RIP Marlon Brando

Post by **spooky girlfriend** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:36 am

My daughter just heard this on CBS. Has anyone else seen this yet?

cosmos · Post by **cosmos** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:38 am

Yes, I heard the rumour earlier this morning that he had passed. What a shame!

cosmos · Post by **cosmos** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:40 am

http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/Movies/ ... index.html

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:44 am

May he rest in peace. Whether he was overrated or not as an actor is irrelevant when you consider the magnitude of his influence. For anyone who has treaded the boards or hit their marks for the camera since Brando, he was pretty much the Picasso of acting. Personally, I thought his string of performances starting with Fred Zinneman's The Men in 1950 all the way to On The Waterfront in 1954 more than justifies his lionization as an actor. After his work in On The Waterfront, things get dodgy. A huge part of that was his reaction to the overwhelming fame that was placed on his doorstep as well as the vast gobs of money handed to him by Hollywood producers who didn't really care about what was best for him as an artist.

Sir John Gielgud, who coached Brando into a memorable performance as Marc Anthony, once lamented that Marlon Brando had the talent to be the greatest American Shakesperian actor of all time but he just threw it all away. After a brief run in George Bernard Shaw's Arms & The Man, Brando never performed in a theatrical production after 1953. That's a damn shame.

Another factor that contributed to his initial decline was the death of his mother. A lot of people trace the moment where Brando stopped caring back to that personal tragedy. The 1960's were one long, long fallow period for him as a film actor. His own eccentricities as a man started to overshadow his work or his inclination to focus and he was labled as "Burned out Brando" or someone who was only great when he worked with Elia Kazan.

He had a great comeback run in the early 1970's with his work as William Walker in Gillo Pontecorvo's Burn! as well as the one-two punch of The Godfather and Last Tango In Paris. The latter doesn't hold up for me but you can never say that he wasn't emotionally invested in his work in Bertolucci's film. After that, he basically derailed a couple of films (The Missouri Breaks, Apocalypse Now) with his bizarre improvisations and took a big payday for Superman. In the late 80's, he had another startling little hiccup where it looked like he was back in the saddle as That Great Actor. He was incredible in his few brief scenes in the otherwise underwhelming A Dry White Season. If you haven't seen that film, you should see it just for his performance as the most noble of crusaders. He also gave his one great comedic performance in the following year by spoofing his immortal Godfather performance in Andrew Bergman's The Freshman. After that, he picked up a few more checks, got even weirder and kissed Larry King.

Regardless of how relevant he was or was not in the last fifteen years of his life as an artist and entertainer, this is the equivalent of losing Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan or Charlie Chaplin.

miss buenos aires · Post by **miss buenos aires** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:24 am

And let's not forget that as a young man, he was extremely hot.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 12:22 pm

Those, MBA, are the hips of a true heart-throb.

miss buenos aires · Post by **miss buenos aires** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 1:05 pm

And the lips.

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 1:15 pm

I've gone on record as being sort of a Marlon Brando revisionist (essentially, I like lots of other actors better, but he's overall been pretty good). Still, the man's an icon and did basically change film acting forever, even if I do greatly prefer Monty Clift, James Dean and Eli Wallach.

And, you gotta see the SNL sketch with John Travolta as Brando playing S&M games with Kevin Nealon's Larry King.

bambooneedle · Post by **bambooneedle** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 2:41 pm

I've deliberately switched channels, not read eulogies, etc... Marlon Brando lives on in people.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:20 pm

bobster wrote:Still, the man's an icon and did basically change film acting forever, even if I do greatly prefer Monty Clift, James Dean and Eli Wallach.

James Dean? Really? Montgomery Clift and, especially, Eli Wallach I can see but I guess I'm just somebody who never, ever got James Dean.

In spite of his shilling for American Express, Karl Malden definitely deserves greater recognition as a heavyweight actor. He and Wallach played off one another so beautifully in Kazan's wonderfully twisted Baby Doll.

bambooneedle · Post by **bambooneedle** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:28 pm

James Dean couldn't hold a candle to Brando... I never saw his supposedly great talent either.

Malden was great in One Eyed Jacks, On The Waterfront, A Streetcar Named Desire... a fantastic actor.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:33 pm

Well, bobster was only stating a preference. Back off.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:42 pm

wehitandrun wrote:Well, bobster was only stating a preference. Back off.

No one is being contentious here. I assure you that Bobster knows me well enough to read my message as nothing more than an extension of friendly conversational banter.

Boy With A Problem · Post by **Boy With A Problem** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:58 pm

One that I really liked was Guys and Dolls with Sinatra. I had a chance to see it on the big screen several years ago and I thought Brando was hilarious. I only wish he'd done more comedy. I'd love to hear bobster's thoughts on Guys and Dolls.

