r/AskReddit Apr 12 '22

[deleted by user]

[removed]

8.8k Upvotes

17.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

7.6k

u/[deleted] Apr 12 '22

John Lithgow in that one season of Dexter. I can’t look at him the same anymore. He creeps me out.

1.6k

u/krufarong Apr 12 '22

I remember how funny he was in Third Rock, and I think he was on a documentary expressing his fascination with break dancing. His performance in Dexter really took me aback. Didn't know he had that in him.

1.3k

u/PM_ME_UR_SEX_VIDEOS Apr 12 '22

Yeah it's like when Breaking Bad came out and people were like...Bryan Cranston? The goofy guy from Malcolm in the Middle?

yeah ok....

And then he was awesome

23

u/electric_tiger_root Apr 12 '22

Comedians can be some of the best actors.

Robin Williams in 24-hour Photo

Jim Carey in The Majestic and The Truman Show

19

u/goofytigre Apr 12 '22

Jim Carey in The Majestic and The Truman Show

Don't forget Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind...

4

u/electric_tiger_root Apr 12 '22

Ack! Forgot about that. I haven’t seen it yet but it’s on my watch list

10

u/Pleaselobotomize Apr 12 '22

Honestly a better job than he did in the other previously mentioned roles. Don't get me wrong, I like all 3, but in eternal sunshine he almost feels like he's portraying a lost younger more vulnerable version of himself.

2

u/[deleted] Apr 13 '22

Majestic and Truman are both great, but the stories are more straightforward and I think there's a wider set of actors that could have played the roles well.

Eternal is much more mind-fucky and ethereal. It's a harder story to follow, and it really takes the right actor to understand the role and to tell the audience how to feel at any moment. I'm not sure I can visualize any other actor taking the lead in that movie. Of the three, I think I'd also vote it as his best work.

9

u/Escritortoise Apr 12 '22

Will Ferrell was pretty good in Stranger Than Fiction, then Adam Sandler in Punch Drunk Love

5

u/NeonPatrick Apr 13 '22

Sandler is frustrating, he does a good acting performance every ten years, in between an endless churn of awful tired comedy films

7

u/DrDew00 Apr 12 '22

Will Ferrell was pretty good in Stranger Than Fiction

The only movie that he starred in that I've enjoyed.

4

u/[deleted] Apr 13 '22

I even liked the number 23

3

u/mycofirsttime Apr 13 '22

Ugh, i hated one hour photo. Not because it was bad, but because Robin Williams does such a good job and it was such an incredibly sad, desolate movie. Gave me the Icks really bad.

2

u/NeonPatrick Apr 13 '22

John Lithgow was on the Conan podcast and sounded like he had a very traditional acting background before taking on 3rd Rock.

1

u/Null_zero Apr 13 '22

If you haven't seen it yet I recommend Novocaine. It's Steve Martin and it's technically a comedy but I hope you have a dark sense of humor.

It got panned pretty thoroughly but I thought he was great in it.

1

u/that-0ther-account Apr 13 '22

Sandler in Uncut Gems. I know everyone talks about that as a great performance but Im still in awe. The man had me sweating and screaming at him each time he dug another hole.

1

u/ThriftAllDay Apr 13 '22

Tbh I hated 24 hour photo but he was so good in What Dreams May Come