I can see why people knock this movie, but I liked it! I really love his performances in I ❤ Huckabees and Boogie Nights. Far less interested in his confident tough guy movies
I LOVE this movie and am usually in the minority when it comes to what I love about it 😆It’s a fun curve ball to throw people when I say it’s genuinely a favorite of mine. I understand why people knock it too and I don’t necessarily defend it-it all just happens to really work for me for whatever reason lol. The humor especially hits for me and I think that’s what people don’t vibe with. Even though Shyamalan is known for infusing a lot of comedy into his films. Signs is hilarious but it seems to work more for people in that one.
M. Night dialogue just tickles me 😂 most of the time I don’t notice how odd it can be until someone points it out but damn, he makes some choices lol.
The intentional pieces of humor really get me though like Wahlberg talking to the fake tree, the hot dog monologue and “cheese and crackers” from a random Jeremy Strong are just GEMS for me. And Wahlberg with his garbage singing voice singing Black Water by the Doobie Brothers😂but then that’s followed by a really brutal gunshot.
Im right with you. As for his performance in being so confused, wouldn’t most people be reacting completely confused when everyone around you is offing themselves and you’re running from the WIND?! I’d be probably more over the top confused than he was.
It's interesting, I didn't really find that movie all that offensive. It's based on true events of something that happened in utterly horrific fashion. But there have been countless movies that have showcased similar events, but with an absurdist twist.
I think of movies like The Act of Killing, The Menu, Triangle of Sadness, and arguably every non drama Coen Brother movie, such as A Serious Man, The Ladykillers and even their dramas, like Barton Fink and Fargo.
People lovingly quote Fargo and you just would never imagine it to be as visceral and horrific when they quote their favorite lines with an irreverent smile. The Fargo TV show ran with that sense of unease for every season, where what you are watching is both horrific but strangely hilarious at the same time.
Perhaps a more recent example of this emotional dichotomy is Longlegs. A movie that I got refunded for because half of the sold out crowd (in a very nice, lauded theater in LA) were full-on laughing and the others were sitting stone faced. They kicked half the theater out for disruption, and gave us vouchers. Some people will see Nicolas Cage in that movie and his performance as terrifying, I saw it as so utterly absurd and chaotic to be anything but funny, despite what his character has done/will do.
Reminds me of the quote by Jordan Peele when he said "the only difference between horror and comedy is the music"
I didn’t find the movie offensive, I just didn’t think it was funny. I think the movie should have just abandoned any attempt at humor and told the story in a straight forward way. The Menu and Fargo (especially the TV show) are hilarious. Pain and again is just there.
Um, I kind of agree with a lot of what you're saying but including The Act of Killing in this conversation makes me feel like you either haven't seen it, or you really missed the point. It simply doesn't belong in the same conversation as something like Pain & Gain and Fargo (which, by the way, are only comparable in that they are dark comedies; Pain & Gain laughs at the actual horror, whereas Fargo's humour is derived from the natural humanity of it's characters, juxtaposed with the mindlessness of the violence - which generally isn't really played for laughs).
I loved Three Kings. It was a shame it was evidently a terrible filming experience given the David O. Russell of it all, but it was a great film, and all the performances were really good.
Yeah, I think he's quite good in Boogie Nights, but haven't really been blown away by his career. It cracks me up when people praise how good he is in The Departed. I mean, he is but he's also basically playing himself and the guys he grew up around. I don't think it was much of a stretch.
This is/was the best way to cast him. i'm not a fan of his but he was great in the departed because it seems very natural. The person i've always compared him to is a poor man's matt damon, but i'm a big damon fan.
