Wooff!
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((((POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD))))
Sure, I enjoy good-to-great acting like anybody else. But, every once (or twice) so often, I sometimes get some guilty kicks from watching a performer who's going...going...and gone clear over the top in their acting (either knowingly or unknowingly). Honestly, I prefer it when a well-known actor gets carried away (as John Cleese's Sir Lancelot might say) within the skin of the character they're playing. In some cases, it can be either pure agony to watch or sheer ecstasy. Depends on my mood, I suppose. Anyone else have similar feelings about hammy acting?
Well, here are my (current) top five fave hammy (male) performances.
Vincent Price
in
Theatre of Blood (1973)
After getting a few too many "thumbs down" on his acting by a bunch of snobby theater critics, Price (playing a hammy Shakespeare actor) fakes his death and gets his revenge on the critics through acts of bloody murder 'inspired' by various murders in William Shakespeare's many plays. Really, it's more of a british black comedy with plenty of blood and gore thrown as opposed to a straight horror flick. But, Price really seems to be having the time of his life, making fun of himself while using wild disguises, quoting the bard (badly) and finishing off those who dared make mockery of his (admittedly) campy acting
Jack Nicholson
in
The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of the Stephen King novel has Jack (over) playing a blocked writer who's working as the caretaker of a large empty hotel (during the off-season) who soon starts going bonkers. Honestly, it's just a more psycho-version of Jack's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' role. But it's still a kick to watch him act somewhat normal at the start, and before he gets that weird 'look' in his eye. But soon, Ole' Jack spends the last reel limping and leering while waving an axe, and chasing his wife and son while spouting looney one-liners like, "Heeere's JOHNNNY!". Can't help thinking that Jack's been spending much of his career doing this same performance over and over (with diminishing effect) ever since.
Claude Rains
in
The Invisible Man (1933)
IMHO, Paul Verhoeven's 'Hollow Man' may have had better special effects, but it just couldn't touch this classic H.G. Wells adaptation by James 'Frankenstein' Whale. The late Claude Rains made his scenery-chewing debut here. Although you don't really 'see' him till the end, Claude makes a great impression through his very exaggerated vocal delivery and physical gestures. Actually, Whale was said to have cast Rains due to his over-the-top acting in his screen test. Good choice, really. Since he spends half the flick covered in bandages, Rains used the power of his voice to make this invisible maniac real enough. I love the guy's insane laughter while he tears the bandages off his invisible head, and the part when he calmly explains his plans to murder others for the sheer heck of it, "Might even wreck a train or two.".
![mathilda%20may%20LifeForce3_thumb[5].jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Flh5.ggpht.com%2Fmarcoskimas%2FSQaJ2H1yR2I%2FAAAAAAAABr8%2FRzBUihJNb8g%2Fmathilda%2520may%2520LifeForce3_thumb%5B5%5D.jpg%3Fimgmax%3D800&hash=21a7c4d93b978ecf9461f71d7e822b02)
Steve Railsback
in
Lifeforce (1985)
Me and my Dad saw this in a theater when I was 16y/o (a long...long time ago
). I suspect he greatly enjoyed watching Mathilda May's performance more than Steve Railsback's. The plot, such as it is, has Railsback as a US astronaut exploring (with others) an ancient spaceship lodged in Haley's Comet, and finding three perfect-looking and perfectly preserved human-looking nude 'aliens' (one gal & two guys). When they all get back to Earth (in London?), the aliens wake up, escape and start sucking the lifeforce from helpless earthlings (via very intense french-kissing) who then return to unlife as lifeforce-sucking ghouls! High art it ain't. Yet, aside from Miss May's naked breasts, the thing that made the strongest impression on me was Railsback's seriously out-of-control performance. Throughout the whole movie, he acts like a twitching, bug-eyed, shell-shocked mental case who shouts half his lines in that shaky voice of his. Don't know if he's just 'method acting' or what. Still, under the ridiculous circumstances of the plot, Railsback (who also played Charles Manson once) did succeed in making me feel rather sorry for the love/lust sick guy he played, who agonizes quite a bit over the butt-naked brunette space vamp who insists she loves him while wrecking severe havok over England (some guys have all the damn luck, eh? 
). Railsback has since played other nutjobs as well, including one on 'the X-Files'.
