Thursday, February 27, 2025

R.I.P Gene Hackman


















Aged 95, at home with his wife and dog (sounds suspicious, but probably a gas or carbon monoxide problem). Double Academy Award-winning actor with about a million movies to his credit (he was doing 2-5 movies/year in the 1980s and 1990s). His big break-out role was alongside Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty as a member of the gang in Bonnie and Clyde. 


Followed it up a few roles later with his Best Actor performance, with Roy Scheider in The French Connection. 
Then made the rest of his 79 career movies. Not counting TV roles and plays by the dozen.  (If, for one example, you haven't seen March Or Die, it's apparently temporarily available in full and free with ads on YouTube. Great Foreign Legion flick.) Even in mediocre roles or movies, (and most of his were anything but that) Hackman could always be counted on for an eminently watchable performance, and could captivate an audience in even a small role, and probably just reading a cereal box. 


Phenomenal actor with a monumental body of work over 4 decades in Hollywood, and with the good grace to generally keep his personal opinions to himself, and focus on being a great actor, a trait far too rare in many lesser lights (and beside him, most of Hollywood is a lesser light). Most of Hollywood heaved a sigh of relief when he retired in 2004, because it meant any five other actors could finally get some work.

4 comments:

Erik said...

Hackman's cameo in Young Frankenstein was wonderful as well. He played the straight man wonderfully there. I remember hearing that some of the dialogue was improvised - Hackman just had a gift. He will be missed.

Anonymous said...

Pick your toes Poughkeepsie? - Nemo

Anonymous said...

Lied to get into the Marines at age 16 at end of WW2 where he spent 6 years. Always a brawler and ready for a fight even at age 72. His last fun flick was Enemy of the State which in 1999 was ahead of its time in exposing corruption and surveillance in DC. RIP.

Aesop said...

Not only served, but was one of the last China Marines, before Mao took over the country.

Also the first one to tell people his command told him he'd "never make a pimple on the ass of a good Marine".
Got in after WW2, and got out before Korea. Talk about lucky.