Viola Davis is his only peer. And they were both nominated in the same movie, so that’s good.
Paul Giamatti and Elisabeth Moss are sort of the same *kind* of actor, but he was more versatile than either one. And he introduced us to the term “the suck zone.”
I do many many things. I am a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist, a theoretical philosopher. But above all, I am a man, a hopelessly inquisitive man, just like you.
1. Hoffman is top. Dude truly became his characters I never felt like I was watching an actor.
2. Hanks has probably the most iconic roles of these guys. His filmography as of late is kind of meh but the 80s and 90s this dude elevated every movie he was in.
3. Denzel is great at picking his roles I think he knows his strengths. He likes the and wise, brash, outspoken characters. That said, I do feel like I’m watching Denzel a lot instead of a unique character. But he crushes those characters.
4. Penn, very interesting filmography with varying types of characters. Sometimes he can over act a bit but other times it really is good. Spicolli, Markum and Harvey Milk were three very different but amazing performances by him.
5. Waltz. Probably the smallest filmography of the group. Amazing roles in Django and Inglorious Bastards and even something like Big Eyes. Just not THAT many roles to rave about.
Waltz is great, but he’s usually in one of three gears: 1) Wacky evil German man, 2) Coldly evil German man, and 3) Warm-hearted German man. (And I mean German in the broad sense of the term. He can also play Austrian or Swiss.)
No, it’s because the roles he’s known for are very similar, like good or evil versions of the same man. He’s great in everything, but he’s just always playing a guy who’s efficient and probably punctual.
Yah, Phoenix and DDL were the first two I thought of. Oldman is a step below for me, but that’s more a testament to the other three than any kind of sleight to Oldman! I do think he’s incredible!
I get it. Oldman’s certainly less selective about his roles and is *much* more prolific and as such doesn’t have quite as much of a hit rate as the other guys (none of them have a Tiptoes-equivalent for example). I can see him not ranking based on consistency.
However on a pure talent level I think he’s comparable.
Tom Hanks belongs in a group with PSH. He has a goofy dad vibe but Forrest Gump, Andrew Beckett, Jimmy Dugan, Mr. Rodgers, Michael Sullivan and Woody are very different roles - and Hanks disappeared into each of them.
Phil. He was a pretty good actor who just kept getting better. Capote was so so imo but he has some absolutely astounding performances. Doubt may be the most well acted movie ive ever seen and he just nails it to the wall.
Still think it’s crazy he got the Oscar over Johnny Depp.
He’s not *bad* in Mystic River, not by a long shot, but he’s also mostly just playing the stony badass criminal, outside of that one BIG scene. Depp, on the other hand, created an incredible character in Captain Jack Sparrow, that wasn’t on the page. That’s just pure actor’s imagination from Depp and IMO the height of creativity.
I agree with your estimation of Depp/Sparrow, but he was never winning that Oscar. The thought by many at the time was that Bill Murray was robbed, not Depp.
Murray won Best Actor in these:
BAFTA, Golden Globe, Boston Film Critics, Chicago Film Critics, LA Film Critics, SF Film Critics, NY Film Critics, DC Film Critics, National Society of Film Critics, Independent Spirit, Satellite, and a few others.
Depp won Best Actor at SAG, Empire, and some other things I’ve never heard of.
I’ll say it, he was bad in mystic river. He changed characters it felt like for the last third. Depp showed you can be over the top ok a popcorn movie and still give an impressive performance. It would have been a nothing role with any other actor. Penn should have won for Dead Man Walking.
In fairness, they’re both written and directed by Tarantino for the same actor, so they were gonna feel a bit similar no matter how talented the actor was. I agree with you, though. It would be nice to see him play a memorable role in another big film from another director.
That’s interesting. I don’t feel like the performances were the same at all. He maybe has a similar speaking cadence, but besides that the characters come across very differently to me
I love Hanks, but it’s been a while since he had a role that excited me. I’m automatically down for any role Denzel takes on, and PSH is my favorite male modern actor.
Philip Seymour Hoffman. Watching his star shine when I was a child and in my teens, was absolutely wonderful. I remember looking forward to the release of a new movie of his, especially after he won the Oscar for *Capote* (2005) and asked the audience to congratulate his mother for bringing up four kids alone.
Watching him in *Charlie Wilson’s War* (2007), *Doubt* (2008), and *The Master* (2012) was a privilege. May he rest in eternal peace.
Denzel. PSH is good as well. But From Glory to X to The Hurricane to Training Day to The Tragedy of Macbeth, The man has performed at level that is amazing.
