Category: top 100 characters
played by Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now Willard’s bizarre, taxing and violent trip upriver is so long and extravagant, the destination had to be something unimaginable just to match it. Thankfully, there was Col. Kurtz, huge and weird in a...
played by Robert Duvall in Apocalypse Now Given that he has relatively little screen time so early in a such a long movie, it speaks volumes that Lt. Col. Kilgore leaves such a mark on the audience. It doesn’t hurt...
played by Diane Keaton in Annie Hall Some actors are perfect for certain characters. In other cases, it is the character that inhabits the actor. Annie Hall fit into Diane Keaton so snugly that she has rarely stopped being her...
played by James Stewart in It’s a Wonderful Life Many of Jimmy Stewart’s characters were meant to be stand-ins for the best side of the American psyche. Given the recent strain of patriotism without self-reflection, it’s strange to think that...
played by Humphrey Bogart in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre A loser all his life, Fred C. Dobbs comes to embody the American dream, as he finds himself hot on the path to wealth and privilege. But, like the...
played by Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men A voice of reason in the midst of emotional chaos, Juror #8 is interrupted, insulted, and even threatened. However, he stays the course. His steadfast, sympathetic mindset slowly wins over the rest...
played by Harrison Ford in Star Wars In a galaxy of Ewoks, robots, and the Force, Han Solo is the lone voice of disbelief. As director George Lucas throws more and more outlandish material at the audience, we desperately need...
played by Elizabeth Taylor in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? A drunken, unpleasant woman, Martha thrives on the discomfort of others. In the constant struggle with her husband for moral superiority, Martha often wins because she is willing to do...
played by Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry Harry Callahan didn’t become a cop to fill out mountains of paperwork. He did it to clean up the streets. And, in a city where the criminals are willing to go to any...
played by Anne Baxter in All About Eve There have been characters sort of like Eve Harrington in other films, the obsessive who yearns to take over the life of the person they admire. But these tend to be pure...
