And yet it was not without its burdens. The considerable side-effects of growing up in the spotlight reached a disturbing crescendo by the time Foster started undergrad at Yale in 1980, where she was obsessively stalked by John Hinckley Jr., the Travis Bickle wannabe who would go on to shoot Ronald Reagan. Amazingly, Foster continued to act in films between semesters until she graduated in 1985—although few of them managed to garner critical or commercial success. That trend continued in the years following as Foster struggled to redefine herself as an actress. She had displayed such strength and graceful resilience on-screen and in her life: it was about time her adult roles reflected that. 

That much-needed spark came with 1988’s The Accused, in which Foster plays a rape survivor fighting to bring her assailants to justice, and 1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, which saw her embody the now-iconic FBI trainee Clarice Starling alongside Anthony Hopkins’ legendary Hannibal Lecter. Foster won an Academy Award for each film, and she carried on the momentum through the 90s with celebrated performances in films such as Nell (1994) and Contact (1997), and even made her directorial debut with Little Man Tate (1991). Foster’s pedigree amongst her peers and audiences was undoubtedly cemented by the time she was invited to head the jury at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, a position from which she ultimately stepped down to star in David Fincher’s suspenseful cat-and-mouse thriller Panic Room (2002). 

Through the 2000s, Foster’s turn as the villainous Madeleine White in Spike Lee’s Inside Man (2006) and her well-documented but ultimately ill-fated effort to direct and star in a biopic about the notorious, if technically brilliant, Nazi propagandist Leni Riefenstahl made convincing counterpoints to dissenting criticisms accusing Foster of “sanctifying herself as an old-fashioned heroine [rather than] taking on dramatically risky roles.” Such criticisms arguably neglected to acknowledge the fact that Foster has been taking risks since she was a child, but they also failed to appreciate the deeply affecting vulnerability Foster brings to even the most competent and resolute of characters. 

And, while Foster has been famously—and understandably—reticent about her personal life aside from her devastating 1982 Esquire essay “Why Me?,” which recounted her experience as a public figure up to the John Hinckley incident, and her 2011 Golden Globes speech which vaguely alluded to speculation surrounding her sexuality, this vulnerability has come to define her career. Jodie Foster is not only simply good at her job, much like many of the women she has played, but she also clearly brings a piece of herself to every role. Now, after a long stint working primarily as a director, she seems to be turning a new chapter—one that sees the celebrated actress return to form with projects such as the upcoming ‘True Detective: Night Country’ (2024), and get personal in films like 2023’s Nyad. 

In 2021, Foster told the New York Times: “I am a solitary, internal person in an extroverted, external job. I don’t think I will ever not feel lonely. It’s a theme in my life. It’s not such a bad thing. I don’t need to be known by everyone.” Perhaps the reluctant movie star would rather her work speak for itself, as it does in these 3 Career-Defining Performances. 

1. Taxi Driver (1976)

Taxi Driver Review

Any evaluation of Jodie Foster’s career would be incomplete without mention of her revelatory turn as Iris Steensma in Martin Scorsese’s early-career masterpiece. Hers is widely considered to be one of the best child performances of all time and earned her the first Oscar nomination of her career at the age of 13. Already an acclaimed child star for her work in films such as Disney’s Napoleon and Samantha (1972) and the 1973 adaptation Tom Sawyer, Foster seemed destined to become a defining performer of her generation. If Taxi Driver taught us anything, it’s that she already was. 

Martin Scorsese must have sensed it, too. Foster had previously appeared in the auteur’s 1974 film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, so by the time she was cast in Taxi Driver, she and Scorsese had already established a working relationship. Still, then-12-year-old Foster’s casting as a child prostitute opposite Robert De Niro’s antisocial weirdo Travis Bickle raised more than a few eyebrows. Abundant cautionary measures were taken to ensure Foster’s—and her mother’s—comfort while performing, including regular psychiatric check-ups, constant accompaniment by a social worker on set, and the substitution of Foster with her older sister Connie for a few particularly suggestive scenes. 

Foster herself, though, seemed unfazed by her role’s apparent ethical grayness: “To me it was another role, and I understood the difference between making movies and actually being a person. So it wasn’t really impactful for me. I don’t think I was confused by the sexuality in the film,” she recalled. It might be an overstatement to assume that Foster had a complete and clear-eyed understanding of the film’s thematic material at the time, but she embodied this character with such fearlessness and emotional candor that she elucidates it all the same. 

Her character does not get significant screen time until the film’s third act, when the increasingly unstable Bickle takes it upon himself to facilitate her liberation—and yet Iris is not merely the object of Bickle’s crusade but also the film’s beating heart. Upon their first meeting, or in the iconic diner scene, the sociopathic Bickle is baffled by Iris’s naive buoyancy. She’s a victim of a perverse society, undoubtedly more so than Bickle, and yet her sense of indignation seems far less than that which he feels on her—and his—behalf. By the time Bickle goes on his rampage, the textually rich interactions between he and Iris have called into question any notion that his actions are driven by anything other than a need to placate his violent urges in the name of righteous justice. Still, Iris represents the sort of injured humanity that no doubt wrestles for control inside Bickle. The kids aren’t alright, and neither is he. This layered diagnosis of the many diseases plaguing American society after the Vietnam war (and which are just as prescient today) would have been simply incomplete without Foster’s acutely intelligent and affecting performance. 

While Foster would go on to bolster her early-career resume with starring roles in tentpole films like Freaky Friday (1976) and Bugsy Malone (1976), it was undoubtedly Taxi Driver that would come to define this stage of her career; not only for its revered status, but also for what was undoubtedly her coronation as a performer well ahead of her time—and meant for much more than Disney originals. Robert De Niro famously took Foster under his wing while filming, which, it could be reasonably assumed, only refined her enormous talent. “He really helped me understand improvisation and building a character in a way that was almost nonverbal,” Foster said of the experience. With one of the most prolific actor-filmmaker tandems of all time attesting to her skills, Jodie Foster was clearly bound to play with the big kids. 

2. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

The Silence of the Lambs Review

Foster won her second Oscar for her role as Clarice Starling, the industrious young FBI investigator opposite Anthony Hopkins’ cerebral and chillingly polite Hannibal Lecter, an incarcerated cannibal Starling is tasked with gleaning psychological insight from to help catch a serial killer. Fresh off her first win for her role in 1998’s The Accused, Foster was in a new prime—and while her performance in that film could just as well represent this stage of her career, it is her turn as Starling that has since been immortalized. 

Despite her newfound acclaim in adult roles, Foster had to wait behind industry fixtures such as Michelle Pfeiffer, Meg Ryan, and Laura Dern for the role—all three declined the part due to film’s disturbing themes and Foster, having expressed enthusiasm for the part since she read the 1988 novel, got her shot. 

The film has since reached classic-status—despite controversy surrounding its polarizing treatment of themes related to transgenderism and sexuality—thanks in no small part to Foster’s performance. Foster’s Starling, small in stature, nonetheless consumes every scene she’s in, transcending even Sir Anthony Hopkins, who is also at the top of his game. Director Jonathan Demme frequently frames Clarice in close-ups, which feels like a deliberate rendering of the inescapable male gaze that follows her everywhere, and Foster, with her aptitude for the subdued and unspoken, shines. She convincingly embodies a woman who is simultaneously unwavering and deeply vulnerable in the face of Lecter’s psychological ambushes. It’s the type of thing that separates run-of-the-mill crime thrillers from timeless innovations of the genre—and Foster’s performance is timeless in its own right. 

Would it be going too far to say her role in Silence was one of Foster’s most personal? Perhaps not, since Foster reportedly tried to option the novel even before Demme was attached, and since the film offers compelling reflections on gender politics and the experience of being watched. Foster was, unfortunately, no stranger to such themes in her real life, so it makes sense that she approached the role with profound honesty and vulnerability. Clarice is tough; she’s “the woman that saves the women.” And yet she exists in a discomfiting reality that most women know all too well. 

The tension between these elements illuminates a theme that would come to define the roles Foster took on. If not lambs, then Foster’s unusual life experiences nonetheless scream through her work. From “Why Me?”: “There were things to be done, secrets to keep. I was supposed to be ‘tough,’ like cowboys, like diplomats, like ‘unaffected actresses’—not because anyone asked me to but because I wanted to show them (God knows who) that I was strong. I wanted to show them all that Jodie was so uniquely ‘normal’ and ‘well-adjusted’ that nothing could make her fall. I think I believed all this, my subconscious propaganda.”

3. Contact (1997)

By 1997, Jodie Foster was a bonafide movie star. Suddenly, she found herself being sought after for bigger and bigger projects—which would result in a string of genre star vehicles around the turn of the millennium. The actress would go on to work with the likes of David Fincher and Spike Lee, but it was perhaps her collaboration with Robert Zemeckis in his sci-fi melodrama Contact (1997) that bore the most memorable performance from this period in her career. 