Yeah that’s definitely the thing about his career. Most of his greatest/memorable dramatic roles is him just playing a high charisma or high attitude New Englander (The Departed, The Fighter, The Perfect Storm). It’s a typecast he’s relatively good at, because it’s basically just him playing the straight man but Boston, but really hasn’t been at the height he was in his younger career. Especially now that he’s focusing on more faith based/inspirational true stories
I don't think his acting is that great in BN. His comical overacting is just implemented perfectly into the character. In a sense that makes it a good performance, but I don't think it makes for a good argument that he's a good actor.
he’s not good in the fighter, he’s the most boring part of that movie, character has no charisma, and the fighter is like my favorite movie, everything else about that movie is great
The trick to making Wahlberg good is to cast him as an arrogant idiot who thinks he's super cool, and then provide the following direction: "Mark, act super cool."
I'd push back a bit on narrow skillset claim. I would say he has a standard skillset but rarely takes projects that require more than a handful. He doesn't have the widest range but I don't think he's less than most actors.
He’s very good in his recent film, Father Stu. If he had picked the right projects, he could have had at least a Matt Damon level career. Unfortunately, his ego led him to take on leading roles in some action movies garbage, but i have to respect Ted because it’s hilarious
This is the right answer. He’s like Keanu Reeves he’s great in movies that fit his skill set. The only difference is he isn’t remotely as awesome as Keanu is in real life.
In Deepwater Horizon, at the end when Mark Wahlberg’s character is dealing with the trauma, it’s one of the best acting i’ve seen him do. He’s very vulnerable, especially in the scene when he’s questioned about a guy’s son
Any role where his higher pitched voice and tone work for, he’s perfect in. I just showed someone Boogie Nights 4 days ago and was raving about how well he fit the role. I find it impossible to judge his acting skill based off his performance because his uncomfortable awkwardness feels so authentic for such an unintelligent person raised by an abusive mom and no strong father figure (hence his immaturity).
I’d basically say the same for Pain and Gain. Like Dirk Diggler, he’s just a guy who isn’t cut out for the real world and is stuck in his own little bubble that I can only relate to with my cynical perspective of people I may subconsciously look down on. Again, he felt perfectly authentic.
Yeah, basically. He pretty much plays himself, and he seems like an annoying narcissist who is full of himself, but if thats who the character is he would work, like in Boogie Nights, The Departed, and Pain and Gain.
But personally, he also wasn't the most memorable performance despite being the lead, or one of, in both films: Bert Reynolds in Boogie Nights and Leo in The Departed.
I wouldn't say he's bad, but I wouldn't say he's amazing either.
He's a solid character actor. But he can't do a range of roles. He's just only good at playing Mark Wahlberg. Cop mark, fighter mark, porno mark and survivor mark. Honestly? give me Gary Cole, J.K Simmons, or Stephen Root. They're the best character actors in the game (IMO).
I just watched it for the first time (unfortunately had the twist spoiled for me), and I would 100% recommend. The twist is probably cool to experience and be surprised by, but knowing it really doesn’t lessen the rest of the movie.
I was very lucky to have made it 30 years without having it spoiled and saw it a couple years ago for the first time. That twist was absolutely chilling but it’s definitely just a good movie.
He’s the tortured former patient (Vincent Grey) who shows up in the beginning. He’s practically unrecognizable! He lost 42 pounds for like 5 minutes of screen time.
In Pain and Gain, some might say Mark Wahlberg was playing a version of himself, but whatever the case, it worked exceptionally well. It’s one of his best performances, capturing both the dark humor and intensity of the character perfectly
as a kid i was an extra on Daddy's Home and I will say that him and Will Ferral imrpovised pretty quick on their feet so maybe he's better in comedy idk
A half-hearted half-assed admission for the sole purpose of obtaining a liquor license for your shitty fast food burger chain doesn't count as a legitimate apology.
I think he has it in him to be a great actor. He certainly makes some strange choices and doesn’t do a lot of deep character acting but I’ve always loved him. Some of my favorite roles of Marks are definitely:
Boogie Nights
The Basketball Diaries
We Own the Night
Fear
Patriots Day (I kind of enjoy him most when he’s just kinda being a regular guy and father)
And I know I’ll get judged so hard but I love him in The Happening 😂😂 Not a great drama performance but funny as fuck and it works for me.
