Warrior Casting
Jan. 4th, 2005 09:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
I'm taking a poll: which actors (from the 1980's to the present) do you think have been the most convincing in portraying warriors: people who fight and kill other people as a way of life, whether as good guys or bad guys. They look like they have both the physical strength and the mental orientation to engage in deadly force and survive long enough to get good at it. There's usually a ruthless streak in them.
Off the top of my head: Russell Crowe in Gladiator is a standout. I've always found it easy to believe Sean Bean, especially as Sharpe. Chow Yun-Fat has the natural grace and strength, as well as the mental focus. I was willing to believe Uma Thurman in Kill Bill and Michelle Yeoh in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Ken Watanabe in The Last Samurai.
Your thoughts?
Off the top of my head: Russell Crowe in Gladiator is a standout. I've always found it easy to believe Sean Bean, especially as Sharpe. Chow Yun-Fat has the natural grace and strength, as well as the mental focus. I was willing to believe Uma Thurman in Kill Bill and Michelle Yeoh in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Ken Watanabe in The Last Samurai.
Your thoughts?
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-04 09:31 pm (UTC)Chantal
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-04 10:34 pm (UTC)*muchly curious*
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 04:54 am (UTC)It's a very interesting take. Definitley have a look.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-06 10:28 am (UTC)And yes, I recognize the irony of asking questions about movie warriors while admitting to never having seen what is generally acknowledged to be one of the all-time great films about men at war.
Warriors
Date: 2005-01-04 10:43 pm (UTC)Kurt Russell in Soldier
Matt Damon in The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy
Roy Dupuis as Michael in La Femme Nikita the TV series
Re: Warriors
Date: 2005-01-04 10:52 pm (UTC)I haven't seen the others.
Thanks!
Re: Warriors
Date: 2005-01-04 10:57 pm (UTC)Re: Warriors
Date: 2005-01-04 10:58 pm (UTC)Netflix is a beautiful thing!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-04 10:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-04 10:54 pm (UTC)Bean is also excellent as a warrior in Bravo Two-Zero, LOTR, Troy. . . He seems very comfortable handling weapons
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-04 10:56 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 01:11 am (UTC)Forest Whitaker - Ghost Dog
Arnold Schwarzenegger - Conan the Barbarian
Clive Owen - King Arthur
Jean Reno - The Professional
That is just a fast dirty list.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-06 10:25 am (UTC)I need to watch "King Arthur" again. I've only seen it once, and I had mixed feelings about the whole thing. I went back and forth about having Clive Owen on the list.
I also need to see "The Professional."
I've seen Arnold in a bunch of movies, but he's not someone I ever think about. His performances have almost never touched me in a way to make them memorable.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 02:30 am (UTC)Audie Murphy was a genuine warrior- the most decorated U.S. serviceman of WWII. After the war he got a career in the movies. He was a short, round-faced guy and never really made it beyond the "B" list. Probably his best screen role is as the "coward" in John Huston's Red Badge of Courage.
Jimmy Stewart was a real warrior. He flew bombers. John Wayne, on the other hand, never saw a day's action in his life. But which of the two would you choose to play a warrior? John Wayne every time!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 05:46 am (UTC)Excellent question. Put another way, is there a difference between a "convincing" portrayal and a "realistic" one? And if so, what does that tell us about our ideas about war and warriors?
One thing I notice about a lot of people's picks (including my own) is that they tend to be older than real soldiers often are. Also, by comparison to the U.S. military, at least, somewhat more likely to be white.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-06 10:40 am (UTC)But are real warriors anything like the warriors we see in the movies?
is there a difference between a "convincing" portrayal and a "realistic" one?
I deliberately did not ask for "realistic" because I don't consider myself to have sufficient expertise for evaluating the answers. I know that some portrayals make me willing to believe that the character has certain qualities I associate with the concept of warrior (listed in the original entry) and some don't.
I would be very interested in the answers of someone who has "been there/done that" experience. Assuming s/he wasn't laughing too hard at my question to actually get an answer out.
Good food for thought from both of you -- which, again, is what I always expect. Thanks!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 05:19 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-06 10:54 am (UTC)Miranda Otto is Eowyn, and yes, I would agree. Also Karl Urban as Eomer.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 05:33 am (UTC)Let me also second the nominations of Tom Hanks and Jean Reno. (Reno is also good in Ronin.)
I'll also put in a good word for John Amos, who plays Admiral Percy Fitzwallace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, on television's West Wing. Not exactly the sort of warrior you have in mind, I suppose, but worth thinking about.
I notice that I seem to favor portrayals of more or less contemporary soldiers...nobody on my list carries a sword. Maybe I don't find ancient/fantasy portrayals "convincing"...the temptation to romanticize may just be too strong to allow a really convincing portrayal. Or maybe I just like guns.... No, that's probably not it.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-06 10:56 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-01-05 10:47 am (UTC)Archetypal warriors "are the job" - no regrets, no fear, kill and survive.
Real warriors usually don't really want to be there, suffer fear and doubt, sometimes regret what they have to do. Not many characters fit that mold, and not many actors portray that sort of depth.
That said, some people that come across as "warrior" in their roles:
Toshiro Mifune
Zhang Ziyi
Wes Studi
Anne Parillaud