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General Category => Entertainment and Media => Topic started by: Strangeluv on March 20, 2008, 05:51:28 am

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Strangeluv on March 20, 2008, 05:51:28 am

There are those films where no actor grandstands the others or pushes the rest of them in the background. These are the collective talent and efforts of a group of actors and actresses that push the film forward - these are the films where these performances are the sturdy foundation of the film and every actor relies on the other. The strength of these types of movies has to rely on the chemistry of these actors - else they will just unravel. These are ensemble performances and here are my top personal 20 ensemble performances in movies:

20 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu08.webshots.com/image/46047/2003142091925154444_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Syriana"

An undercover operative. An energy analyst. A new "sheep" to the firm. Two young boys out of work. A Sheik. A Prince who wants to be heir. And a whole bunch of corrupt company managers and politicians. These entail the cast of Syriana - a political thriller concerning blood and oil and greed and everything else that comes with it. What I think makes this ensemble effective is that for the majority of the film, the main characters do not meet or appear together in any scene. They do not converse. They are not friends. They tread along their own paths that cross at certain intersections... yet every character seems to carry his load. Getting past the complexity of the screenplay, take a look at the characters themselves and how they act and behave. This film may not be for everybody but for those who like a lot of politics and law, look into it.

19 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu30.webshots.com/image/48989/2001778061311901778_rs.jpg)

Cast of "In America"

Husband-and-wife Irish immigrants. Their two young daughters. A strange man in their apartment with a dark secret. These are the characters that inhabit the film, "In America". Seen through the eyes of the intelligent, observant daughter of two Irish immigrants, the story of their struggles to survive in a downtrodden area of the city is told. There is a slight fairytale verve to the way she tells the story and the way these characters are portrayed. Paddy Considine plays the father and Samantha Morton as the mother. They are effective but not enough to be the driving forces of the film. In comes Djimon Hounsou as a mysterious man in their apartment building who quickly befriends their children. The interactions among all of them seem so natural, without a break in plausibility - and that's a lot to say for a film that tries to have fairytale qualities.

18 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu27.webshots.com/image/47706/2003165938148061609_rs.jpg)

Cast of "11:14"

A pregnant girl. The most dedicated father in the world. A drunk driver. Another drunk driver. Two very stupid convenience store clerks. Smash them all together to get the story of 11:14, the story of a pregnant girl that gets hit by a car, the bizarre story of a drunk driver, the story of a staged robbery, the story of three kids just out to have some fun, the story of a murder cover-up and a mischievous dog... and they all link together without sounding too contrived, believe it or not. 11:14 is told in vignettes and depends on even each character to act their part convincingly just to deceive you in each successive vignette, as this is a story that makes you think differently of the characters as each vignette rolls on.

17 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu16.webshots.com/image/48655/2000957324881949477_rs.jpg)

Cast of "The Squid and the Whale"

A husband who is a failing writer. A wife who is a succeeding writer. Their two sons, one a teenager and the other a pre-teen. Their sons' tennis coach who happens to be Stephen Baldwin! Throw in divorce and the lamest joint custody agreement and you get "The Squid and the Whale", a simple comedy set in the 80s that tells of the different ways each member of a family coped with a divorce. What ensues is plagiarism, chronic masturbation, a lot of childhood swearing, alcoholism and pretty much all shitty behaviour of that sort. Each character deals with the divorce in their own different way and it's fun and painful watching them try to cope in vain - but no performance is stand-out and each person carries their own load.

16 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu14.webshots.com/image/47053/2003173723502671656_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Crash"

The D.A. The D.A.'s wife. The crooks that jacked their car. A racist cop. His tired partner. A molested woman. Her husband. Two detectives. A Persian store owner. His daughter. A locksmith. His daughter who is afraid of bullets. They all crash together in... well... Crash. Anyone can say what they want about the preachiness and hullabulloo of this movie but putting all Paul Haggis' mystical "bullet cloak" references aside, you gotta admit that this was a great ensemble performance. Though I would consider Matt Dillon's performance truly standout, I think everyone carried their role well enough to earn a spot on my list!

