| A little more about Brando. His was a classic case of a great talent wasted. After "Streetcar Named Desire" and "On the Waterfront" nothing else mattered. At least not much. He was okay in "Mutiny On the Bounty" I guess. But his over acting was a movie killer for me.
For most of his career Brando just acted as Brando. While watching his films one would say to one'self, "Oh, here's Brando acting like a cowboy", or here's Brando acting like an Asian fellow.
John Wayne was kind of the same, I think. But I liked the Duke better than I did Marlon. And he became such a self centered weirdo, didn't he.
Brando, Carl Mauldin, Paul Newman, and James Dean and to a lessor extend Eli Wallach and Dennis Hopper set a standard for acting in the 50's and early 60's that was unsurpassed at the time. The "Method" may still be with us, but it's changed.
Oh, BTW: Marilyn Monroe belongs in that group somewhere as well. She was a wonderful actress; maybe Montomery Clift too. |