jaedmc Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Men? Marlon Brando Orson Welles Phillip Seymour Hoffman John Goodman. Two of those had the benefit of being among the greatest actors ever, and not obese first. One was probably the greatest actor of this generation. Unsurprisingly there's more fat male actors who get really great character roles that aren't totally related to their weight. Women? Recently Octavia Spencer and Gabourey Sibide. Oprah has gotten some choice roles. I'm struggling. I feel like there's more fat black actresses than white ones, though they deal with a whole other stereotype. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRGoldman Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Looking back at McCarthy in Gilmore Girls (which she was great in), it's clear that she is in her absolute best possible shape. I'm sure she worked ridiculously hard to even come close to what Hollywood thinks heavy set people should look like, and it really didn't get here anywhere. Realistically, she started getting work as she allowed her body to be what it probably is normally, and who are we to begrudge her for that? John Goodman had the same career arch; he got almost no work until he stopped giving a fuck and put on all the weight he was told to lose if he wanted to be a successful actor. I have no desire to see this new Ghostbusters, for what it's worth, but it has nothing to do with the cast (which could be much worse. It could have, like, Amy Schumer and Iliza Schlesinger or something). I don't want to see Ghostbusters bebooted because Ghostbusters is absolutely fucking perfect and should be left the hell alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Z Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Kathy Bates? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tabe Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 A couple reviews for ya: The Music Never Stopped - Loosely based on a true story, Lou Taylor Pucci is Gabriel, a rebellious 1960s teen who ran away from home after a fight with his parents. He turns up 20 years later suffering from a brain tumor and the inability to form new memories and losing his short-term memory. Basically what the guy in Memento had. JK Simmons is Henry, Gabriel's stern father, struggling to make sense of the new reality of his relationship with his son. He is distant at first, angry at his son for disappearing and unable to relate to this new person occupying his son's body. When Gabriel's mother falls ill, Henry takes up the routine of daily visits. Through some pioneering research, it is discovered that music from Gabriel's teen years reactivates his memory and he becomes relatively normal. Henry forces himself to listen to Gabriel's music, all that noise he hated before, and develops a greater understanding of his son, his feelings, and the struggles he went through. Throughout the movie, we are given flashbacks to Gabriel's childhood to help fill out the story. This is a good movie with solid performances from Pucci (who played another character with mental difficulties in The Story of Luke and Simmons. It doesn't really break any new ground but it's well-done. You'll notice some similarities to Awakenings, no doubt because it's based on a case from the same author/doctor (Oliver Sacks). Anyway, this one is right at the Tabedoza Line - 7/10. Ring the Bell - Sometimes I just flip through my Netflix queue looking for stuff that is a particular length. Don't really care what it's about, just needs to be the right length. This one fit that criteria. The better question is how it made my queue in the first place. Ring the Bell tells the story of Rob Decker, an obnoxious, ethics-challenged, high-profile sports agent headed off to a small town to try and convince Sean Hart, the nation's top baseball prospect, to go pro instead of going to college. When Rob's BMW (that somehow has the GM-only OnStar in it) breaks down, Rob is stuck in town for a few days. He meets a cast of characters in town that will show him the error of his ways and he comes around. This is the standard city-slicker-stranded-in-a-small-town we've seen so many times before, like in the far-better Doc Hollywood, among others. The twist here is that Ring the Bell is a Christian movie, a fact it will beat you over the head with throughout. I knew that going in and didn't care. I watch and enjoy Christian movies all the time. Some are good and pretty well-done - Moms Night Out, for example. Others, like this one, not so much. You get the standard decent-but-not-Hollywood production values but also get a bad script, lame characters, and not-great acting. Every conversation turns into a ham-handed sermon. The result is a movie that, even if you judge on a "it's a Christian movie so I'll lower my standards" scale, is terrible. But, hey, look for cameos from major leaguers Rick Sutcliffe, John Kruk, and Ben Zobrist and a nice (but too long) concert clip from Christian stars Casting Crowns. 2/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranesi Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 I'd love to see Dan Fogler get to do more varied stuff. He was so great in HANNIBAL in a part that partially funny in an understated way, partially annoying, but also a bit endearing. Dude could be a perfectly fine romantic lead. Also BALLS OF FURY is far from the worst sports underdog comedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaedmc Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Kathy Bates? There it is. I knew I was forgetting someone. And I just saw her in Tammy too. Bates has had some boss roles. In the 90's she was like a female version of PS Hoffman as far as giving a film acting cred, or drawing in some audience off of her name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranesi Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Sammo Hung. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaedmc Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 By the way, for those looking for some great Edward G. Robinson go watch Scarlet Street. Fritz Lang directed it and he really utilizes Robinson's small stature, probably more so than any other Edward G. Robinson film. And it's got a hell of a pitch black ending. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hooks Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 For the record, I don't feel like Melissa McCarthy should be ashamed of anything. She's an actress and makes a good living at it, and no one is putting a gun to her head to take the roles she does. She's doing her thing and more power to her for doing it. That being said, although I've seen flashes of her talent here and there, overall I don't find her schtick to be very entertaining. And it's not that I don't find slapstick entertaining......I dunno, there's just something about her I don't enjoy for an extended period of time. She's been VERY funny on SNL, but even then by the end of the show it seemed like every sketch was "Hey, this woman is crude and/or improper!" I hear she's really good in St Vincent and I definitely plan on seeing it eventually. You can tell she's a smart woman and performs the hell out of whatever she does. I don't doubt there's a hell of an actress hiding beneath the slapstick. As far as the rest, I like Kate McKinnon and she has done a variety of characters on SNL so I'll be anxious to see if she can be