The film, an adaptation of Carl Sagan’s 1988 novel, was a box office success and has largely held up over time despite mixed reviews upon its release. Foster’s performance is far and away the best part of the film, as her character Dr. Ellie Arroway becomes more than a generic sci-fi protagonist in her quest to establish contact with extraterrestrial beings. Foster, with her trademark rugged sensitivity, largely embodies the tension between faith and science and the messy convergence of the two. Like the film’s screenplay, Foster’s performance is interesting because it cleverly subverts easy clichés in favor of a more grounded, humanistic exploration of its otherwise schmaltzy premise. She’s no Ellen Ripley, but she’s just as heroic. 

A film of cosmic ambition, Contact works precisely because of Foster’s ability to bring depth and sincerity to her character. As Dr. Arroway gets swept up in the frenzied worldwide response to her discovery of an otherworldly radio transmission—a flagrant confirmation of the existence of extraterrestrial life—her character nonetheless feels honest and believable, which makes her ultimate journey into space all the more compelling. Zemeckis understands this and rarely separates the audience from Foster even as the film’s scale expands dramatically. 

In Foster’s own words: “I think, more than any character that I’ve ever played, Ellie Arroway is the most like me or at least the most like how I think I should be seen — how I see myself or something.” The lonely astronomer might not be the first of Foster’s characters to feel like a de facto analogue for Foster herself, but her sci-fi milieu only confirms that Foster has the chops to tackle any kind of material. 

Whether she’s surrounded by blue screens or rubbing elbows with other iconic performers, Jodie Foster consistently delivers performances capable of moving even the most cynical viewer. Her filmography boasts a pantheon of strong-willed heroines, precocious youngsters, and complicated women—and her prolific directorial career is nothing to thumb your nose at. With more to come from the legendary actress as she enters her 60s, now is as good a time as ever to appreciate her storied career. 

Written by Connell Oberman

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Born into an Irish-British family, Lansbury grew up around actors: her mother was Moyna McGill (born in Belfast), a regular in West End shows and sometimes film. She later stated that cinema, television and books were her way of ‘self-education’. This ‘education’ led to her becoming besotted with cinema, eventually landing her first stage role in a school production of Maxwell Anderson’s “Mary of Scotland”.

Her film career began three years after she graduated from the Feagin School of Drama and Radio. In Gaslight (George Cukor’s 1944 film based upon the Patrick Hamilton 1938 play), she amassed high praise for her performance, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Several instances of her early film work gained her accolades such as this, highlighting her flair for dramatic roles as much as comedic ones.

Angela Lansbury kept us glued to the screen and always invested in the trajectory of her character, regardless of whether she took a supporting or leading role in a project. From her highly nuanced performances of individualist upper-class dames such as “Mame” (for which she originated the role on Broadway in 1966) and quick-witted sleuthing detective Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote, her evident acting flair always led us to become engrossed in her performances on stage and on the screen.

The performances mentioned below only skim the surface of her extensive filmography, which houses multiple gems and intergenerational classics. While there is much of Angela Lansbury’s work to discover and enjoy, these are Angela Lansbury’s 3 Career-Defining Performances.

1. The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)

Angela Lansbury’s contribution to Albert Lewin’s adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s classic novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray” marks the first of her turns at the heart of many book-turned-film pieces. She plays tavern singer Sibyl Vane who falls for – and is briefly engaged to – the titular protagonist Dorian Gray (Hurd Hatfield). The movie itself is shot in black-and-white, with an interesting use of Technicolour to indicate the handsome, or degenerate, portrait of Dorian. It gained 6 nominations in total, most notably a Golden Globe win for Angela Lansbury (detailed below), and an Oscars Best Cinematography win for Harry Stradling. Interestingly, both Wilde (who penned the novel) and Lewin (the film’s director) posthumously won the 1996 Hugo Award, a literary award for Best Dramatic Presentation.

Despite being just eighteen years old, Angela Lansbury holds her own amongst her co-stars. In one particular instance, she watches Dorian playing Chopin’s “Prelude No. 24” at his piano. She enters the room wordlessly and has minimal dialogue with Dorian after he has finished playing. Her posture and intense but deeply thoughtful gaze immediately convey the chemistry she has with him, indicating a slew of unspoken thoughts. Another moment of note is when she sings “Goodbye Little Yellow Bird” – Lansbury’s classical vocal training and sweet vocal tone shine through here. This musical moment encapsulates her enigmatic performance.

It is easy to see how Angela Lansbury earned the 1945 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her turn in this film. She also got nominated for the 1945 Oscar for the same category but lost to Anne Revere (National Velvet). Her mature and assured command of the screen in this role led the pathway to her highly acclaimed career.

2. The Reluctant Debutante (1958)

The Reluctant Debutante was directed by Vicente Minnelli and the screenplay was written by William Douglas-Home (who also wrote the 1955 play). It was not nominated for any awards, but it came in at number 12 on the British Box Office’s Most Popular Film for 1959. Angela plays Mabel Claremont, Sheila Broadbent’s (Kay Kendall’s) chatty friend. The cast also includes Rex Harrison as Jimmy Broadbent and Sandra Dee as Jane Broadbent. The film was remade in 2003 under the title What a Girl Wants, with Amanda Bynes as Daphne Reynolds (the updated version of Sandra Dee’s character) and Colin Firth as Henry Dashwood (a modern version of Rex Harrison’s character).

In The Reluctant Debutante, the role of Mabel particularly showcases Lansbury’s impeccable comedic timing. The scenes in which she schemes alongside the Broadbent couple are deliciously funny; her lines are delivered with an utterly charming smoothness that keeps you endlessly curious about how she will end up strong-arming the outcome of her daughter’s fate. A highlight of Lansbury’s performance in this film is one of her earlier scenes when she and her daughter meet Jane Broadbent for the first time. Angela carries an eccentric bravado with this character that leaves you open-mouthed in a state of shocked awe. The way she commands the driver to move her bags so that everyone can ‘squeeze together’ in the same car is so slick that it leaves you out of breath just watching it.

Something significant to note with this entry is that it marks the actor’s move from being typecast as the ingenue to a more motherly and mature figure. Lansbury’s performances within adapted films act as bookmarks to her acting development. Blue Hawaii (1961) serves as another example of this, as it sees her playing mother to the iconic Elvis Presley and donning a southern accent with tremendous comedic beats. Her roles in films of this type showcase her ability for levity alongside her well-shown dramatic acting talents. This goes to show that throughout her life, and subsequently through her performances, Lansbury highlights different nuances within different characters to make them jump off of the page and onto the screen.

3. Beauty and the Beast (1991)

Beauty and the Beast Review

The final film in this Career-Defining Performances list is an all-time animated classic. Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, amazingly in their directorial debuts, with songs penned by the legendary Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, Beauty and the Beast won multiple awards, including both the Academy Award and the Golden Globe for Best Score. It also became the first animated film to ever be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Angela Lansbury plays the iconic wisecracking, heart-on-her-sleeve Mrs Potts. In other words, the perfect maternal character archetype.

Throughout Beauty and the Beast, Lansbury infuses charm and motherly warmth into the character of Mrs Potts through her nuanced vocal delivery. Additionally, her singing elevates this, which in turn has gifted us a beautiful Disney love ballad. To wax lyrical (excuse the pun, à la Lumière!) on the origins of this ballad for a moment, it is widely known that Angela delivered “Tale as Old as Time” in just one take. Unbelievably, she did not think that she was fit to sing a romantic ballad as it was not within her usual vocal repertoire. Thank goodness she was convinced otherwise, as that one-take-wonder is what is seen on screen. Throughout the film, whilst both singing and speaking, with her effortless yet grounded performance, she breathes life into a teapot – a feat that only she could make possible.

The trajectory of Angela Lansbury’s career progressed from ingenue (with Sybil in The Picture of Dorian Gray) to maternal figure (see the description of her work in The Reluctant Debutante) to grandmother-type roles. This final archetype, in many ways, has crystallized the legacy of her standout characters. Lansbury herself remarked that these roles “pulled her out of the abyss” following her husband’s death in 2003. It is easy to see why as, within the context of these films, her characterisations have maintained levity and emotional grounding to audiences in the decades that have followed. Some examples of these are Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna Romanov (Anastasia’s grandmother) in Anastasia (1997) and the withdrawn-but-ultimately-nurturing Eglantine Price in another classic Disney flick, Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971).

It is arguable that this role in Beauty and the Beast cemented her legacy. With her contribution to this picture, she introduced her acting feats to a new generation of film-watchers who had never before been exposed to her work. Due to the mark that this carved on not only her career, but on Disney’s history and the trajectory of the roles she played, Angela Lansbury is and will be forever synonymous with this part which will eternally gain new legions of fans in all stages of their lives.

Recommended for you: Marilyn Monroe: 3 Career-Defining Performances

During her 96-year life, Angela Lansbury chalked up 122 acting credits to her name. The discussion of the three above performances, as well as the allusion to several more, evidently serves as a summary of her career: the performances are incredibly varied and efficiently delivered by a master of her craft, wherein that delivery subsequently lives on beyond her life. To quote the master herself, “actors are not made, they are born.”

