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Why Is Brendan Fraser Still Permitted To Be Involved In The Motion Picture Industry?

post #1 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:37pm
Thread Starter 
This morning I saw a rather mediocre, stupid movie called The Last Time. Which amounts, basically, to an erotic "thriller" about salesmen.

It stars Fraser, Michael Keaton and Amber Valletta.

It would be a bad movie even without Fraser there. But his presence is extremely toxic to the film - make no mistake. He's goofy, flabby, and completely insufferable. With his usual abrasive personality that he tries to pass off as amiable charisma.

Why does he continue to get work? He's a terrible actor. He plays every role as if the film were a comedic spoof of whatever the genre is. And, if I had the certainty that this is a deliberate commentary on the quality of the films he appears in, maybe I would admire his Andy Kaufmanesque take on the material.

But I don't think that's the case.

I think the only time Fraser ever gave a good performance was in School Ties. Then, he made Encino Man and forgot how to be an actor.

Fuck him. I hope he stops making movies soon.
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post #2 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:42pm
He gets paid a lot of money for his SHIT.

He was good in The Quiet American and occasionally has actually displayed talent. The Mummy movies ruined him.
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post #3 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:44pm
I basically agree but he was good in BLAST FROM THE PAST, MUMMY 1, and THE QUIET AMERICAN
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post #4 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:44pm
With Honors, Airheads, The Mummy, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and Scrubs beg to differ with you.

Otherwise, I would agree. It wasn't Encino Man rather it was Looney Tunes or the return to the Mummy series that somehow brought him low.
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post #5 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:45pm
I've always blamed his agent.
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post #6 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:52pm
My list: Gods and Monsters, Bedazzled, The Mummy, Looney Tunes.

He's going to be in an Oren Moverman film. That's more promising than his usual stuff.
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post #7 of 37
10/17/10 at 6:57pm
After Gods And Monsters, in which Fraser gave a great performance, I thought he would go on to better work than before. Mummy money killed that. And I guess performing opposite Sir Ian would even make a doorknob into a better actor.
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post #8 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:06pm
The guy's likable enough, and a serviceable actor (if you've seen the right films). Bad choice in material lately though. He is a big goofball for sure. Like my brother-in-law, only handsome and successful.

He feels like he's from another Hollywood era.
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post #9 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:12pm
Gods and Monsters gets him a lifetime pass.
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post #10 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:12pm
Yeah, lifetime pass from me for being in SCRUBS' all-time best episode.
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post #11 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:17pm
I can't speak on Crash as I haven't seen it, but looking at IMBD it seems like the only times He's really put any effort in dramatically are The Quiet American and Gods And Monsters, in both of which he's been really good- and has also been playing opposite really great actors.
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post #12 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by zak chase View Post
Yeah, lifetime pass from me for being in SCRUBS' all-time best episode.
The one where Cox ends up at his funeral at the end?
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post #13 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TzuDohNihm View Post
The one where Cox ends up at his funeral at the end?
You got it.
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post #14 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by zak chase View Post
You got it.
Shyamalan wishes he could pull off a twist like that.
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post #15 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:38pm
Fraser took two movies to $100 million domestic (additionally, "Mummy 3" did $400 million worldwide, "Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D" did $250 million worldwide) as recently as two summers ago. People on this planet continue to take their hard-earned money to the box office and spend it on his product, for better or worse so the motion picture industry will continue to bank on him, particularly for kid-aimed movies as he's a fairly safe bet, "Furry Vengeance" aside. At the end of the day, Hollywood's a math problem.
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post #16 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:39pm
He's been in some duff movies for sure, but the guy has such a genial screen presence I find it hard to think too harshly of him. I find he can be perfectly watchable in the right vehicle.
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post #17 of 37
10/17/10 at 7:51pm
There was a great article in EW a few years back that basically pointed out Fraser is one of the few actors in Hollywood whose films consistently make money. He headlines films that are made inexpensively and are targeted at kids, which, for the most part, pays off.

I like him quite a bit, but he's still a Jew.
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post #18 of 37
10/17/10 at 8:02pm
I've heard that his passion is for dumb, goofy shit for children. He LOVES IT. I don't think I can hate him the way I can hate Mike Myers, because Fraser doesn't appear to be remotely cynical or self-aware.
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post #19 of 37
10/17/10 at 8:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by RathBandu View Post
I like him quite a bit, but he's still a Jew.
Coward!

