Boris Karloff, real name William Pratt I think set the mold for horror as we know it. His roles in I Tre volti della paura, aka Black Christmas, aka Black Sabbath (USA), aka The Three Faces of Fear, aka The Three Faces of Terror, aka Les Trois visages de la peur (France) and as Dr. Scarabus in The Raven really defined horror. The Raven was a landmark in horror, not because the film showed horrific scenes, but allowed our own fears to define it. BRILLIANT!
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The remarkable thing about Vincent Price was his voice. Only Vincent Price's voice could have made a pop song scary as it did "Thriller". When I was a little kid, I used to run out of the room when the "Thriller" video came on just because of Vincent Prices voice.
Originally posted by RobbieJess: Gunnar Hansen is the best horror actor in my opinion. His finest work was as Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
The best horror actor based on one role where he didn't have to speak or show his face - makes sense. I don't remember him being an any other film ever - I'm open to correction here if somebody has seen him turn in another 'stunning perfromance'.
Out of those above, I think Bela Lugosi contributed most to cinema.
The best horror actor based on one role where he didn't have to speak or show his face - makes sense. I don't remember him being an any other film ever - I'm open to correction here if somebody has seen him turn in another 'stunning perfromance'.
As far as I'm aware, acting is "pretending to be somebody else", perhaps I'm mistaken? Gunnar Hansen played the role of Leatherface so terrifying, personally I didn't give a rats ass whether or not he spoke a single word of dialogue, it's the pure fact he was acting, you know, "pretending to be somebody else" which convinced me he's a superb actor.
Please explain why an actor "has to speak and show there face when pretending to be somebody else?"
"On every street in every city, there's a nobody who dreams of being a somebody..."
My point is that any clown can run around with a mask on, weilding a chainsaw. I put a blanket over my head at halloween and chase after my kids. They seemed pretty convinced that I was somebody else, so my pretending was pretty good right ? Personally, I believe it is a lot more difficult to convince somebody that you are somebody else when they can see your face and when you have to use words and facial expressions as a convincer. It's a lot easier to say things on the phone that you wouldn't say when somebody can read your face.
I stand by my original point. You claimed this guy was the greatest horror actor ever based on one performance (there aint others - I've checked), and not only that, but based on one performance where all the terror was created by the situation and the costume. Literally, all he had to do was run around wielding a chainsaw. I reckon I could have done equally as good a job, and I reckon you probably could have too. The prosecution rests his case.
I'd be interested to hear if anyone else feels they could draw the same conclusion on this guys acting ability on the basis of his perfromance in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I would still like you to explain it to me also.
