Butch Cassidy, hands down.
Redford is “B” grade actor. He’s pretty good, but not good enough for many of the films he’s been in. Imagine Out of Africa with someone in Redford’s role who could stand up to Streep. It’s not that he’s bad, he just isn’t good enough.
Someone said that Redford and Klaus Maria Brandauer should have switched roles in Out of Africa. Accents aside (and where was Redford’s English accent, anyway?), I agree.
There is usually too much reticence in Redford’s performances to really engage. This helps for enigmatic characters like Jay Gatsby, where we and Nick Carraway are always wondering who is there inside the enigma. His best performances? Barefoot in the Park, oddly enough, where in Neil Simonland no thought passes through a character’s mind without being spoken; and The Candidate, where he and the title character are working overtime to sell themselves.
Butch Cassidy, The Sting and The Natural
Favorite: 1. Three Days of the Condor
2. Electric Horseman
3. The Natural
Worst movie of all-time: The Clearing
I agree that he’s not a great actor. But he’s in really good movies and his co-stars seem to be able to bring out the best in him. I think he’s good enough in great movies that he creates the illusion of an all-around great production.
Actually, I thought one of his better performances was in An Unfinished Life. Lots more dimension than you find in many of his other movies.
According to Sydney Pollack, he did “ok” with the accent but they decided it wasn’t integral to the part. In my opinion, he didn’t pull it off so they altered the character a bit. I’m cool with that.
I definitely think his greatest strength is behind the camera; not in front of it.
Barefoot In The Park
Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here
The Great Waldo Pepper
Funny – I just watched Electric Horseman for the first time since seeing it in theaters almost 30 years ago. I loved it in 1977 and was pleasantly surprised to see how well it held up. Many of the movies I liked as a kid don’t. Redford’s rather low-key style really worked in that film. And Jane Fonda is not a favorite of mine – too jittery and bug eyed, but jittery and bug eyed worked for her character.
And, damn! Didn’t Willy look young?
Ditto on Sneakers. It’s the Mission Impossible movie that should’ve been.
Favorite: All the President’s Men
Least favorite: Indecent Proposal
His scenes with Ben Kingsley were great. “We were supposed to save the world Marty.”
I’d have to say Jeremiah Johnson. Despite his bungling of the character’s opening line, the rest of the movie adequately made up for it.
Agreed that he’s rather limited in his range, although many of the flicks (Butch & Sundance, All The President’s Men, 3 Days of the Condor, Barefoot in the Park) were just such entertaining movies that that mattered not.
Yes. Even though it was quite a few years ago, I remember the film critic’s review that I read at the time mentioning exactly that-- KMB should have been Finch-Hatten.
His acting performance in The Natural was underrated, but he put a lot of understated emotion into that role.
A very young Redford played the Angel of Death in a “Twilight Zone” episode, IIRC. I’d say:
I’m not a massive Redford fan, but The Sting is just all-round great.
I’m probably most partial to Out of Africa & The Natural, as they are favorites of my mother’s and are tied into a lot of personal nostalgia of pleasant hours spent with my mom.
My list, except I’ve never seen Sneakers.
Yes, he plays the Angel of Death (in the guise of a police officer who’s been shot). He comes for the little old lady who lives in the basement apartment.
I think most of his better-known films (Sting, Butch) are quite overrated. If I had to name my 3 favorites, they’d be:
All the President’s Men
The Candidate
Jeremiah Johnson
Butch Cassidy and The Natural, for sure.