Best Performances by Decade

OK, list what you consider to be the best performances by each decade. Not just favorite actors, but the best examples of their work and how it stacks up. Distinguish bewtween supporting vs. lead, male vs. female if'n you so wish, just complie what you have found to be the best of the best. I'm going back through the '70s.

My list...


1970s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Jack Nicholson in The Passenger (1975)
2. Robert DeNiro in Taxi Driver (1976)
3. Klaus Kinski in Aguirre, Wrath of God (1972)
4. Gene Hackman in The Conversation (1974)
5. Al Pacino in Scarecrow (1973)
6. Jason Robards in The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970)
7. Warren Oates in Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
8. Sean Connery in The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
9. Peter O'Toole in The Ruling Class (1972)
10. Peter Sellers in Being There (1979)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
2. Julie Christie in McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
3. Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
4. Susannah York in Images (1973)
5. Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver (1976)
6. Ann-Margret in Carnal Knowlegde (1971)
7. Jessica Walter in Play Misty For Me (1971)
8. Ruth Gordon in Harold & Maude (1971)
9. Julie Christie in Don't Look Now (1973)
10. Lili Tomlin in Nashville (1975)

1980s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Robert DeNiro in Raging Bull (1980)
2. Forest Whitaker in Bird (1988)
3. Philip Baker Hall in Secret Honor (1984)
4. Jack Lemmon in Missing (1982)
5. Paul Newman in The Verdict (1982)
6. Harrison Ford in The Mosquito Coast (1986)
7. Klaus Kinski in Fitzcarraldo (1982)
8. Michael Keaton in Clean & Sober (1988)
9. Bob Hoskins in Mona Lisa (1986)
10. M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple (1984)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Jessica Lange in Frances (1982)
2. Diane Venora in Bird (1988)
3. Meryl Streep in Sophie's Chioce (1982)
4. Meryl Streep in Silkwood (1983)
5. Andie MacDowell in sex, lies & videotape (1989)
6. Anjelica Huston in Crimes & Misdemeanors (1989)
7. Faye Dunaway in Barfly (1987)
8. Barbara Hershey in Tin Men (1987)
9. Frances McDormand in Mississippi Burning (1988)
10. Isabella Rossellini in Blue Velvet (1986)

1990s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Jeff Bridges in Fearless (1993)
2. Tim Robbins in Jacob's Ladder (1990)
3. Clint Eastwood in Unforgiven (1992)
4. Ray Liotta in GoodFellas (1990)
5. William H. Macy in Fargo (1996)
6. Robert DeNiro in Cape Fear (1991)
7. Alan Rickman in Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990)
8. Jack Lemmon in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)
9. Bill Murray in Rushmore (1998)
10. Harvey Keitel in Bad Lieutenant (1992)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Sigourney Weaver in Death & the Maiden (1994)
2. Nicole Kidman in To Die For (1995)
3. Mimi Rogers in The Rapture (1991)
4. Anjelica Huston in The Grifters (1990)
5. Nicole Kidman in Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
6. Ashley Judd in Normal Life (1996)
7. Frances McDormand in Fargo (1996)
8. Stacey Edwards in In the Company of Men (1997)
9. Julianne Moore in Safe (1995)
10. Juliette Binoche in Blue (1992)

2000 - PRESENT (so far)
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Guy Pearce in Memento (2001)
2. Geoffrey Rush in Quills (2000)
3. Jack Nicholson in The Pledge (2001)
4. Gene Hackman in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
5. Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast (2001)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream (2000)
2. Bjork in Dancer in the Dark (2000)
3. Charlotte Rampling in Under the Sand (2001)
4. Angela Basset in Sunshine State (2002)
5. Laura Linney in You Can Count on Me (2000)



Give it a go, Y'all.

__________________
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Damn Holden, you really know your stuff.

But, I`m in no position to agree nor disagree with your choices as I`ve only watched 12 of your 70 performances.

It`ll take me a while to work this one out.