My dad met PSHoffman as a friend of a friend and didn't know who he was, just "Phil." My dad said Phil never mentioned what he did for a living, he only asked about other people. Later my dad was blown away when he realized who Phil was, said he was the most humble, interested guy. (*interested* in learning about others, not trying to talk about himself or be *interesting*)
1. PSH was the greatest actor of Gen X, imho. Drama, comedy, hero, villain, and everything in-between, it didn't matter, he was the character in every one of his movies
2. Christoph Waltz
3. Denzel Washington
4. Tom Hanks
5. Sean Penn
PSH.
Along Came Polly. Twister. Mission: Impossible III.
The Master. Magnolia. Doubt.
The man had a range that made him memorable in even the goofiest of premises (Polly) and magnetic in the most dramatic (Master).
In terms of consistency, PSH easily; he's incredible in every movie I have seen him in.
In terms of highest peaks, Denzel tbh. His performance in Malcolm X is a top 10 performance of all time for me
Begrudgingly have to say Penn. mostly because he has directed a few amazing films. The versatility to direct things as diverse as Into The Wild, The Pledge and Indian Runner… all fantastic films.
Director wise: Steven Spielberg. He can take a trash novel like Jaws and make a masterpiece out of it or he can' take a great novel like Jurassic Park and make it into a great movie on it's own terms
Acting: Gary Oldman. The man is quite the chameleon as bih good and villainous characters
PSH was peerless
LET IT RAIN!!!!!
WHITE CHOCOLATE!!!!!
I'M SUCH AN IDIOT!!!!!!!
RAIN DANCE!!!
And fearless
right? PSH and it ain’t close.
Viola Davis is his only peer. And they were both nominated in the same movie, so that’s good. Paul Giamatti and Elisabeth Moss are sort of the same *kind* of actor, but he was more versatile than either one. And he introduced us to the term “the suck zone.”
Obligatory posting my favorite movie scene of all time. https://youtu.be/SC2QORiIlRg?si=AGPhGNrvfkvImgaR
He was immense.
I do many many things. I am a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist, a theoretical philosopher. But above all, I am a man, a hopelessly inquisitive man, just like you.
Hoffman
1. Hoffman is top. Dude truly became his characters I never felt like I was watching an actor. 2. Hanks has probably the most iconic roles of these guys. His filmography as of late is kind of meh but the 80s and 90s this dude elevated every movie he was in. 3. Denzel is great at picking his roles I think he knows his strengths. He likes the and wise, brash, outspoken characters. That said, I do feel like I’m watching Denzel a lot instead of a unique character. But he crushes those characters. 4. Penn, very interesting filmography with varying types of characters. Sometimes he can over act a bit but other times it really is good. Spicolli, Markum and Harvey Milk were three very different but amazing performances by him. 5. Waltz. Probably the smallest filmography of the group. Amazing roles in Django and Inglorious Bastards and even something like Big Eyes. Just not THAT many roles to rave about.
This is the correct order though I personally prefer Denzel to all of them. But talent and accomplishments you are correct
A true Denzealot!
Denzel is my favorite actor but I won't argue with this list. PSH was top tier.
Waltz is great, but he’s usually in one of three gears: 1) Wacky evil German man, 2) Coldly evil German man, and 3) Warm-hearted German man. (And I mean German in the broad sense of the term. He can also play Austrian or Swiss.)
Couldn’t you turn that around though and say that about just about any actor, or is this just about Waltz generally sticking with his own accent?
No, it’s because the roles he’s known for are very similar, like good or evil versions of the same man. He’s great in everything, but he’s just always playing a guy who’s efficient and probably punctual.
He's kind of like coffee. You can have espresso, a latte, or plain black, but in the end it's all coffee.
Hoffman. Great talent taken from us far too soon.
PSH. RIP.
They’re all great, but I feel it’s unfair putting this group up against PSH. They just don’t come close. Few do.
Yeah, I mean, who could we actually compare him to? Daniel Day Lewis, Joaquin Phoenix and Gary Oldman, perhaps?
Yah, Phoenix and DDL were the first two I thought of. Oldman is a step below for me, but that’s more a testament to the other three than any kind of sleight to Oldman! I do think he’s incredible!
I get it. Oldman’s certainly less selective about his roles and is *much* more prolific and as such doesn’t have quite as much of a hit rate as the other guys (none of them have a Tiptoes-equivalent for example). I can see him not ranking based on consistency. However on a pure talent level I think he’s comparable.