Al Pacino
in
Scarface (1983)
Yup. This Howard Hawks remake is a big fave for me (and certain others). Odd, that when this film first came out in 1983, it was a commercial and critical flop. Yet, today, it's a big cult classic that has inspired many film-makers (like Tarantino and John Woo) and many bad comic impressionists. I seriously challenge anyone to prove that Pacino has never (before or since) overacted as much as he does here as Cuban mobster Tony Montana. He snarls, scowls, sneers, snorts (quite a bit of it), shoots, and shouts like crazy. This flick may be almost three hours long, but Pacino (who's in almost every scene) is so manic that he can't be accused of making it 'boring'. He must have set some kind of record for using the F-word, then. Interestingly, Pacino has said (in a interview) that when he read the script, he deliberately choose to play the part in (his words) "two dimensions". Still, what else could the guy do with a script by Oliver Stone that's directed by Brian DePalma? "Say 'Hello' to my little friend!".
Anyway. I've been trying to think of some memorably hammy performances from certain actresses. Been having a bit of difficulty trying to come up with definitive ones. I know there are several, both past and recent, but I guess I haven't seen that many that truly stand out for. Or, I just simply watch too many male-dominated flicks, eh?
But, I think I've come up with at least five great over-the-top performances that would make a few male hams appear low-key by comparison.
Bette Davis
in
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Of all of Bette's performances, this is the one where (I think) she really took the kid gloves off and just went nuts within the tragic character of Baby Jane. Playing an aging child star consumed by insanity, jealousy, and serious resentment of her crippled sister (Joan Crawford), Bette subjects her on-screen sis (and off-screen rival) to some very cruel treatment as well as some spectacularly demented acting (and singing).
Faye Dunaway
in
Mommie Dearest (1981)
Speaking of Crawford, I haven't seen many of her films, alas. Nor, did I catch Dunaway in 'Supergirl'. But, in a way, I did kinda see both of them - with one playing the other in this dubiously campy adaptation of Christina Crawford's book about her supposedly unhappy relationship with her movie star mom. Don't know if Joan really was that abusive in real-life. Somehow, it seems like Dunaway isn't playing Crawford so much as playing Crawford who's busy playing a semi-crazed version of herself. "No wire hangers!".
Katherine Hepburn
in
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Truth be told, I'm not that big a fan of Hepburn, great actress that she is. In too many of her roles, she has too much of a 'way holier then thou' attitude about her - except in this Howard Hawks screwball classic. As a wacky heiress relentlessly pursuing poor Cary Grant, Kate seems truly uninhibited in acting on her character's wildest impulses. While still overly mannered, this character seems to have truly liberated Kate from her more stodgy style. It's the only Hepburn film I've seen and enjoyed more than once. My favorite bit is when everybody's in jail, and Kate escapes by pretending to be a tough-talking gun moll.
Glenn Close
in
Fatal Attraction (1987)
Hell has no fury...indeed. Although, this film is just a slicker and less subtle yuppified revamp of Clint Eastwood's superior "Play Misty For Me", Glenn Close's ultra-psycho spurned lover would probably give even Dirty Harry nightmares. Friendly and reasonable one second, than possessive and vengeful the next. Talk about passive/aggressive. Curiously, Close's most over-the-top moments IMHO weren't the knife-waving or rabbit cooking bits, but the creepier and rather sad quiet parts with her looking dejected while clicking the light on and off and after Michael Douglas breaks into her flat and disarms her - he backs away clearly spooked while she just smiles and swoons. "I'm not gonna be ignored, Dan.".
Margaret Hamilton
in
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Oh yeah. Back when I was five, the only fictional character capable of scaring me (aside from Chris Lee's Dracula) was the ole' Wicked Witch of the West, herself. Of course, the whole thing seems rather silly now. With that voice and that green make-up, Miss Hamilton looks more like a femme version of the Green Goblin. But, those intense dark eyes of hers still gives me nostalgic jitters. In a way, Hamilton's witch seems to be the purest embodiment of campy cinematic villainy. Many lesser camp villains (like Nicholson's Joker) can barely manage to surpass her. "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too! Ah-HAHAHAHAHAHAAH!!!!".
Okay. So far, this post has mainly been centered on hammy acting on the big screen. Well, what about the boob tube? Yeah. Plenty of hammy perfs can be seen almost 24/7 non-stop on certain channels. Most soap operas (in English or otherwise) make up a HUGE percentage of all the hammy acting in the known universe.
Still, I must admit that since I stopped watching cable TV (too expensive), I haven't seen any memorable hammy TV acting in years. But, I'm sure some of you folks have, eh?
However, I do recall quite a few hammy TV performances from my increasingly hazy youth. Here's five of my personal favorites.
Jim Backus (Thurston Howell the 3rd)
in
Gilligan's Island (1964-67)
Frank Gorshin (The Riddler)
in
Batman (1966-68)
Joan Collins (Alexis Carrington Colby)
in
Dynasty (1981-89)
Jonathan Frid (Barnabas Collins)
in
Dark Shadows (1966-71)
William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk)
in
Star Trek (1966-69)
Whewww.
Sorry this was so long. I must have too much time on my hands.
