There seems to be a part of every good actor’s career that sees them veering off course somewhat and floundering. The “dud” of any actor’s career tends to come during a winning streak and more often than not, is entirely inevitable. What goes up must come down and in some cases, it is the downward spiral which is the most entertaining thing to watch. Bad performances remind us that they too are human and subject to bad decision making. Their onscreen flops are like the cinematic equivalent of a bad haircut. Sometimes, remarkably, it goes the other way around and acting talents that we are used to see making consistently poor decisions break out and knock one out of the park. In many cases, this is a much more alarming event as an actor’s brief slippage into good fare means that they are aware of the choices that they make. They seem to know what is a good film and what isn’t and therefore, their past behaviour becomes all the more questionable.
Let’s not talk about that, though. What’s more interesting is the brief and burning performances given by a number of actors in their career. Like a dying star, they light up the screen only momentarily, seeming to promise more but inevitably slipping back into their old ways. Whilst they might be one time performances, we all hold out the hope that perhaps, this time, they have learnt their lesson and will go on to do better things.
Adam Sandler
We’ll start with the big guns, shall we? Sandler is known for his consistently terrible, terrible acting choices. Nestled firmly under his belt, he has the almighty combination of Jack and Jill, 50 First Dates, Blended, Grown Ups, Click, Grown Ups 2, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. Yeesh. Let’s end it there. It’s fair to say that, in his career, Sandler has had his eyes set firmly on the monetary prize and where good material fares, he generally couldn’t care less. There is, however, a performance dangling out there in which Sandler plays to perfection. In Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch Drunk Love, Sandler plays enraged pushover Barry Egan, a bathroom supply business owner who falls in love with one of his sister’s friends. The film is an utter triumph, not least because of Sandler’s stellar performance. In Egan, he seems to have channelled the rage he must have built up throughout his career and unleashed it in one brief moment. It is a sight to behold.
Christian Slater
Christian Slater works a little differently from most other “bad” actors gone good. Whilst the traditional course of action is to make consistently poor fare with the odd gem thrown in here and there, Slater seems to have made more of a downward trajectory throughout his career. Starting things off with performances in Heathers, True Romance and The Contenders, he began to make his mark as a real contender in the film world. Pretty soon, however, things started to go south and he began popping up in work which some may class as mediocre. Films like Stranded, Playback and Way of the Wicked played very much to the straight to DVD market. Whilst Slater’s appearance in Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac suggested better things to come, only time will tell.
Jean-Claude Van Damme
Proof that the longer your name, the worse your performances, Van Damme has been pigeonholed throughout much of his career to the dusty shelves of action B films. Working on films like Timecop, The Expendables 2 and Cyborg, Van Damme is typically known for his active, if forgettable, film performances. His role in JCVD, then, comes a little bit out of the blue, sitting somewhat uncomfortably within his filmography. Van Damme plays a version of himself, stuck inside a hostage situation and forced to act accordingly. Whilst the film gets a little too meta for its own good, it poses an interesting variation on the kind of fare normally put forth by Van Damme.
Stephen Baldwin
Not exactly known for his acting prowess, Stephen Baldwin has had a hard time of it over the course of his career. Assigned roles which don’t require too much hard work, Baldwin seems to have made little name for himself out of the tough guy stereotype which seems to have been carved out for him. In The Usual Suspects, however, something different seems to happen. Playing the criminal Michael McManus, he seems to find his place amongst the rat pat of down and outs in the film. Whilst we all remember Kevin Spacey’s performance as the shining light of the film, Baldwin holds his own equally as well.
John Travolta
Hands up if you think that Grease is a travesty? No? Anyone? Whilst I think I might be alone in this reckoning, it’s fair to say that the film’s star does not tend to make good choices in his career. John Travolta, whilst an acting legend of sorts, seems to have made his name not for his stellar performances but rather, his ability to dance and his ownership of an aeroplane. Before all of that happened, however, Travolta starred in a little film called Pulp Fiction and it was his role playing hit man Vincent Vega which really launched him onto the film scene. Whilst Travolta hasn’t made as genius a move as this since, it’s a solid indication of what the actor is capable.
Overwhelmingly, the common factor between all of the actors listed here is that when they get it right, it is normally because they have a great director behind them. The presence of a figure who will not only call the shots in the film but also, guide the actors to places in which they are capable of going seems to be the major factor in determining whether or not a truly great performance is possible. Whilst it is clearly down to other things, too and we musn’t give all credit to one source alone, a good director is not to be scoffed at.