Once-promising casts

Arnold.

He might make a comeback, but it'll never be the same again. We may seem him as the Terminator one last time, and I will probably enjoy it, but it won't be as good as Judgement Day. You can work a lot of magic with the technology of today, but you still can't turn back time. You can't re-create the epic bad-assery of Commando, Predator, Total Recall, or Last Action Hero.

It all went downhill after End of Days (except for T3, which I actually love). I suppose one could blame Arnold's advancing age.

Hopkins was last seriously good in TITUS. Everything non-Lecter since he has phoned in, sometimes from space.

You might say INSTINCT (made the same year as Titus) was the beginning of the rot.

The Farrelly Brothers. Around 2000 or so, they became more obsessed with "sweet" to the point that it became more important than "funny". They'd never do a film today, where one of their lead characters scotch tapes a bird's severed head back on and sells it to a blind kid. That wouldn't be nice. Or sweet. "Hall Pass". Gag.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judas Booth 

Robert DeNiro. If I had to peg a turning point, I'd probably opt for ANALYZE THAT. ANALYZE THIS wasn't terrible, and it looked like he was trying something new. It was all downhill from there...from all reports, he got more interested in his real estate holdings than in his acting career. He has a few films here and there where he looks engaged in the material (STARDUST and MACHETE come to mind), but he looks bored most of the time. I think those FOKKER movies sapped the desire out of him.

Machete? Really? The Good Shepherd came out in '06, and though De Niro has only a small role in it, he's fully engaged as the director. Also, Stone in '10. Not a great film, but at least he and Norton are trying to do something. The rest of the shit of the past ten or so years from him doesn't hold my interest.

Harrison Ford

For 20 years, from American Graffiti to Air Force One (his last great film) the guy was nearly untouchable. Unfortunately, Ford is the anti-Eastwood. In that, he didn't age gracefully. From 1997 on, his laconic charm quickly became drowned out by a marked increase in doddering/old fart physicality. Not to mention, a poor as shit ability to select movies worth making (Six Days & Seven Nights, Random Hearts, Firewall).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art Decade 

Harrison Ford

 

For 20 years, from American Graffiti to Air Force One (his last great film) the guy was nearly untouchable. Unfortunately, Ford is the anti-Eastwood. In that, he didn't age gracefully. From 1997 on, his laconic charm quickly became drowned out by a marked increase in doddering/old fart physicality. Not to mention, a poor as shit ability to select movies worth making (Six Days & Seven Nights, Random Hearts, Firewall).

I second this, and I wish I didn't have to. I didn't hate Indy 4, but that's the only watchable movie of his since Air Force One. Very saddening.

As far as what you're actually getting at with this thread Mr. Blank, I don't really pay as much attention to movies that have big casts full of well-known people, and can't really think of one where the main actors have all pissed their careers away. I'll have to do some digging around.

Might be a little premature, but The Expendables 2?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ratty 

Might be a little premature, but The Expendables 2?

Stallone: Still has potential as far as I'm concerned, especially if he sticks to material that requires him to kill people.

Statham: I'm getting tired of the guy, though I don't think audiences are just yet.

Crews: He doesn't need great movies to star in. He makes the greatest commercials ever. EVER.

Lundgren: His career's seen better days, that's for sure.

Norris: I don't expect this role to revive him either. He's doomed to be an internet meme.

Li: Still viable to me. Not much range though.

Van Damme: Never was a big fan of his. I welcome a comeback though.

Arnold: I've spoken of this already.

Willis: This guy continues to amaze me with his longevity. Yes, he's made some poor choices in his career, but I wouldn't say he's ever really suffered from a serious slump. Wish he'd get around to doing more Die Hards. Seriously, he can do as many of those as he wants, I don't care.

I'm sure I'm missing like twenty other people, but whatever. :P

Seconding the Harrison Ford sentiments, and I'd include AIR FORCE ONE in the "meh" to "bad" category. (I honestly have no idea why it receives so much love; not only is there an incredibly huge plot hole/discrepancy [the entire film hinges on it!], but Ford here is already simply playing himself.) Hell, I'd probably include his turn as Jack Ryan, because he honestly doesn't really bring anything new or nuanced to the roles. 

Righteous Kill seems like a golden example.

Also, "Red" - that's a lot of acclaim on the page. And I suppose all the characters need to be much older for the whole thing to work. But there's so much bad movie mileage on Bruce, Morgan Freeman, Malkovich and Richard Dreyfuss, to name a few, and it really shows.

I feel ya Martin. Speaking of Harrison Ford, but to bring it back to your topic imagine this tagline in a magzine:

Harrison Ford would not have been 8400 years old, Karen Allen wouldn't have looked like she still worked that Tibetan dive bar from Raiders, Cate Blanchett would have been rocking as a young Russian Femme Fatale. This would have been after Jurassic Park, so Spielberg has still got his creative juices. And maybe... just maybe, Shia would not have been so irritating.

But in 2008, everyone is old, everything is CG, and we are fighting Communists and not Nazis. Then Shia Lebeef showed up doing his Fonz impersonation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gabe T 

Righteous Kill seems like a golden example.

 

Also, "Red" - that's a lot of acclaim on the page. And I suppose all the characters need to be much older for the whole thing to work. But there's so much bad movie mileage on Bruce, Morgan Freeman, Malkovich and Richard Dreyfuss, to name a few, and it really shows.

Gabe's got it. Red sounds great on paper. But that cast is 10 years into the paycheck it phase with this one.

I remember when they announced the cast of Moonrise Kingdom ​and I thought that Willis, Keitel, Schwartzman, McDormand and Norton in a Wes Anderson movie would have shattered my brain in 2001.

