Favorite hammy performances from overacting actors

[Jackkull]

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. Have to think of some great hammy female ones, later.

((((POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD))))

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 fun 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!".

Well, thanks for reading. 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?). I'd love to know who and what your guilty favorites are.

Again, thanks for just reading.

[imtrying]

What a great thread idea! What you said about Jack (same performance over and over) can certainly be applied to Pacino as well. To get things rolling, the first one that comes to my mind is Gene Hackman (and pretty much everyone else) in "The Poseidon Adventure". Gene's death scene should be in the hammy hall of fame.

[Jackkull]

Odd. When hammy acting comes to mind. I honestly didn't think of Gene Hackman at all. Guess he just doesn't fit my so-called 'ideal ham actor' profile. He came close playing Lex Luthor, however. Still, different strokes (uhem) for different folks.

(: )

[Wendigo]

Just a few.
Geoffrey Rush, Hank Azaria and Ben Stiller in Mystery Men - brilliantly overacted performances.
Vincent Price as Dr. Phibes as well as the superb Theatre of Blood.
Faye Dunaway in Supergirl
Keanu Reeves in Dracula
Nicholas Cage in Ghost Rider
The entire cast of Young Frankenstein which is why the movie is so brilliant.

[herbsmith]

Val Kilmer in "Tombstone." Hammiest performance ever, but he kind of manages to pull it off.

[billybunter]

Anything with Roger Moore in it.

[thyguy]

I can name that actor in one word: KHAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

'nuf ced.

That whole movie and everyone in it was PURE HAM. Kevin Costner and Joe Pesci reach new lows in their "careers".lol

[27cows]

Soon as I saw the title of this thread I thought of Vincent Price in Theatre Of Blood...and the first movie mentioned was...

Doug McClure should get an honourable mention for some hilariously OTT performances over the years So should Joan Collins

[Wendigo]

Originally Posted by 27cows

Doug McClure should get an honourable mention for some hilariously OTT performances over the years

The late great Doug McClure - I've got the box set with Warlords of Atlantis, At the Earth's Core and The Land That Time Forgot and the original Humanoids From The Deep. Nice one 27cows.