Critics Club II: 54 - Samuel L Jackson

[Neon Ignition]

A man who's resume lists skills as dinosaur park technician, Jedi, superhero team leader and civilian assist to John McClane...



Vote for the movie you feel is their best whilst also discussing their other work, your reasons for voting and thoughts on what is their weakest.

Some will have very long lists so some trimming will be required to focus on the key entries but broadly the main selection will be available each time.

[teddymeow]

The first thing I saw SMJ in was Jurassic Park so that holds a special place for me.

However, Pulp Fiction is his best performance.

Hes been in some dross though, seemingly there are times when there's a large tax bill to pay or he wants a new wallet (that doesn't say bad mutha f***er on it) so he takes any old job.

[QualityChimp]

OK, so SLJ is pretty good in most things he's in, even if he tends to play grumpy men most of the time.
He raises the quality of poor films like 51st State, which he practically carried.
He's particularly good in his turns for Tarantino, especially in his role as Jules in Pulp Fiction. In a great film, with a lot of stars, he really stands out, especially the bookend scenes in the diner and the "GREAT VENGEANCE" speech.

A lot of people rate him in Die Hard 3, but having recently rewatched it, him and Willis spend a lot of time just shouting at each other. I think DH2 is better, IMHO.

However, to avoid being obvious, I've chosen The Long Kiss Goodnight, which I think is a really underappreciated film.
Geena Davis is great in this and slipping from homely mother to badass assassin is engaging to watch, it's Jackson's portrayal of Mitch Henessey that adds a layer of depth to the film.

He's not a useless comic foil, but he adds humour when he sees how truly capable Samantha (Davis) is and takes a back seat in the action. It's this shift from being alpha to beta that makes him the heart of the film, keeping Samantha grounded as she becomes increasingly ruthless.
His blues way of remembering things has always stuck with me.

So yeah, there are probably better films with SLJ in, but for me, it's smoothing of his rough edges as he spends time with Samantha that elevates his performance and his believability as the character in The Long Kiss Goodnight.

[Cassius_Smoke]

I saw him in a film called Lakeview Terrace, he plays a racist cop who has it in for his Neighbours. The film probably isn't great but he was menacing. He should play bad guys more often because he holds a level of intensity few others can.
With Star Wars and in most of the marvel films he's just dialing it in, with the exception of Captain Marvel, which I thought he was was great in.

I voted Pulp Fiction though because its the one that immediately springs to mind when I think of SLJ.

[kryss]

Let's be honest, Snakes on a Plane was basically written for him. I can't remember him in half the movies listed above but I'm sure there's more that you didn't list. I still need to rewatch NL Loaded Weapon 1 again soon.

[JazzFunk]

Am I being thick or is his VERY BEST movie performance not on there?

Ladies and gentlemen, LAKEVIEW TERRACE.

LAKESIDE muthaphuccin TERRACE. The biggidy bomb.

[JazzFunk]

LAKEVIEW I meant.

Confusing it with LAKESIDE DRIVE













By NITZER muthaphuccin EBB

[JazzFunk]

(nowt to do with Samuel L.)