Metallo
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The worlds finest heroes
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Post by Metallo on Jun 13, 2021 21:25:52 GMT -5
He was a heck of an actor. Not really surprising that he’d been in poor health since he’s been out of the spotlight for years but still sad to see another familiar name and face gone. Explains why they killed his Roseanne character off for the revival show and The Connors. I figured he was retired but he must have been in pretty bad shape to not do that kind of easy payday gig as Dan’s (John Goodman’s) dad when they brought the show back and then spin it off into the Connors. He was also great in Life and Network.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 14, 2021 0:17:02 GMT -5
Was sad to hear, but I didn't keep up and thought he and Charles Grodin (who I also really enjoyed onscreen) had died YEARS ago. Still, agreed... RIP, Mr. Beatty!
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dejan
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Post by dejan on Jun 14, 2021 9:52:14 GMT -5
Oh no that is sad to hear.
I had actually watched STM last night by sheer coincidence.
I don't have Deliverance or Network in my collection but have seen clips from both down the years. Might get round to bagging them at some point.
Beatty was also in Switching Channels with Reeve in 1988.
Whilst it is not particularly a good film I seem to recall Beatty(who portrays a politician in the flick) being radically different to the character he played in STM.
As for Reeve, well he was picking up the pieces after the debacle that was SIV!
Beatty's monologue in Network is sublime.
"It is the international system of currency which determines the totality of life on this planet"
Never have truer words been spoken.....I would argue that the above applies to the COVID pandemic but that is a discussion for another thread or forum!
Beatty was a massive constituent(all be it in a minor/supporting role) of what made STM & SII(Lester or Donner) so great and his chemistry with Hackman was perfect.
Let's see the actors who played Luthor's henchmen in MOS do the same kind of Network type monologue.
Their acting range does not extend beyond looking moody or er........pretty(yes I know the actress is Japanese.....but I am pretty sure this character would have been just as monolithic..... even if she had been portrayed by a western actress!)
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 14, 2021 11:47:56 GMT -5
Oh no that is sad to hear. I had actually watched STM last night by sheer coincidence. I don't have Deliverance or Network in my collection but have seen clips from both down the years. Might get round to bagging them at some point. Beatty was also in Switching Channels with Reeve in 1988. Whilst it is not particularly a good film I seem to recall Beatty(who portrays a politician in the flick) being radically different to the character he played in STM. As for Reeve, well he was picking up the pieces after the debacle that was SIV! Beatty's monologue in Network is sublime. "It is the international system of currency which determines the totality of life on this planet"Never have truer words been spoken.....I would argue that the above applies to the COVID pandemic but that is a discussion for another thread or forum! Beatty was a massive constituent(all be it in a minor/supporting role) of what made STM & SII(Lester or Donner) so great and his chemistry with Hackman was perfect. Let's see the actors who played Luthor's henchmen in MOS do the same kind of Network type monologue. Their acting range does not extend beyond looking moody or er........pretty! Sidenote on "Switching Channels"- originally it was supposed to be Reeve and Michael Caine- which - judging by their work on "Deathtrap"- would have been fantastic. Burt Reynolds was ok, but if it was Caine as originally intended, I think it would have been a comic classic. |
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Metallo
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Post by Metallo on Jun 14, 2021 13:45:27 GMT -5
Oh no that is sad to hear. I had actually watched STM last night by sheer coincidence. I don't have Deliverance or Network in my collection but have seen clips from both down the years. Might get round to bagging them at some point. Beatty was also in Switching Channels with Reeve in 1988. Whilst it is not particularly a good film I seem to recall Beatty(who portrays a politician in the flick) being radically different to the character he played in STM. As for Reeve, well he was picking up the pieces after the debacle that was SIV! Beatty's monologue in Network is sublime. "It is the international system of currency which determines the totality of life on this planet"Never have truer words been spoken.....I would argue that the above applies to the COVID pandemic but that is a discussion for another thread or forum! Beatty was a massive constituent(all be it in a minor/supporting role) of what made STM & SII(Lester or Donner) so great and his chemistry with Hackman was perfect. Let's see the actors who played Luthor's henchmen in MOS do the same kind of Network type monologue. Their acting range does not extend beyond looking moody or er........pretty(yes I know the actress is Japanese.....but I am pretty sure this character would have been just as monolithic..... even if she had been portrayed by a western actress!) Shocked you haven’t seen them. Deliverance is a classic. One of John Boorman’s best. Network is just brilliant. It was at least 20 years ahead of its time. Beatty was one of those actors who could do any thing, any type of role or film, and be good in it. The acting talent gathered for STM carried it a long way and you just don’t see that kind of talent throughout the industry anymore. I forgot he was in Switching Channels but funny enough the first film Ned Beatty and Christopher Reeve were in together was the submarine thriller Gray Lady Down. It was pre Superman. It’s not a great film but I also enjoyed his work as a Jim Bakker type of televangelist parody in the comedy RePossessed. Beatty did do another superhero film in 1990: Captain America. This time it was for Menahem Golan the same schlockmaster Reeve got conned by. Captain America was much worse than Superman IV though. Oddly enough we at least got a Deliverance reunion out of it. Ronny Cox was also in it and he and Beatty’s characters were childhood friends that saw Captain America decades before. |
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Metallo
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Post by Metallo on Jun 14, 2021 13:48:33 GMT -5
Was sad to hear, but I didn't keep up and thought he and Charles Grodin (who I also really enjoyed onscreen) had died YEARS ago. Still, agreed... RIP, Mr. Beatty! I’ve had a few like that myself. I thought some people had died years before. I knew Grodin was still around but I was surprised he was as old as he was. I figured he was at least five years younger. Back in the midnight run days he didn’t look as old as he apparently was but since he was also in Rosemarys Baby as her doctor I guess he had to be. |
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 14, 2021 19:00:46 GMT -5
Was sad to hear, but I didn't keep up and thought he and Charles Grodin (who I also really enjoyed onscreen) had died YEARS ago. Still, agreed... RIP, Mr. Beatty! I’ve had a few like that myself. I thought some people had died years before. I knew Grodin was still around but I was surprised he was as old as he was. I figured he was at least five years younger. Back in the midnight run days he didn’t look as old as he apparently was but since he was also in Rosemarys Baby as her doctor I guess he had to be. I remember reading Grodin's memoirs awhile back - I just remember it was very entertaining. I should check out more of Grodin's work. I loved him in Heaven Can Wait and I thought Midnight Run was a fantastic showcase for him and DeNiro. I did see part of Network, but I know Network and Rosemary's Baby (another film I didn't see) were big in its time... |
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dejan
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Post by dejan on Jun 15, 2021 17:12:41 GMT -5
MetalloWill definitely get hold of Network and Deliverance, hopefully on 4K. Meanwhile, Boorman has put this nice anecdotal tribute to Beatty regarding their first meeting. I saw Ned Beatty (Obituary, 14 June) in regional theatre. He had no experience in radio or television and rather looked down on them, but in many ways he fitted my idea of the character of Bobby in Deliverance. Ned was very late for his audition. He had worked himself up into a frenzy of aggression. “Are you really going to make this crap?” he said. He had already convinced himself he had lost the part. He continued to abuse me and the project. I loved his passion. I said: “Stop shouting, Ned, you got the part.”
He was a wonderful actor, and his anger was very useful. It often made the other three actors and myself fall about laughing. I loved him dearly.
John Boorman
Director, Deliverancewww.theguardian.com/film/2021/jun/15/john-boorman-how-a-belligerent-ned-beatty-won-me-over
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dejan
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Post by dejan on Jun 15, 2021 17:20:22 GMT -5
I’ve had a few like that myself. I thought some people had died years before. I knew Grodin was still around but I was surprised he was as old as he was. I figured he was at least five years younger. Back in the midnight run days he didn’t look as old as he apparently was but since he was also in Rosemarys Baby as her doctor I guess he had to be. I remember reading Grodin's memoirs awhile back - I just remember it was very entertaining. I should check out more of Grodin's work. I loved him in Heaven Can Wait and I thought Midnight Run was a fantastic showcase for him and DeNiro. I did see part of Network, but I know Network and Rosemary's Baby (another film I didn't see) were big in its time... hehe What about Kong 76'.......Grodin really hammed it up for that one! Thought he also put in a nice performance in The Woman In Red although Kelly Le Brock rightly took centre stage in that one  I had been hoping to get Heaven Can Wait as part of my 1978 movie marathon last summer but unfortunately it's not available on Blu Ray yet.....and being the cinephile snob I am , I can't accept a DVD or VHS!  |
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dejan
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Post by dejan on Jun 15, 2021 17:24:54 GMT -5
@cam Regarding Switching Channels as a comedy.....I always liked Reeve's psycho breakdown in that elevator: |
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dejan
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Post by dejan on Jun 15, 2021 17:38:29 GMT -5
MetalloAh yes....I forgot that Beatty and Reeve were in Gray Lady Down!. I remember that in circa 81', some friends of mine ,knowing that I was a Superman movie nut, were reprimanding me for having missed Grey Lady Down on TV(could have been it's UK broadcast premiere) simply because Reeve was in it (if only for a few seconds!). And back in the day, as a kid, before home video and the internet, grabbing a few seconds of your idol on TV or radio was like fly fishing!
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Metallo
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Post by Metallo on Jun 16, 2021 11:10:09 GMT -5
MetalloWill definitely get hold of Network and Deliverance, hopefully on 4K. Meanwhile, Boorman has put this nice anecdotal tribute to Beatty regarding their first meeting. I saw Ned Beatty (Obituary, 14 June) in regional theatre. He had no experience in radio or television and rather looked down on them, but in many ways he fitted my idea of the character of Bobby in Deliverance. Ned was very late for his audition. He had worked himself up into a frenzy of aggression. “Are you really going to make this crap?” he said. He had already convinced himself he had lost the part. He continued to abuse me and the project. I loved his passion. I said: “Stop shouting, Ned, you got the part.”
He was a wonderful actor, and his anger was very useful. It often made the other three actors and myself fall about laughing. I loved him dearly.
John Boorman
Director, Deliverancewww.theguardian.com/film/2021/jun/15/john-boorman-how-a-belligerent-ned-beatty-won-me-over That’s a great tribute and story. I buy it too. Boorman was old school like that in that he’d like what Beatty was doing. |
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Metallo
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The worlds finest heroes
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Post by Metallo on Jun 16, 2021 11:23:53 GMT -5
@cam Regarding Switching Channels as a comedy.....I always liked Reeve's psycho breakdown in that elevator: Another funny thing about that one is it costarred a young George Newbern, who would voice the animated Superman years later.    |
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Post by Kamdan on Jun 17, 2021 5:06:12 GMT -5
I always wished there was an in-depth interview with him on his involvement with the Superman franchise, but he seemed like the “the work speaks for itself” type.
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