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I'll only do five each.
1970s
Male Performance
1. Jack Nicholson - One Flew over the Cukoo's Nest
2. Marlon Brando - The Godfather
3. Jack Nicholson - Chinatown
4. Al Pacino - The Godfather
5. The dude that played Alex in A Clockwork Orange

Female
1. Louise Fletcher - One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest
2. Carrie Fisher - Star Wars
3. Diane Keaton - Annie Hall
4. Linda Blair - The Exorcist
5. Ellen Burnstyn - The Exorcist

1980's
1. Dustin Hoffman - Rain Man
2. Robert Deniro - Raging Bull
3. Harrison Ford - Bladerunner
4. Darth Vader - Return of the Jedi
5. Al Pacino - Scarface

1. Mary tyler Moore - Ordinary People
2. Jassica Tandy - Driving miss Daisy
3. The andriod girl from Bladerunner
4. Andie McDowell - Sex, Lies, and Videotape

1990's
1. Jason Swartzman - Rushmore
2. Samuel L. Jackson - Pulp Fiction
3. Brad Pitt - Fight Club
4. Edward Norton Jr. - American History X
5. Anthony Hopkins - The Siolence of the Lambs

1. Francis McDormand - Fargo
2. Jodie Foster - The Silence of the Lambs
3. Annette Bening - American Beauty
4. Helena Bonham Carter - Fight Club
5. Olivia Williams - Rushmore

2000 and Beyond!
1. Guy Pierce - Memento
2. Ben Kingsley - Sexy Beast
3. Denzel Washington - Training Day
4. Patrick Fugit - Almost Famous
5. Marlon Wayans - Requiem for a Dream

1. Ellen Burnstyn - Requiem for a Dream
2. Zhang Ziyi - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
3. Gwenth Paltrow - The Royal Tenenbaums
4. Cameron Diaz - Vanilla Sky
5. Kate Hudson - Almost Famous

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I was going to ask where you put the sixties, Mr. Pike. All I know is that I would Peter O'toole at the top of my sixties list.

I'll just do the males for the last two sections.


1990s

1. Keven Spacey [American Beauty]
2. Tom Hanks [Forrest Gump]
3. Ray Liotta [GoodFellas]
4. Anthony Hopkins [The Silence of the Lambs]
5. Jack Nicholson [As Good As It Gets]
6.Matt Damon [The Talented Mr. Ripley]
7. John Travolta [Pulp Fiction]
8. Sean Penn [Sweet and Lowdown]
9. Burt Reynolds [Boogie Nights]
10. John Malkovich [Being John Malkovich]

2000 - The Present

1. Benicio Del Toro [Traffic]
2. Geoffrey Rush [Quills]
3. Guy Pearce [Memento]
4. Justin Theroux [Mulholland Drive]
5. Philip Seymour Hoffman [Almost Famous]

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OK, by request...

1960s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying
and Love the Bomb (1964)
2. Anthony Perkins in Psycho (1960)
3. Anthony Quinn in Zorba the Greek (1964)
4. Jason Robards in A Thousand Clowns (1965)
5. Tishiro Mifune in Red Beard (1965)
6. Orson Welles in Chimes at Midnight (1966)
7. Alan Arkin in The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1968)
8. Paul Newman in Hud (1963)
9. Alan Bates in King of Hearts (1966)
10. Dustin Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy (1969)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Anne Bancroft in The Pumpkin Eater (1964)
2. Elizabeth Taylor in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
3. Corinne Marchand in Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962)
4. Joanne Woodward in Rachel, Rachel (1968)
5. Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
6. Jeanne Moreau in Jules & Jim (1961)
7. Deborah Kerr in The Innocents (1961)
8. Catherine Denuve in Repulsion (1965)
9. Patricia Neal in The Subject was Roses (1968)
10. Audrey Hepburn in Wait Until Dark (1968)

Okay, just coming up with actors gave me a headache, so I'm not sure if I'll do actresses. We'll see.

1950s
Alec Guinness - The Bridge on the River Kwai
Orson Wells - A Touch of Evil
Cary Grant - An Affair to Remember
Charelton Heston - The Ten Commandments
Charelton Heston - Ben-Hur
Burt Lancaster - The Rainmaker
Sidney Poitier - Blackboard Jungle
Tony Curtis - Houdini
Cary Cooper - High Noon
Alan Ladd - Shane
Joel McCrae - The Oklahoman

1960s
Frank Sinatra - The Manchurian Candidate
Jack Lemmon - The Days of Wine and Roses
Gregory Peck - To Kill a Mockingbird
Rod Steiger - In the Heat of the Night
Omar Sharif - Dr. Zhivago
Peter O'Toole - Lawrence of Arabia
Paul Newman - Hud
Paul Newman - Cool Hand Luke
Robert Shaw - Battle of the Bulge
James Stewart - Who Shot Libert Valance

