Harrison Ford: 09/21/03 - 09/27/03

[Morticia]

Just as a change of pace, and at your request, we are discussing bodies of works by a particular actor or director. Let's see how you like this!

So -- Harrison Ford. He's had roles ranging from heros to scoundrels to Presidents to cops, even a few unsympathetic characters.

How has he grown as an actor? Has he? Is he box office gold? Where is his career headed? What are your favorite "Harrison Ford" movies and why? Would you see a movie with him in it just because he's in it?

[aedavela]

I like this idea, 'Tish.

As far as Ford goes, no he's not box office gold anymore and I wouldn't go see a flick just because he's in it. If these were true, Hollywood Homicide would've done a hell of a lot better at the box office and I'd be rushing to Media Play at lunch tomorrow to pick up the DVD.

That being said, his older roles are absolute gems. No doubt a lot of the original Star Wars' success is due to his portrayal of Han Solo and that obviously led to the Indiana Jones movies, which are also some of my favorites. Some other movies he had roles in that I enjoyed include The Fugitive and Regarding Henry. I'm one of the few people who probably liked Alec Baldwin better as Jack Ryan. Ford just looked too old for the role.

It will be interesting if Indy 4 really comes to fruition and if Ford's body will allow him to carry out the part.

[MJZ]

Star Wars was so ground breaking that it put all the actors/characters on the map. People probably knew who were talking about if you said Han Solo as opposed to Harrison Ford. IMO he has been the most successful actor to come out of the Star Wars franchise and that franchise has been a tough act to follow.

He was great as Han Solo and is synonymous with that character as he is with Indy too.

I thought he was good in What Lies Beneath and the Fugitive and has been a solid actor in his roles in general, that said he doesn't draw me to a film just because he's in it.

For me Mr Ford will always be Han Solo and I salute him for that role.

[Frank Gunn]

It's all about 'Presumed Innocent'. Probably his most intense role: by equal turns creepy and sympathetic. There's really nothing else like it on his CV. And at $5.88 at Wal-Mart, I wholeheartedly recommend it to anybody checking out this thread who hasn't yet seen it.

It's hard to believe how the Academy has ignored this guy over the years. He got a richly deserved nomination for his brilliant turn in 'Witness', but beyond that, nothing.

[fischerj]

My favorite role of his is the American colonel in "Force 10 From Navarone". His performance is so wooden, my brother and I nicknamed him "Clay Man" and use it exclusively when referencing him.

In baseball, a player inducted into the Hall of Fame is honored with a bust of himself in a baseball cap. If they had such a thing for actors, what "cap" would Clay Man wear -- Indiana Jones, Han Solo, Jack Ryan, or other. He's not the most versatile actor but he's had several movie franchises.

Not too shabby!

[mlemmond]

For so long Harrison Ford was one of the biggest actors around. Like most other people I will always hold his performances as Han Solo and Indiana Jones as treasures of my movie memories. But I also loved his performances in The Mosquito Coast, Witness, and Frantic. He was excellent as the cyborg chasing Deckard in Blade Runner and the man we would be proud to have as president in Air Force One. He always manages to get you to care about his character.

Harrison Ford is still a very good actor with a great screen presence but his choice of roles lately hasn't been very good, or it could be that is all he is being offered. I would like to see him let go of the action film genre and concentrate more on dramatic pieces and comedies.

[Elliot Ness]

Although I am a big fan of Ford's work, as an actor, I feel his range is somewhat limited. He can do a lot of different roles, but in each role can never really escape the Harrison persona. As a result, the roles that work best for him are those that are (seem) closest to his own character - something I feel Ford has recognized himself and exploited with much success over the years, apart from a brief period during the '80s when he actively tried to steer away from it (i.e. Regarding Henry, Mosquito Coast). But Han Solo, Indy Jones and Jack Ryan all come from the same mold, appearing as different sides to Ford's own character rather then being totally different characters altogether. How much does his role in The Fugitive differ from Jack Ryan? Not too much, I would say. The same goes for Patriot Games / Last Crusade and Raiders/Empire - early Indy could very well be the younger brother of Han Solo, while later Indy is only a small step away from Jack Ryan. These distinct similarities introduced a form of laziness in his acting during the 90's, when he stayed so close to the Ford persona that he seemed to go on auto pilot. To me, this is the major reason his career took a nose-dive lately - the audience just got bored from seeing the same type of guy over and over again, good or bad. Indy IV may help regain some of the ground he's lost the past few years, but it could very well suffer the same fate as Ford has lately - the distinct feeling of 'been there, seen that'.

[Cap42086]

For my 1000th post, I figured I'd do something special, so why not post in Film Class?

Ford is one of the more talented action stars to have ever graced the screen. Of coruse, he has done the aforementioned Star Wars, Indy, Air Force One, etc. But what he does so well to bounce off of that is the fact that he can also do a dramatic role and he can do it well. One of his many talents that I've always gotten a kick out of is the fact that he can play so many different roles and do them so well that it's like a completely different actor.

Take, for instance, the mediocre film What Lies Beneath. What he did there was something of a mystery: he took a sub-par film and hightened it to something more by acting against his usual type and pulling out what could have been a total disaster.

He always had this certain charisma that's hard to ignore. Even if you hate him, you can't deny the fact that someone who can go from playing in a movie like Witness to a film like Hollywood Homicide (which I actually liked, for some odd reason) is showing as great a range as Christopher Walken has showed going from films like Deer Hunter to Kangaroo Jack.

Frantic, Regarding Henry... great films as well. I don't know why he doesn't get more credit for his roles. I guess that he's just too well-known for playing Han and Indy that it's kind of his monicre, kind of like Mike Myers for playing Wayne and Austin Powers. Of course, we all know how Harrison Ford turned out comparing the two.

And I am still surprised that Harrison has not won an Oscar before. Well, the day will come. Eventually.