15 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu24.webshots.com/image/45663/2000805714157816741_rs.jpg)

Cast of "JFK"

An assassined President. A pissed-off bar owner. A lawyer wanting to make a change. His supportive wife. Tommy Lee Jones with white hair. Joe Pesci with thick eyebrows. A mysterious man named "X". A homosexual with some inside scoop. John Candy in shades. And a whole lot of footage and theories and explanations that all take place in Oliver Stone's JFK. This truly is an ensemble, with characters gliding here and there, back and forth, shifting their weight. The central character is Garrison (Kevin Costner) but the supporting cast is enormous and their effectiveness is hard to ignore.

14 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu30.webshots.com/image/48149/2003196432687978999_rs.jpg)

Cast of "A Fish Called Wanda"

A st-st-stutterer. Two American thieves. Their two British partners. A bunch of stolen diamonds. One of their British partners' lawyer who is in for quite a ride! They are all here in "A Fish Called Wanda", a comedy about betrayal and eating raw goldfish and never, ever calling someone stupid unless you want to be killed. There's no standout here and every actor brings their own style of comedy to the plate, from Kevin Kline's brashness to John Cleese's naive silliness to Michael Palin's physical comedy. Combine it all with some slapstick and you get something truly enjoyable!

13 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu13.webshots.com/image/48372/2000838017683552598_rs.jpg)

Cast of "The Full Monty"

Chippendale dancers. Women who go to see them. Two jealous husbands. A series of unemployed men. A penis pump. This is what is required of the cast of The Full Monty, a comedy about the average Joe in Britain who wants to strip for a living. The main characters are a bunch of unemployed men who decide to dedicate their time to learning this 'trade' while dealing with their own personal problems. There's a range of different people in these men and this brings a lot to this movie.

12 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu12.webshots.com/image/46691/2003131150174435738_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Babel"

Ready for this one? A husband and wife in Morocco. Their children back home in America. The children's nanny. The children's nanny's drunk nephew. Two boys with a rifle. Their dad. The man who sold them the rifle. A worried police chief. A busload of distressed people. And... a deaf girl in Japan. Babel seeks to show the communication problems in the cultural gaps between countries and their people, and the disconnection one feels from not being able to communicate. I don't want to say anymore about this movie but every actor is great, especially Rinko Kikuchi who plays the deaf girl. But truly, this ensemble is boss.

11 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu10.webshots.com/image/46169/2003126553736952415_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Almost Famous"

A young journalist. His mentor. His mother and his sister. His love interest. Who happens to be the groupie for a band. The band's members. Especially the frontman. The band's manager. Doris, the band's bus. This is the cast it takes to rock and roll with a film like Almost Famous. There is one defining moment I would like to detail that I think makes this ensemble such a great ensemble. The first is a scene on a bus where the band are sour at each other and nobody is talking to each other. Cue Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" and one person starts singing. Soon enough, everyone else is belting out the vocals and they're all friends again. Sounds sappy, huh? Watch the scene and see how smoothly the whole thing flows.

10 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu04.webshots.com/image/46563/2000825799129139261_rs.jpg)

Cast of "The Thin Red Line"

Two AWOL soldiers. A really hoggish and selfish commander just looking for victory. A caring lieutenant who opposes this commander. A world-weary sergeant. A lovelorn private. A soldier afraid to kill. A commander who lost all his men. A crazed soldier who ends up haunted by his killings. These are just some of the personalities one can find in the platoons of The Thin Red Line. I consider this one of the greatest war movies because it covers so much broad ground and has such a wide range of characters. Every different type of person working together to make this thing work.

