I’ll admit it right here: Libertarian’s thread about versatile actors inspired me to start this thread.
What actors do you admire for their ability to “carry” other actors? What I mean by “carry” is this: a good actor who can play alongside a lesser actor, and manage to make them look good as well. It’s hard to describe how they do this, really. Somehow, they just manage to make other actors look good.
Some of my picks:
Morgan Freeman: He’s done this in many movies. I find that not only can he carry fellow actors; he can carry a whole movie. He can make a really crappy film seem just slightly crappy. For example, in the movie Seven, I thought that he managed to do both of these things. He carried Brad Pitt to a decent performance (Pitt CAN deliver a decent performance when he wants to, but he’s not consistent), and he carried an otherwise annoying film to the level of “mildly entertaining.”
Robert DeNiro: He’s not quite consistent in this ability. Sometimes, I think he just wants the spotlight for himself, and greedily takes it. However, he managed to make Sharon Stone, of all people, look like a good actress in Casino. I think that speaks volumes about the man’s ability to carry other actors.
Kevin Spacey: 'Nuff said.
Ben Kingsley: See above.
Weird, because I’m not all that big of a fan of his, and I don’t think “carry” is the operative word, but the first person I thought of (besides a slew of British actors who seem to take any freakin’ job regardless of how silly the project and seem to take them up a notch, like Michael Caine, Ian McKellan, Patrick Stewart, etc.) was
Tom Cruise
Now, bear with me here. Think of all of the movies that he has been in and the actors and directors he has worked with - he has held his own and even been effective. Did he carry Paul Newman in the Color of Money or Dustin Hoffman in Rainman? Obviously not, but he held his own.
Again, not quite answering the question you asked, but he was who I thought of…
I think we see this more in TV than in movies. Look at John Goodman on Roseanne, Patricia Richardson on Home Improvement and pretty much Everyone Who Loves Raymond trying to carry standup comics who aren’t exactly Shaekspearian.
In addition to Morgan Freeman, there are actors who can be leads, but they do such a great job of cqrrying their co-stars, I’d almost rather see them in a supporting role. I’m thinking of Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall and Walter Matthau specifically.
That Mary Kate, she’s carried Ashley for years and years…
Jodie Foster. She can respond with nothing more than a blink or gesture to a blah delivery in such a way that she actually gives the line she’s following extended meaning and context. If I were a director, once I got Jodie, I’d leave all the casting to someone else. She can carry the movie and every actor in it.
Anyone who works with Jaen Claude Van Damme.
Preview, Damme-it! Preview!
You mean like Rob Schneider?
GES
I don’t have anybody to add, but would be interested in hearing from any actors here how one goes about carrying other actors.
Is it because the carriers react to the carriees as if they are actually good actors and this fools the audience?
John Cusack - suddenly, even Minnie Driver becomes watchable.