I'm sure most of you folks out there have got hammy favorites of your own (Charles Laughton? Nicholas Cage? Brian Blessed?). I'd love to know who and what your guilty favorites are.
Anyway, thanks for reading.
Sure, I enjoy good-to-great acting like anybody else. But, every once (or twice) so often, I sometimes get some guilty kicks from watching a performer who's going...going...and gone clear over the top in their acting (either knowingly or unknowingly). Honestly, I prefer it when a well-known actor gets carried away (as John Cleese's Sir Lancelot might say) within the skin of the character they're playing. In some cases, it can be either pure agony to watch or sheer ecstasy. Depends on my mood, I suppose. Anyone else have similar feelings about hammy acting?
Well, here are my (current) top five fave hammy (male) performances.
Vincent Price
in
Theatre of Blood (1973)
After getting a few too many "thumbs down" on his acting by a bunch of snobby theater critics, Price (playing a hammy Shakespeare actor) fakes his death and gets his revenge on the critics through acts of bloody murder 'inspired' by various murders in William Shakespeare's many plays. Really, it's more of a british black comedy with plenty of blood and gore thrown as opposed to a straight horror flick. But, Price really seems to be having the time of his life, making fun of himself while using wild disguises, quoting the bard (badly) and finishing off those who dared make mockery of his (admittedly) campy acting
Jack Nicholson
in
The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of the Stephen King novel has Jack (over) playing a blocked writer who's working as the caretaker of a large empty hotel (during the off-season) who soon starts going bonkers. Honestly, it's just a more psycho-version of Jack's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' role. But it's still a kick to watch him act somewhat normal at the start, and before he gets that weird 'look' in his eye. But soon, Ole' Jack spends the last reel limping and leering while waving an axe, and chasing his wife and son while spouting looney one-liners like, "Heeere's JOHNNNY!". Can't help thinking that Jack's been spending much of his career doing this same performance over and over (with diminishing effect) ever since.
Claude Rains
in
The Invisible Man (1933)
IMHO, Paul Verhoeven's 'Hollow Man' may have had better special effects, but it just couldn't touch this classic H.G. Wells adaptation by James 'Frankenstein' Whale. The late Claude Rains made his scenery-chewing debut here. Although you don't really 'see' him till the end, Claude makes a great impression through his very exaggerated vocal delivery and physical gestures. Actually, Whale was said to have cast Rains due to his over-the-top acting in his screen test. Good choice, really. Since he spends half the flick covered in bandages, Rains used the power of his voice to make this invisible maniac real enough. I love the guy's insane laughter while he tears the bandages off his invisible head, and the part when he calmly explains his plans to murder others for the sheer heck of it, "Might even wreck a train or two.".
Steve Railsback
in
Lifeforce (1985)
Me and my Dad saw this in a theater when I was 16y/o (a long...long time ago
). I suspect he greatly enjoyed watching Mathilda May's performance more than Steve Railsback's. The plot, such as it is, has Railsback as a US astronaut exploring (with others) an ancient spaceship lodged in Haley's Comet, and finding three perfect-looking and perfectly preserved human-looking nude 'aliens' (one gal & two guys). When they all get back to Earth (in London?), the aliens wake up, escape and start sucking the lifeforce from helpless earthlings (via very intense french-kissing) who then return to unlife as lifeforce-sucking ghouls! High art it ain't. Yet, aside from Miss May's naked breasts, the thing that made the strongest impression on me was Railsback's seriously out-of-control performance. Throughout the whole movie, he acts like a twitching, bug-eyed, shell-shocked mental case who shouts half his lines in that shaky voice of his. Don't know if he's just 'method acting' or what. Still, under the ridiculous circumstances of the plot, Railsback (who also played Charles Manson once) did succeed in making me feel rather sorry for the love/lust sick guy he played, who agonizes quite a bit over the butt-naked brunette space vamp who insists she loves him while wrecking severe havok over England (some guys have all the damn luck, eh? ). Railsback has since played other nutjobs as well, including one on 'the X-Files'.
Al Pacino
in
Scarface (1983)
Yup. This Howard Hawks remake is a big fave for me (and certain others). Odd, that when this film first came out in 1983, it was a commercial and critical flop. Yet, today, it's a big cult classic that has inspired many film-makers (like Tarantino and John Woo) and many bad comic impressionists. I seriously challenge anyone to prove that Pacino has never (before or since) overacted as much as he does here as Cuban mobster Tony Montana. He snarls, scowls, sneers, snorts (quite a bit of it), shoots, and shouts like crazy. This flick may be almost three hours long, but Pacino (who's in almost every scene) is so manic that he can't be accused of making it 'boring'. He must have set some kind of record for using the F-word, then. Interestingly, Pacino has said (in a interview) that when he read the script, he deliberately choose to play the part in (his words) "two dimensions". Still, what else could the guy do with a script by Oliver Stone that's directed by Brian DePalma? "Say 'Hello' to my little friend!".