1970s
Jack Lemmon - Save the Tiger
Steve McQueen - Papillon
George C. Scott - Patton
Robert De Niro - Taxi Driver
Robert Redford - The Sting
Al Pacino - Dog Day Afternoon
Peter Sellers - Being There
Warren Beatty - McCabe and Mrs. Miller
Dustin Hoffman - Little Big Man
Jack Nicholson - Chinatown

1980s
Morgan Freeman - Driving Miss Daisy
Al Pacino - Scarface
Tom Berenger - Platoon
Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
James Woods - The Boost
Warren Beatty - Reds
William Hurt - The Accidental Tourist
Sean Penn - Colors
Danny Glover - The Color Purple
Harrison Ford - Raiders of the Lost Arc

1990s
Nick Nolte - Affliction
Joe Pesci - GoodFellas
Mel Gibson - Hamlet
Tom Hanks - Philedelphia
Ralph Fiennes - Schindler's List
Robert Downey Jr. - Chaplin
Anthony Hopkins - Silence of the Lambs
Daniel Day-Lewis - In the Name of the Father
Nicolas Cage - Bringing Out the Dead
Mel Gibson - Braveheart

2000 - Present
Johnny Depp - Blow
Geoffrey Rush - Quills
Brad Pitt - Snatch
Tom Wilkinson - In the Bedroom
Steve Buscemi - Ghost World
Denzel Washington - Training Day
Billy Bob Thornton - The Man Who Wasn't there
Willem Dafoe - Shadow of the Vampire
Joaquin Phoenix - Signs
Ed Harris - Pollack

So, Holden, I was going to choose Jason Robards in The Ballad of Cable Hogue, but it's such an obscure film to most people, I didn't want to be accused of being a rip-off. I'm sure I'd have picked Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast, but alas, I haven't seen it.

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The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970) is one of Peckinpah's best, and probably his most surprising film in many ways. How obscure it is will depend entirely on who you're talking to. As far as Peckinpah fans and any film buff worth their salt, it is very highly regarded and not a secret at all. Made right after Bloody Sam's masterpiece The Wild Bunch, it's such a funny and ultimately even sweet story with that superb and charming central performance by Robards.

And I'll do a '50s list too...

1950s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Takashi Shimura in Ikiru (1952)
2. Humphrey Bogart in In A lonely Place (1950)
3. Alec Guinness in The Horse's Mouth (1958)
4. Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men (1957)
5. Jean-Pierre Leaud in The 400 Blows (1959)
6. William Holden in Stalag 17 (1953)
7. Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun (1951)
8. Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront (1954)
9. Jose Ferrer in Moulin Rouge (1952)
10. James Mason in Bigger Than Life (1956)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Joanne Woodward in The Three Faces of Eve (1957)
2. Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950)
3. Katharine Hepburn in Summertime (1955)
4. Claire Bloom in Look Back in Anger (1958)
5. Vivian Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
6. Elizabeth Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
7. Grace Kelly in The Country Girl (1954)
8. Susan Hayward in I Want To Live (1958)
9. Gloria Grahame in In A Lonely Place (1950)
10. Deborah Kerr in Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)


Tah-dah.

Since most of the people that belong to this forum are young, I doubt very many have ever even heard of it. I'm a Jason Robards fan and have seen a number of his movies. It seems obvious to me you're The Big Buff of this forum. My hat's off to ya'

Well in that sense, 90% of the movies made before 1977 are gong to be "obscure" to many. Doesn't mean they really are.


Have you ever seen Robards in A Thousand Clowns (1965)? Great, great performance by him, maybe his best ever caught on film - though that's a tough call with so many excellent ones to choose from. I believe A Thousand Clowns is currently in-print on R1 VHS, but unless you live near a really good video store it's unlikely they'll have it on the shelf for rental. Keep an eye out for it if you haven't had the pleasure of seeing it yet.

another old one that looks like a lot of fun. i'll start with the nineties:
1990's:
male:
1: samuel l. jackson: jungle fever.
2: you ge: to live.
3: ossie davis: jungle fever.
4: harvey keitel: bad lieutenant.
5: petr cepek: faust.
6: owen wilson: the minus man.
7: ben kingsley: death and the maiden.
8: gene hackman: unforgiven.
9: ray liota: goodfellas.
10: john malkovitch: being john malkovitch.

female:
1: gong li: story of qiu ju.
2: angelica houston: the grifters.
3: frances mcdormand: fargo.
4: brigitte lin: chungking express.
5: man san lu: scent of green papaya.
6: gong li: to live.
6: sigourney weaver: death and the maiden.
8: linda fiorentino: the last seduction.
9: janeane garafalo: the minus man.
10: lindsay duncan: the reflecting skin.

