Easy Come Easy Gaughin

Catherine Keener

She’s got a beautiful smile, but she can turn scary on a dime, as in Being John Malkovich. I believe the reaction that such rage would produce in the typical person could be described as “withering”.

To my mind, she’s the model of what actresses should be, projecting a strong intelligence while playing characters of complex emotional make-up. Her work to date seems to automatically qualify her for the best of such roles. Other actresses must envy her. Her and Meryl Streep, who can automatically get any role she wants even if she’s not right for it. Can’t you imagine that somebody like Cameron Diaz or Sandra Bullock wishes they could take a whack at something as rich as Living in Oblivion?

Ten best roles

10) Your Friends and Neighbors 9) The Interpreter 8) The Ballad of Jack and Rose 7) Friends with Money 6) The 40-Year-Old Virgin 5) Living in Oblivion 4) Walking and Talking 3) Lovely and Amazing 2) Being John Malkovich 1) Capote

Percentile rating

95.75

Peak Period

Dear Lord, her 2004 – 2006 would be the envy of most any working actor (Ballad, Interpreter, 40, Capote, Friends)

Neighbors

Antonio Banders, Sandrine Bonnaire, Gabriel Byrne, James Caan, Willem Dafoe, Morgan Freeman

Val Kilmer

Every man who has “let himself go” should adopt Kilmer as his favorite actor. Like Michael Keaton, he was Batman. He’s hilarious in early comedies Real Genius and the great Elvis Presley-spy movie mashup Top Secret. He’s legendarily moody, with his on set antics sometimes compared to those of Marlon Brando.May have let his desire to be thought of as an eccentric genius sideline his momentum to some extent.

Ten best roles

10) The Doors 9) Spartan 8) Tombstone 7) Kiss Kiss Bang Bang 6) Heat 5) Top Secret 4) Kill Me Again 3) The Salton Sea 2) Real Genius 1) Thunderheart

Percentile rating

95.39

Peak period

1989 – 1995

Neighborhood

Julie Andrews, Lauren Bacall, Helena Bonham Carter, James Caan, Keith Carradine, James Garner

Michael Keaton

Has any other actor ever made the simple quick head-cock such a signature move? That thing where he seems to put his face lower than the face of the person he’s speaking to, and beaming up at them? I can think of three roles off the top of my head where he uses that as a motion of endearment. He’s starting to look a little like Clint Eastwood. Maybe he will have a career makeover as a variation on the man with no name.

Of course he was Batman under Tim Burton’s re-imagining. He was a likable wise-cracker in films like Night Shift and Mr Mom, he was convincingly serious in Clean and Sober. Of course his dark tweak of the sort of Robin Williams-ish manic mayhem of Beetlejuice may have actually given birth to emo, so we can all agree to hate him for that. I hope he works his way back into prominence in older adult roles.

Ten best roles

10) Touch and Go 9) The Paper 8) The Dream Team 7) Johnny Dangerously 6) Night Shift 5) A Shot at Glory 4) Clean and Sober 3) Batman Returns 2) Much Ado About Nothing 1) Batman

Percentile rating

94.78

Peak Period

1984 – 1989

Neighborhood

Anne Bancroft, Michel Bouquet, Cameron Diaz, Kirsten Dunst, Colin Firth, Ed Harris

Kris Kristofferson

Kristofferson is probably best known as a song-writer and singer, but he’s had an awfully impressive film career as well, making his a sort of a shadow Renaissance man. He does one thing (grizzled) exceptionally well, and has stuck to roles appropriate to that quality. If you haven’t seen it, Trouble in Mind is worth your time, a sci-fi noir featuring Divine, as a man, in a prominent role.

Ten best roles

10) Heaven’s Gate 9) Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid 8) Perfect Murder Perfect Town 7) Semi-Tough 6) Songwriter 5) Blade II 4) Blume in Love 3) Trouble in Mind 2) A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries 1) Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore

Percentile rating

93.08

Peak Period

1973 – 1981

Neighborhood

Tadanobu Asano, Toni Collette, Chris Cooper, Michael Gambon, Ben Gazzara, Philip Seymour Hoffman

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

George Kennedy

Sixty years of the greatest comb-over in Hollywood history. He typifies the big galoot, and he’s still out there pushing it around the best he can. He’s an authentic link to “old Hollywood.”

Ten best roles

10) Thunderbolt and Lightfoot 9) Mean Dog Blues 8) The Dirty Dozen 7) Zigzag 6) The Ballad of Josie 5) The Double McGuffin 4) The Boston Strangler 3) The Naked Gun 2 and 1/2, The Smell of Fear 2) The Naked Gun 1) Cool Hand Luke

Percentile rating

87.25

Peak Period

1967-1970

Neighborhood

Halle Berry, Hippolyte Girardot, Brendan Gleeson, Lukas Haas, Celeste Holm, Amy Irving

Yaphet Kotto

Heroic or villainous, Kotto’s strength seems to be a very quiet and intense focused anger, even when he’s ostensibly playing comedy, like in Midnight Run. His career highlight may actually be his run in the excellent American TV series Homicide.

Ten best roles

10) Live and Let Die 9) Report to the Commissioner 8) Eye of the Tiger 7) Extreme Justice 6) Crunch 5) Across 110th Street 4) Brubaker 3) Blue Collar 2) Midnight Run 1) Alien

Percentile rating

85.55

Peak period

1974 – 1980

Neighborhood

James Caviezel, Angie Dickenson, Carrie Fisher, Peter Gallagher, Christopher Guest, Marcia Gay Harden