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Reviews
The Harbinger (2022)
Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Spencer Tracy, Montgomery Clift
When I wrote the following to the production company of The Harbinger about my discovery of their leading actor and asked what he is doing next, they requested I post this "review" of his performance on IMDb as well. Here is what I wrote (edited for length/clarity):
"None of the above actors listed, nor your lead, look anything alike. But there is something about their personalities & mannerisms - qualities. There's an honesty in their performances.
Klipstine is intense at times but through it all looks relaxed, focused and if the scene calls for it, as cool as the other side of the pillow. It's not just about being comfortable in front of the camera. He plays sadness, unabashed joy (actually all of his performance is unabashed), confusion, secretiveness, fear, shame, guilt, vulnerability, pitiable, heartbreaking loss, helplessness, silliness, suspicion, being suspicious of others, zealousness, and the fearless martyr charging forward with reckless abandon (I'm sure I'm missing others) - all with complete believability.
Your film is entertaining. I humbly say you may have been constrained by budget but boy did you smash it out of the park with the storytelling and the acting (the whole cast). And when it comes to Klipstine's performance, I see at least five other critics noticed the same thing: In particular writing about his 'gravitas' and 'a strong lead being able to eclipse a film's minor flaws.'"
I rambled on, I finished by writing that he is a great find, I look forward to his future work, and that I thought the movie was a fun, interesting watch.
One thing I'll add that I didn't write to them: A couple critics compared him to Nicholas Cage. I see other reviews mentioning Sam Rockwell, Keanu, Luke Wilson, Josh Hartnett, Kevin Costner, Tom Cruise, etc.. I'm not saying I disagree, he does have moments like some of those, but I strongly encourage watching Tracy, Fonda, Stewart and Clift. I'm confident they will see what I refer to. In addition to being authentic, there's a fearlessness accompanied with an earnestness or endearing quality that emanates. I'm not sure which one leads to the other. It doesn't make a difference, I just sometimes wonder what makes someone so talented and maybe it's less of a science than just whatever "it" is. They have "it."
It's a star quality and I think it's cool to watch someone like that before the rest of the world learns who they are.
Dean Billick.
Boys Town (1938)
Did he ever have a false moment?
It doesn't matter what movie you're talking about, the guy just never had an inauthentic moment on film.
He could be playing priests, professors, attorneys, soldiers, homeless guys, doesn't make a difference. He was always believable and interesting to watch. I cherish these actors because they're rare. It's interesting to me that he was with Katherine Hepburn because she's another like him. Completely authentic in everything she did.
Meryl Streep is another one. Montgomery Clift. Jimmy Stewart. Kathy Bates. Henry Fonda. They're rare. The only modern one I can think of who is pretty consistent and not retired yet is Denzel Washington. Definitely Morgan Freeman but not sure if he's retired. Michael Caine just retired.
Collateral (2004)
I'm in the minority about his 2 best performances
People rave about Tom Cruise in other projects, but I'll say his best 2 for me are Born on the Fourth of July and this one.
It isn't just about playing against type. It's about the difference between playing someone who's bad and just being bad. It's about authenticity. You see it in great actors.
I'm new to this site but I've seen hundreds, if not thousands of films in my lifetime. He's one of the few modern movie actors who have this kind of star power. He's not as authentic (or instead of authentic I should say he sometimes looks like he's efforting his performance) in all of his performances as others (like a Spencer Tracy or Henry Fonda, for example), but when he's on...He's ON.