MovieChat Forums > The Mechanic (1972) Discussion > JMV's acting was amateurish

JMV's acting was amateurish


While I liked this movie a great deal, I thought the GLARING weak link was Vincent's acting. I've seen more convincing delivery in a grade 9 drama class. It wasn't just in one scene, but throughout the whole movie.

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He had the look but he was never a strong actor.

Its that man again!!

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Yeah, his acting was flat through and through. I love The Mechanic, it's a near perfect film (aside from JMV, of course). But, it would have been a better, more interesting film if Bronson's character didn't get himself an associate. Nevertheless, I can't complain about Steve getting blown up at the end.



Hey there, Johnny Boy, I hope you fry!

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Part of the plot of the film is that he does get an associate and someone who might have valid motive against Bronson.

Its that man again!!

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lucky for him, he was pretty - he couldn't act his way out of a snuff film.

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[deleted]

true that.

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And Bronson's monotone didn't help either.

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I thought the acting from pretty much everyone in this film was bad

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I think Jan-Michael Vincent's biggest contribution was his looks. Kind of doltish, good looking guy, with not much going on besides his dad's money. Perfect camouflage for the ending. It would be interesting to see Jeff Bridges as Steve McKenna as mentioned in the Trivia.

Bridges has good looks and could bring a depth of intelligence and charm to the role.


No two persons ever watch the same movie.

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Jeff Bridges would have killed it in this movie. It would have been so good with him. I thought JMV wasn't horrible though. It was a good movie.

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Agreed, his acting was stiff. His acting probably would have been much stiffer without the expert direction. But then, this movie is not really about the acting. To me it's the look of the film along with the fantastic score.

My accountant says, 1 + 1, 40% of the time, equals divorce.

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Yes he defiantly looks like he is trying too hard, he looks like he is acting. He doesn't come across natural.

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He made the movie for me. Yeah mostly because he was so pretty. But his acting was no worse than anyone else's. The worst acting was from Louise. She was horrible. &its a shame because the slit wrists scene was one of the most important in the movie.

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Totally agree. He just comes across as a hollywood prettyboy without any real acting ability. It's a problem for the movie because Bronson's delivery is rather low-key and needs someone with a more emotive personality to balance with.

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