I think Dean's work was too limited to make a case either way.

Growing up, Karl Malden was always the guy on the Streets of San Francisco (and American Express) - which effected my impression of him when I saw him in films. His roles always seemed over serious.

The great contemporary of Brando that isn't mentioned is George C. Scott. That cat could act.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:03 pm

Boy With A Problem wrote: The great contemporary of Brando that isn't mentioned is George C. Scott. That cat could act.

I think part of that is because George C. was so defiantly anti-method. He and Jason Robards (another fantastic, fantastic actor) were these great anachronistic throwbacks to the likes of John Barrymore or Albert Finney's character in The Dresser.

If he never did anything else, George C. Scott would be in my Hall of Fame for uttering my all time favorite movie line in the 1971 film The Hospital -

"I mean, where do you train your nurses, Mrs. Christie---Dachau?!"

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:15 pm

El Vez wrote:
wehitandrun wrote:Well, bobster was only stating a preference. Back off.
No one is being contentious here. I assure you that Bobster knows me well enough to read my message as nothing more than an extension of friendly conversational banter.

I just read what I wrote, yeah, it wasnt meant to sound as defensive as it was. I thought I was being a hero and saving an argument... but, I didn't.

I wish I knew enough about Marlon Brando to contribute. I will, however, say that "Heist" contained the three leading actors of their generation-

Marlon Brando
Robert Deniro
Ed Norton

Boy With A Problem · Post by **Boy With A Problem** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:22 pm

I will, however, say that "Heist" contained the three leading actors of their generation-

and yet it was a very average film. It just goes to show you how important good writing is. (he says as he ends a sentence with a preposition)

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:28 pm

wehitandrun wrote: I wish I knew enough about Marlon Brando to contribute. I will, however, say that "Heist" contained the three leading actors of their generation-

Marlon Brando
Robert Deniro
Ed Norton

You're thinking of Frank Oz's film, The Score. Heist was a Mamet film with Hackman, Devito and Delroy Lindo. Brando will probably go down as THE defining actor of his generation but I think the jury is still out on DeNiro and, especially, Norton. If I had to pick an actor for DeNiro's generation as standard bearer I would probably go with Gene Hackman or maybe Jack Nicholson. Both have managed to keep their work invigorating (most of the time) where DeNiro has slipped in the last ten years. That is not to say that he isn't a great actor and he is certainly someone who is more than able to come roaring back......but crap like Godsend and Analyze That! have become the norm for him rather than the occassional misfire.

Ed Norton, for me, has lost a lot of steam since American History X. I'd have to give it to Philip Seymour Hoffman as far as being the IT actor of the current 30-something generation.

Boy With A Problem · Post by **Boy With A Problem** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:46 pm

El Vez -

I think the three of them (Nicholson, Hackman and Deniro) are responsible for equal amounts of crap over the last ten years or so...

What about Duval? Paul Newman? (I watched Somebody Up There Likes Me again last night - with Sal Mineo and a young Steve Mcqueen - great film).....or even way off the board - Harry Dean Stanton (he's always watchable)?.

The Heist and The Score may have been in fact the same movie.

Denzel may be the actor of this generation.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Sun Jul 04, 2004 11:46 pm

I wouldn't disagree with Denzel. I would say Ben Affleck as well, but a lot of people are too ignorant and unfamiliar with his work to actually show him some respect.

Yes, THE SCORE, I knew I got it wrong, but I was too lazy to look it up.

Copenhagen Fan · Post by **Copenhagen Fan** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 3:35 am

Denzel???! Isn't he a little bland?!

By the way, Brando is the best........because of his quirkiness, his power, his depth and vulnerablitilty. THE PAIN.....and the masculinity mixed together.

Copenhagen Fan · Post by **Copenhagen Fan** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 4:31 am

WHAR BEN AFFLECK??!!!!!!! He's the Glitter Gulch of actors!!!!! Enlighten me on his work

By the way, I saw Tombstone this weekend. Val Kilmer is way cool as Doc Holliday. He's also great as Simon Templar, Jim Morrison, his performance in Heat, and the Native American FBI agent.......

He's pretty cool in everything he does..........

Kurt Russell is actually good in Tombstone!

bambooneedle · Post by **bambooneedle** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 8:18 am

Cope, Ben Affleck is the new Brando... don't you know?

Copenhagen Fan · Post by **Copenhagen Fan** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 8:25 am

Bamboozle........it is news to me?? I thought that that was Johnny Dep!

bambooneedle · Post by **bambooneedle** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 8:27 am

At first, it was going to be that guy from Friends, Schwimmer (did I spell that right?).