5) Philip Seymour Hoffman In A Most Wanted Man
Philip Seymour Hoffman, simply one of the greatest actors of modern times, was so prolific that four posthumous movies of his were released in the wake of his death (there was also a pilot for a Showtime dramedy, but that remains unaired). The actor never gave a bad performance in his life, but one of his posthumous roles stands out above the others.
Anton Corbijn’s A Most Wanted Man is, story-wise, an unexceptional post-9/11 spy thriller. What makes it special is the cast, and leading the pack is Hoffman, giving a masterclass in un-showy acting. His Gunther Bachmann is a chain-smoking, sadsack car crash of a human being, but at work as a spymaster he’s a ruthlessly driven tactician. This is one of Hoffman’s quieter performances, but it’s no worse for it.
4) Bruce Lee In Enter the Dragon
Like his son Brandon, Bruce Lee was on the verge of huge things when he died. Though he was partway through filming another (unfinished) movie, Lee’s final completed project, Enter the Dragon, sent a shockwave through world cinema when it released after Lee’s death. And while Lee may not have been a great dramatic actor, his contribution to action cinema in this one movie alone should not be underestimated.
Bruce Lee was a crossover star that brought martial arts into the mainstream, displaying in Enter the Dragon a physical presence and casually charismatic fighting style that arguably hasn’t been topped since. Without Bruce Lee and the huge success of Enter the Dragon, there may never have been a Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Iko Uwais, Donnie Yen…the list goes on.