Now, I could really care less. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben W 

I remember when they announced the cast of Moonrise Kingdom ​and I thought that Willis, Keitel, Schwartzman, McDormand and Norton in a Wes Anderson movie would have shattered my brain in 2001.

 

Now, I could really care less. 

I thought the trailer looked pretty great.  

If Wolf had been made 8 years earlier with 1986 Nicholson and 1986 Pfeiffer, we'd still be talking about it today.

The Company Men. You had Kevin Costner, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Craig T Nelson, and Ben Affleck (most of whom are ACADMEY AWARD WINNERS OR NOMINEES! according to this film's marketing). And they try, they really do, but this film sucked. As in, treacly Lifetime movie sucked.

Hey man, wake up, that movie is about the times we're livin' in. Chris Cooper, oh my, he just couldn't handle the pressure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelM 

Seconding the Harrison Ford sentiments, and I'd include AIR FORCE ONE in the "meh" to "bad" category. (I honestly have no idea why it receives so much love; not only is there an incredibly huge plot hole/discrepancy [the entire film hinges on it!], but Ford here is already simply playing himself.) Hell, I'd probably include his turn as Jack Ryan, because he honestly doesn't really bring anything new or nuanced to the roles. 

Are you a fan of Ford at all? He's movie star great in AIR FORCE ONE.  He's playing the idealized Boomer President and nails it.

Fords last truly great film was The Fugitive. The dudes been coming down the other side of that massive peak he ascended to for almost 20 years now.

Double post.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ambler 

Ole Cubas career did such a profound 180 upon winning that damn statue that anyone would think he got it for best supporting actress rather than actor.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moltisanti 

Hey man, wake up, that movie is about the times we're livin' in. Chris Cooper, oh my, he just couldn't handle the pressure.

I will admit I enjoyed watching Ben Affleck being a douche. He should play that type of character more often.

You could pack this thread with DeNiro. For instance, if you told me that one day DeNiro and Dustin Hoffman would co-star in a movie where the whole thing took place within roughly a half-mile radius, I would think it would be an intense potboiler. No, it was "Meet The Fockers." I understand these two were joined by Harvey Keitel in the third one, but I didn't see it because JESUS WEPT.

And the Gene Hackman-Dustin Hoffman matchup in "Runaway Jury" could have been some intense shit if it happened earlier. Instead, Hoffman is fun, but Hackman is thisclose to retirement, and it's shot by a terrible director.

Speaking of which, I do think "Family Business" should have been made maybe five or ten years later, given that Sean Connery is way too young to play Dustin Hoffman's dad in that.

I know it has its defenders, but no movie trades more shamelessly on the goodwill generated for its cast by a previous film than Fierce Creatures.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cylon Baby 

The Company Men. You had Kevin Costner, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Craig T Nelson, and Ben Affleck (most of whom are ACADMEY AWARD WINNERS OR NOMINEES! according to this film's marketing). And they try, they really do, but this film sucked. As in, treacly Lifetime movie sucked.

I don't think the movie sucked - it did a pretty good job at conveying the laid-off blues (and I know whereof I speak) - but it was a bit diffused and went for the happy ending. Which was nice, but blunted its impact. I don't think it was the greatest thing ever, but it was a solid drama about the impact of the times on the upper middle class (and in some cases, upper class).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fat Elvis 

Are you a fan of Ford at all? He's movie star great in AIR FORCE ONE.  He's playing the idealized Boomer President and nails it.

 

Eh. Sure, he brings energy to it....but it's exactly what we've seen him do before, again and again. Absolutely nothing fresh or new to it. How is that president character substantially different from Ford's Ryan or Richard Kimble?

And again, my view of that movie is soured by its horrible, out-of-fucking-NOWHERE late third act reveal, which just ruined the movie for me. No explanation, no foreshadowing, nothing. Piss poor writing and storytelling, even for a summer blockbuster.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelM 

 

And again, my view of that movie is soured by its horrible, out-of-fucking-NOWHERE late third act reveal, which just ruined the movie for me. No explanation, no foreshadowing, nothing. Piss poor writing and storytelling, even for a summer blockbuster.

 

 

 

Been a while since I've seen AF1...what was the reveal?

Spoiler below:

You didn't like evil Xander Berkeley? And he gets to give William H. Macy a tragic / heroic exit! 

I'll allow it! 

Unless you mean the very end, where Ford wakes up sweaty and dishevelled on a park bench. It was all a dream. He was never President. He is homeless.

And then he is beaten to death by Droogs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelM 

 

I don't think the movie sucked - it did a pretty good job at conveying the laid-off blues (and I know whereof I speak) - but it was a bit diffused and went for the happy ending. Which was nice, but blunted its impact. I don't think it was the greatest thing ever, but it was a solid drama about the impact of the times on the upper middle class (and in some cases, upper class).

 

I was unemployed for 4.5 months in 2007 and 5 months last year, so yeah I know those laid-off blues too. But with that cast I really expected a lot more. And I really HATED that ending, because it was such bullshit. Laid off people start their own company doing exactly the same thing as the company slowly going out of business. Bah. They should have started a Bar or a Donut shop. That would have been realistic.

Not that I expected anything good from GROWN UPS, but jeez what a terrible, boring, unfunny movie.  Sandler, Rock, Schneider, Spade.. even that fat guy can be occasionally funny.. but... no dice.   Shitty fucking movie. 

Someone mentioned The Expendables above and they were totally right.   Back in the early 90's that cast would have been amazing (and the movie too if directed by John McTeirnan).   Instead we get a feature length viagra commercial complete with everyone riding motorcycles while the voice over artist drones on about the  harmful side effects.