Written by Alannah Purslow

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Walken has showcased his dramatic power in Oscar-winning performances in dramas such as Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter (1978) and brought his dead-eyed intensity to blockbuster villain work in the likes of A View to a Kill (1985) and Batman Returns (1992). The often-impersonated quirks in his style, alongside his enigmatic charisma, have allowed him to make scene-stealing cameos á la Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction (1994) and Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can (2002). His musical performances in the iconic Fatboy Slim video for “Weapon of Choice” or even in the 2007 remake of Hairspray speak for themselves. At eighty years old he has never been a more loved or sought after figure, maintaining longevity through his individuality, humour and underrated sensitivity that he brings to each project.

These three performances are him at his best. When he is able to freely express all of his talents in a lead role. His mouth twitches and his focus flickers, he moves in strange patterns across the screen as a lost young soldier, a cursed man, and a criminal monster. All three of them are doomed and despite the fact that we all know how their stories will end, Walken’s presence makes it impossible to tear your eyes away from their tragedies. These are Christopher Walken’s 3 Career-Defining Performances.

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1. The Deer Hunter (1978)

Michael Cimino’s 1978 Vietnam epic tells the story of three steelworkers, from a Slavic-American immigrant community in Pennsylvania, who are plunged into the depths of the Vietnam War. The film deals with how the men’s wartime trauma severs them from their community, even as it attempts to reintegrate them.

Walken plays Nikanor Chevotarevich (or ‘Nick’), one of the boys who goes to fight for his country and descends into heroin addiction and gambling on his life in Russian Roulette. In this character, he portrays the most tragic outcome of Cimino’s premise.

The first hour of the film focuses on the hard-drinking camaraderie of the group of male friends, Walken excelling at portraying Nick’s boisterous energy (offering an extended example of his dancing abilities during the Russian wedding). He gives Nick a magnetic charm that people rarely associate with Walken, which extends to his relationships with the other men in the group. Nick is equally at ease quietly hunting with Robert De Niro’s Mike, swiping at John Cazale, and sharing tender, joyous moments with Meryl Streep. Walken gives us an intoxicatingly credible depiction of a man enthralled by the possibility of his youth.

The palpable freedom of spirit makes Nick’s unravelling more brutal, as Walken captures both the emotional extremes of his torture by the Viet-Cong and the collapse of Nick’s sense of self as a result of the ensuing trauma. The first Russian roulette scene feels as if De Niro and Walken are pushing themselves to the edge of a mental abyss. You can practically smell the sweat through the screen as Nick is just about held in the present by the slap of Mike’s voice. Walken shows that salvation from that situation comes at a high price. The memory of the bright young man from Pennsylvania has been shattered. His eyes become dark, expressionless caverns and his face begins to take on a studied blankness that becomes more sinister as his character recedes into the underbelly of Hanoi.

In Mike’s final, doomed attempt to retrieve him, we see Walken complete Nick’s metamorphosis. He has become a heroin-addled shell, barely emoting except a brief malevolent smile as he once again puts a pistol to his familiar temple. His eyes are now glassy and spectral and, in watching this scene, we become aware that Nick is trapped between the hollow clicks that issue from the empty chamber. Unable to move back from the trauma of his experiences, irrevocably aware of what awaits on the next pull of the trigger.

The devastating honesty of Walken’s performance makes the human drama intensely compelling in its exploration of the effects of combat. Walken showed himself to be a truly heartbreaking actor, recognised with an Academy Award for Supporting Actor and announcing himself as a legitimate star more than capable of sharing the screen with any of the greats of his generation.

2. The Dead Zone (1983)

Following his breakout in The Deer Hunter, it would take a couple of films for Walken to be given the space to test his talents for a strange kind of humanity (diverting as he is in the vaguely schlocky John Irvin film The Dogs of War). He found the perfect space to experiment more with his eccentricities alongside master horror and thriller director David Cronenberg, with a story from the mind of Stephen King. The Dead Zone is a thriller about schoolteacher Johnny Smith who suffers a horrific car crash and spends five years in a coma. When he wakes up he is able to see people’s horrific pasts and futures by touch.

In this role, Walken once again plays a man who is separated from society and forced to come to terms with his transformative circumstances. Unlike Nick, who is mentally fragmented by the effects of war, Johnny must deal with his broken body and the loss of his marriage as a result of his coma and the alienation he suffers from announcing his psychic abilities. He plays Johnny with an overwhelming sense of decency, despite his justifiable frustration with his circumstances. He reacts to the traumatic visions that he witnesses in an intensely believable way, showing lasting pain and disorientation from these experiences. He commendably avoids any macho-posturing that lesser actors might have given the character.

There is a sense of powerlessness even in the scenes where he does lose control of his anger, such as smashing a vase when trying to convince Anthony Zerbe’s businessman to believe his premonitions of his son’s impending death. The sadness on Walken’s washed-out face tells you that this is nothing more than the legitimate outburst of a man imprisoned by his knowledge of a world no one else can see.

He makes even more great choices in the scenes with Brooke Adams (as Sarah), the woman he was supposed to marry before the accident. Walken keeps himself as self-contained as possible, mouth twitching into quickly smothered half-smiles, sneaking glances at her as he unsuccessfully tries to spare her from his anguish. Johnny Smith is as unsteady on his feet as he is at interacting with Sarah. This broken, powerful connection between the two actors clues us in to the heavy realisation that Johnny Smith would rather he never woke up.

Walken’s performance in this film is perhaps one of his most understated and disciplined. For an actor that exists in the public imagination by the way he is caricatured by others, his work as Johnny Smith is a powerful reminder of his supreme understanding of his craft. You feel nothing but sympathy for this blandly named man. The humanity in Walken’s work makes it required viewing for Cronenberg fans and cements its place as one of the best Stephen King adaptations ever put to screen.

3. King of New York (1990)

In the new decade, alongside the Bronx-born king of sleaze, Abel Ferrara, Christopher Walken cemented his status as a cinematic icon. In his role as the titular King of New York, mobster Frank White, he wraps the Shakespearean gangster classic round his Machiavellian fingers like garotte wire.

White demanded Walken at his most reptilian, a human embodiment of the amoral excesses that surround the Arctic, cocaine-pounding heart of the city. It is a distillation of the small techniques that make his acting style so fundamentally watchable and unique. The playful shifts in facial expression, the unnerving hesitations, the clear dead eyes that snap focus like a neck. Frank White lurches between lust, violence, anger and joy sometimes in a single scene. All with a bleakly self-aware sense of irony about himself, as if his existence is some kind of Satanic joke. In his first meeting with his old gang following his release from prison, White tries on the glove of an old enemy they have gunned down on his release. “King Tito’s glove,” he gleefully mumbles to a confused looking Theresa Randle, grinning in childlike awe that his power remains untouched.

Walken plays White as a man who has made up his mind to take as much from life as possible before it takes everything from him. This awareness is what makes scenes such as his reckless killing of Frank Caruso’s violent cop Dennis at a police funeral all the more chilling. White does not waste any time verbalising his revenge, he simply rolls down the window of his limo, with a stare harder than the lead in his shotgun, and says “hey you.”

These chilling scenes are interspersed with Walken exercising his snakelike charm as he hobnobs with the various New York power players. He shows himself to be equally adept flirting with lawyers and flattering newspaper editors as he is making drug deals at a hospital. Walken lends White a seductive, vampiric quality to contrast the emotionless way in which he delivers violence. He is an Americanised update on the Dracula of Christopher Lee, trading his fangs for a gun, feasting on money and despair. Supported by the continued hypocrisy of the municipal institutions that publicly disavow him.

Walken and Ferrara are too honest to engage in the slow unmasking that takes place in traditional vampire stories. There are no illusions around Frank White. He is at once completely connected to the city, safe to haunt the subways alone, as he is to swim with the sharks in the Plaza hotel. A man just as capable of exploding into dance as he is into violence. It is an exceptionally complex performance that Walken makes look effortless, providing a level of intense detachment that makes Frank White simultaneously the sanest and most deranged character in the film.

It is the greatest performance Christopher Walken has ever given and, although the film was not particularly successful or recognised upon its release, King of New York is now rightly understood to be one of the classics of the genre; the dirty cousin to Goodfellas and The Godfather.

Recommended for you: Laurence Fishburne: 3 Career-Defining Performances

Christopher Walken has managed an exceptional, independent career over the past five decades. He remains an inevitably memorable presence regardless of the quality of the film around him. These three films are some of the best examples of him exploring his full range of talents and are some of his most complex performances, but he is equally compelling even if he appears in a single scene. When asked about his choice to hire Walken for his science-fiction drama ‘Severance’, Ben Stiller simply replied “because I’m not crazy.”

Written by Joshua Imas

You can find Joshua Imas online via Medium at medium.com/@s.imas.

His performance as Morpheus is what Laurence Fishburne will be eternally remembered for but, in all his other years as an actor, Fishburne has tended to play interesting and thought-provoking characters. Fans of the Francis Ford Coppola war film Apocalypse Now (1979) will surely remember a fresh-faced Fishburne appearing as the cocky but charming Tyrone Miller aka Mr. Clean. Determined at a young age to break into the film industry, a then 14-year-old Fishburne lied about his age to get the part in the legendary project – how different his life could have been if this mischievous decision blew up in the young man’s face.