Anyway. I've been trying to think of some memorably hammy performances from certain actresses. Been having a bit of difficulty trying to come up with definitive ones. I know there are several, both past and recent, but I guess I haven't seen that many that truly stand out for. Or, I just simply watch too many male-dominated flicks, eh?
But, I think I've come up with at least five great over-the-top performances that would make a few male hams appear low-key by comparison.
Bette Davis
in
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Of all of Bette's performances, this is the one where (I think) she really took the kid gloves off and just went nuts within the tragic character of Baby Jane. Playing an aging child star consumed by insanity, jealousy, and serious resentment of her crippled sister (Joan Crawford), Bette subjects her on-screen sis (and off-screen rival) to some very cruel treatment as well as some spectacularly demented acting (and singing).
Faye Dunaway
in
Mommie Dearest (1981)
Speaking of Crawford, I haven't seen many of her films, alas. Nor, did I catch Dunaway in 'Supergirl'. But, in a way, I did kinda see both of them - with one playing the other in this dubiously campy adaptation of Christina Crawford's book about her supposedly unhappy relationship with her movie star mom. Don't know if Joan really was that abusive in real-life. Somehow, it seems like Dunaway isn't playing Crawford so much as playing Crawford who's busy playing a semi-crazed version of herself. "No wire hangers!".
Katherine Hepburn
in
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Truth be told, I'm not that big a fan of Hepburn, great actress that she is. In too many of her roles, she has too much of a 'way holier then thou' attitude about her - except in this Howard Hawks screwball classic. As a wacky heiress relentlessly pursuing poor Cary Grant, Kate seems truly uninhibited in acting on her character's wildest impulses. While still overly mannered, this character seems to have truly liberated Kate from her more stodgy style. It's the only Hepburn film I've seen and enjoyed more than once. My favorite bit is when everybody's in jail, and Kate escapes by pretending to be a tough-talking gun moll.
Glenn Close
in
Fatal Attraction (1987)
Hell has no fury...indeed. Although, this film is just a slicker and less subtle yuppified revamp of Clint Eastwood's superior "Play Misty For Me", Glenn Close's ultra-psycho spurned lover would probably give even Dirty Harry nightmares. Friendly and reasonable one second, than possessive and vengeful the next. Talk about passive/aggressive. Curiously, Close's most over-the-top moments IMHO weren't the knife-waving or rabbit cooking bits, but the creepier and rather sad quiet parts with her looking dejected while clicking the light on and off and after Michael Douglas breaks into her flat and disarms her - he backs away clearly spooked while she just smiles and swoons. "I'm not gonna be ignored, Dan.".
Margaret Hamilton
in
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Oh yeah. Back when I was five, the only fictional character capable of scaring me (aside from Chris Lee's Dracula) was the ole' Wicked Witch of the West, herself. Of course, the whole thing seems rather silly now. With that voice and that green make-up, Miss Hamilton looks more like a femme version of the Green Goblin. But, those intense dark eyes of hers still gives me nostalgic jitters. In a way, Hamilton's witch seems to be the purest embodiment of campy cinematic villainy. Many lesser camp villains (like Nicholson's Joker) can barely manage to surpass her. "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too! Ah-HAHAHAHAHAHAAH!!!!".
Okay. So far, this post has mainly been centered on hammy acting on the big screen. Well, what about the boob tube? Yeah. Plenty of hammy perfs can be seen almost 24/7 non-stop on certain channels. Most soap operas (in English or otherwise) make up a HUGE percentage of all the hammy acting in the known universe.
Still, I must admit that since I stopped watching cable TV (too expensive), I haven't seen any memorable hammy TV acting in years. But, I'm sure some of you folks have, eh?
However, I do recall quite a few hammy TV performances from my increasingly hazy youth. Here's five of my personal favorites.
Jim Backus (Thurston Howell the 3rd)
in
Gilligan's Island (1964-67)
Frank Gorshin (The Riddler)
in
Batman (1966-68)
Joan Collins (Alexis Carrington Colby)
in
Dynasty (1981-89)
Jonathan Frid (Barnabas Collins)
in
Dark Shadows (1966-71)
William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk)
in
Star Trek (1966-69)
Whewww.
Sorry this was so long. I must have too much time on my hands.
I'm sure most of you folks out there have got hammy favorites of your own (Charles Laughton? Nicholas Cage? Brian Blessed?). I'd love to know who and what your guilty favorites are.
Anyway, thanks for reading.
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