9 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu07.webshots.com/image/46166/2000897167266553064_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Traffic"

A DEA agent and his partner in the U.S. A DEA agent and his partner in Mexico. A major drug dealer. His pregnant wife. A witness to testify. A judge. His drug-addicted daughter. The corrupted head of the Drug Enforcement Agency in Mexico. The head of a major drug dealing cartel. And an eccentric hitman named Francisco Flores. These are the characters that cross paths in Steven Soderbergh's traffic, a tale about drug enforcement and rehabilitation that stretches from hitmen in the cartel and government corruption to drug addiction in the family. Every character has their own important role to play and I think it all works out quite well overall!

8 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu14.webshots.com/image/48333/2003132637088681095_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Mean Creek"

A bully. His victim. His victim's girlfriend. His victim's brother. His victim's brother's friends. And they're all planning on getting revenge, one way or the other in "Mean Creek". But here's one thing about this ensemble performance - they are all kids. And they all portray a variety of characters and it's interesting in watching them banter and argue with each other on what to do next and the roles and ranks among them become obvious. But seriously, this is one of the best ensemble performances and without it, this movie would not work AT ALL.

7 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu08.webshots.com/image/47647/2000930233598701861_rs.jpg)

Cast of "The Breakfast Club"

The jock. The princess. The brain. The hood. The basket case. And a really mean principal WHO'S GOT THE HOOOORRRRNNNSSS! It's every teenage stereotype wrapped up in a little film called The Breakfast Club. Again, this movie solely depends on the chemistry the actors share among each other as they go through their different stages of hate, love, hate again and love again for each other. As the last movie, this just would not work without this.

6 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu16.webshots.com/image/48015/2000865945067222713_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Snatch"

Two boxing promoters. A boxer with the highest one hit K.O. count in history. Three hoodlums. One gambling-obsessed criminal. A really scary mob boss who feeds people to PIGS. A Russian hitman who can dodge bullets. A man looking for a diamond. Other men looking for a diamond. And the dog that ate the diamond. These are what can be found in Guy Ritchie's hilarious crime comedy, Snatch. Every character seems to have their own special little gimmick for entertainment. Every character has their own flair and they don't use it to siphone off anybody else's. And this makes for a truly great ensemble.

5 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu05.webshots.com/image/49324/2003111646375630224_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Boogie Nights"

A porno director. His boom mic operator. His set direction men. All his crew. All his porn stars. A dodgy "colonel". A crazy ass Alfred Molina. The crazy ass that wants to rob the crazy ass Alfred Molina. A boy from out of town. And his very, very big... part in this film as he's the star, yet he does not overshadow any of these other characters. They work as a team, both on-screen and off-screen. There are moments when a character will grandstand another but this does not carry on for long. Like the section with Alfred Molina - I was not able to concentrate on anything else because he was so goddamn insane and entertaining as hell! But all in all, this is a solid ensemble performance.

4 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu25.webshots.com/image/48184/2003103848666238059_rs.jpg)

Cast of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"

A new inmate to an asylum feigning mental illness. His sadistic nurse. All the cuckoo birds in the nest. A shy, stuttering boy named Billy Bibbitt. A Chief with a secret. And lots of words flying here and there. This is what One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest entails and I say this is a fine ensemble performance because the cast works so perfectly together, I was convinced that these people knew each other for years and that they all behaved like mischievous little boys and they all knew it. Yet none of the supporting cast overshadowed each other as each of them was quirky in their own way. Even the main antagonist does her part in a rather subtle way. And those round-table arguments they had were intense to watch.

3 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu14.webshots.com/image/49413/2000801218421116321_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Little Miss Sunshine"

A little girl who wants to be in a beauty pageant. Her brother. His vow of silence. Her father. His obsession with being a winner. Her mother, holding things together. Her grandpa, who taught her the moves. Her gay suicidal uncle. Yep, these are the Hoovers and they are the main characters of Little Miss Sunshine. I thought the Hoovers were remarkably convincing as a family, albeit a dysfunctional one. This is a road trip movie and road trips seem to bring out all sorts of qualities in people others did not know they have, in movies. And we get to learn about each of these characters and though we see the sadness in them, they act to make us find humour in it. And it's always nice to see what a dysfunctional family would be like if they just decided to not give a shit anymore in the end.