Francis Ford Coppola’s film should have been the catalyst for a rapid rise to stardom, and yet Fishburne’s career trajectory wasn’t as comfortable as one might think. The early part of the 1980s led the actor down a path of minor television and stage appearances, while working as a bouncer in the New York club scene. Such a resolute figure wasn’t deterred though, and it was Coppola once again that gave the actor another break with a supporting role in The Cotton Club (1984), before he popped up in Steven Spielberg’s critically acclaimed film The Color Purple (1985). The 80s were an important part of Fishburne’s apprenticeship, opening the door to the most successful and important decade of his career: the 1990s.

The 90s is the decade that will forever define Laurence Fishburne as a screen presence, and it is in these 10 years that his three career-defining performances are found. What began with King of New York in 1990, ended with his role as Morpheus in The Matrix in 1999. The decade turned him into a bona fide star, one with incredible talent and diversity, and led to formidable success in the new millennium in franchises such as John Wick and ‘Hannibal’. We at The Film Magazine are here for something in particular though, so let’s delve into the three performances that have cultivated an impressive and often underappreciated career.

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1. Boyz n the Hood (1991)

1991 was the year that Larry Fishburne (the name he went by up until 1993) got his first major iconic role in the late John Singleton’s legendary Boyz n the Hood. The film’s undeniable legacy was cemented from the beginning, and it hasn’t waned since.

The film depicts life on the mean streets of South Central Los Angeles through the eyes of the young Jason “Tre” Styles 111 (Cuba Gooding Jr.), and his friends Ricky Baker (Morris Chestnut) and Darrin “Doughboy” Baker (Ice Cube), the latter now being a fully-fledged member of the Crips gang after his release from prison. The film’s grittiness and authentic representation of such violent streets is what propelled it into the public eye, but it was the teachings and the wisdom of Fishburne’s character, Jason “Furious” Styles Jr., that made the biggest impact.

Fishburne is tremendous in this authoritative role as the former soldier and current community activist fighting for what he believes and guiding his impressionable son into the light. His various speeches throughout the film – whether a discreet talk with his son or his preaching on the side of the road – are some of Boyz n the Hood’s most intelligent and powerful moments. Boyz n the Hood is etched into black history; furious is the man who knows all too well about the racism and discrimination that his people have faced and continue to experience. And yet, instead of violence, this monk-like figure relies on education, inspiration, and enlightenment to help his brothers and sisters in the fight against the system and the people that enforce it.

The South Central streets are ruthless. They will chew you up and spit you out. Fishburne’s Furious knows this, and his parental instincts go into overdrive when Trey moves in with him. The connection that the two characters develop is meaningful; Trey not only has a caring father figure in his life to keep him on the straight and narrow, but he has an actual father, something that the other boys in the area do not. Fishburne’s interpretation of the character is majestic; his mannerisms, his use of intelligent thought and reasoning, is what separates the character from the rest, and it is this that makes him truly memorable.

A lack of award nominations can’t even derail the impact that Furious Styles had on the future of black cinema, and we’ve seen multiple amalgamations of this character in cinema ever since – you could say that Morpheus is just another design of the same character, teaching the same ideologies for a better and more fruitful future. Fishburne really knocked it out of the park in Boyz n the Hood, and his success in the role is what allowed him to step it up a notch for his next gigantic performance in 1993.

2. What’s Love Got to Do with It (1993)

Brian Gibson’s What’s Love Got to Do with It is a film that needs little introduction. This interpretation of the life and career of the legendary Tina Tuner and her abusive relationship with Ike Tuner is one of the greatest biopics of all time – it never shies away from the violence of their relationship and is as brutal as it is magnificent. Ike and Turner: the band, the relationship, the… romance? Their venomous relationship shrouded an incredibly successful musical partnership that had the pair headlining arenas with the likes of The Rolling Stones and Otis Redding before it all fell apart because of Ike’s self-destructive ego and his cowardly violent streak.

The film’s success couldn’t have been what it was without two monumental performances leading the way, and that’s exactly what it had. Reunited so soon after both appeared in Boyz n the Hood (Bassett portrayed the ex-wife of Fishburne’s character in the 1991 film), Angela Bassett portrays Tina and Laurence Fishburne plays Ike; an incredibly formidable on-screen partnership that led to the pair receiving nominations at that year’s Oscars. What’s Love Got to Do with It begins very softly by exploring the origins of Tina Turner, real name Anna Mae Bullock. The future star’s love of music, her incredible singing voice, and how she fell in love with her soon-to-be husband and eventual nemesis. Even though it’s Tina’s singing voice you hear in the film, Bassett’s perfect lip syncing and expertly performed mannerisms through months of endless mimicking make you think that it truly is her, but it is Fishburne’s performance that ends up being the most iconic.

Laurence Fishburne’s iteration of Ike is the devil incarnate. It is the complete opposite representation of a man than his performance as Furious Styles – to swing so far right with this character is a testament to Fishburne’s diverse acting palette. The film was known as not being absolute gospel, but the material given by Tina herself (from her autobiography “I Tina”), which was then merged with Kate Lanier’s exquisite screenplay, allowed Fishburne to create his version of the man that very much existed in one form or another. The manipulation that began with niceties but was really a form of grooming is truly shocking and vicious, and Fishburne nails this.

It says a lot about Laurence Fishburne’s performance that the man himself, the real-life Ike Turner, praised Fishburne for the role in his own autobiography “Takin’ Back My Name”, even if he did claim the film ruined his reputation – it seems as if you did an awful lot of that yourself, Mr. Turner. Some of the scenes were said to be so tough to film, mentally and physically, that it becomes slightly poignant when you understand that Fishburne was incredibly attentive towards Bassett during these scenes, always wanting her to feel comfortable and at ease. Not only is the man a terrific actor but he’s a genuinely nice guy it seems as well, which only adds to the magnitude of this performance.

Two iconic roles in two years though, it doesn’t get much better than that, does it? If only he knew where these two performances would eventually lead him – to a dystopian future with monstrous acclaim.

3. The Matrix (1999)

For an actor to end the most critically acclaimed decade of their career, as well as wrap up the millennium, with a film like The Matrix is almost unheard of. It could have been very different though, if Will Smith accepted the role of Neo and Sean Connery (yes, you read that right) didn’t choose Entrapment instead – although, let your mind wander for a bit and just imagine that possibility. It was everyone else’s gain though because, looking back, Laurence Fishburne and Keanu Reeves were perfectly cast in The Wachowski’s science fiction epic. With a script and premise that hardly any of the cast and crew understood (apart from Fishburne of course… or at least so he claims), and with the schedule packed with fighting choreography, wire-training, special effects, and managing injuries, it was doomed to fail. Thankfully, it did not.

After Thomas Anderson, “Neo”, begins to accept that things aren’t all as they seem to be in his world of computer hacking, a mysterious woman called Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) explains that a man named Morpheus (Fishburne) has all the answers Neo needs. The wheels of thought in Neo’s brain begin to move, and it’s not long before he meets the mysterious Morpheus who preaches his now infamous red pill, blue pill speech to him, thus beginning a journey of awakening. Morpheus is captain of a ship in the real world, but also acts as the preacher and mentor to the others in his search for “The One”, something he thinks he has found in Neo.

Morpheus is like an amalgamation of several of Laurence Fishburne’s previous characters; the deep-thinking attitude of Furious, the often over confidence of Ike Turner, and the caring nature of Fishburne himself. His portrayal of Morpheus is one of the most recognizable performances in modern cinema; whether it’s the tiny black sunglasses or the long leather coat, Morpheus is as big and important to the franchise as Neo is.

His character has the best dialogue in the series too. Quotes such as “Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real?”, and “Don’t think you are. Know you are,” as he proceeds to beat Neo black and blue in the now famous dojo scene, are particular standouts. Morpheus is Yoda, he is Gandalf; an all-powerful figure that always has the good of the world in his mind.

Fishburne couldn’t have played the role any better than he did. Without him, The Matrix was a guaranteed bust – that might be brutally honest, but everyone knows it to be true. Say what you like about the sequels – they do run hot and cold – but Morpheus is one of the shining lights in both. The dynamic that Reeves and Fishburne have is undeniable; they are magnetic and propel each other to new heights in each scene they share – an even greater chemistry than the one Fishburne had with Bassett.

It feels almost poetic that Laurence Fishburne would end the decade with a character of such note. After struggling for years for a role of any significance, for him to then enter the 2000s as this iconic figure is a dream so real it becomes truth. Where do you go from success like this though? It’s a task of immense pressure to keep up with appearances, for most people that is, but one that Laurence Fishburne grabbed with both hands and drove forward.

Recommended for you: Where to Start with Keanu Reeves

In the years since The Matrix, Fishburne has found considerable success. Along with his role as Jack Crawford opposite Mads Mikkelsen and his reunion with Reeves in John Wick, Fishburne has also appeared in both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC Universe. Whatever future success Fishburne achieves, it will be because of that special decade of the 90s that changed his life forever, and as fans of cinema and the man himself, we wouldn’t want it any other way.