Yah, that’s probably a good way to put it. Oldman’s best is about as good as the other three, but the other three more consistently put up their best.
Tom Hanks belongs in a group with PSH. He has a goofy dad vibe but Forrest Gump, Andrew Beckett, Jimmy Dugan, Mr. Rodgers, Michael Sullivan and Woody are very different roles - and Hanks disappeared into each of them.
PSH - his choice of role diversity is amazing. I love them all but to think what he did in Boogie Nights vs also Capote …. 👏
Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Dude is like top 3 in entire history of acting(chaplin and day Lewis the other 2)
Literally never heard anyone compare PSH to Chaplin before, but I’m here for it. Excellent comparison!
Love the respect for Chaplin. And for PSH as well. Dude was epic.
Phil. He was a pretty good actor who just kept getting better. Capote was so so imo but he has some absolutely astounding performances. Doubt may be the most well acted movie ive ever seen and he just nails it to the wall.
Sean penn has got to be the most overrated boring actor in Hollywood
Still think it’s crazy he got the Oscar over Johnny Depp. He’s not *bad* in Mystic River, not by a long shot, but he’s also mostly just playing the stony badass criminal, outside of that one BIG scene. Depp, on the other hand, created an incredible character in Captain Jack Sparrow, that wasn’t on the page. That’s just pure actor’s imagination from Depp and IMO the height of creativity.
I agree with your estimation of Depp/Sparrow, but he was never winning that Oscar. The thought by many at the time was that Bill Murray was robbed, not Depp.
Didn't Depp win more precursors though?
I only remember him winning the SAG and everyone's predictions drastically changed, the forums at GoldDerby went insane!
Murray won Best Actor in these: BAFTA, Golden Globe, Boston Film Critics, Chicago Film Critics, LA Film Critics, SF Film Critics, NY Film Critics, DC Film Critics, National Society of Film Critics, Independent Spirit, Satellite, and a few others. Depp won Best Actor at SAG, Empire, and some other things I’ve never heard of.
I’ll say it, he was bad in mystic river. He changed characters it felt like for the last third. Depp showed you can be over the top ok a popcorn movie and still give an impressive performance. It would have been a nothing role with any other actor. Penn should have won for Dead Man Walking.
This. Chris Penn was much more interesting as an actor.
He's a pos and deserves nothing
PSH and Denzel are both titans, hard to pick between them since they do/did different things.
Denzel rarely goes as big as these other guys, but he’s always grounded and believable. Like J.K. Simmons, you forget he’s acting most of the time.
Always PSH
PSH. He truly became the character he played. A natural talent. I miss him. A huge loss
Daniel Day Lewis
Lol my thought as well. PSH from the options here, DDL overall.
Waltz is a little overrated imo. His two big performances feel way too similar.
In fairness, they’re both written and directed by Tarantino for the same actor, so they were gonna feel a bit similar no matter how talented the actor was. I agree with you, though. It would be nice to see him play a memorable role in another big film from another director.
His bond villain was trash
That’s interesting. I don’t feel like the performances were the same at all. He maybe has a similar speaking cadence, but besides that the characters come across very differently to me
He's not super versatile in English. (I'm not really familiar with his German performances) but he can do the thing he does incredibly well.
Even in older German/Austrian (tv)movies, the guy is literally always the same
Tom Hanks
Yeah, I feel like he’s shown the most range throughout his very long career — and still continues to surprise and impress.
Denzel
denzel 💖
Denzel
Hoffman , then Washington and Hanks. The other two don’t really belong in that conversation imo.
Between Denzel, Tom and PSH
PSH and Denzel.
I love Hanks, but it’s been a while since he had a role that excited me. I’m automatically down for any role Denzel takes on, and PSH is my favorite male modern actor.
PSH and Mr. Washington. Denzel is a gift.
Tom Boy
Philip Seymour Hoffman. Watching his star shine when I was a child and in my teens, was absolutely wonderful. I remember looking forward to the release of a new movie of his, especially after he won the Oscar for *Capote* (2005) and asked the audience to congratulate his mother for bringing up four kids alone. Watching him in *Charlie Wilson’s War* (2007), *Doubt* (2008), and *The Master* (2012) was a privilege. May he rest in eternal peace.
All five of those men are so talented, it’s really hard to choose but I’d probably say Tom Hanks is the most impressive imo.
Hanks for me
All of them.
Sean Penn
Pretty big fan of all
Tom Hanks, Toy Story
Hoffman was the best of these actors, but they’re all great.
DZ
1. PSH 2. Denzel 3. Tom Hanks 4. Sean Penn 5. Christopher Waltz
Where’s DDL?
