Denzel Washington (Flight, He Got Game) and Ethan Hawke (Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, Boyhood) began their careers in 1985. Washinton has a more storied career with four Oscar nominations between 1987 and 1999 (Cry Freedom, Glory, Malcolm X, The Hurricane). The underrated Hawke had starred in movies such as Reality Bites, Before Sunrise, Gattaca, and Hamlet before the turn of the century. But it took Antoine Fuqua’s (Southpaw, Tears of the Sun) gritty, determined, and so far over the top that it might be believable Training Day for these two Hollywood heavyweights to meet on the big screen for the first time. The result is the crowning acting achievement in the careers of each actor.
Category Archives: Genre
Fathers and Daughters (2016)
Sometimes, when I’m at home looking for something to watch, I’ll say an actor’s name to my voice-activated remote control. After recently rewatching and reviewing 3:10 to Yuma, I was interested in seeing what other Russell Crowe (Gladiator, Cinderella Man) movies I might be interested in rewatching or viewing for the first time. When I saw Fathers and Daughters, a movie I had never heard of before, I decided to play the trailer. Within 30 seconds, I stopped the trailer. I had successfully been teased enough to want to watch the movie without knowing more about it. I didn’t need to read any reviews, which may have turned me off. I saw it was a relationship movie that revolved around a past traumatic event that involved Crowe. That was all I needed.
A Perfect World (1993)
David Mackenzie’s critically acclaimed Hell or High Water, a 2016 movie nominated for Best Picture, reminded me of a quiet and subdued gem of a 1993 film that undoubtedly inspired a director just starting to enter his prime. Clint Eastwood (Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby) was fresh off of Unforgiven (a movie that earned him his first Best Director Oscar win as well as Best Picture of the Year) and the critically acclaimed and equally fan-adored In the Line of Fire. A Perfect World was Eastwood’s third movie between 1992 and 1993, the most successful two-year period of the most exceptional director/actor combination in cinema history.
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
The Western genre is a dying one. Gone are the days of John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, et al., and the era of Westerns in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Once a staple in American cinema, those films are now few and far between. Years could pass before a good Western connects with critics and audiences alike. Unforgiven reset the standard in 1992, connecting with critics and audiences alike while earning nine Oscar nominations and taking home four, most notably for Best Picture. Others have followed. Appaloosa, Hostiles, True Grit, Tombstone, and Open Range were big-budget movies that hit the screen with reckless aggression. True Grit was the most successful with the critics (10 Oscar nominations, but no wins), but even the success of this film fails when compared to Unforgiven.
John Q (2002)
What was Denzel Washington thinking? Fresh off roles in 1998’s The Hurricane (Academy Award Winner – Lead Actor), the nationally recognized 2000’s Remember the Titans, and 2002’s Training Day (Academy Award Winner – Lead Actor), Denzel was arguably at the peak of his acting career. He likely commanded (or was close to it) more guaranteed money per film than any other actor in America. He probably was receiving dozens of roles at a single time. And yet he chose to accept the lead role in unproven Nick Cassavetes’s (Alpha Dog, She’s So Lovely) 2002’s John Q.