Written by John McDonald

You can support John McDonald in the following places:

Website: My Little Film Blog
Muck Rack: John McDonald
Twitter: @JohnPMcDonald17

Although her career is most memorable for her work and confrontations with iconic director Stanley Kubrick, Shelley Duvall’s film career was shaped the most by her frequent collaborations with award-winning director Robert Altman. From 1970 to 1980, Duvall featured in seven of Altman’s films, even making her acting debut in the director’s 1970 film Brewster McCloud after some of the crewmembers working on the film discovered her at a party and were amused by her selling artwork made by her then-husband Bernard Sampson. They convinced her to bring some of the paintings along to an “art patron” they knew – which turned out to be an audition with Robert Altman and his producer, Lou Adler.

Duvall continued acting for 30 years, going on to host and produce ‘Shelley Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre’, which ran from 1982 to 1987 and retold classic fairy tales for kids. In 2002, however, Duvall made what was to be her final performance in Manna from Heaven, around which time she announced her retirement from acting and moved back to her home state of Texas. Not much was heard from her for around 20 years, until she made her return to acting in 2023 horror film The Forest Hills.

Although she took such a large break from acting, her impact as a performer can still be felt: Duvall’s filmography offers some of cinema’s greats, and her influence is still evident across the performances fronting Hollywood films to this day. She gave something real to the films she was in, her large eyes filling the screen, lending an innocence to each of her characters and endearing us to her. She has been celebrated for iconic fashion and incredible performances, her diversity and range proving her incredible talent as a performer. These are the three performances that best define her career, Shelley Duvall’s most significant contributions to cinema.

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1. 3 Women (1977)

Inspired by a dream that director Robert Altman had, 3 Women follows the lives of three very different women who become mixed up in each other’s lives (and personalities). Pinkie Rose (Sissy Spacek) becomes strangely fascinated with her co-worker turned roommate, Millie Lammoreaux (Shelley Duvall), adapting her mannerisms and attempting to become her. The film was influenced by Ingmar Bergman’s Persona (1966), and explores themes of identity and the ways that women lend and borrow such personal things from one another. Although there is conflict between these women, and they don’t ever seem to find a comfortable meeting point, this film is ultimately about what unites them.

Shelley Duvall’s performance as Millie Lammoreaux borrowed a lot from her own identity. Duvall was responsible for writing all of Millie’s diary entries, as well as decorating her apartment and selecting the food – key components of Millie’s character. She is vain, so often focused on her appearance and trying to impress people, and yet she remains endearing. Duvall’s slender frame, doe eyes, long lashes, and perfectly styled bob give her character a sense of perfection that Duvall seemed to radiate. 

She carries herself as if she doesn’t notice her coworkers ignoring her, as if she is a polished, perfect, and happy person. But it’s that shiny demeanour that makes us feel sad for her. Millie walks out of work each day with two other women, and chats to them all about the recipes she has saved and written down. She’s so tall that she peers over the two women, but her words fall on deaf ears. Duvall has a way of focusing her body language towards them, as if they’re also engaged in the conversation. She’s desperate to earn their attention, to share as many quips and titbits as she can before she parts ways and heads to her car, never fully turning her head away even as she is walking away. It’s almost as if she doesn’t realise people find her annoying. Her smile never seems to falter, even as people are rude to her face. Millie appears to have everything, but really she lives a very lonely life.  

It is only when Pinkie becomes more integrated into Millie’s life that Millie’s shiny exterior begins to crack. Pinkie’s clumsiness makes her the perfect scapegoat for Millie’s misfortune and she begins to snap at her. Duvall plays a very subtle kind of cruel, in her narrowed eyes and pointed tone. Her patience visibly wears thin, and builds to a crescendo at the climax of the film, Duvall shaking and screaming with a level of rage that didn’t seem possible at the beginning of the film. 

Shelley Duvall won the award for Best Actress at Cannes Film Festival in 1977 for her performance in 3 Women. It was not only her first time winning an award, but also her first time being nominated. It was her performance in this film that caught the eye of Stanley Kubrick, director of The Shining, who rang her on the phone and told her she was great at crying – and consequently offered her the role of Wendy Torrance.

2. The Shining (1980)

The Shining Review

Adapted from Stephen King’s novel of the same name, Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is a masterpiece of modern horror. The iconic imagery of the Grady sisters stood at the end of the hall, Jack Nicholson’s psychotic performance, and the eerie Overlook Hotel are familiar to most film fans. But what really drives the horror within each frame of The Shining is Shelley Duvall’s performance.

Duvall plays Wendy Torrance, wife of Jack Nicholson’s Jack Torrance, the latter of whom has just taken a job as caretaker of the isolated Overlook Hotel whilst it’s closed for the winter. The couple travels there with their son, Danny (Danny Lloyd), to stay in the vast hotel by themselves. As the snow blocks the roads and isolates the family, they descend into madness and begin to turn on each other as the evil of the hotel takes over. 

The Shining is famous for director Stanley Kubrick’s treatment of his cast, particularly Shelley Duvall. Kubrick insisted on doing numerous takes for his scenes, expressing disappointment when the actors appeared not to know their lines properly. The infamous staircase scene, in which Jack threatens to bash Wendy’s brains in whilst she cries and swings a bat at him, was apparently shot 127 times. Whilst this number has been disputed in recent years (Steadicam operator Garrett Brown states the number of takes was between 35 and 45), it doesn’t detract from the fact that the actors were still being forced to repeat the scene to the point of exhaustion. Duvall is said to have cried so much during filming that she was no longer able to produce tears, and had to rehydrate between takes.

The result of this repetition, whilst unfair, was a more accurate depiction of insanity. Shelley Duvall’s Wendy has often been described as ‘over-the-top’, but how else should she be reacting when her husband is threatening to kill her? This is what makes her portrayal so brilliant, so personal, and so interesting to watch. There are moments where her eyes almost pop out of her head, where she’s shaking in fear. Her screams feel real. But there are also moments where the fear is lying just under her breath, just in the slightest change of her gaze.

There are two versions of The Shining – Kubrick cut 31 minutes of material from the film after its initial release in the US. However, in the original 144 minute version, there is a scene in which Wendy is speaking to a doctor about her son, and discloses her husband’s alcoholism. Shelley Duvall plays this moment with incredible composition, presenting the gravity of the information not in her words, but in her nervous smiles and shifting eyes. It is in this moment early on in the film, which contains no elevators of blood or decaying bodies, that Duvall presents a sort of domestic horror, the kind of horror that happens behind closed doors and doesn’t get spoken about.

Alex Essoe, who played Wendy as an almost exact copy of Duvall in Doctor Sleep (2019), with the same loose black ponytail and fringe, said of the part: “It is very big shoes to fill. I think that Shelley Duvall’s performance in (The Shining) is the closest thing to a perfect performance in something.”

Shelley Duvall’s performance is beyond iconic, her dedication to the role allowing for one of the greatest and most recognisable performances in horror cinema. 

3. Popeye (1980)

The final of seven collaborations between Shelley Duvall and Robert Altman, Popeye (1980) was a movie musical adaptation of the ‘Popeye’ cartoons, which originated as a comic strip. Popeye made his first appearance in the Thimble Theatre comics in 1929, and came to life as an animated cartoon that ran from 1933-1957. The film (which began shooting in January of 1980, and was released in December of the same year) starred Robin Williams as the titular Popeye, and Shelley Duvall as the self-described “femme fatale”, Olive Oyl. Lively, sweet, and full of comic humour, Popeye is everything you could ask for from a live-action cartoon adaptation. 

When Popeye turns up in the seaside town of Sweethaven and lodges with the Oyl family, he meets the daughter of the family, Olive Oyl. Olive doesn’t seem keen on Popeye, or anything else for that matter (she can’t seem to find a nice hat for her engagement party to town brute Bluto), but she finds herself growing fond of him after they take in an abandoned baby together and name him Swee’pea. 

Duvall offers an extraordinary caricature of a cartoon character. She moves like she has been animated, bouncing up the stairs and peering around corners with just the right amount of exaggeration. Her constant exclamations of “oh!”, and her fiery jabs at Popeye, are funny and characteristically endearing, showing us the kind of strong woman she is without making her unlikeable. It’s a different Duvall than we’ve seen before – she’s playful, witty and sharp. 

Popeye served as not only a wonderful conclusion to Duvall’s work with Robert Altman, but also as a brilliantly colourful movie musical about family and standing up for yourself. Popeye stands the test of time, and is a wonderfully accessible film for those who grew up with the character on TV, as well as those who are just meeting him for the first time. Shelley Duvall’s southern twang and expressive face bring Olive Oyl to life, creating an unforgettable performance. It was on the set of Popeye that she came up with the idea for her ‘Faerie Tale Theatre’ show, as she was reading ‘The Frog Prince’ and had asked Robin Williams for his opinion. He later appeared in the series, in the ‘Frog Prince’ episode.