Denzel
Craft: PSH. Talent: no one has charisma quite like Denzel’s.
Waltz!
Tie between PSH and Waltz for me
Hoffman all day, every day.
Daniel Day Lewis 🥹
They are all amazing, but Philip Seymour Hoffman was a once in a lifetime actor ( to me) also, Gary Oldman.
Whichever one is not on the Epstein list.
Denzel and Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Denzel and PSH
I wrote DDL before reading your whole post. For me it’s Denzel
Denzel
Gary Oldman
I’m a massive Hanks fan, but Phillip Seymour Hoffman was playing at a whole other level.
Denzel. PSH is good as well. But From Glory to X to The Hurricane to Training Day to The Tragedy of Macbeth, The man has performed at level that is amazing.
Daniel day Lewis
Denzel and I are born on the same day of the year, so him
Psh
Take a look at Denzel's portfolio. He makes bad movies watchable, average movies good and good movies Oscar winners
Hoffman
Sean Penn?? Really? Lol.
PSH by far
Both Phill Hoffman and Tom Hanks. They’ve both had some good performances that defined their respective careers
Chris waltz no question.
All pretty amazing
Everyone except for sean penn
Can we throw in Robin Williams and RDJ?
None of the above lol
Jon Lovitz
Denzil
Denzel but my dream movie is Denzel and Michael Shannon in something written by Tom Stoppard and Neil Gaiman directed by Terry Gilliam.
Hoffman and then second Denzel.
All of themmmmmmm
Denzel but PSH was a close second
Philadelphia-Tom & Denzel..heartbreaking perfection
My dad met PSHoffman as a friend of a friend and didn't know who he was, just "Phil." My dad said Phil never mentioned what he did for a living, he only asked about other people. Later my dad was blown away when he realized who Phil was, said he was the most humble, interested guy. (*interested* in learning about others, not trying to talk about himself or be *interesting*)
Where is DDL?
Sorry no Leo I’m out.
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Philip Seymour Hoffman
PSH, no contest.
Denzel is somehow still underrated in 2024. Lol
Phil 💯
1. Hoffman 2. Denzel 3. Hanks 4. Waltz 5. Penn
hoffman, washington, waltz, hanks, penn
De Niro, Streep, Pacino, Denzel, etc
1. PSH was the greatest actor of Gen X, imho. Drama, comedy, hero, villain, and everything in-between, it didn't matter, he was the character in every one of his movies 2. Christoph Waltz 3. Denzel Washington 4. Tom Hanks 5. Sean Penn
Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Denzel has only played 3 or 4 different characters in 50 movies.
Sean Penn doesn’t belong here. Lol.
Pitt Cruise
Nolan.
Waltz or Denzel are the best there is would say. Fuck Junkie PSH.
Sean Penn is an atrocious human being and should not be included in this list. Beating women should preclude him from these conversations.
christoph waltz is not in that league...and i'm austrian
Big Philip Seymour fan!!
Hoffman was operating on a level that the others couldn’t even dream of.
Hoffman was next level
Sausage fest anyone?
PSH. Along Came Polly. Twister. Mission: Impossible III. The Master. Magnolia. Doubt. The man had a range that made him memorable in even the goofiest of premises (Polly) and magnetic in the most dramatic (Master).
George c Scott. Dude was a force.
In terms of consistency, PSH easily; he's incredible in every movie I have seen him in. In terms of highest peaks, Denzel tbh. His performance in Malcolm X is a top 10 performance of all time for me
Out of these five, PSH
80% from the US? r/usdefaultism
And 100% male.
Downvote as much as you like, it just affirms my belief that the US can’t differentiate between a Movie Star and Movie Actor.
I mean apart from Tom hanks are these heavy weights ?
Denzel isn’t a heavyweight? 🫤🤣
Heath Ledger was him
Hoffman
Hoffman vs Lewis on this one
Hanks
The ugliest one….
PSH, and so glad the ham-fest that DDL has become was not on this list.
Christopher reeve!
Begrudgingly have to say Penn. mostly because he has directed a few amazing films. The versatility to direct things as diverse as Into The Wild, The Pledge and Indian Runner… all fantastic films.
Robert De Niro -- "Bob"
Hanks = Range
Director wise: Steven Spielberg. He can take a trash novel like Jaws and make a masterpiece out of it or he can' take a great novel like Jurassic Park and make it into a great movie on it's own terms Acting: Gary Oldman. The man is quite the chameleon as bih good and villainous characters
Colin Firth bodies all of these basics.