That aside, Fraser gets a lifetime pass from me from a lot of the roles posted already, plus the guy is charming and has great chops.
Surely there are other targets out there that truly deserve the hate that's been pointed at him here.
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post #20 of 37
10/17/10 at 8:25pm
He and Dwayne Johnson both have chops. After The Mummy Fraser was being touted as a legitimate action star.

Both have retreated to comfortable roles in kid-friendly fare and many people are baffled by it. It would be nice to have a book explain them both.
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post #21 of 37
10/17/10 at 8:26pm
Hes actually pretty good in Crash. Its just that hes playing a cunt.
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post #22 of 37
10/17/10 at 9:10pm
Thread Starter 
Yeah. You guys have brought up other movies where he's been good. Fair enough.

But believe me when I say he plays the exact same character in both the aforementioned Michael Keaton erotic drama about salesmen and the Harrison Ford movie where he already works around the clock.

So, ultimately, I guess it's my fault for actually giving time in my life to those two fucking movies.
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post #23 of 37
10/17/10 at 9:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erix View Post
So, ultimately, I guess it's my fault for actually giving time in my life to those two fucking movies.
That's a bingo!
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post #24 of 37
10/17/10 at 9:20pm
The man is an enigma.
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post #25 of 37
10/17/10 at 9:22pm
Going after Brendan Fraser instead of the studios who hire him is like going after a street dealer instead of the drug cartels.
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post #26 of 37
10/17/10 at 10:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TzuDohNihm View Post
He and Dwayne Johnson both have chops. After The Mummy Fraser was being touted as a legitimate action star.

Both have retreated to comfortable roles in kid-friendly fare and many people are baffled by it. It would be nice to have a book explain them both.
I wanted him to be Superman for awhile or even Captain Marvel.
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post #27 of 37
10/17/10 at 10:26pm
He's got a goofy charm and he always gives it 100%, he's just given it in service to some real crap. If they were still making screwball comedies like in the 30s and 40s, he'd be a huge star.
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post #28 of 37
10/17/10 at 10:36pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cameron Hughes View Post
I wanted him to be Superman for awhile or even Captain Marvel.
But you don't want that anymore, right?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Richard Dickson View Post
He's got a goofy charm and he always gives it 100%, he's just given it in service to some real crap. If they were still making screwball comedies like in the 30s and 40s, he'd be a huge star.
Okay. I'll go along with this premise.

I liked him in The Scout. I liked The Scout overall. It's a shit movie, but I liked it anyway. That part at the end when Tony Bennett looks at him and quips: You gonna sing this one for me too? Wonderful.
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post #29 of 37
10/17/10 at 10:41pm
I just look at how game and likeable he was in Looney Tunes and Bedazzled and wish he'd hook up with a great comedy writer/director.
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post #30 of 37
10/17/10 at 10:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cameron Hughes View Post
I wanted him to be Superman for awhile or even Captain Marvel.
Same here. Once upon a time, he was my ideal, under-the-radar pick for the Superman role (although given his goofy, childlike tendencies, Captain Marvel might've suited him better). I think Darkmite8 nailed it when he said that Fraser seems like an actor born in the wrong era. He would've been great in '60s screwball comedies.
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post #31 of 37
10/17/10 at 11:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cameron Hughes View Post
I wanted him to be Superman for awhile or even Captain Marvel.
Fraser is Ralph Dibny, The Elongated Man. Complete with wiggling CGI nose.
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post #32 of 37
10/19/10 at 1:57pm
He's a very good actor, but he doesn't like working very much or very hard - he's said as much in interviews in the past.
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post #33 of 37
10/19/10 at 2:05pm
Yeah, he's criminally lazy if anything. You could argue this is worse than actually being a horrible actor, but I as a lazy bastard myself cannot begrudge him too much.
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post #34 of 37
10/19/10 at 2:41pm
He's our generation's Michael Caine. Not a bad thing.
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post #35 of 37
10/19/10 at 2:48pm
I'm willing to forgive him for all the garbage if it means he gets to reprise his role in the GI Joe sequel. Also, I like the Mummy and I like him in it. For what its worth, hes a great fit for the kind of movies Stephen Sommers makes.
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post #36 of 37
10/19/10 at 4:44pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by HBarr View Post
He's our generation's Michael Caine. Not a bad thing.
Oh come on... No way.
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post #37 of 37
10/19/10 at 4:47pm
Here's a quote from Caine on Jaws IV.

Quote:
I have never seen it, but by all accounts it is terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific.
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