# Outrageous Moments of Good Actors Over-acting **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 14, 2007, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861 "2007-03-14T07:02:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Hildo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@Johnny\_Hildo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Hildo)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/1 "2007-03-14T07:02:05Z")
Holy fuck, have you SEEN Rod Steiger in _The January Man_? The director should have said, “Rod, you’re at about a 400. We’re gonna need you at a 7.” More examples? ---
**Author:** ![DataZak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@DataZak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DataZak)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/2 "2007-03-14T07:09:30Z")
I nominate Rod Steiger as well but for _Amytiville Horror_. Not everytime he’s onscreen but the scene where he tried to convince the other priests the house is _eeeeeeeviiiillllllllll_. ---
**Author:** ![valleyofthedolls](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a4c791/32.png) [@valleyofthedolls](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/valleyofthedolls)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/3 "2007-03-14T07:33:04Z")
Al Pacino in **Scent of A Woman** Hoo-ah! did that suck. ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/4 "2007-03-14T11:54:36Z")
Heh. I was thinking Al Pacino in Devil’s Advocate. Then I thought of Dog Day Afternoon. Then I thought of Scarface. Then I gave up and just thought Al Pacino. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/5 "2007-03-14T12:13:21Z")
_“Release the Kraken!”_ -Sir Laurence Olivier 'nuff said ---
**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/6 "2007-03-14T12:25:11Z")
[QUOTE=singular1] Heh. I was thinking Al Pacino in Devil’s Advocate. Then I thought of Dog Day Afternoon. Then I thought of Scarface. Then I gave up and just thought Al Pacino. [/QUOTE] Lets look at Keano’s over acting trying to copy the great man. I Win! I Win! I’m a lawyer, thats my Job that’s what I do! Or does that not count coz you said ‘good actors’ ? ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/7 "2007-03-14T12:29:06Z")
Ben Kingsley in **Sexy Beast**. “NO! NO! NO! NO!” ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/8 "2007-03-14T12:54:41Z")
[QUOTE=BMalion] _“Release the Kraken!”_ -Sir Laurence Olivier 'nuff said [/QUOTE] Heh! I was just thinking about Sir Laurence in [_The Betsy_.](http://monsterhunter.coldfusionvideo.com/Betsy.html) ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/9 "2007-03-14T13:02:00Z")
Jeremy Irons in Dungeons And Dragons Brian ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/10 "2007-03-14T13:30:56Z")
Ditto Ben Kinsgley- freakin brilliant. Also in a good way- Gary Oldman in The Professional. Overacting in a bad way- Jack Palance, The Big Knife. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/11 "2007-03-14T13:53:20Z")
[QUOTE=singular1] Heh. I was thinking Al Pacino in Devil’s Advocate. Then I thought of Dog Day Afternoon. Then I thought of Scarface. Then I gave up and just thought Al Pacino. [/QUOTE] I am tapping the side of my nose with my index finger. I don’t know how he got as famous as he is. Pacino is painful to watch. ---
**Author:** ![jacob\_wrestling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/76d3ee/32.png) [@jacob\_wrestling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacob_wrestling)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/12 "2007-03-14T14:01:58Z")
Jack Nicholson in _The Departed_. During the “rat” scene, he was practically a cartoon. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/13 "2007-03-14T14:10:21Z")
Gary Oldman in _The Fifth Element_. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/14 "2007-03-14T14:15:49Z")
Actually, I thought Sir Laurence was the model of restraint in **Clash of the Titans** , if you compared it to his performances in **A Little Romance The Boys from Brazil The Jigsaw Man**(Olivier and Caine, together again, years after**Sleuth**, hamming it up!) **The** aforementioned **Betsy** and … **The Jazz Singer**! **Richard Burton** is often cited as egregious in this regard, especially in **The Exorcist II** **Vincent Price** often had to reign it in – too often to mention, but especially in the “funny” Corman Poe outings. ---
**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/15 "2007-03-14T14:55:44Z")
Robert DeNiro in “Analyse this” Trying to be an emotional mafia man just made me cringe. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/16 "2007-03-14T15:30:51Z")
Jack Lemmon, in _Irma La Douce_, but only when he was playing the faux Englishman. It’s as painful to watch as Mickey Rooney’s portrayal of a Japanese man in _Breakfast At Tiffany’s_. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/17 "2007-03-14T16:13:24Z")
[QUOTE=FordPrefect] I am tapping the side of my nose with my index finger. I don’t know how he got as famous as he is. Pacino is painful to watch. [/QUOTE] Probably because he was absolutely brilliant in the 70s: _The Godfather_ films, _The Panic in Needle Park, Serpico, Scarecrow_ and _Dog Day Afternoon_–and anyone who says he “overacts” in DDA has never seen the film (or has only seen the “Attica!” clip). He’s still great now (_Glengarry Glen Ross, The Insider, Donnie Brasco, Insomnia_) but he has also become somewhat of a caricature of himself–though nowhere in the same league that DeNiro has. Still, it doesn’t help that Pacino’s Oscar was for something as bad as _Scent_. Still, I was going to enter this thread to cite _Devil’s Advocate_ a ridiculous movie that’s saved by Al’s tremendous appetite for the scenery–a perfectly appropriate route to take given his material and co-stars. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/18 "2007-03-14T16:55:59Z")
[QUOTE=ArchiveGuy] Probably because he was absolutely brilliant in the 70s: _The Godfather_ films, _The Panic in Needle Park, Serpico, Scarecrow_ and _Dog Day Afternoon_–and anyone who says he “overacts” in DDA has never seen the film (or has only seen the “Attica!” clip). He’s still great now (\*Glengarry Glen Ross, The Insider, Donnie Brasco, Insomnia [/QUOTE] Yep yep yep on all of those, except **Scarecrow** , which I haven’t seen. I’d add, though I think I’m one of the few people in the universe who liked it, **Bobby Deerfield**. And ok, maybe there was a bit of overacting in the courtroom scene in **And Justice For All** , but it was earned because of what came before, and he was great in the rest of the movie. [QUOTE=ArchiveGuy] Still, I was going to enter this thread to cite _Devil’s Advocate_ a ridiculous movie that’s saved by Al’s tremendous appetite for the scenery–a perfectly appropriate route to take given his material and co-stars. [/QUOTE] co-stars? Plural? Who are you including in that? I hope it’s not Charlize Theron, because she was moving and understated and absolutely convincing to me. I think she gave the best performance in the movie. (And I happen to like Keanu a lot) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/19 "2007-03-14T17:02:17Z")
**Anthony Hopkins** as an over-the-top, whacked-out Professor Van Helsing in **Bram Stoker’s Dracula**. ---
**Author:** ![kushiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kushiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kushiel)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2007, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861/20 "2007-03-14T17:21:55Z")
[QUOTE=N9IWP] Jeremy Irons in Dungeons And Dragons Brian [/QUOTE] Oh God, I watched that movie and wondered who the hell the poor schmuck playing the villain was. Then I found out it was Jeremy Irons and I was in shock. I mean, he’s an accomplished actor - not a bad fantasy caricature. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outrageous-moments-of-good-actors-over-acting/395861.md?page=2)