My Favourite Movie Actors

Someone recently asked me who my favourite movie actors were. This initially stumped me, mainly because I never think in terms of actors... instead, I have favourite directors, film score composers, and movie genres. But that same person, seeing my distress at this difficult question, then suggested I think of actors who appear most often in my favourite movies. That helped me to narrow it down a bit.

Yup, that's a 13-year-old Natalie Portman in Leon: The Professional, the story 

of a hitman who reluctantly takes in a girl orphaned after her family is murdered

Unlike some film fans, I don't think I could name just one absolute favourite actor. I mean, I pretty much never see a movie based solely on who stars in it. So I might have a core group of best-liked actors, and then a whole bunch of others who I enjoy watching but could never rank them.

I suppose I'd say the handful of actors I admire and enjoy watching most are:

Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Sean Connery, Clint Eastwood, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nicole Kidman, Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Harrison Ford, Kirk Douglas, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Michael Shannon, and Jimmy Stewart.

All talented and charismatic people who have made names for themselves through their years of screen portrayals. Sure, the odd actor in that bunch isn't exactly universally known as a GREAT actor even though they have achieved star status, yet through hard work and developing a solid reputation in the film industry, each has climbed to the top of the ranks in Hollywood. They've all earned respect and big bucks in the process.

Not necessarily any less competent - or just plain cool - are these other well-known performers:

Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Ingrid Bergman, Gary Oldman, Oscar Isaac, Gene Hackman, Leslie Nielsen, Claude Raines, Sam Neill, Vincent Price, Lance Henriksen, Ian McKellen, Greta Gerwig, Charlize Theron, Amy Adams,Tom Selleck, Peter Sellers, Roy Schieder, Orson Welles, Carey Grant.... ah, the list could go on forever.

But you get the idea. A decent mix of classic and modern Hollywood, and whatever fell in between... plus some non-Hollywood actors thrown in there for variety.

You might wonder about a few of my choices, like Leslie Nielsen. Though most of us know him best for his low-brow comedic movies, he did start out in dramatic roles (in the 1950's!), but the 80's saw him transform into a hilarious comedy machine. Though extremely silly and childish at times, his form of humour speaks to me on a base level. Light entertainment at its best.

Lance Henriksen may not be a household name since he has appeared in mostly supporting roles, yet he is the definition of a reliable working actor who brings his likable, often quirky personality into the characters he plays. He's in a number of my favourite movies, mostly in genres like horror, sci-fi, and action. The Pumpkinhead horror movies and the Alien franchise are most notable. Quite prolific, Henriksen may take first prize for the most direct-to-video movies. A lot of crapola, but ol' Lance is always fun to watch.

And you might question my selection of Tom Selleck, who's best known for his 80's hit TV show Magnum P.I. and more recently, the show Blue Bloods. He hasn't exactly been a star of the big screen (only about two dozen films to his credit), but it has been his made-for-TV movies that have caught my attention, where Selleck played a small town police chief in his Jesse Stone series. Based on the crime fiction of one of my favourite authors, these adaptations are excellent, even when they stray from the source material. The casting is excellent, and Selleck shines as an aging and troubled cop trying to thwart modern day crime by his old-school methods.

I'm sure that after posting this, I'll think of more actors I find highly watchable, but maybe that will be a post for another day. Or not. Feel free to share your own fave actors in the Comments below.