Adam S.
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I just go BESERK!
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« on: June 26, 2011, 02:32:34 AM » |
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I had heard some friends talking about the remake of The Mechanic (with Jason Statham, I believe?). I haven't seen it and have no intention of sitting through another CGI explosion fest, but it did prompt me to watch the original version again tonight and, as always, I come away impressed by how underrated Charles Bronson still is as an actor. From supporting roles in classics like The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, and The Great Escape to his big break in Once Upon a Time in the West to his iconic portrayal of Paul Kersey in Death Wish (every bit the equal of the original Dirty Harry, in my opinion), he added something unique to every movie he was in. Not to mention Mr. Majestyk and so many others in the '70s. As far as I'm concerned, he, along with Eastwood and Burt Reynolds were the Holy Trinity of '70s cinema.
Even later in his career, although his films were normally panned by critics, the movies were entertaining and he was great in them.
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"I live in a room with a green radio Curled in the womb of a 29-year low Four walls from Heaven and one sin from Hell In room 17 at Deguello Motel"
Roger Alan Wade
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Adam S.
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I just go BESERK!
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« Reply #5 on: June 28, 2011, 10:24:10 PM » |
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I'm a fan of Bronson too. The Mechanic is one of my favorites of his. I like all the ones that have been mentioned here so far, plus quite a few others. Another notable mention is Someone Behind the Door costarring Anthony Perkins.
Is that the one with Perkins as the psychiatrist or something? I recall bits and pieces of it but haven't seen it in some time. What are the opinions of some of you on the films he made for Cannon in the '80s? I think that Messenger of Death was an interesting change of pace, albeit not an entirely successful one, while Assassination was mediocre. But The Evil that Men Do, 10 to Midnight, and Murphy's Law are all above average action thrillers in my book. I've never seen Kinjite and I hear that it goes out of it's way to sicken the viewer. Still, I'd like to check it out at some point.
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"I live in a room with a green radio Curled in the womb of a 29-year low Four walls from Heaven and one sin from Hell In room 17 at Deguello Motel"
Roger Alan Wade
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_Clintan_
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« Reply #10 on: March 22, 2013, 03:29:01 AM » |
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Was going to start a new thread about Bronson, but was able to find this existing one so I'll just bump it up. I'm sad to see so few responces in the thread on an Eastwood forum. Hopefully this revival can bring some more posts in it. I'm a huge Bronson fan. One of my all-time favorite actors, an extremely underrated one. People who claim he's a one-note actor obviously aren't that well-versed in Bronsonology. While his characters in the 70's and later in his career mostly consisted of The Strong, Silent Type roles, there were some great exceptions. Just watch 1975's Breakout if you want to see Charlie in a different role. His work on TV before breaking through in the movie industry showed he was very versatile. His work in the western genre is pretty impressive. The Magnificent Seven, Once Upon a Time in the West (IMO the greatest western of all time), Red Sun, Chato's Land and the very different From Noon Till Three are some of the best work he did in the genre. What makes Bronson so convincing in his tough guy roles is because unlinke Clint, who plays tough guys but underneath it is a gentle guy, Bronson was a tough guy. He played the Strong Silent Types so good because that's what he was in real life. He also had the physique to back it up. He had an amazing body which he kept well up in his 60's, and he never stopped working out. He was fit all his life, the guy could do a hundred push-ups at the age of 73! Working as a coal miner as a kid probably ignited his passion for staying in shape. Some photos:     All of those pictures are from when he was over 50 years old! Pretty impressive considering he was a heavy smoker at that time (he eventually dropped the habit, thankfully). He was immensely popular in Europe and Asia for most of his career after he made his breakthrough in some classic European films in the 60's. For a while he was the top grossing star in the world and the most bankable actor in the business. Sweden even had Bronson festivals playing in cinemas all over the country:  At one point, there was a huge billboard in Japan with just Bronson's face on it. Not an ad for anyhing in particular, just his face on a huge billboard. Speaks volumes of how revered he was in Japan. He was so popular over there that he asked Sean Penn if some changes could be made to his character's fate in The Indian Runner because he feared it would not go over well with the Japanese crowd. Some of my favorite movies of his, other than the ones already mentioned: Hard Times Death Hunt Mr. MajestykDeath Wish series (parts 3 & 4 were typical 80's action cheese fests not to be taken very seriously, entertaining as hell though!)The Mechanic BreakoutWhat are the opinions of some of you on the films he made for Cannon in the '80s? I think that Messenger of Death was an interesting change of pace, albeit not an entirely successful one, while Assassination was mediocre. But The Evil that Men Do, 10 to Midnight, and Murphy's Law are all above average action thrillers in my book. I've never seen Kinjite and I hear that it goes out of it's way to sicken the viewer. Still, I'd like to check it out at some point. Just want to point out that while The Evil That Men Do was originally planned by Cannon Films, it ended up being produced by Tri-Star and ITC.
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TWOMULES
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« Reply #12 on: March 24, 2013, 06:09:34 AM » |
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Great post, Clintan.  My brother-in-law is a huge Bronson fan. I do have a few of his films in my dvd collection including The Magnificent Seven and Once Upon a Time in the West. One of my favourite Bronson films is Death Hunt. It reminds me of First Blood set in snow in the Canadian wilderness.  Great acting by Charles Bronson and Lee Marvin.
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« Last Edit: March 24, 2013, 06:10:38 AM by TWOMULES »
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TWOMULES
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« Reply #17 on: March 25, 2013, 11:39:09 AM » |
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How about the scene minutes later when he comes out, guns blazing? One of my favorite Bronson moments!

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_Clintan_
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« Reply #19 on: July 10, 2013, 06:01:29 PM » |
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