MovieChat Forums > Richard III (1995) Discussion > not a good movie?

not a good movie?

posted 18 years ago by ksqueaker-1
16 replies | jump to latest

I was gushing to a friend of mine about Robert Downey Jr. and he stared at me, ubelievingly. "You like that guy?" he asked me. "He's terrible. He RUINS movies."
I stood, immobilized by shock and horror for a while, but when I regained motor control, asked him about it and he said that RDJ ruined this movie, which is the only RDJ movie my friend's ever seen. Now, this is one of the FEW of his that I haven't seen. I was planning on watching it, but if it's really that bad...? should I? Is RDJ good, bad, in between, etc., in this film?
Thank you!!!

My mother thanks you. My father thanks you. My sister thanks you. And I thank you.

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] nocomputer1962 18 years ago

I have this movie on tape and I can't even rememeber RDJ's role in the movie. As a person who alternately admires and loathes RDJ, I can definitely say he doesn't ruin Richard III. Give it a shot.

[–] redrum_ride 18 years ago

WTF??? Robert Downey Jr. is great!!! See KISS KISS BANG BANG

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Pacino13 18 years ago

I like when he get stabbed through the chest (best part of the movie...hysterical)

*So what? Some people say cucumbers taste better pickled.*

[–] jrsmith007 18 years ago

Please remember to warn of spoilers, ZetaFanatic13.

[–] Pacino13 18 years ago

SPOILER - he comically gets stabbed through the chest and it is mighty funny.

*So what? Some people say cucumbers taste better pickled.*

[–] monkeymechx 18 years ago

I didn't recognize him, but he was a stand out for bad acting. Such a stiff voice.

[–] Charlie_Waters 16 years ago

Yes, let's not spoil a play written hundreds of years ago.

[–] zafiroblue05 18 years ago

I don't think he's a bad actor, but I just saw this, and he was absolutely *horrible*. His accent was bizarre (sort of a half-hearted attempt to match the English setting), and he was outmatched with Shakespeare's lines - it all just came off totally unnatural and forced. He didn't have a very big part in this, so he couldn't have really ruined the movie, but he did ruin his lines.

[–] achrya 17 years ago

Elisabeth and her brother are supposed to be outsiders at the English court - that's why McKellen's version makes them Americans.
So behaving unnaturally and making bizarre attempts to fit in is, in my opinion, a completely appropriate way of playing Rivers.

Okay, it doesn't work for everyone. Spectator responses to acting tend to be very personal.

---------
- Are you classified as human?
- Negative. I am a meat popsicle.

[–] maeasley 17 years ago

He did almost ruin this one. Of course, while I love Anette Bening, I think she did an awful job, too. The scene (perhaps her first) where she's shouting at the dinner table was horribly done. Unfortunately, I think some actors/actresses don't understand early modern English well enough to deliver their lines well, and RDJ and Anette Bening fall into this category.

The good news, however (sorry to spoil it) is that he doesn't live to the end of the play, so other than his crappy performance and the cheesy falling shot at the end, it is a great film.

[–] lucymaxx 17 years ago

I wouldn't say that RDJ ruined this movie. He's a good enough actor, but when he's side by side with the likes of Ian McKellan, Nigel Hawthorne, Maggie Smith, and Jim Broadbent, he's simply going to blend into the background. I thought the same could be said for Annette Benning in this film. She's a good enough actress, but she she simply could not hold her own against all these magnificent people. Neither of them have the presence or the ability to pull this off. Their roles are small enough, however, that they do not "ruin the movie". They are simply minor annoyances.

[–] tghoneyc 16 years ago

As someone who generally likes Robert Downey Jr. I'd have to say he had the weakest delivery of anyone in this film. But he's outweighed immensely by the other actors.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] ArthurDental 9 years ago

People have opposite feelings about a film or an actor. Oh noes!