UKC

Watching "About Schmidt" recently (for the first time), I thought "this must be one of Jack Nicholson's very best performances". This then led me to wonder how good he really is, given that he is a Hollywood acting legend. Off the top of my head, his great performances going back nearly 48 years are:
Five Easy Pieces
Chinatown
The Last Detail
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
The Shining (personally I find it rather hammy and I just see Jack Nicholson rather than Jack Torrance the character, but people seem to like it)

The Witches of Eastwick (weak film but he IS good)
Batman (hammy again)
The Pledge
About Schmidt

This doesn't seem much. Let me know what I am missing; there are certainly a good few I haven't seen or don't remember well, some of which could be promising or worth a revisit, but at the same time there's a lot where he's just phoning it in. Again off the top of my head and in the wrong order probably (and skipping a few silly things like Mars Attacks):
Goin' South (seen but don't really remember)
Carnal Knowledge (ditto)
The Missouri Breaks (ditto)Terms of Endearment (good BUT not really a lead, and anyway massively overshadowed by Debra Winger)
Prizzi's Honor (phoning it in)
Broadcast News (extended cameo, not carrying the film so not really included in the argument)
The Two Jakes ("meh")
Hoffa - not seen
A Few Good Men - not seen but again a bit of an extended cameo from what I hear
The Crossing Guard - have not seen but heard good things about it
Wolf - not seen, interested though
As Good As It Gets - seemed a bit of coasting it, rehashing old performances
The Departed - again "meh", he was just kind of "in it". 


Those were off the top of my head

A quick peep on the Internet reminds me of some more. 
The Passenger - not seen, intrigued, have heard good things
The Border - saw it many decades ago but nothing memorable
The Postman Always Rings Twice - intrigued, could be a great one
Heartburn - saw decades ago before I could appreciate the potential maturity of such a film. Maybe worth a revisit
Ironweed - never seen. Promising. 



 

The Missouri Breaks was one of THE best westerns of its time. Perhaps we should have a new thread on the best films that never quite got the accolades they should have. Tom Horn would go in there as would Geronimo with Wes Studi.

Anyway. Back to Jack. As good as it gets was a brilliant film with the best one line come back to the female ascendancy to domination I have yet heard:

"Tell me how you get women so right"

"I think of a man and take away reason and accountability"

Gonna say "the pledge" was also one of those films that sits with you. The twist in the end is remarkably cruel.

What do you think about Easy Rider? He is not the lead, but it is a significant part and what established him. I think he is the best thing in the film.

His performance was Oscar nominated.

Confession time

haven't seen it!

i know his smallish role is said to be key to the film. I didn’t list it above, because it is a support role, but that is daft of me cos I mentioned Broadcast News and A few Good Men

cheers

I will check out The Missouri Breaks. If I ever saw it before, I’d have been about 13 and easily bored!

that is a good line in As a good as it gets but I didn’t feel it was truly great acting, it was Jack playing “the Jack Nicholson character”

wHereas in About Schmidt, although it is hard to imagine anyone else in the role, he IS the character and not “Jack”

sorry for badly formatted post. Lazy iPhone typing whilst on my feet waiting for a machine at work to become available

Three serious answers, one less so:

The Postman Always Rings Twice

Wolf

A few good men

Mars attacks!

Forgot Missouri Breaks and Easy Rider, too many good ones to pick from!

I love Jack but I don't think he's a great actor. He's just great at being Jack! Overacts and is hammy, but that's what he does and he's really good at it! 

Watch About Schmidt, you'll be amazed!

He was absolutely perfect for McMurphy in Cuckoo's Nest.

He was brilliant as McMurphy though very very different from the character in the book.