Popeye is the first and only time that there has been a live-action adaptation of the comic book character. Shelley Duvall and Robin Williams bounce off each other brilliantly, especially with this being Williams’ feature film debut. Popeye received two thumbs up from Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, a shining seal of approval from the two iconic film critics. In an interview with Roger Ebert, Shelley Duvall said of playing Olive Oyl: “I’ve never before been allowed to play a woman of any strength, of depth. And although Olive Oyl is a cartoon character, I think she does have depth. All of the other characters I’ve played in the movies, to me, they never really broke the surface. But Olive Oyl is 101 percent woman! She’s not Popeye’s ‘girlfriend’ I see her as a real femme fatale.”

Recommended for you: Jack Nicholson: 3 Career-Defining Performances

Across just twenty years, Shelley Duvall managed to deliver some of the era’s most memorable and celebrated performances. She showed incredible range and diversity, bringing elements of herself into her performances in ways that are not always easy. In the three films referenced, and several more for which she deserves commendation, Shelley Duvall brings an incredible sense of power, portraying deep, layered, strong, and capable women.

Written by Holly Carter

You can support Holly Carter in the following places:

Portfolio: hollycartertheatre.com
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Blaxploitation oversaw independent, low-budget, grindhouse films primarily directed by black filmmakers, become an integral part of American cinema. These films included Scream Blacula Scream (1973), Sheba, Baby (1975), Bucktown (1975) and Friday Foster (1975), all of which Grier held lead roles in. Common facets of this movement included funk and soul scores, urban settings, and, most prominently, there was an overarching premise of a black protagonist who would overtake some form of oppressive supremacy. 

Leading many of these films and defining the genre was Pam Grier, who began her stardom in the early 1970s after being cast in many of Roger Corman’s exploitation films, such as Women in Cage (1971) and The Big Bird Cage (1972). Following this, Grier began to be known for her powerhouse roles in action movies, all of which she shone in, particularly in the films Coffy (1973) and Foxy Brown (1974). Soon after, Grier became a household name thanks to her recurring role in ‘Miami Vice’ (1985-1989), where she played the strong-minded NYPD detective Valerie Gordon. As the years passed, her career continued to flourish, with much of her acclaimed reputation being owed to her captivating performance in Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown (1997), which earned a string of nominations, including an Emmy Award, a Satellite Award, and a Golden Globe. 

Pam Grier, actress, singer, and all-around renowned cinematic icon, has harvested a career many can only dream of, with over one hundred acting credits to her name. With such dense credentials, curating a list of her must-sees is quite the task; that’s why we at The Film Magazine have curated the ultimate guide to Pam Grier’s Career-Defining Performances. 

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1. Coffy (1973)

Straight from The Big Doll House (1971) and The Big Bird Cage (1972), director Jack Hill was desperate to collaborate with Pam Grier again after her powerful performances in his previous two films. Casting Grier was a successful move considering Coffy’s contemporary reputation as being one of the most iconic grindhouse movies and featuring one of Grier’s best performances.

Coffy (1973) took a notable stance against drugs and had a woman as its crime-fighting protagonist, which was relatively rare for its time. Typically, substances and the overt sexualisation of women were glorified within 1970s cinema, with the scandalisation over both matters acting as visual eroticism rather than a critical story device.

In Coffy, sex and drugs were flipped to create a narrative that presented Grier’s character as a nurse turned vigilante, fighting against the system that caused her sister’s drug addiction and eventual demise. Grier, as Coffy, was a hardworking, no-excuses, unshakeable go-getter who would stop at nothing to restore order. 

Prior to Coffy, Grier was already making a name for herself, climbing the ladder of success. Her role in Coffy helped to propel her status as a lead performer, instigating an exciting career that only continued to grow.

2. Foxy Brown (1974)

Just shy of a year removed from the release of Coffy was Foxy Brown (1974), another criminal escapade directed by Jack Hill and starring Pam Grier. The success of Grier and Hill’s Coffy saw producers desperate for a sequel, yet the rocky relationship between studios and Hill meant that this idea was rapidly scrapped, with executives favouring the prospects of a standalone feature. Despite the turbulent territory, one plea that was set in stone was the matter of Grier reprising her role as a fearless heroine. 

Foxy Brown epitomises Grier’s filmography. Even in her most stern roles, playing the typical ‘tough as nails’ vigilante, she still delivers a heartfelt performance where every act of violence is entwined with passion and emotion.

The character of Foxy Brown is not just a bloodthirsty woman on the path to revenge; she is also a fully fleshed-out, multi-dimensional character whose chaotic journey comes from a place of sincerity. Whilst Hill’s writing undoubtedly aids in Foxy’s embellished persona, the film’s effectiveness is primarily due to Pam Grier’s ability to bring such passion and intensity even into the most complicated of characters.

3. Jackie Brown (1997)

Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown (1997) houses performances from legendary actors such as Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Forster, Robert De Niro, and Bridget Fonda. Yet, the one star that truly steals the show is Pam Grier, who plays a flight attendant caught up in the criminal world.

At the time of filming, Grier had been causing waves in the film industry for decades, establishing a career that many believed to be set in stone. Jackie Brown proved that Grier had only just begun her reign as one of the most significant actresses of the era.

Quentin Tarantino has always been loud in his declaration of love for the cinema of the 1970s, with Pam Grier being a significant part of the decade’s influence. When casting for his upcoming hit, Tarantino only had one actress in mind for the role.

Grier could have reprised her typical role of a powerhouse, slick, criminally-coded heroine, but the actress angles her character in a way that showcases her complex talents. She is a stern, hard-headed woman capable of a major double-crossing mission, but she also maintains a warmth and sensitivity that shines through in each and every shot.

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Pam Grier has had a diverse career that highlights her adaptive talents. She entirely dominates the screen and demands attention, with her siren looks and even feistier characters making a film go from an entertaining piece to an iconic instant must-see. Over the years, Grier has gone from one success to another, with her cinematic status reaching the top of the hierarchy.

During a five-year stint between the National Guard and active military duty, Nicholson began to train with the Players Ring Theatre, which enhanced his burgeoning desire for a life in front of the camera. He soon booked the lead role in Roger Corman’s The Cry Baby Killer (1958). Minor roles in Corman films such as The Little Shop of Horrors (1960), The Raven (1963), and The Terror (1963) followed. However, after the casting agents stopped calling, Nicholson wrote scripts for films such as The Trip (1967) and Head (1968). Only a mere year after setting sights on a career behind the scenes, Nicholson got his big acting break in Easy Rider (1969), playing a troubled lawyer and earning himself his first Academy Award nomination. 

After Easy Rider, Nicholson became a blockbuster name and honed in his anti-hero character work in films such as Five Easy Pieces (1970) and Chinatown (1974). Throughout the following decades, Nicholson clarified his stardom, becoming known for delivering bold performances that propelled whatever movie he featured in.

Nominated for twelve Academy Awards – three of which he won – Jack Nicholson is the most-nominated male performer in Oscars history. With such notoriety and acclaim, and a further fifty-plus feature performances to his name, Jack Nicholson is now renowned for his individualistic style and consistent quality of performance. What follows is The Film Magazine’s guide to this legendary actor’s most defining work: Jack Nicholson’s 3 Career-Defining Performances.

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1. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

Near the beginning of Jack Nicholson’s stampede of success, actor Michael Douglas acquired the story rights to Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, a tragic tale of what goes on behind the scenes at a strict mental institution. Nicholson played Randle McMurphy, a worker transferred from an institutional work farm to a psychiatric hospital. 

The film takes on heavy themes such as friendship, freedom, and stigmatism against disabilities. It imparts them against the backdrop of authoritarian rule to unveil the ingrained cruelness that society holds over those deemed problematic. Randle’s journey begins with his bravado overshining the constrictive institutional environment, clashing with the staff, as he slowly develops an understanding of what true horrors lie within the walls of a should-be-safe place. By the finale, he has gone through the most inhumane of circumstances.

To exhibit such conflicting emotions, from valiant determination to asserting a feeble weakness, is a daunting task that many actors would be unable to face with the same genuineness that Nicholson employs. Despite the incredible script and commendable supporting performances, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest would not be the same classic piece of cinema it is now without Nicholson’s admirable ability to put on such a raw display.

2. The Shining (1980)

The Shining Review

Malcolm McDowell may have been the first to don the intense direct stare at the camera (in A Clockwork Orange), but Jack Nicholson’s deadly glare as his character’s (Jack Torrance’s) psyche fully unravels is the most infamous and compelling example of the Kubrick Stare. 

The Shining is often considered one of the scariest films of all time and acclaimed filmmaker Stanley Kubrick’s best contribution. Like any film falling under those two categories, a powerful performance is at the core of its success. With Torrance’s arc carrying a burdensome intensity, no other actor was more fitting for the job than Nicholson.

Nicholson quickly hits every stylistic beat with his haunting Kubrick Stare, menacing smile, and aptly sinister furrowed brow. His performative flair has become synonymous with The Shining’s ominous and disturbing aesthetics. His dramatic portrayal of an unhinged man at the end of his tether compliments his expressive performance, making for a profoundly unforgettable experience. 