entertaining as the same character for 90 minutes. Leslie Jones is awful at live sketch comedy, but she has a strong presence and delivery, so I'm anxious to see how well she can do with a chance to do more than one take and nail it. Kristen Wiig is just Kristen Wiig. Of course, what I am saying might be misleading because as JR Goldman alluded to, making the movie at all is just dumb. But I'll probably see it because I have one of those movie pass gimmicks and it makes it a lot easier to watch a variety of stuff in theaters when you know every movie you see makes it a better value Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scraylo187 Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 I think the takeaway here is that only male actors are allowed to be fat and crude and be praised for it. It's a shame that Chris Farley is dead so he can't personally shame Melissa McCarthy for not staying in Stars Hollow for her entire career because being a loud fat person is HIS gig. It's fat GUY in a little coat not fat...fat... It's fat GUY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scraylo187 Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Maybe if Melissa McCarthy had worked New Japan or RoH first people would like her more. god why did I even bother responding when they already sent a poet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bustronaut Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Wow, this is not what I was expecting to come back to. Good job, board! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Magnificent 7 Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Men? Marlon Brando Orson Welles Phillip Seymour Hoffman John Goodman. Two of those had the benefit of being among the greatest actors ever, and not obese first. One was probably the greatest actor of this generation. Unsurprisingly there's more fat male actors who get really great character roles that aren't totally related to their weight. Add Charles Laughton and Peter Ustinov to the list. Both great actors who got some really good roles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgundy LaRue Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 *WALKS IN* *WALKS OUT* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nate Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 I hear Steiner in my head: "Faaaat actors!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Roseanne and Rosie never had an issue finding work. Roseanne is actually funny though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuetsar Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 "Just 5 movies from 2007-2011" 5 movies in 4 years is doing pretty well, especially with featured roles on 2 TV shows at the same time. These aren't starring roles or big-time movies. Have you heard of 'Cook-Off!'? 'Just Add Water'? 'Pretty Ugly People'? 'Cuz I sure haven't, and only one of these did she actually turn up in the top 5 of billing (Which doesn't always mean anything on IMDB but still...). So she was doing bit-parts in indie films and TV work, then parlays 'Bridesmaids' and 'Mike and Molly' into small roles in big-time movies ('This is 40' and 'The Hangover 3') or starring roles in genuine hits like 'The Heat' ($159M gross on a $43M budget), 'Identity Thief' ($134M gross on a $35M budget) or 'Tammy' ($84M gross on a $20M budget) and we're gonna begrudge her for the roles she's taking when it's pretty clear there weren't a lot of good ones out there before she became famous for 'Bridesmaids'/'Mike and Molly'?! Do we also criticize Jason Bateman for playing the same role in a variety of sophomoric comedies (Couples Retreat, Horrible Bosses, The Switch, The Change-Up, Identity Thief, Horrible Bosses 2) when 'Arrested Development made it clear he can do so much more?! Some people might, but I've never seen it on here, but this is the second or third time I've seen the talking point about Melissa McCarthy should be ashamed of herself on here and I don't get why she's being singled out. Plus, to go back to jaedmc's point, how many of the people complaining about 'Tammy' have actually seen it? I know I haven't, but I'm guessing a lot of folks on here are basing their opinions off the trailer. We really should criticize Bateman more though. . .McCarthy is good enough in most of the tings she's in. I think the reaction is more we don't want to see a bumbling Mccarthy character, more than her. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victator Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 I think the takeaway here is that only male actors are allowed to be fat and crude and be praised for it. It's a shame that Chris Farley is dead so he can't personally shame Melissa McCarthy for not staying in Stars Hollow for her entire career because being a loud fat person is HIS gig. It's fat GUY in a little coat not fat...fat... It's fat GUY. How many fat leading men are there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AxB Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Jack Black. Although he seems to go back and forth on the whole being fat thing. And whether or not he's a serious actor, or a Chris Farley tribute act, or a joke fake rock star, or an actual rock star. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bustronaut Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Jack Black, John Candy, Kevin James, Larry The Cable Guy, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Clark Duke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Clark Duke is a stretch. I don't think being Michael Cera's buddy equals being a leading guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Zach Galifianakis before he decided to become unrecognizable. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincey Greene Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Good question. Off the top of my head: John Goodman plays more characters than just the goofy fat oaf. I'd say Gabourey Sidebe but that's disingenuous. She was cast in Precious exactly because she looked that way and hasn't done a whole lot since. And man was she was cast as a buffoon in Tower Heist. "HAW HAW she's so fat and dark skinned it's hilarious that she's attracted to Eddie isn't it!" Sidibe plays a smart assistant to Terrence Howard's Lucious Lyon on the hottest show on TV, Empire. Her weight has yet to be discussed one way or another. Just sayin'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianS81177 Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Jack Black, John Candy, Kevin James, Larry The Cable Guy, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Clark Duke Putting Kevin James and Larry The Cable Guy in the same company as the late great John Candy is an atrocity sir. *edit* Not being pissy to you Zeidler... I just really hate those two 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roman Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 At the risk of walking into some uncomfortable territory here, how many fat actors have managed to land good quality parts that are outside the stereotype? Does Camryn Manheim qualify? She's had a bunch of fantastic TV work and certainly isn't the Hollywood Ideal but she's also not quite the same as a Roseanne or a Melissa McCarthy. All right, that doesn't really count, but I'll take even the slightest opportunity to bring him up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts