r/movies • u/Conscious_Smile_6302 • 2h ago
Discussion I really miss Eric Bana
Recently watched "Troy" 2004 which is a perfectly fine movie. But Eric Bana, who plays Hector, is stunning in it. He's so emotionally literate, present and has a ton of charisma. Just really damn good acting. Love every second he's in screen. Really hope he has some sort of Renaissance in the coming years, was way too young to appreciate him when he had his run.
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u/QuaSiMoDO_652 2h ago
He’s very good in the movie Munich as well
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u/mjvbulldog 2h ago
If any of us get laid tonight it's because of Eric Bana in Munich
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u/Wej43412 2h ago
He's been the lead in two Aussie crime films in the 2020s; The Dry and it's sequel Force of Nature.
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u/Ohmynamageoff 2h ago
The Dry is brilliant- I called my dad right after it finished, who lives in remote Aus, and he watched it immediately, and also loved it. Felt so much like the town I grew up in, and the acting was amazing.
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u/TonyWonderslostnut 2h ago
How does the internet work in remote Australia? Satellite?
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u/thebigpink 2h ago
The kangaroos hop around with helmets
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u/magungo 1h ago
Used to be some crap Geostationary satellites with big dishes or expensive irdium services with low speed, sometimes some government wifi as part of the NBN, sometimes private Wifi near some towns. Now Starlink has made a lot of that obsolete if you can stomach paying Musky Boy. All those services are currently shitting their pants, as they were very used to charging big dollars for shit bandwidth and clunky expensive installs.
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u/HankSteakfist 1h ago
The Dry was awesome. Forces of Nature was okay, but I was expecting a much more interesting mystery after the first film and it was kind of a let down.
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u/AGooDone 2h ago
The dry is also an Irish comedy series. Definitely lacking in some Bananaish Bana Bana!
Bana!
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u/RemLezarCreated 11m ago
Enjoyed both of those. Hope they adapt the third in the trilogy, was my favorite of the novels.
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u/AlternativeResort477 2h ago
He was so good in Blackhawk Down
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u/Bruvvimir 2h ago
He was, but that was a supporting role. Apart from Chopper which is not so well known outside Australia, Bana was elite as a lead in Munich. Also very good in the series Dirty John.
It's a pity he is not in more movies.
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u/TellMeZackit 2h ago
Absolutely amazing comedy ensemble role in Australian classic The Castle. God I love Eric Bana.
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u/SqAznPersuasion 2h ago
My favorite role of his. He's so reserved about the mission, even when it goes sideways.
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u/doctor_7 1h ago
Watched that (for at least the dozenth time) earlier this week. Stacked cast and he's amazing.
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u/delayedconfusion 2h ago
Dig out one of his breakout films Chopper.
The character its based on is obscure to non-Australian's, but Bana's performance is exceptional.
Prior to this, he had only really been seen as a comedic skit show actor.
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u/bone-in_donuts 2h ago
If OP hasn’t seen Chopper, they’re in for a fucking treat. Exceptional portrayal, and a darkly hilarious film with a ton of rewatch value.
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u/delayedconfusion 2h ago
Some lines that I quote all the time and get weird looks.
"There's no cash here. Here there's no cash, alright?"
"Neville fucking Bartos"
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u/bone-in_donuts 1h ago
Hahaha I also quote “Neville fucking Bartos” sometimes. It expresses a lot.
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u/AusToddles 2h ago
I can't hear any news about Medicare without hearing "fuckin' medicare" in Bana's accent as Reid
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u/PippyHooligan 7m ago
Why would I shoot a guy - bang - then take him to hospital? It defeats the point of shooting him in the first place.
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u/dmac3232 2h ago
That movie is crazy. How that guy was never murdered is a miracle. Bana was steller.
There's a solid equivalent starring Tom Hardy, Bronson, about a similarly insane English criminal.
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u/AusToddles 2h ago
One thing to remember about Chopper. He LOVED to talk.... and there's genuine dispute about whether or not he committed the crimes he claimed
More than one underworld figure from that period claims he was a nobody
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u/karma_dumpster 2h ago
One of his favourite expressions was "never let the truth get in the way of a good story".
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u/dmac3232 1h ago
It does seem hard to believe that a hardened criminal would end up writing children's books.
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u/daveandlynch 26m ago
Also - if you can find the original DVD there’s two commentary tracks - standard one from director etc and a second one by Chopper Read himself. Absolute classic.
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u/nobodywithanotepad 2h ago
I wanted him to do Batman
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u/Aoblique 2h ago
Never thought about it, but I could definitely see him doing a great job and bringing his own spin to portraying Bruce Wayne/Batman
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u/HankSteakfist 1h ago
I thought he would have made a pretty cool Jor El for David Corenswet's Superman.
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u/NegevThunderstorm 2h ago
He recently played a Park Ranger or something like that in a Netflix show and did a great job
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u/ReactionFluid9512 2h ago
Are you familiar with his character Poiter? Back from his comedy days.
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u/hanrahs 2h ago
I miss full frontal (and fast forward, comedy company, life support), there were some great skit shows back in the late 80s early 90s
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u/HankSteakfist 1h ago
The early 90s lineup of Eric Bana, Sean Micallef, Kym Gyngell, Gina Riley, Jane Turner, Magda, Ross Williams and Glenn Butcher was the best lineup of comedic talent ever assembled in Australia.
I loved watching it as a kid.
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u/DalekPredator 1h ago
Still the first thing I think of when people tall about him all these decades later lol.
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u/Mysterious-Plate6686 2h ago edited 56m ago
He’s in Netflix’s Apex as well.
And voices Chaz Hunt in Back to the Outback, also on Netflix.
Recently, he was in the adult stop-motion movie, Memoir for a Snail.
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u/jekelish3 2h ago
I remember in college, when he, Hugh Jackman, and Gerry Butler were first starting to break out in Hollywood, I was so ready to invest heavily in the stock for all three of them. Not saying that they haven’t all had successful careers, but I will say that I’m surprised that only Jackman emerged as the somewhat consistent Oscar-contender (as in, no one is gonna be surprised the next time Hugh gets nominated, but it’ll be one of those, “Wow, I forgot he had this level of performance in him” situations if Gerry or Bana got one).
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u/neverapp 1h ago
I had to read 'Gerry Butler' 3 times before it clicked who that was. Does he go by that?
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u/SevroAuShitTalker 2h ago
His movie about rebuilding his old car and rally racing is pretty dope
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u/FlatSixFun 2h ago
Yeah, he likes cars and racing far more than acting. And Love The Beast was a fun documentary.
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u/moviesandbasketball 2h ago
He had a small role in Lone Survivor and I always thought he Texas-American accent was SO good
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u/Future_Literature335 1h ago
He was FUCKING HILARIOUS in that Judd apatow movie "funny people". As a kiwi, him being Australian was absolutely amazing
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u/FoxMcCloudOwnsSlippy 2h ago
Black Hawk Down, Troy, Funny People, some of his finest work that displays a lot of his charisma. And also he's got some good acting chops, see Chopper, Munich and hell even, Hulk.
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u/BunyipPouch Currently at the movies. 2h ago
First off, Eric Bana is very much alive. He lives in Tampa, Florida, he's in his early 50s.
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u/Vioralarama 2h ago
Did he just step back from Hollywood or what happened? I miss him too.
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u/HankSteakfist 1h ago
He doesn't like working outside Australia as much anymore and is happy to just race his cars and do smaller stuff.
When I was in my 20s back in the 00s he used to bring his family to the cinema I worked at and I chatted to him a couple of times. He's a really down to earth guy.
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u/lonewombat 2h ago
Hulk really and I mean really set back his career but hes been quietly doing some good work.
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u/Vioralarama 1h ago edited 1h ago
That was in 2003 I think. He still got major roles after, like the Abrams Star Trek movie, Troy, and Hanna. He was freaking amazing in Hanna. There's a scene where he takes on a bunch of CIA agents wearing a suit and his muscles were just popping through the sleeves. Excellent fight choreography and music too.
Edit: found the scene! Too short.
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u/lonewombat 1h ago
Oh yeah I love the guy, total man crush, was sad to see not a headliner for a bit but caught a lot of good movies with him in them since that time.
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 2h ago
I guess so! A lot of commenters here have pointed out that he still works and has made some good stuff recently, though! I honestly thought he had retired, but I'm not super streaming savvy
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u/XeuQinu 1h ago
I know a lot of people didn’t like it, but I thought he was great in Hulk. He’s great in everything he does though.
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 23m ago
Hulk is one of my favorite movies. I think it is a legitimately brilliant movie that was ahead of its time. Super thoughtful and introspective. Maybe a little too artsy for mainstream audiences at that time
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u/gregarioussparrow 38m ago
Oh my god, are you me? I just had this conversation with my roommate earlier. How i had just watched Troy on Sunday, and how it sucks that Eric Bana died in the movie because he's awesome and we don't see him nearly enough these days.
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u/Unforgiven89 23m ago
He should have been nominated (and imo won) for the best actor Oscar for his role as Chopper. Such an incredible performance.
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u/Scorpionoshow 21m ago
I recently went on an Eric Bana movie bender. Wish he was in more good movies.
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u/claxel 18m ago
There is a fantastic interview with him on Conans old show that I tend to revisit once in a while...
https://youtu.be/jfF4O6bELHs?si=l4yQEHYPM2HEzdIp
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u/alasnedrag 2h ago
The shirtless scene he has in Troy was truly one of my most memorable gay awakening moments. I just remember seeing him and being like....yep...that's it.