Contributing to this career-defining performance is Nicholson’s employment of method acting. The actor would spend countless hours fleshing out his character with co-star Shelley Duvall, mediating their on-screen relationship’s early days and hurdles. Further expanding upon Torrance’s depth, Nicholson constantly remained in character, cutting his rest time to appear agitated and on edge. 

In proper Nicholson form, The Shining sees the actor sweep us off our feet, captivating our gaze and ultimately dominating the screen. 

3. The Pledge (2001)

After The Shining, Jack Nicholson continued his stampede of award-winning roles, including his standout performance in As Good as It Gets (1997), a warm romantic ’dramedy’. However, one film that consistently slips through the cracks during the latter stages of his career is The Pledge, a harrowing, sorrowful, and stirring story of Jerry Black, a veteran detective determined to solve a young girl’s murder. 

The Pledge sees Nicholson in his rarest role, tackling a character with his classic punch of brutal power, but with a sense of delicacy and tenderness that shows off his ability to portray raw melancholy. 

The role of a muddle-minded detective whose soul has become so entrenched in an unsolved case is not unfamiliar to the thriller genre, with films such as Seven (1995) and Prisoners (2013) immediately springing to mind. And whilst these alternatives each feature stellar performances, Nicholson goes above and beyond to create an intricately woven, detailed portrayal that makes his persona disappear; you don’t see Nicholson playing a role, you see Det. Jerry Black, a ‘real’ person. The barriers between screen and reality are broken as we become immersed in Nicholson’s heart-wrenching study of a man swallowed by the harsh truths surrounding him. 

Recommended for you: Shelley Duvall: 3 Career-Defining Performances

Over the years, Jack Nicholson has proven his capabilities, carefully curating his performances to conjure the most explorative and rounded acting portfolio ever seen. The sheer quantity of appearances made throughout his career is undoubtedly impressive. Still, more than anything, it is the absolute emotive force seen in every role he undertakes that makes Jack Nicholson one of the true greats.

Curry first caught the bug for performing in his university days, eventually joining a swing band before graduating in English and drama. During these early years, Curry ensured that his devotion to drama would not die on his academic certificate as he swiftly booked a role in the London musical “Hair” (1968), where he happened to meet future collaborator Richard O’Brien. Amidst these sophomore years, Curry continued to blossom under the bright lights in productions such as “Life of Galileo” (1971) and “Cinderella” (1972), earning a stellar reputation along the way.

As Curry was earning his acclaimed Broadway status, he put himself forward for O’Brien’s upcoming stage play, “The Rocky Horror Show” (1973-), and was eventually cast in the lead role. The show was a bustling success, with Curry’s performance as the enigmatic Dr Frank-N-Furter eventually leading him to reprise his role in the show’s cinematic adaptation. This would be Curry’s first role in a movie, but it would certainly not be his last, the artist featuring in over forty films over the next five decades.

Being able to transform into a character, to become immersed in the role so much that the barrier between screen and reality is ripped away, is a rarely attainable talent. In celebration of Curry’s commendable work over the years, The Film Magazine has curated this evaluation of Tim Curry’s three career-defining performances.

Follow @thefilmagazine on Twitter.

1. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)

The Rocky Horror Picture Show Review

The Rocky Horror Picture Show has become so entwined with its lavish visuals, energetic musical numbers, and the zany storyline, that it has become both a cultural phenomenon and one of, if not the most, career-defining performance of Tim Curry’s lengthy career. When questioned about what reminds people of Tim Curry, many will recall him bound in a black-jewelled corset, ripped fishnet stockings, bright red lipstick, and a mop of curly hair. His portrayal of the infamous Dr Frank-N-Furter is an iconic look that has helped coin the glorious madness cult cinema is known for.

Curry’s staple role in this wacky extravaganza is a testament to how crucial actors are to the success of a film. Whilst the staging, costumes, and soundtrack are all achievements in their own rights, without Curry’s uncontainable zest as the utterly unhinged ‘mad scientist’, the film indeed would not contain that heap of gusto that makes The Rocky Horror Picture Show just as contagious now as it was back in 1975. The narrative structure represents a fever dream that requires equally vibrant characters willing to break free of social constraints. Whilst every character shines, Curry fully embellishes this vibrancy, creating a trippy, wild ride of a film.

Throughout The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Curry exercises a unique air of naturalness, with his years of portraying the character on Broadway lending its hand to his smashing performance. As the film unravels, this sense of authenticity and expertise is furthered by Curry’s many vocal numbers. The movie set was his stage, and everyone else was just his audience, with his deep baritone pipes making for some exceptionally entertaining and catchy tunes.

2. Clue (1985)

Based on the famous board game Cluedo, this Johnathan Lynn-directed film stars Tim Curry in one of his most comical roles. Clue is peak 1980s humour, with plenty of irreverent jokes and lude quick-witted characters, including Curry’s astute Wadsworth.

Wadsworth, the secretive butler, acts as the film’s resident unreliable narrator, as many of the film’s rocky events are explained through his lengthy monologues. Clue’s co-writer John Landis (An American Werewolf in London) created the idea of a triple ending, rotating which endings were sent to theatres, urging cinema-goers to make multiple trips to the movies. Wadsworth plays a large part in each of these endings, with all of the finales falling upon Curry’s character and relying upon his gift of repartee.

Furthering the dry humour and suspense that Curry infuses amidst all the murder mystery and mayhem is his winning charm that runs across every one of his performances. Films including Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), Congo (1995), and Muppet Treasure Island (1996) capture that ‘Wadsworth’ magic, utilising Curry’s fun, attention-commanding aura to create irreverent, wholesome entertainment.

Clue solidified Curry’s future acting portfolio, with many of his following roles capturing his witty and sarcastic tone.

3. It (1990)

Disclaimer: this ABC miniseries (released on television in two parts) was released in some territories as a feature film.

Pennywise the Dancing Clown has become the godfather of recent horror icons thanks to Andy Muschietti’s 2017 adaption of the classic Stephen King novel. However, while Bill Skarsgård did a fantastic job playing the evil clown, the lore and success of everyone’s favourite clown is owed to Curry’s original portrayal.

It is brimming with nightmare fuel. One particularly memorable scene showcases Pennywise standing in a half-dug grave, wielding his infamous grin whilst giggling at the thought of his maniacal plans, all-but singlehandedly ensuring that every viewer develops a lifelong mistrust of clowns. The mere thought of such imagery is enough to send shivers down one’s spine, and whilst storytelling is a major factor in fashioning effective scares, It owes most of its superb execution to Curry’s performance. It plays out like one large urban legend, one that is told around campfires to scare youngsters and create thrilling but chilling atmospheres. Capturing this nostalgia-driven narrative is Curry’s playful attitude that he lends to Pennywise, luring his victims in with the promise of ‘fun’, only to brutally murder them.

Despite not being the studio’s first choice for Pennywise, director Tommy Lee Wallace was eager to secure Curry for the role, with the actor’s innate ability to fully absorb himself into a character’s psyche and ultimately transform being a critical factor in Wallace’s determinations. After beating the likes of Alice Cooper and Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) to the gig, Curry eventually settled in as Pennywise and assured his place as one of the scariest movie villains in horror history.

Each time Pennywise appears on screen, the atmosphere darkens, and tension looms as he spouts the most unsettling threats in a thick Bronx accent, glaring with bulbous and piercing eyes. Nothing is more startling or skin-crawling than witnessing Curry transform into this horrifying beast. Many viewers would have seen It years ago, or many new watchers would have been subjected to modern horror’s much more gruesome and graphic films, but It manages to be scarier than many of today’s must-sees. Curry’s performance has created a legacy, with his unique ability to tiptoe between being cheery and bright to utterly sinister and twisted becoming one of the film’s most essential factors in its thirty-plus years of success.

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Though now largely withdrawn from the public eye, Tim Curry remains an instantly recognisable and beloved artist. His work on the stage, in music, and on the screen, have ensured a legacy that is bound to make anyone smile.

It can be easily interpreted that every successful actor is blessed by the limelight as soon as they start working. Gleeson is a fantastic example that anyone can pursue their dreams at any age. As soon as the Dublin-born actor received his Bachelor of Arts in English and Irish, he trained professionally as an actor. However, he went into teaching at a secondary school for several years. During Gleeson’s teaching days, he never gave up acting and would take on roles in theatre productions such as “Brownbread” (1987) and “Home” (1988), as well as writing plays himself, including “The Birdtable” (1987).

It was not until the early 1990s that Gleeson took the leap and pursued acting full-time, first starring in The Treaty (1991), then taking on supporting roles in Braveheart (1995), Angela Mooney Dies Again (1996), Michael Collins (1996), and The General (1998). As the years rolled on, Gleeson would not only become a household name in Ireland but also across the globe with his performances in films such as 28 Days Later (2002), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), and Beowulf (2007). Throughout Gleeson’s career, he has solidified a penchant for playing stern, complex, and captivating characters who undoubtedly make a film all the better with his presence.

With careful consideration, we at The Film Magazine present three career-defining performances from Brendan Gleeson.

