Easy Come Easy Gaughin

Jeroen Krabbe

I am really tempted to just make some pun using the word “patty”, but he probably deserves better (his filmography says so, anyway,) though danged if I can think of anything I have seen him in other than The Fugitive. Oh wait, King of the Hill! I love that one (it’s not the film version of the cartoon, but an early depression-era Soderbergh film.) And Soldier of Orange! That was him? Dang. I wonder how Rutger Hauer faired in this contest; I will have to look him up.

Ten best roles

10) Shadow of Victory 9)Een Vlucht Regenwulpen (how did I forget that one?) 8) The Fugitive 7) Crossing Delancey (dang, that’s one’s fun too) 6) Melancholia 5) King of the Hill 4) Immortal Beloved 3) A World Apart 2) The Fourth Man 1) Soldier of Orange

Percentile rating

91.38

Peak Period

1988 – 1993

Neighborhood

Genevieve Bujold, Don Cheadle, Judi Dench, Jeff Goldblum, Bruce Greenwood, Greg Kinnear

Greg Kinnear

He’s absolutely perfect at playing the cad, like a grown-up Eddie Haskell. Jeff Daniels also has this quality of leaping from charming to insincere on a dime. Kinnear has (or his agent has) also been pretty canny about his script choices, appearing in an impressive string of films with wildly varied storylines, mostly films intended for intelligent adults .

You couldn’t pick two movies much different than Auto Focus and Ghost Town, but he manages to make barely discernable differences in the character of those two leads interesting in both settings. I am very fond of him, as, like Charles Grodin,  he’s generally worth watching even in weaker films (I like Jeff Goldblum for much the same reason.)

Ten best roles

10) Someone Like You 9) Stuck on You 8) Invincible 7) Ghost Town 6) Flash of Genius 5) The Bad News Bears 4) The Matador 3) As Good As It Gets 2) Auto Focus 1) Little Miss Sunshine

Percentile rating

91.20

Peak Period

2005 – 2008

Neighborhood

Karen Black, Don Cheadle, Judi Dench, Robert Downey Jr, Colin Farrell, Bruce Greenwood

Stacy Keach

Probably best known as TV’s Mike Hammer, but geez louise if he wouldn’t have made a better Spenser, and certainly better than either Joe Mantegna, or God help us, Robert Urich. He was awesome in Fat City, and under-appreciated classic which recently got some AP Mike love on The Best Show with Tom Scharpling. The Ninth Configuration is one of the strangest things I have ever seen, well worth your time; it can safely be said that he plays against type in that surreal epic.

Ten best roles

10) The Gravy Train 9) Doc 8) The New Centurions 7) The Heart is a Lonely Hunter 6) The Ninth Configuration 5) The Killer Inside Me 4) Road Games 3) Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer: More Than Murder 2) Fat City 1) End of the Road

Percentile rating

88.40

Peak Period

1970-1974

Neighborhood

Ellen Barkin, Charles Berling, Adrien Brody, Gary Busey, James Fox, Keira Knightly

Keira Knightly

Movie careers don’t start much hotter than this one. A huge franchise and serious roles to boot, and I think she’s still about 16 (she’s 24, but it’s still phenomenally young for this strong a selected filmography.) I do often wish that she would have a sandwich or two.

Ten best roles

10) Pure 9) Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End 8) Princess of Thieves 7) Pirates of the Carribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 6) Pirates of the Carribbean: Dead Man’s Chest 5) Doctor Zhivago 4) The Duchess 3) Bend It Like Beckham 2) Atonement 1) Pride and Prejudice

Percentile rating

88.34

Peak Period

2001 – 2003

Neighborhood

Ellen Barkin, Charles Berling, Adrien Brody, Gary Busey, Billy Crudup, James Fox