80's:
male:
1: klaus kinski: fitzcarraldo.
2: keisuki ichida: black rain ('kuroi ame', not the cop movie starring michael douglas.)
3: james woods: once apon a time in america.
4: danny aiello: do the right thing.
5: martin landau: crimes and misdemeanors.
6: burt langcaster: atlantic city.
7: tsutomu yamazaki: a taxing woman.
8: james spader: sex, lies and videotape.
9: michael rooker: henry, portrait of a serial killer.
10: james woods: videodrome.

female:
1: sumiko sakamoto: ballad of narayama.
2: yoshiko tanaka: black rain (again, 'kuroi ame.')
3: mia farrow: purple rose of cairo.
4: nobuko miyamoto: taxing woman.
5: susan sarandon: atlantic city.
6: claudia cardinale: fitzcarraldo.
7: dianne ladd: wild at heart.
8: frances mcdormand: blood simple.
9: hellen miren: the cook the thief his wife and her lover.
10: isabella rosellini: blue velvet.

hmm, i think that's enough for now.

My brain hurts already and I haven't even begun to formulate a list in my mind

1990's
Male:
Ed Norton - American History X
Joe Pesci - Goodfellas
Anthony Hopkins - The Silence of the Lambs
Sean Gullette - PI
Bill Paxton - A Simple Plan
Ewan McGregor - Trainspotting
Kevin Spacey - The Usual Suspects
Brad Pitt - Seven
Kevin Bacon - Murder in the First
Johnny Depp - Ed Wood

Female:
Joan Allen - The Contender
Naomi Watts - Mulholland Drive
Frances McDormand - Fargo
Nicole Kidman - The Others
Pam Grier - Jackie Brown
Natalie Portman - The Professional
Jodie Foster - The Silence of the Lambs


As you can tell, I don't watch quite as many of the dramatic movies as some of you and my list probably reflects that. I'll have to come back and post the rest later... my ride's leaving

nah, i thought most of the ones you mentioned were fairly dramatic (and i totally forgot about jackie brown, or i would have fit pam grier in mine too). but can you go back a little farther?

70's:
1. klaus kinski: aguirre
2. chrisopher walken: the deer hunter
3. bruno s.: every man for himself, and god against all
4. giancarlo giannini: seduction of mimi
5. klaus kinski: nosferatu
6. robert deniro: taxi driver
7. robert duvall: apocalypse now
8. gene hackman: the french connection
9. peter otoole: the ruling class
10. john voight: deliverance

female:
1. sissy spacek: badlands
2. mariangela melato: swept away
3. vanessa redgrave: the devils
4. jodie foster: taxi driver
5. faye dunaway: chinatown
6. mariangelo melato: love and anarchy
7. liv ullman: cries and whispers
8. isabella adjani: nosferatu
9. faye dunaway: network
10. diane keaton: annie hall

60's:
male:
1. peter otoole: lawrence of arabia
2. buster keaton: film
3. rod steiger: dr. zhivago
4. lee marvin: point blank
5. robert mitchum: cape fear
6. omar sharif: dr. zhivago
7. toshiro mifune: sanjuro
8. peter sellers: lolita
9. jo shishido: branded to kill
10. rock hudson: seconds

female:
1. liv ullman: hour of the wolf
2. kyoko kagawa: redbeard
3. catherine deneuve: belle de jour
4. bibi anderson: persona
5. mia farrow: rosemary's baby
6. nobuko otowa: onibaba
7. shirley maclaine: the apartment
8. angela lansbury: manchurian candidate
9. catherine deneuve: repulsion
10. bibi anderson: the devil's eye

this is getting tough, urgh...must...go...back...to...the...twenties...

