My personal top 3 chameleons:
1. Philip Seymour Hoffman
2. Gary Oldman
3. Peter Sellers
/ElvisMagic
Most Recently Viewed:
Zelig (1983) by Woody Allen 7/10
The Shining (1980) by Stanley Kubrick 8/10
Offscreen (2006) by Christopher Boe 8/10
Val Kilmer,Johnny Depp,Gary Oldman,just to name three.
"I'm still here you bastards"Steve McQueen-Papillion
1. Lon Chaney (admittedly his make-up helped, but he was definitely a versatile actor.)
2. William Hootkins (Admittedly I only base this off of his performances in Hardware and Dust Devil, but it took me a long time to realize they were even the same guy!)
3. Ray Wise *note: MAJOR SPOILER FOR "TWIN PEAKS"!!!) (just watch the way he transitions between Leland and Bob. In my opinion his Bob was much more menacing and creepy than Frank Silva's if you don't count physical appearance)
4. Laurence Olivier (his portrayals were always distinct, but the most shocking change must've been his Othello!)
5. Ralph Fiennes (he went from a nazi in Schindler's List to a schizophrenic man in Spider. It was that performance in Spider that was especially astounding).
6. Kurt Russell (He's not a great actor, but he definitely knows how to sink into a part. Just look at how varied the roles he did for John Carpenter alone are, and how distinct each character is. He's also great at doing Elvis, so it's no surprise he got the role in the Carpenter film.
7. Peter Sellers (Dr. Strangelove alone proves that.)
8. Willem Dafoe (Anyone who can go from being Jesus Christ to being the exact opposite as Bobby Peru is a good actor in my book.)
9. Klaus Kinski (I know, he's just crazy Klaus all the time. And yet, look at what he puts into his characters. That twisted posture and quiet menace in Aguirre, the totally convincing breakdown in Woyzeck, the pathetic and impotent Dracula of Nosferatu, and the crazed enthusiasm of Fitzcarraldo. All intense, classic Kinski, but all very different characters.
Ones already posted I totally agree with:
Daniel Day-Lewis - I think actually being crazy does help him.
Cate Blanchett - Her dual role in Coffee & Cigarettes? She sitting right next to herself and you forget it's the same person.
Tracey Ullman - Being a chameleon is what she DOES.
Johnny Depp - Jack Sparrow AND Edward Scissorhands. I mean, come on.
Christian Bale - Who would have though the guy from The Jacket could be Batman?
Ones I don't really agree with:
Tom Hanks - I LOVE Tom Hanks, a great actor, but I don't think I would consider him a chameleon. Short of Forrest Gump, he is pretty much just Tom Hanks in all of his movies.
Dan Akroyd - Really? I don't see this one at all.
Robin Williams - Another great actor, and surprisingly good at drama since for a long time he was only known as a comedic actor, but I'm not sure I would consider him a chameleon.
And to add to the chameleon list: Edward Norton. Death To Smoochy, American History X, Fight Club, Stone, the guy can take on just about any role.
Michael Cain, Chris Bale and Dustin Hoffman to me seem to play themselves or slight variations of themselves in every single movie. Gary Oldman has ability but make-up and costume are half his powers. Johnny Depp just speeds up or slows down his speech pattern depending on the movie, but he's basically still the same character. Though Sean Penn, Day-Lewis, Ed Norton, John Malkovich, Meryl Streep and even Jim Carey are somewhat dependable chameleons and get recognized for it, but Robert Carlyle has demonstrated more variance than any of these. That said I have not much respect for roles requiring mental/physical retardation, bodybuilding, starvation, stammering, accents or heavy dependence on prosthetics, which tend to enjoy vast bias and overpraise for those features alone.
The only performance I've been truly impressed by (in this regard) is Eric Bana as Chopper. That was as true and complete a transformation as I've ever seen. Too bad I've not seen him flex his acting muscles since. I was also impressed and surprised By Cameron Diaz' turn in Being John Malkovich.
"what is your major malfunction numbnuts?!!"
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How has no one mentioned Charlize Theron? Has no one ever seen Monster?!
As for actors: Gary Oldmen, Christian Bale, and Johnny Depp are all good pic's but my choices are Heath Ledger and Daniel Day Lewis.
It was rhetorical.... Please do not respond.