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ORIGINAL: crsutton

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

ORIGINAL: crsutton




Yes, that is how William Holden found himself stuck in a British POW camp in the movie version of "The Bridge Over the River Kwai." American studio heads were convinced the movie had to have an American in order to sell.

In this case, they would have been right...

I think William Holden (and his character) were integral to the plot and the development of that fine movie. The camp also had Aussies and other nationals in it and would have been diminished in its scope, scale and impact had it been an (unrealistic) All-British exclusive camp and plot.

Well, it was not horrible but he was not in the novel and that seemed to work out just fine.

Did the novel have the acting genius of Sir Alec Guiness as a major character? I'd say this is an instance of the movie perhaps being *better* than the book.

Kind Hearts and Coronets [&o][&o][&o][&o][&o][&o][&o]

Here's some of his roles in that film (he played eight different characters)

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A Duchess

more

more

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more movie posters

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Here's another excellent English actor, Richard Attenborough

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

ORIGINAL: crsutton

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy



In this case, they would have been right...

I think William Holden (and his character) were integral to the plot and the development of that fine movie. The camp also had Aussies and other nationals in it and would have been diminished in its scope, scale and impact had it been an (unrealistic) All-British exclusive camp and plot.

Well, it was not horrible but he was not in the novel and that seemed to work out just fine.

Did the novel have the acting genius of Sir Alec Guiness as a major character? I'd say this is an instance of the movie perhaps being *better* than the book.

Not better than one of the best novels to ever come out of WWII but certainly a great movie. BTW, I have the DVD and it has a great documentary on blowing up the bridge and train. One take, with no chance of a retake! It is actually as fun to watch as the movie. So much better than CGI.

Finally [8|], perhaps the greatest ever, of any nationality

Personally, I have a difficult time placing anyone above Sir Anthony......

His portrayal of Hitler in The Bunker was the performance of a lifetime:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082114/

ORIGINAL: crsutton
I have the DVD and it has a great documentary on blowing up the bridge and train. One take, with no chance of a retake! It is actually as fun to watch as the movie. So much better than CGI.

I'll have to check my DVD for these extras...thanks for the heads up. [8D]

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

Personally, I have a difficult time placing anyone above Sir Anthony......

His portrayal of Hitler in The Bunker was the performance of a lifetime:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082114/

I love Anthony Hopkins, but I'm pretty sure he'd agree with me on my picks, even Michael Caine would. Here's where I challenge everyone. Of American actors, I think Robert Duvall is the best ever. And that's saying a lot considering the competition.

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

Personally, I have a difficult time placing anyone above Sir Anthony......

His portrayal of Hitler in The Bunker was the performance of a lifetime:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082114/

I love Anthony Hopkins, but I'm pretty sure he'd agree with me on my picks, even Michael Caine would. Here's where I challenge everyone. Of American actors, I think Robert Duvall is the best ever. And that's saying a lot considering the competition.

John Wayne.

Of course, he was my role model and my Idol. I actually got to say hello to him when he was making True Grit. I may be a "bit" biased [;)]

JW was very good, but I'm talking about actors who can play any type, not so-called "character actors" who are unconvincing out of character. Think Ghengis Khan in "The Conqueror". His range was limited. Gene Hackman, though great, didn't get out much either. Robert Shaw, Henry Fonda, Tom Hanks are good candidates. TH is an excellent one. Spencer Tracy had some range. Robert Ryan, there's a great one. George C Scott. Harvey Keitel. Paul Newman. Al Pacino. "Bad Santa" has the ability. Besides Billy Bob, Tommie Lee. Bogart had more range than he got a chance to show, I believe. I think he had an awful lot of talent underneath. Some actors get stuck playing heroes when they could do excellent bad guys. Think Anthony Hopkins, though Welshmen don't count. Robert Mitchum. Burt Lancaster. Those two were amazing.