My Ten Favourite Screen Performances of the 21st Century

I wanted to make a thread, detailing my favourite screen performances ever but that will have to wait, as the research would take up far too much time in itself, going through all the movies I've watched and loved. So i narrowed it down to the last 12 years or so (the 21st century).

Number 10.

Jim Carrey as Joel Barish (Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind)



This was the moment Jim Carrey, one of Hollywood's most loved comedians finally matured into a truly watchable actor, in every sense of the word. I'm not a huge fan of the movie itself, with it's sci-fi/romantic premise never quite gelling but the chemistry and class that Carrey bought to the film, along with Winslet elevates it above your average romance. Carrey managed to bring out a vulnerability which is very rarely seen, fused with sadness that can be seen through the look in his eyes. I don't want to gush too much but this was a simply beautiful performance.

Number 9.

Matt Damon as Jason Bourne (The Bourne Trilogy)



I've always thought of the Bourne series as the best action movie trilogy ever (forget the 4th installment). This trilogy provides the two rarest commodities in the genre, good scripts and even better acting. Matt Damon stands heads and shoulders above the rest of the cast, portraying physical strength, intelligence and an uncertainty very rarely seen in action heroes. Every time Damon is on screen you can't take your eyes off him, such is his charisma, coupled with the pained expression he often has on his face when carrying out a grisly act of murder. This is one man who isn't proud of his actions and you can see it. All thanks to Damon's skills as an actor.

Numbers 8 and 7 coming up either tonight or tomorrow.

Of course I think Jim's turn as Joel is spectacular, but he came into his own as a dramatic actor five or six years before Eternal Sunshine - with The Truman Show first and then Man on the Moon.

I loved Truman Show and Carrey definitely proved he could hold a dramatic performance but in Sunshine he just owned it. Unfortunately I still haven't seen Man on the Moon but I'll be putting it on my to watch list.

Your first two choices are solid but, as far as these two guys go, think I might prefer Carrey in I Love You Phillip Morris and Damon in The Departed. Looking forward to the rest of the list

#1: Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight
#2: Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood
#3: Naomi Watts as Betty Elms/Diane Selwyn in Mulholland Drive

I don't know what my top ten would be, but those would probably be the top three.

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Number 8.

Leonardo DiCaprio as Billy Costigan (The Departed)



Dicaprio has become one of my all time favourite actors, with roles in exceptional movies such as The Aviator, Catch me if you Can and of course, one of my all time faves, The Departed. He manages to infuse a sense of dread in almost every scene his in and the heart wrenching story arc allows Dicaprio to use his full range of acting skills, making Billy Costigan someone you can root for, in a world filled with liars, gangsters and double crossers. Scorsese has produced a great relationship with the star, much like he did with De Niro in a previous generation. This is worth the watch simply to see how Dicaprio manages to pull at our heart strings.

Number 7.

Ivana Baquero as Ofelia (Pan's Labyrinth)



Has there ever been a better child actor than Miss Baquero? Her body of work is already spectacular, taking roles in a number of unexpected projects and showing a real artistic integrity in her work. Her best role however is in her most mainstream film, Guillermo Del Torro's Pan's Labyrinth. It can often be cringe worthy watching child actors on screen (see Harry Potter) but Ofelia is made into a believable and amazingly sympathetic character by Baquero's undoubted talent. A bookish child with a dead father and a pregnant mother, packed off to live with her evil step father, who becomes the princess of a fantastical world...the duality of the role would be difficult to handle for actresses twice her age (at the time she was 12) yet she pulls it off with aplomb.

Great top 3, some of those names may feature in my top 10 as well.

Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler
Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight
Javier Bardem in No Country For Old Men
Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood
Colin Firth in The King's Speech
Natalie Portman in The Black Swan
Viggo Mortensen in Eastern Promises
Penelope Cruz in Volver
Christoph Waltz in Inglorious Basterds is also worth a mention but I didn't like him as much as many people do.

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Kevin Bacon as Walter in The Woodsman. He was fantastic in the film playing a paedophile released from prison trying to get back into life/society.



One scene('smelling her hair') I think he is excellent in is during a session with his therapist, the scene appears around 5.26 of the video.

I'll throw in my 2 cents. I'm finding it hard to narrow down right now, but my top 10 would definitely be taken from these 15. #1's a no-brainer.

1) Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood
Audrey Tautou, Amelie
Adam Sandler, Punch-Drunk Love
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Bill Murray, Lost in Translation
Jim Carrey, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Ellen Page, Juno
Adrien Brody, The Pianist
Casey Affleck, The Assassination of Jesse James
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Peter Dinklage, The Station Agent
Christoph Waltz, Inglorious Basterds
Michael Shannon, Take Shelter
Ryan Gosling, Lars and the Real Girl
Viola Davis, The Help

Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds would probably end up pretty high on my list too. Skepsis, the inclusion of Sandler in Punch-Drunk Love is a great inclusion; totally forgot about that one.

I don't disagree that he gave a good performance, but the film itself had some ridiculous moments.

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What were the ridiculous moments? I remember his performance but having trouble remembering some parts of the film.

The Woodsman was a pretty good movie, I wasn't even expecting to like it but Bacon was solid, one of his better performances.

So here's two more (some of you have already mentioned these performances):

6. Mickey Rourke as Randy Robinson (The Wrestler)



Mickey Rourke did something that very few actors have been able to do, which is elevate a some what average movie to almost greatness on the back of his performance alone. I was ready to write off The Wrestler as a Rocky rip-off but the genuine heart, angst, physicality and skill that Rourke brings to this performance completely reinvigorated the whole under dog story, which had been done over a million times since Rocky stormed the Box Office. The scene when "Ram" climbs to the top rope and looks out to the entrance, where his stripper friend Cassidy no longer stands, is as heart breaking as anything I've seen, made more so with a solemn tear on edge of Rourke's eye.

5. Natalie Portman as Nina Sayers (Black Swan)



Portman has always been an interesting actress (forget the Star Was prequels) and here she delivers the performance of a lifetime. She dedicated herself to the art of ballet to further her performance, grounding a slightly surreal character in the very real world of performance art. The story arc is excruciatingly dark at times and the final scene, with whispers of "It was perfect" is simply stunning. Portman grew up in this movie, providing the best female performance this century.

Loves Walts performance, a bit over the top at times but it fits in perfectly with the world that Tarantino created.

I've seen this around 7 times and she still blows me away in her subtleties, it comes across so natural. Really, everyone performed well in that film.

^^^ I couldn't agree more. The performances were spot on and for a 12 year old girl to steal the show is just incredible.