Gary Oldman
By emeraldisle
@emeraldisle (13139)
United States
April 7, 2007 9:53pm CST
I was just looking through my movies and debating on which movie to put in when I realized all the ones I was looking at had Gary Oldman in them. I was looking at "Batman Begins", "Lost In Space", "Air Force One" or "Harry Potter". Yes he was in all those and many more that I have actually including "The 5th Element", "Murder In The First" and I'm sure more. He's a great actor who has a tendency to look different in each role he is in. He might not play the lead in the movies but he does play some great supporting roles. I loved him as Dr. Smith in "Lost in Space" and he was perfect for playing Sirius Black in "Harry Potter 3 and 4" let alone all his other roles.
So are there any other fans out there and if so which movies of his do you like? Are there any you haven't liked?
If you need to see what he's done you can click here for a listing: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000198/
6 people like this
15 responses
@nowment (1757)
• United States
8 Apr 07
I think he is a great character actor, which for many this will give him more staying power in films and if you listen to actors they are usually fans of such character actors like Gary Oldman because they can transform themselves to so many characters, his character was so annoying in Fifth Element, but still there was something about him that draws you to see what he is going to do.
Something so many movie watchers over look, if those 'secondary' characters are not doing such a great performance then the stars are not going to look that good.
I have seen movies that I think would have tanked if it weren't for the characters like Oldman portrays.
I remember hearing that Gary Oldman was going to be in Batman Returns, and I for the life of me couldn't figure out when he was in it I watched the movie more than once and would have sworn that Gary Oldman wasn't in the movie. So of course I checked the credits and then watched it again. He did such a great job of becoming Gordon, and being a whole new person, that you saw only the character not the actor playing the part.
That was my big problem with Batman Returns, Christian Bale did a good job, and I liked him better than I thought I would, it wasn't good enough, not when you are expecting the actor to go beyond who he is and become the character.
I am however looking forward to watching Oldman in the Dark Knight, as Gordon again.
2 people like this
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
8 Apr 07
I loved him in Batman Begins. He was perfect for playing Gordon. I can't wait to see the next one and see how he does. I liked Bale as Batman but I agree that Oldman really made the role of Gordon his own and you forgot that it was just a character.
1 person likes this
@nowment (1757)
• United States
9 Apr 07
I am always impressed when any actor can make you see only the character they are portraying that you don't even know who the actor is playing the part, I think that if someone did a compelation of Gary Oldman scenes it would be amazing people would watch it run then when asked who played which role I doubt people would realize that Gary Oldman was the person who played all the roles because he can change so well.
As I said Bale was fine better than I thought he would be, but at time during certain scenes he was not Batman or Bruce Wayne in some of the scenes he was an actor playing a part. So periodically I would slip out of the movie.
I prefer a movie where I can get lost in the story rather than see the actor example I am a big fan of old movies, but no matter what role Gary Cooper played he was always Gary Cooper.
There are many gifted character actors and they do not always get the credit they deserve.
1 person likes this
@chaygylmommy (2470)
• United States
8 Apr 07
Great actor! He is one you don't tend to really think about often, though. Isn't that funny? I loved him in Dracula! BEST actor in that movie BY FAR! Yes, in 5th Element he was great too. I really liked that movie a lot. He is sort of like John Malkovich who is my fav actor of all time! They can play very very different sort of people in each role...they are not type cast in any way. Thank you for the reminder of a wonderful actor
2 people like this
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
8 Apr 07
You're quite welcome and you are right he does play a variety of characters. He's very good at it actually. It amazes me at times how versatile he is when it comes to the characters. I will admit that he does play a fantastic bad guy, he's very good at that, but his good guy roles are well done too. I did like his performance as Dr. Smith in "Lost In Space". He really made that character stand out and it was so much better then the original from the show.
1 person likes this
@sarahruthbeth22 (43143)
• United States
8 Apr 07
Gary is a chameleon. And he is Brittish actor with a perfect American accent.Earlier this week I fell across The Scarlet Letter. I was flipping channels and saw Demi Moore and a familiar face, Gary Oldman!It took me a while to recognize him.I've seen him in Sid and Nancy where he played Sid Vicious, a punk rock icon.And I saw him in State of Grace wher he played a member of an Irish- American gang.I saw him in Basquiat where he played an artist. and my favorite Gary Oldman role is Oswarld in Oliver Stone's JFK.He was brilliant.
2 people like this
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
8 Apr 07
I forgot he played Oswald in JFK. He did a great job in that one as well I agree. I know what you mean when you say he is a chameleon. He does look very different in many of the roles and it can be easy to miss him because of it. If you see him in Batman Begins and then look at him in Harry Potter he looks so different.
1 person likes this
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
10 Apr 07
Hehe I agree he is very good looking, well depending on the role. He didn't look that hot as Zorg but in other roles or off the sets, yummy eye candy.
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
8 Apr 07
Kevin Bacon did steal the movie in that one. If you liked it though try and see "Criminal Law" it stars both of them again but in that one Oldman is more the lead in it. Very good murder/suspense movie.
@peaceful (3294)
• United States
8 Apr 07
I am amazed that he was in so many movies besides the incredible "Dracula"! This man certainly deserves awards for his excellence in providing us with characters that exist to be characters and not just himself with the sheen of "a character" placed over his own personality...
Good discussion! Tube Zoom for you! :)
http://www.tubezoom.com
1 person likes this
@Withoutwings (6992)
• United States
9 Apr 07
Don't forget "Sid and Nancy" or "Dracula". He is one of those actors that never comes to mind when I think of a good actor... bit I guess when I look over the list, I have to admit he is a pretty good one.
@GnosticGoddess (5626)
• United States
9 Apr 07
He is in a LOT of great movies! But of course my favorite role of his is Sirius Black in the Harry Potter flicks. I thought he was brilliant as Black and they couldn't have casted a better actor for the role.
The other favorite role that he did was as Sid Vicious in Sid & Nancy. I love Sid Vicious (thought he was really sexy!) and I thought he did a fantastic job portraying him.
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
10 Apr 07
I haven't seen Sid & Nancy but I'll see if I can find out more about it. Sounds like he was very good in it. I agree he was brilliant as Black and they did cast well not only with him but the rest of the characters. They have done really well over all by them.
1 person likes this
@sapphiresage (431)
• United States
8 Apr 07
In his role in "The Professional", he's outright creepy. I mean way beyond The Fifth Element creepy. He plays this corrupt DEA agent who is cold, merciless and pretty insane. The movie's very good, and his performance as this guy is superb.
I love how Oldman seems to be able to get into the heads of some of the more psychotic of his characters. He gets this crazy gleam in his eye and it's incredibly convincing. And yes, he is absolutely one of those chameleon actors who is in way more movies than you realize at first.
1 person likes this
@coachflaps (683)
• United States
9 Apr 07
He was fantastic in Leon (aka The Professional), True Romance, Fifth Element, Hannibal, and well actually just about any role he has done. He can pull off so many different roles.
1 person likes this
@minki_malink (83)
• New Zealand
8 Apr 07
I really don't have a lot to say, but I have to say I LOVE Sirius Black.