2 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu08.webshots.com/image/46047/2003182551883100377_rs.jpg)

Cast of "12 Angry Men"

Juror 1. Juror 2. Juror 3. Juror 4. Juror 5. Juror 6. Juror 7. Juror 8. Juror 9. Juror 10. Juror 11. Juror 12. I list them all individually instead of Juror 1 - 12 for a reason. 12 Angry Men is a movie driven by dialogue and almost entirely by dialogue. For a movie like this to work, you need your actors to work together and you need them to have chemistry. For this movie, you have to work to make some seem out of place and some not. And I doubt that's harder said than done.

1 (Click to reveal)

(http://aycu34.webshots.com/image/48393/2000800042935284555_rs.jpg)

Cast of "Magnolia"

A dedicated police officer. A junkie. A very very bright child. A game show host. A former very very bright child. A dying patriarch. His torn-up wife. His caring nurse. And Tom Cruise in a superb role as a sex specialist sharing the tips with an audience of his peers. This movie has so many characters and so many connections that I cannot even begin to go into detail with you here. But Magnolia is a sprawling epic that takes place in one day with such a deep pantheon of characters and mosaic of personalities that I cannot help but put this as my number one. Put simply, the ensemble cast makes this movie. Paul Thomas Anderson is a great director and all but without the collective effort of this cast, I would have probably really hated this movie.

*phew* That's a lot! I'm not gonna do a list for television as I'm really tired right now.

But what are yours? Discuss your favourite ensemble performances in either television of film.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Ciel on March 20, 2008, 07:53:46 am

 Battlestar Galactica~ #1 ensemble cast

 Seriously most of them are really great actors and they are all balanced out well. You'd think Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell would steal all the screen time, but that's not the case. Micheal Hogan in particular is just awesome.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Ryan on March 20, 2008, 11:09:58 am

fucking THE GODFATHER. absolute perfection.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: local_dunce on March 20, 2008, 11:48:44 am

That's a really nice list dude, but I think I'll have to come back to this because it's pretty hard off the top of my head.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Strangeluv on March 20, 2008, 01:14:22 pm

Television shows I think have/had a great cast, without commentary:

1. Seinfeld

2. Six Feet Under

3. The Sopranos

4. The Office

5. Freaks and Geeks

6. Dexter

7. Adventures of Pete and Pete :P

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Vellfire on March 20, 2008, 01:55:00 pm

Firefly/Serenity had an amazing cast.  They all work FANTASTICALLY together, but they don't overshadow each other.  Each member of the cast is easily as important as the next, and they pull everything off so well.  The chemistry between them is also very apparent.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: jamie on March 20, 2008, 01:58:08 pm

you guys are just listing a bunch of stuff you like. half of these casts aren't even that impressive, there may be a couple of great actors and actresses amongst them but there are just as many bad or average ones.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Strangeluv on March 20, 2008, 02:04:30 pm

Changing the topic name to 'favourite cast' so as to not send out the wrong message. Though we can debate which show had the best cast and this show had a good cast or bad cast, in the end it's all subjective. My list is just a list of personal favourites - they mightn't even be great according to everyone else.

But yeah, discuss your personal favourites and why you think they are great.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Christophomicus on March 20, 2008, 03:40:48 pm

I... don't see Arrested Development anywhere.

This makes me... so horribly, immensely depressed. Though your call on Dexter was spot on, SL.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: LxNarik on March 20, 2008, 11:43:44 pm

Well this isnt a movie i neccersly love. but no big acotrs are in it. just small groups, which most of the bad guys get good roles to. the warriros of course!

argh missesd the topic change post.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: pburn on March 20, 2008, 11:50:15 pm

I don't remember half the shit I want to say, alot of which are mentioned here but:

Sin City, Reservoir Dogs, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Babel, Lost, The Warriors, Pulp Fiction, Magnolia, The Air I Breathe, Gone Baby Gone, Infernal Affairs Trilogy, Full Metal Jacket, Grindhouse, Snatch, 12 Angry Men, Heroes, True Romance, ALL KEVIN SMITH MOVIES, also the voice actors in Metal Gear Solid 4.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Standard Toaster on March 21, 2008, 12:04:31 am

12 Angry Men had an excellent cast.

Also I'd like to point out the Memento, while not having many characters, had a few that interacted really well. The seedy cop who might be the most trustworthy person in the movie. The person who can't even remember what happened only 15 minutes ago. The girl who realizes this and is in deep trouble. The dynamics of each and every one of them (especially Joe Pantoliano) are amazing.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Strangeluv on March 21, 2008, 12:13:39 am

The only reason I did not put Memento on my list is because of its rather small cast, which as you said, consisted of one leading role and two supporting roles. I thought each performance was really good and Pantoliano is definitely the strongest of the three. I wouldn't really consider it an ensemble performance, though. It's like Michael Clayton with Clooney, Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson, three very good performances but I wouldn't consider it a true ensemble performance. But they're very good efforts.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Shepperd on March 21, 2008, 12:54:38 am

I dunno, but with the exception of Malcovich, the cast for Being John Malcovich is disastrous and SO FUCKING HORRIBLE

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: HL on March 21, 2008, 03:08:29 am

Langoliers has an excellent cast.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Shinan on March 21, 2008, 10:08:38 am

Lord of the Rings had quite a good cast in my opinion. It probably has been beaten to death and all that by now, but it was pretty cool.

Also a miniseries called Gormenghast (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0197154/) (based on the books) had quite the cast too. Of course the miniseries took place over a number of years so some of the magnificent cast (including Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Christopher Lee and Stephen Fry) never actually interacted.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Vellfire on March 21, 2008, 01:25:52 pm

Shiiiiit it's been a while since I thought about Gormenghast.  That cast was pretty damn great.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: jamie on March 21, 2008, 01:45:45 pm

yeah i'd say that with the exception of portia de rossi arrested development had an outstanding cast all round

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: jamie on March 21, 2008, 01:47:20 pm

and off course:

(https://legacy.gamingw.net/etc/orothon.com/FunnyStuff/FRIENDS/Images/friends_cast_004a.jpeg)

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Shepperd on March 22, 2008, 03:05:46 am

Matt LeBlanc is a terrible actor man


now, Seinfeld, hot damn, that show had a poker of Aces.
Seinfeld is uh well himself
Kramer is the name of the actor
Could there be any other actor better capable to potrait the failures and antics of George Costanza than Jason Alexander?
and Julia Louis-Dreyfus is the best sitcom actress EVER

plus its secondary actors were so stellar too:
Newman, Jackie Chiles, David Putty, George's Boss, Kruger, George's parents...

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Strangeluv on March 22, 2008, 03:11:13 am

Quote from: handsome lamb on March 21, 2008, 03:08:29 am

Langoliers has an excellent cast.

Holy crap, memories just came rushing back. I didn't even know anybody else saw that movie, haha. I remember when I was like 15 or so, I saw this and I enjoyed it immensely. I thought it was totally boss. Of course now, my love for it has waned a lot because it's so flawed and it has THE WORST CG EVER - but from what I can remember, the cast was pretty alright, save for the emo teenage girl who the nerdy guy liked and the blonde woman who ended up liking the British dude (she was a n n o y i n g !). But Bronson Pinchot as the crazy dude and Dean Stockwell were pretty solid.

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Mongoloid on March 22, 2008, 06:50:14 am

http://www.gamingw.net/forums/index.php?topic=4389.0

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Shepperd on March 22, 2008, 08:14:18 am

also Francis Ford Coppola's Tetro will have Vincent Gallo and Javier Bardem in argentina so FUCK YESD

Title: Favourite Cast in a Movie or TV Show?
Post by: Ultimaweapon9 on March 22, 2008, 06:57:45 pm

Angel had a terrific cast.
Every lead character (and there were a bunch) were brilliantly developed.