Here's another one to check out ... Rare Birds!
http://www.rarebirdsmovie.com/epk_hurt_interview.php

I love me some William Hurt. He is on a list I have of all-time great actors that include Streep, Glenn Close, Pachino, DeNiro, Hoffman, Robin Williams (for his dramatic stuff), and John Malkovich to name a few off the top of my head. He helped define the art of acting for me.

John: Mark this as unbelievable, but for once, we actually agree on something...

Add in The Accidental Tourist, Dark City, Smoke, and Body Heat (and what the hell, why not Altered States) to the acting tour-de-force of Hurt. The man has talent.

Hey there Triflic

Well... I guess there's a first time for everything! :P

Cheers!

I can honestly say I've never seen a single movie he's been in and I consider myself a pretty normal movie viewer.

actors like michael keaton and tony leung, they belong in the upper echelon of best actors, if not THE best actors. yet, they have not been given the respect they deserve.

keaton and leung has william hurt beat, cause hurt hasn't proven himself as a box office draw yet. he hasn't starred and carried a film like the aforementioned.

keaton+leung, the 2 most under-rated actors in the world. their performances transcend all genres.

It's interesting, I was thinking about this the other day and just started to get amazed at how much mid-level talent there is out there. Now, let me just talk that through for a moment.

There's the top level, they're the huge stars like Tom Cruise. Yeah they can act, but they're in movies more often that not because they are in that top-level of stardom. Sure it's also on their talent, but primarily we'll see the majority of the bigger movies cast these stars for that reason and hardly ever dip into that mid-level pool.

The mid-level talent pool is the one where all these really great actors are who just don't get used often enough or given the bigger roles, and that's a shame. There is a higher level to that pool in the shape of actors such as William Hurt and Jeff Bridges, but the Studios just don't take enough chances and pull these actors into these roles.

Okay, still something I'm thinking about and trying to get into a richard-style big post, but that's the rough thought. It just seemed appropriate under this heading.

I guess in time more character actors can have a shot and have leading man status, or they rather not. First who comes to mind is that genius of an actor, Paul Giamatti. Look how he started his career, he played mostly supporting roles, not until I looked at his IMDB profile did it click that he was actually in "My Best Friend's Wedding" as that porter chatting up Julia whilst having a fag and that he too was in "Saving Private Ryan". Then as we know, he moved on to "American Splendor", and just recently he starred in "Sideways" and has been nominated for Best Actor for his role.

As for William Hurt I have seen him in films like "I Love You to Death", "Children of a Lesser God" and "Broadcast News", but like other actors who have never been considered as marquee stars, maybe its also a choice, downplaying themselves as actors in the sense that they will rather get second billing but have steady jobs than hitting it big once or twice then you never see or hear from again.

I think his first performance was in altered states and he rocked hard!

I agree, John. People think that sleepwalking through an acting role is easy. But Hurt is so good because he makes it seem easy!

Dark City was a scorcher - good sci-fi and a hell of a twist.

Yes, agreed. William Hurt dinnit get his dues.

But don't blame Hollywood. Blame the viewing public.

In a nutshell, they suck. The standards of what makes a good movie a good film, and what performers are actually actors, have gone down.

Now its crap like Queen Latifah and American Pie and movies that play on innuendo to no endo.

Uhm Hey...John, and lilly...you ARE aware you're spelling one of the greatest actors(of all time) name wrong right...there's no H in pacino..
=P

Xun

Oh, dear. You are so right. And I'm embarrased. My SIL is Italian, too, so I should know better. I can only blame the time of day. Anything I write before my first cup of coffee is bound to either suck, suck bad, or suck hard. :-)

Just saw the movie "Mr. Wonderful" with Hurt in a supporting role. Have forgotton how when he's on the screen, he takes over. Powerful presence. Underutilized and underappreciated, like Mr. Bridges.

Yes, William Hurt is definitely underrated. And most of his movies, even the smaller ones, are very good, with a few exceptions...but he always seems to make the best out of a bad situation (movie.)