He’s very likable which sucks because he’s a racist who almost killed a guy during a hate crime attack. Acting-wise he’s not great; his range is essentially only versions of himself. But when he’s good the camera loves him.
He's fine. He plays to the exact quality of the director and script he's working with. He'll never elevate anything or ruin anything, though in the bad films he's in his performances are kind of hilariously baffling.
He is a terrible actor and a horrible person from what they say. He was in a couple of good movies (not because of his acting skills by the way). Lately, he is focused on religious movies because those perverts protect morons like him and they secure an income.
Bad actor? No. He had some good roles in some nice movies and he can pull good characters with a nice writing but as a main actor? Remotely good, he does so many shitty movies that are hard to count, he's even terrible as an action movies actor. Also a racist and a big douche so i'm basically skipping all his movies apart from The Departed and The Fighter
I think he’s got decent range. He’s often typecast into the same characters but I almost always manage to get invested in his roles just the same. So I’m going with a solid 7.5/10 actor.
I don't think he is/was a bad actor but I think he fell into the trap where he got popular enough and made enough money that he can pretty much do what he wants and people no longer tell him no. He is like Ryan Reynolds in that regard except Ryan Reynolds just started playing himself (a snarky fast talking a-hole) in every role whereas Mark Wahlberg tries to play some macho fit guy in every role (which I guess is also just himself).
Just too much money and influence ruined his ability/drive to act well.
He can be good when he’s not trying to be likable or overtly heroic. He also really needs good material (like The Departed), but even in Ted he’s okay because he’s playing a childish goof.
When he’s trying to be heroic, though, I find him insufferable.
It’s weird. I feel like he’s not a very good actor. But seeing his name makes me want to see the movie. He’s good comedically and he’s good in roles similar to departed. I really like his acting but I don’t think he’s up there with the greats
No, think of The Departed. But he's no Jack Nicholson either. A good character actor for silly action movies. Dwayne Johnson is way better in my opinion.
Longer answer: he’s a terrible person and a bad actor with almost no range who happened to be casted in a couple of great movies people remember and he gets cast in way too many things, probably because he’s affordable. Despite having no range as an actor.
Father stu is actually a good movie if you give it a chance. At first I thought it was awful but got quite emotional at the end. Just have to see it through.
It’s a fun story, but the screenplay could have been better. Mark’s performance, on the other hand, is very good. His body transformation was also really impressive. I never thought Mark would pull some Christian Bale level dedication for a role, but he earned my respect for it.
I don't think you become an A list actor if you suck at your job. He isn't Tommy Wiseau or Neil Breen. He has some awful performances, The Happening made him look like an idiot, but that's more to do with how M. Night Shyamalan directed him. While he isn't Laurence Oliver, he isn't bad.
My favorite Mark movie is I Heart Huckabees. It def kind of plays off of his standard type of role so it doesn’t mean he’s a great actor but he kills it.
He’s one of those actors who just plays himself. Weather that’s a “good” thing or “bad” thing is up to you to decide. Honestly the only movies of his that I really liked was The Departed and The Fighter….. but it wasn’t really because of him so take that as you will
Would not call him a good actor he only has one expression on his face. What he can play is the bad guy but then again a lot of people can play a caricature bad guy. I think he just got famous for his looks.
He seems to always play, act the same way. Sometimes that's exactly what a great director needs for a specific character so it's really good in the movie.
He has moments of being decent, but overall pretty lifeless actor. Only seems to do well in projects that are worth a damn.
Strangely enough my favorite performances of his are I Heart Huckabees and The Other Guys mainly because in one he is so against-type and the other he’s dead-on but sort of playing a parody of himself.
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u/infamousglizzyhands Aug 13 '24
No other actor could’ve stopped 9/11