From time to time, to keep me occupied in my I decide to do a theme on Facebook. In the past Ive featured mythological paintings and LP covers. Ive to the end of my latest theme: favourite movie actors. I have posted one actor each day for 22 days. My selection includes both superstars and actors. It seems a pity not to post my opinions as a single article, so here it is – of all my Facebook eulogies. They are in no particular order, except for the first one and the last one. I decided to begin with John Wayne, the greatest star of my favourite genre, the western. And I finished with Alec Guinness, whom I consider the greatest of all movie actors.
My criteria for selection are both quality and quantity. I have only included actors who have impressed me over and over again. So, for example, I have omitted Gary Cooper, because I know him only for his portrayal of Will Kane in ‘High Noon; just one performance is not enough.
because, for whatever reason, they havent resonated with me. So you wont find the following in my list: Richard Burton, Peter Sellers, Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier, Michael Redgrave, Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Henry Fonda, Spencer Tracy, Rod Steiger, Anthony Hopkins.
Here are my 22 favourite screen actors in no particular order – just the random order in which I posted them on Facebook:
I expect to be pilloried by the feminists for choosing only one actress and by the BLM brigade for not selecting a single coloured actor. However, the fact is Ive been most impressed by white male actors. I cannot think of a single coloured actor who has consistently enthralled me.
teenager. My favourite cinematic genre is the western, and John Wayne is its greatest star. He was extremely limited as an actor, essentially doing the same thing in every movie, but he had tremendous presence.
I have watched Alastair Sim many times in TV plays and old British movies, and I love him. He was a Scottish character actor with a wonderfully expressive face and voice. He had an endearingly whimsical persona. He could and serious roles equally well. His career lasted from 1930 until his death in 1976.
He is probably most famous for his portrayal of Scrooge in ‘The Xmas Carol, but my favourite Alastair Sim performance is as the Inspector in ‘An Inspector Calls (1954).
Clint Eastwood has given me a lot of pleasure over the years. He is a great minimalist actor with terrific screen presence.His standard role is that of a tough loner whose violent behaviour conforms to his own understated moral principles.
I love Clints spaghetti westerns of the 1960s. The scene in ‘A Fistful of Dollars where he wears a steel breastplate
hidden under his poncho and invites Ramon to shoot him repeatedly in the heart is one of the greatest scenes in any western. All of Clints westerns are excellent. So is his 1971 thriller ‘Play Misty for Me in which he plays a disc jockey pursued by an obsessed fan.
Famous for his menacing facial expression, distinctive baritone voice and prematurely white hair, Lee Marvin played villains, soldiers and other characters.
I love his portrayal of Liberty Valance, malevolence incarnate, in ‘The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The steak scene, where John Wayne confronts him, is one of the greatest scenes in movie history.
Alan Bates is one of my favourite British actors. He appeared in several classic British movies of the 1960s, notably ‘A Kind of Loving.
However, I remember him best in two Thomas Hardy dramatizations: as Gabriel Oak in ‘Far From the Madding Crowd (1967) and Michael Henchard in the BBC version of ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge (1978).
Denholm Elliott is one of my favourite movie actors. He was never a big star, being content to play second fiddle throughout
He won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in three consecutive years in the 1980s, the only actor ever to have achieved this.