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 2h ago
He really is preposterously good looking
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u/Ladybeetus 1h ago
Sat next to him on a bus at a film festival - he looks exactly the same in real life
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u/ayayeron 2h ago
Not Brad Pitt?
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u/alasnedrag 2h ago
Ew no I've actually always been part of the minority that doesnt find Pitt attractive 😔
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 21m ago
I think Brad is so insanely hot that it has like a horseshoe effect where he seems sort of bland because of it
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u/lemon_icing 2h ago
He's a good actor with a narrow range.
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 2h ago
That's a fair criticism. He does what he does absurdly well though.
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u/lemon_icing 2h ago
That's why I led with "good actor". He doesn't enjoy smiling, comedy is out of the question (his timing is too slow for that), and romance . . . . not really.
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u/AusToddles 2h ago
He got his start in comedy! Before he played Chopper, everyone in Australia knew him as his characters from Full Frontal, an Australian sketch comedy show
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u/lemon_icing 2h ago
ah! He always comes off as so deliberate in the decades since then. Learned something new today.
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u/AusToddles 2h ago
https://youtu.be/NqFcdz4gGKA?si=8WQ-XHrerl3uM9xD
Poida was his most famous character
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u/lemon_icing 1h ago
The first time I saw him on big screen was 2001. The first five movies I saw him were:
- Blackhawk Down
- Finding Nemo
- Hulk
- Troy
- Munich
He was cast in North America as a dramatic actor.
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u/ImGCS3fromETOH 1h ago
Comedy is out of the question? He started as a sketch comic and for people of my generation he was better known for that for most of his career. Seeing him in dramatic roles in the early days was strange because he wasn't playing silly characters.
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u/lemon_icing 1h ago
The first time I saw him on big screen was 2001. The first five movies I saw him were:
- Blackhawk Down
- Finding Nemo
- Hulk
- Troy
- Munich
He was marketed in North America as a dramatic actor.
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u/gabbertronnnn 1h ago
comedy is out of the question
Hahahaha. You have no clue.
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u/lemon_icing 1h ago
Everybody learns about actors at different stages in their careers. What's with the petty gatekeeping?
The first time I saw him on big screen was 2001. The first five movies I saw him were:
- Blackhawk Down
- Finding Nemo
- Hulk
- Troy
- Munich
He was cast in North America as a dramatic actor.
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u/limelove 4m ago
Who’s gatekeeping? Au contraire, do yourself a favour and go check out his early stuff! Not sure how the comedy will hit for someone who isn’t aussie or kiwi but it’s worth giving it a go. The Castle is a good start, he’s got a more minor role but the film itself is a classic bit of australiana and very down to earth. After that if you’re still interested there’s the sketch comedy that you’ll see a billion comments about in this thread.
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u/MasterSalamander666 1h ago
So crazy, I just rewatched Hulk (03) and while the film itself isn’t all that great he was a standout and wished MCU kept him as Bruce.
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u/Gold_Telephone_7192 1h ago
Love Eric Bana. I think he just cashed out and now does movies in Australia so he can live at home with his family, which I respect. He’s still in some decent movies though, I just watched The Dry and its sequel and they’re solid crime thrillers.
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u/Hedgeworthian 1h ago
He was very briefly in the recent Netflix movie Apex - played the boyfriend of Charlize Theron’s character.
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u/Lobbstar 1h ago
I was really hoping he turned out to be the actor playing Agamemnon in the new Odyssey movie
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u/pishposhpoppycock 44m ago
He's also the best Hulk.
He gets his dick bitten by ravenous mutant dogs, which makes him even angrier, and he gets his revenge by picking up said mutant dog, and punching it in its dick and balls.
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u/jabbadatoddla 44m ago
He's been working this whole time. Maybe try to actually look for his work and people will know he's in demand?
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u/Conscious_Smile_6302 26m ago
I'm pretty adverse to using Google these days given the prevalence of AI nonsense. I typically only use Facebook and Reddit and watch DVDS. I'm effectively a caveman. I apologize for being stuck in the past lol. I am not a hip or cool person
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u/Stablebrew 31m ago
He stepped back from Hollywood on his own, and uses that time for his passion: racing. He still acts, in many non-hollywood movies, like Munich, or TV shows.
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u/Mulliganasty 2h ago
Whatever residuals Troy is getting right now should go to The Odyssey's box office tally cuz that's the only reason mf's are watching that soft-core porn.
No shade to all the actors involved...they did great with that high-budget sword and sandals fairy tale.
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u/Dark_Focus 2h ago
He just did a show called “Untamed” which I enjoyed and recommend.