, Stockard Channing, Beatrice Dalle, Janeane Garofalo, Ciarin Hinds

Vincent Lindon

French actor not well-known in the states. Or by me.

Ten best roles: 10) Fred 9) The School of Flesh 8) Quelques Jour Avec Moi 7) Tout Ca Pour Ca 6) Seventh Heaven 5) Paparazzi 4) Chaos 3) La Crise 2) Ma Petite Enterprise 1) Friday Night

Percentile rating: 81.12

Peak Period: 1998 - 2002

Neighborhood: Stephen Baldwin, Jean-Marc Barr, Bud Cort, Griffin Dunne, Fionnula Flanagan, Gottfried John

Matthew Lillard

Ryan Seacrest lookalike (but not as pretty,) Lillard’s part of the great lost Brat Pack v. 2.0 that had members in virtually every film in the 90’s, and then disappeared. Joshua Jackson? Freddie Prinze Jr? Sarah Michelle Gellar? Almost all of them will end up back on TV, but their film careers have collectively stalled. Couldn’t have seen that coming.

Ten best roles: 10) Dish Dogs 9) Senseless 8) Hackers 7) Tarentella 6) Wicker Park 5) Finder’s Fee 4) Serial Mom 3) Spanish Judges 2) The Curve 1) SLC Punk

Percentile rating: 76.77

Peak Period: 1998 - 2004

Neighborhood: Macauley Culkin, Corey Feldman, Richard Griffiths, Dennis Haysbert, Dan Hedaya, Shirley Knight

Eugene Levy

First fame came with SCTV, a hit and miss TV series with absolutely hilarious bits. Levy took one of his skills, the sort of bumbling over-confident blowhard, and turned it into an entire film career. When it works, when it’s sharp and biting, it’s great. When it doesn’t work, and he tries to shift out of his weasely best and into sincere mode, as in the horrifying Cheaper by the Dozen films, it’s darn near unwatchable. Despite this, the second of those films shows up on his list, because it’s one of his lengthiest screen times among all of his work, and this is about sketching out a Eugene Levy film fest, which you can’t very well have with movies that give him six lines. He is the heart of the mostly-improvised Christopher Guest mockumentaries, where his comedic skills are less impeded by adherence to plot.

On balance I tend to enjoy him his schtick, but don’t really expect Shakesperian depth from him.

Ten best roles: 10) The Secret Life of Girls 9) The Man 8) Repli-Kate 7) Bringing Down the House 6) For Your Consideration 5) Cheaper by the Dozen 2 4) A Mighty Wind 3) Splash 2) Waiting for Guffman 1) Best in Show

Percentile rating: 80.58

Peak Period: 2003 - 2006

Neighborhood: Adam Baldwin, Alan Cumming, Sam Elliott, Beverly Garland, Rhys Ifans, Bruno Kirby

Geoffrey Lewis

Competent character actor. Supposedly, he became friends with Clint Eastwood when they were both young, and subsequently appeared often as one of the comic foils during Eastwoods’ goofy monkey-film period (though honestly, Bronco Billy, from the same period, still has its charms.) Lewis typically gets the 5th or 6th lead, allowing him to take literally dozens of those smaller supporting roles; he’s got in the neighborhood of 60 film credits, plus lots of TV, so he’s fairly ubiquitous, especially during the 70’s and 80’s.

Ten best roles: 10) The Wind and the Lion 9) Disturbed 8) Double Impact 7) American Perfekt 6) The Dragon Gate 5) Thunderbolt and Lightfoot 4) The Great Waldo Pepper 3) Bronco Billy 2) The Return of a Man Called Horse 1) Smile

Percentile rating: 73.00

Peak Period: 1974 - 1976

Neighborhood: Christina Applegate, William Atherton, Selma Blair, Kevin Corrigan, Jami Gertz, Linda Hunt

Jerod Leto

He comes across all sort of, ummm, douchey, and he needs to get his energy out of that crapped-out quasi prog music that lands him on MTV occasionally as some kind of dress-up make believe rock star, or his film career will slip away. I like to think of his music as “My So Called Rock”. He’s in danger of becoming the goth crowd’s alternative to punkabilly Bob Thornton. There’s plenty of Jason Schwarzmann types out there to take the sorts of roles Leto’s got a best chance of landing. He was really good in Requiem for a Dream though.

Ten Best Roles; 10) Basil 9) Urban Legend 8) Highway 7) Fight Club 6) Prefontaine 5) Lord of War 4) American Psycho 3) Panic Room 2) Lonely Hearts 1) Requiem for a Dream

Percentile rating: 81.29

Peak Period: 1998 - 2000

Neighborhood: Eleanor Bron, Jeffrey Combs, Jan DeCleir, Griffin Dunne, Phillip Baker Hall, Gottfried John

Michael Lerner

A low-exposure lifer, he’s been in dozens of films (with a multitude of TV appearances as well) for 40 years. The prime role that earned him a mention in this conflagration was his turn as the studio head in Barton Fink, and he’s had a few starring roles on either side of that, but he’s mostly held the position of “hey I think I know that guy” guy.

Ten best roles: 10) Safe Men 9) The Postman Always Rings Twice 8) Strange Invaders 7) Nobody Knows Anything 6) Yonkers Joe 5) Girl in the Cadillac 4) Poster Boy 3) When Do We Eat 2) Anguish 1) Barton Fink

Percentile rating: 71.56

Peak period: 1998 - now

Neighbors: Ed Asner, Gerard Butler, Scott Caan, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Danny Huston, Diane Kruger

Melissa Leo

She’s the overnight sensation who’s been around for 25 years. Frozen River gave her long overdue exposure, but she’s been playing significant, if small roles around the fringes of commercial film for years, although most people will remember her from years on American TV show Homicide. If you have net seen Frozen River, you should; her Oscar nomination was well-deserved.

Ten best roles: 10) Runaway 9) A Time of Destiny 8) The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada 7) Last Summer in the Hamptons 6) From Other Worlds 5) Stephanie Daley 4) Immaculate Conception 3) Always 2) 21 Grams 1) Frozen River

Percentile rating: 77.57

Peak Period: 2003 - 2006

Neighborhood: Ed Begley Jr, Ben Cross, Tess Harper, Emile Hirsch, Cloris Leachman, Jason Lee

Jason Lee

Went from skateboarder to actor with apparent ease; he’s no Olivier, but he’s generally likable in light comedies. My Name is Earl was just cancelled, so he will probably start to pop up in more films again, hopefully avoiding roles like Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Ten best roles: 10) Heartbreakers 9) A Guy Thing 8) Vanilla Sky 7) The Ballad of Jack and Rose 6) Kissing a Fool 5) Mumford 4) Alvin and the Chipmunks 3) Almost Famous 2) Drop Dead Sexy 1) Chasing Amy

Percentile rating: 77.66

Peak period: 1999 - 2002

Neighborhood: Ed Begley Jr, Henry Czerny, Kevin Dillon, Tess Harper, Emile Hirsch, Jason Lee