Method Actor Discussion

Select an actor from either the Actor’s Studio or the Neighborhood Playhouse listed below and describe the characteristics of the method acting style as evidenced in one particular scene in a film from the lists on the module or of your own choosing. You must refer to elements identified in Lee Strasberg’s Paradox of the Actor on the module. Please remember the peer review policy and wait for your peers to be assigned. (200 words) , please stick to the word count and do not exceed it for more than 100 words. also the title of the chosen movie should be in italics.

Neighborhood Playhouse Actors

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Sanford Meisner, Robert Duvall, James Caan, Tina Fey, Wil Wheaton, Sandra Bullock, David Duchovny, James Franco, Naomi Watts, Alec Baldwin, Sidney Lumet, Arthur Miller, David Mamet

Actor’s Studio Actors

Lee Strasberg, Paul Newman, Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, Marilyn Monroe, Jack Nicholson, Mickey Rourke, Judd Nelson, James Dean, Robert DeNiro, Christian Bale, Marlon Brando, Sissy Spacek, Dennis Hopper

movies options;

  • (Links to an external site.)
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Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

After moving to a new town, troublemaking teen Jim Stark (James Dean) is supposed to have a clean slate, although being the new kid in town brings its own problems. While searching for some stability, Stark forms a bond with a disturbed classmate, Plato (Sal Mineo), and falls for local girl Judy (Natalie Wood). However, Judy is the girlfriend of neighborhood tough, Buzz (Corey Allen). When Buzz violently confronts Jim and challenges him to a drag race, the new kid’s real troubles begin.

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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Taxi Driver (1976)

Suffering from insomnia, disturbed loner Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) takes a job as a New York City cabbie, haunting the streets nightly, growing increasingly detached from reality as he dreams of cleaning up the filthy city. When Travis meets pretty campaign worker Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), he becomes obsessed with the idea of saving the world, first plotting to assassinate a presidential candidate, then directing his attentions toward rescuing 12-year-old prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster).

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on Amazon Prime and iTunes

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The Machinist (2004)

Factory worker Trevor Reznik (Christian Bale) suffers from insomnia so severe that his condition has taken its toll on his weight and his mental health. When Trevor unintentionally causes an on-the-job accident that horribly injures a coworker (Michael Ironside), he begins to become even more troubled. Despite a relationship with Stevie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a pretty prostitute, Trevor descends further into paranoia, blaming his problems on an enigmatic figure named Ivan (John Sharian).

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube and Google Play

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As Good as it Gets (1997)

Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) is an obsessive-compulsive writer of romantic fiction who’s rude to everyone he meets, including his gay neighbor Simon (Greg Kinnear), but when he has to look after Simon’s dog, he begins to soften and, if still not completely over his problems, finds he can conduct a relationship with the only waitress (Helen Hunt) at the local diner who’ll serve him.

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Available on YouTube for $2.99

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The Breakfast Club (1985)

Five high school students from different walks of life endure a Saturday detention under a power-hungry principal (Paul Gleason). The disparate group includes rebel John (Judd Nelson), princess Claire (Molly Ringwald), outcast Allison (Ally Sheedy), brainy Brian (Anthony Michael Hall) and Andrew (Emilio Estevez), the jock. Each has a chance to tell his or her story, making the others see them a little differently — and when the day ends, they question whether school will ever be the same.

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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A Place in the Sun (1951)

In this classic version of Theodore Dreiser’s novel “An American Tragedy,” George Eastman (Montgomery Clift), the nephew of a wealthy industrialist, is excluded from high society and given a blue-collar job at his uncle’s factory. While ascending the ranks of the company, George becomes romantically involved with co-worker Alice Tripp (Shelley Winters). However, when he is introduced to socialite Angela Vickers (Elizabeth Taylor), he quickly falls for her, leading to a tragic love triangle. Clift was one of the first actors to be invited to study with Lee Strasberg and Elia Kazan at the Actors Studio. He was one of the original method actors to go from the New York stage to Hollywood. Clift kept up such intensity as George, he would find himself drenched in sweat at the end of a scene. He told Taylor that “that’s the worst part about acting…your body doesn’t know you’re acting. It sweats and makes adrenalin just as though your emotions were real.”

Available on Amazon Prime and Starz

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The Wrestler (2008)

Aging wrestler Randy “The Ram” Robinson (Mickey Rourke) is long past his prime but still ready and rarin’ to go on the pro-wrestling circuit. After a particularly brutal beating, however, Randy hangs up his tights, pursues a serious relationship with a long-in-the-tooth stripper (Marisa Tomei), and tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Evan Rachel Wood). But he can’t resist the lure of the ring and readies himself for a comeback.

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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The Godfather: Part II (1974)

The compelling sequel to “The Godfather,” contrasting the life of Corleone father and son. Traces the problems of Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) in 1958 and that of a young immigrant Vito Corleone (Robert De Niro) in 1917’s Hell’s Kitchen. Michael survives many misfortunes and Vito is introduced to a life of crime.

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

When inexperienced criminal Sonny Wortzik (Al Pacino) leads a bank robbery in Brooklyn, things quickly go wrong, and a hostage situation develops. As Sonny and his accomplice, Sal Naturile (John Cazale), try desperately to remain in control, a media circus develops and the FBI arrives, creating even more tension. Gradually, Sonny’s surprising motivations behind the robbery are revealed, and his standoff with law enforcement moves toward its inevitable end.

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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The Fighter (2010)

For Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), boxing is a family affair. His tough-as-nails mother is his manager. His half-brother, Dicky (Christian Bale), once a promising boxer himself, is his very unreliable trainer. Despite Micky’s hard work, he is losing and, when the latest fight nearly kills him, he follows his girlfriend’s advice and splits from the family. Then Micky becomes a contender for the world title and he — and his family — earns a shot at redemption.

AFewGoodMen

A Few Good Men (1992)

Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) is a military lawyer defending two U.S. Marines charged with killing a fellow Marine at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. Although Kaffee is known for seeking plea bargains, a fellow lawyer, Lt. Cdr. JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore), convinces him that the accused marines were most likely carrying out an order from a commanding officer. Kaffee takes a risk by calling Col. Nathan R. Jessep (Jack Nicholson) to the stand in an effort to uncover the conspiracy.

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Batman (1989) *please note that if you choose this film you will not be able to earn a grade higher than 89%

Having witnessed his parents’ brutal murder as a child, millionaire philanthropist Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) fights crime in Gotham City disguised as Batman, a costumed hero who strikes fear into the hearts of villains. But when a deformed madman who calls himself “The Joker” (Jack Nicholson) seizes control of Gotham’s criminal underworld, Batman must face his most ruthless nemesis ever while protecting both his identity and his love interest, reporter Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger).

Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

Available on YouTube for $2.99

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The Dark Knight (2008) *please note that if you choose this film you will not be able to earn a grade higher than 89%

With the help of allies Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and DA Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman (Christian Bale) has been able to keep a tight lid on crime in Gotham City. But when a vile young criminal calling himself the Joker (Heath Ledger) suddenly throws the town into chaos, the caped Crusader begins to tread a fine line between heroism and vigilantism.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)

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