For the record, fellas: The Contender (2000), Mulholland Drive (2001), The Others (2001), A.I. - Artificial Intelligence (2001)



1940s
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Humphrey Bogart, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
2. Orson Welles, Citizen Kane (1941)
3. Ray Milland, The Lost Weekend (1945)
4. Ralph Richardson, The Fallen Idol (1948)
5. Joseph Cotton, Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
6. Antonio Ricci, The Bicycle Thief (1949)
7. Henry Fonda, The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
8. George Sanders, A Scandal in Paris (1946)
9. Cary Grant, Suspicion (1941)
10. Charlie Chaplin, The Great Dictator (1940)

FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Gene Tierney, Leave Her to Heaven (1945)
2. Ingrid Bergman, Gaslight (1944)
3. Celia Johnson, Brief Encounter (1946)
4. Olivia de Havilland, The Snake Pit (1948)
5. Bette Davis, Now, Voyager (1942)
6. Jean Arthur, The Talk of the Town (1942)
7. Irene Dunn, I Remember Mama (1948)
8. Dame Judith Anderson, Rebecca (1940)
9. Vivien Leigh, That Hamilton Woman (1941)
10. Jane Wyman, Johnny Belinda (1948)

Nitpick, nitpick, nitpick I'm just too lazy to start a list for the current decade after only two years so I threw them in with the 90's.

1980's

Male:
Dustin Hoffman - Rain Man
Mickey Rourke - Angel Heart
R. Lee Ermey - Full Metal Jacket
Michael Douglas - Wallstreet
Gene Hackman - Hoosiers
Dennis Hopper - Blue Velvet
Chow Yun-Fat - A Better Tomorrow
Al Pacino - Scarface
Harrison Ford - Raiders of the Lost Ark
Robert DeNiro - Raging Bull

Female:
Jessica Tandy - Driving Miss Daisy
Susan Sarandon - Bull Durham
Cher - Moonstruck
Isabella Rossalini - Blue Velvet
Frances McDormand - Blood Simple
Dustin Hoffman - Tootsie


Well I have to actually go and work now... I'll try and post some more a little later on. I apologize for the multiple posts but my knowledge isn't as encylopedic as some and it takes me awhile to make the lists.

I don't know about decades, that would be too ambitious. But as far as the last decade (or so) is concerned, here are some picks:

1) Billy Bob Thornton Sling Blade

2) Robert Duvall The Apostle

3) Anthony Hopkins Remains of the Day

4) Martin Landau Ed Wood

5) Viggo Mortensen The Indian Runner

6) Jared Leto Prefontaine

7) Ray Liotta Goodfellas

8) William Macy Fargo

9) Leonardo Dicaprio What's Eating Gilbert Grape?

10) Robert DeNiro Cape Fear

11) Denzel Washington Malcolm X

My God! You got something wrong!

Lamberto Maggiorani, The Bicycle Thief

Great thread Pikey

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And updating this decade's list...

2000 - PRESENT (so far)
MALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Guy Pearce in Memento (2001)
2. Nicholas Cage in Adaptation (2002)
3. Bill Murray in Lost in Translation (2003)
4. Geoffrey Rush in Quills (2000)
5. Jack Nicholson in The Pledge (2001)
6. Gene Hackman in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
7. Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast (2001)
8. Michael Douglas in Wonder Boys (2000)
9. Sam Rockwell in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
10. Peter Dinklage in The Station Agent (2003)


FEMALE PERFORMANCE:
1. Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream (2000)
2. Bjork in Dancer in the Dark (2000)
3. Salma Hayek in Frida (2002)
4. Charlotte Rampling in Under the Sand (2001)
6. Samantha Morton in Morvern Callar (2002)
7. Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven (2002)
8. Everlyn Sampi in Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)
9. Jennifer Connelly in House of Sand & Fog (2003)
10. Bebe Neuwirth in Tadpole (2002)

Best Performance ever:

Bruce Campbell in "Evil Dead."

Here's a rough list of some the greatest acting performances, by half decade:

1975-79:

Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Al Pacino in Dog Day Afternoon
Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver

1980-84:

Ben Kingsley in Gandhi
Robert De Niro in Raging Bull

1985-89:

Daniel Day Lewis in My Left Foot
Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man
Matt Dillon in Drugstore Cowboy

1990-94:

Denzel Washington in Malcolm X
Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump
Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs

1995-99:

Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor
Edward Norton in American History X
Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry

2000-present:

Russell Crowe in A Beautiful Mind
Sean Penn in Mystic River