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1. In Bruges (2008)

10 Best In Bruges Moments

At the crux of Brendan Gleeson’s innate ability to capture a stoic persona whilst maintaining a level of endearment is his performance as Ken, a hitman’s mentor In Martin McDonagh’s In Bruges.

In Bruges is a scathing, sarcasm-filled riot of misadventures and profanities as McDonagh lays out a bleak but hilarious landscape in which Gleeson and co-star Colin Farrell’s comedic timing bounces off one another.

Gleeson’s career is brimming with frosty, aloof characters, but amidst his remarkable ability to depict these cold personalities is Gleeson’s often overlooked ability to portray dark comedy with a rare sense of naturality. The film thrives due to a combination of quick one-liners and long-running gags that run home the overall gritty, realist humour that compliments the contrasting crime noir plot. McDonagh uses Ken’s harsh demeanour and Gleeson’s performative style as a vessel for the offbeat, fierce script.

In Bruges is a pinnacle of how crucial performances can be to the success of a film. McDonagh’s script and directorial flair are admirable, yet Gleeson’s take on a straight-laced, no-nonsense, rather pragmatic hitman is what truly raised the movie to its acclaimed status.

Working in an ensemble cast brimming with incredible talent has the potential to amalgamate all the performances together to create an all-around commendably acted film. However, Gleeson’s brutish talents propel him to the forefront, showcasing his aptness for possessing the screen and creating a performance to be remembered.

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2. Calvary (2014)

Brendan Gleeson plays Father James, a kind-hearted priest in a small Irish town. During his daily duties at the church, he attends a confessional where an anonymous parishioner announces that he intends to kill James after being abused by another priest as a child. As James grapples with the threat, he sees the darkness within the presumed peaceful community he has fostered for all these years.

Calvary comes from the mind of John Michael McDonagh, brother of In Bruges director Martin McDonagh and creator of The Guard (2011), in which Gleeson starred as a bad-mannered sergeant in rural Ireland. Whilst The Guard took a brilliantly satirical route to expose corrupt police departments, Calvary forgoes the jovial comedy to put on a merciless display of institutionalised abuse in places of worship. As the film weaves through the malevolence of the priest’s surroundings, subsequently exposing his own demons, a perceptional change to Father James’ life occurs. Gleeson takes on this valiant role with an integrity and passion that fuels his performance with a level of sincerity that captures James’ mistrust and the sudden change in the world around him.

Throughout the first act, Gleeson dons his character with a cloak of warm friendliness that seems to coat his entire personality; he is one to be trusted and has become a staple figure in the community. However, as Calvary unravels, Gleeson takes James’ wholesomeness and unveils that level of suspicion and sadness everyone hides deep down. By the finale, James is still an honourable man, but now he is a man who has encountered a world of hurt, has questioned his own beliefs, and has struggled with society’s lack of empathy. For Gleeson to portray such a fleshed-out character whose journey ends in a completely alternative position from where they started is genuinely commendable.

3. The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)

The Banshees of Inisherin Review

One of the most discussed films from 2022 was The Banshees of Inisherin, a tragicomedy following Pádriac (Colin Farrell) and Colm (Gleeson), two lifelong friends whose friendship suddenly ends at Colm’s will. The film chronicles Pádriac as he attempts to recollect and reconcile his bond with the tempered Colm.

The film eases in the looming threat of existentialism with every passing scene, amalgamating a strange unexplainable tension amidst the rather hilarious and, at times, whimsical narrative. With such a heavy story that explores these burdensome, dense themes, a strong cast is essential to avoid the weight of the entertainment value being entirely bogged down by the film’s own heaviness. What allows The Banshees of Inisherin to excel amidst all of its depth is the exceptional collection of performances by Farrell, Barry Keoghan, Kerry Condon, and most importantly Brendan Gleeson.

The Banshees of Inisherin tackles various subplots involving domestic troubles and civil war. Nevertheless, the film lives and dies on the mountain of brotherhood and how Colm and Pádriac’s friendship represents the need for solidarity across every walk of life, no matter what hardships or differences humanity collectively experiences. Gleeson, as Colm, is a severely grim, troubled man with an awfully sombre outlook on life as his character nears old age, which is made all the more pronounced by Farrell’s docile gathering of reality. Gleeson is the melancholic glue that keeps the film immensely grounded and metaphorical amidst all the brilliant one-liners and warm jokes.

Recommended for you: Andrea Riseborough: 3 Career-Defining Performances

Brendan Gleeson may not have become an international star until later in life than those he so often shares the screen with, but his talents are nonetheless exceptional. This Irish actor’s ability to portray a wide range of characteristics in believable ways, and to find empathy in often troubled characters, has made him one of cinema’s most respected contemporary names.

Her career spans back to 2006, making brief appearances in British indie films such as Venus (2006) and Happy-Go-Lucky (2008), paving the way for her future starring roles in Blockbuster hits. After taking the stage in theatre productions including “Inanov” (2008) and “The Pride” (2010), Riseborough began to form a name for herself on the silver screen, co-starring in Oblivion (2013) with the likes of Tom Cruise and Morgan Freeman, and featuring in the Oscar-winning Birdman (2014). 

Upon receiving a string of awards, including multiple Best Supporting Actress titles, Riseborough took the mainstage and ushered in a succession of eclectic starring roles that would cement her place as a respected, cherished performer. 

In an ode to her being one of the most exciting actors currently working in the industry, here are Three Career-Defining Performances from Andrea Riseborough. 

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1. Nancy (2018)

Christiana Choe’s Nancy brings about a conflicting narrative that aims to question its viewer’s moral alignment. Such a taxing film needs a strong lead capable of transfixing emotional confusion, making Riseborough an elite candidate for the titular role of Nancy.

The film tackles the story of a lost thirty-something-year-old who uses her time to create bemusing identities and scamming schemes under various pseudonyms online. Whilst cultivating these hoaxes, she comes across a couple who have lost their daughter 30 years prior. With a dwindling mental state, Nancy becomes convinced that the unsuspecting couple are her biological parents. 

Riseborough puts on a tremendous display of hopelessness with a mystifying sense of ambiguity where it is never quite revealed how damaged Nancy’s emotional state is. Whilst the film alludes to absurd sensibilities where chaos thrives amidst the muted background, Riseborough paves the way with an unhinged, yet somehow composed attitude. We cannot help but want to believe in Nancy’s disturbed theories, no matter how far-fetched they may be.

This film relishes in its omnipresent mystery, with much of that aura becoming unleashed thanks to Riseborough’s beguiling hold over our grasp of reality.

2. Possessor (2020)

Possessor Review

Possessor seemed to dominate the world of cinema during its release in 2020, with audiences being both shocked and amused by the incredibly graphic and alluring world that director Brandon Cronenberg sets up in the film.

Riseborough played the dualistically toned role of Tasya Vos, an assassin who is able to take control of any individual’s body to complete a hit. During one particularly strenuous mission, she is tasked with inhabiting the body of Colin Tate (Christopher Abbot) to kill his father-in-law (Sean Bean) and fiancé (Tuppence Middleton). Although much of the film sees Abbot perform as the nonconsenting assassin, Riseborough infects her runtime with such ferocity that Possessor would not be the same without her. 

Possessor’s premise is at the root vile, almost parasitic. Where Riseborough chimes in through this abhorrent narrative is with her character taking on a treacherously tragic role. Through Tasya’s tenancy in other people’s skin, she is unable to form any sense of identity, which is made even more terrifying when it is revealed that she has her own family to also tend to.

Riseborough balances such careful fluidity through Tasya, exposing how versatile she is as an actor. She is able to play a character with no real emotion of her own, whilst still putting on a gripping, devastating show of fantastical dread.

3. To Leslie (2022)

A drama film is only as good as its lead. To drive home the power intended behind any emotional piece of filmmaking, its central performer needs to be an open vessel for the effect to seep through. Michael Morris’s debut feature To Leslie employs Riseborough’s commanding abilities to stir up a mass of conflicting sentiments that call to the actress’s adaptive qualities.

The film follows an alcoholic, Leslie (Riseborough), whose winnings from a previous lottery win have all dried up, leaving her to squander around questioning her purpose, and to come to terms with her addictions. 

To Leslie lays heavy on the hardcore subject matter, which like in Nancy and Possessor is made all the more potent thanks to Riseborough fully assimilating into the shoes of a ruined, hopeless woman. The film valiantly unveils the trauma that Leslie inflicts upon the people around her, whether that be her estranged son James (Owen Teague), or motel owner Sweeney (Marc Maron), who hires Leslie despite her continuous wrongdoings.

Whilst Riseborough portrays a character the viewer roots for, she still manages to convey a disquieting person on the brink of total self-sabotage.

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Andrea Riseborough has thus far in her career earned a lot of respect from her collaborators and fellow professionals for her commitment to her craft and the bravery of her choices. At the Oscars in 2023, her nomination for Actress in a Leading Role was subject to an investigation for breaching campaign rules when a number of popular and influential actresses campaigned on her behalf, ensuring her seat at the table of great living actresses. Now just into her forties, there seems plenty of opportunity for this British performer to earn yet more plaudits in the future.