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I've been thinking about this for a while and I'm torn. There are problems with it. Take De Niro, for example. Based on his filmography alone he should be near the top of the list. There's no doubt he has been in some great films, Heat, Casino, Taxi Driver and the Godfather to name a few. But does that make him a great actor? I'm not so sure.

I've been thinking about this for a while and I'm torn. There are problems with it. Take De Niro, for example. Based on his filmography alone he should be near the top of the list. There's no doubt he has been in some great films, Heat, Casino, Taxi Driver and the Godfather to name a few. But does that make him a great actor? I'm not so sure.

3 comments

[–] PhunkyPlatypus 1 points (+1|-0)

I would have to say Sean Connery would be near the top of the list.

[–] TheRedArmy 1 points (+1|-0) Edited

I'm going to steal an old, old, post from Maddox about a tribute to real men. Don't take it too seriously, but Peck was seriously baller in To Kill a Mockingbird.

Gregory Peck

http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/images/peck_theman.jpg

Gregory Peck is a man's man, the kind of man you read about in the bible. A man who came from a time when beating your woman was not only socially acceptable, but encouraged (not that I'm saying spousal abuse is right, I'm just saying that sometimes she deserves it). He has the charisma of Frank Sinatra and the rugged manliness of a lumber jack. Even his last name is manly: "Peck," the phonetic equivalence of a slang term for a man's chest; it's a simple, almost primitive sound like a grunt, straight and to the point without fancy extra syllables and gratuitous punctuation. His default expression is a determined scowl, like he's prepared to introduce you to the business end of his shoe if you look at him wrong.

http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/images/peck_driving.jpg

Picture of Peck driving with a face full of scowl and a woman in the passenger seat, like God intended.

Unlike the self-serving asshole Christopher Reeve, Peck became chair of the American Cancer Society despite the fact that he never had cancer. His integrity was genuine on-screen and off. Hats off to Peck for being a real man.

I'm not enough of a film buff (modern or historical) to make any kind of educated guess as to other truly great actors.

[–] pembo210 1 points (+1|-0)

Kevin Spacey, Edward Norton, and Gary Oldman are high on my list