There are plenty of mediocre-to-bad actors and actresses out there, but every once in awhile, these people put out a performance that is actually quite good.
I think the most obvious example of this would be Tom Arnold in "True Lies." There is absolutely no reason that this should have worked. Prior to this, I'd say Arnold was really only famous as being married to Roseanne Barr. And there is not a single thing he's done since this that is worth noting.
However, his performance in "True Lies" is absolute greatness. I mean, he's so damn good in this role as Arnold's comic relief sidekick. Every scene that he is in he absolutely steals. He even gets the very best line in the entire movie:
This is a once-in-a-lifetime performance from him.
My second example would be Jennifer Lopez in "Out of Sight." Honestly, this is one of my favorite movies. Everything about this movie is perfect. And Lopez makes a wonderful portrayal of Elmore Leonard's literary character of Karen Sisco. She nails the toughness of being a federal marshal while also being sexy as hell. Her chemistry with George Clooney is so good.
While I don't think that J Lo is a particularly bad actress, just that she's always come across more as a "movie star" rather than an actual "actress." More times than not, she's not portraying a character in her movies.she's playing J Lo playing someone else, if that makes sense. That's what makes "Out of Sight" so different for me. She's really good as Karen Sisco.
Who are some other actors that you find mediocre or just plain bad, yet still put out one good performance?
I think the most obvious example of this would be Tom Arnold in "True Lies." There is absolutely no reason that this should have worked. Prior to this, I'd say Arnold was really only famous as being married to Roseanne Barr. And there is not a single thing he's done since this that is worth noting.
However, his performance in "True Lies" is absolute greatness. I mean, he's so damn good in this role as Arnold's comic relief sidekick. Every scene that he is in he absolutely steals. He even gets the very best line in the entire movie:
This is a once-in-a-lifetime performance from him.
My second example would be Jennifer Lopez in "Out of Sight." Honestly, this is one of my favorite movies. Everything about this movie is perfect. And Lopez makes a wonderful portrayal of Elmore Leonard's literary character of Karen Sisco. She nails the toughness of being a federal marshal while also being sexy as hell. Her chemistry with George Clooney is so good.
While I don't think that J Lo is a particularly bad actress, just that she's always come across more as a "movie star" rather than an actual "actress." More times than not, she's not portraying a character in her movies.she's playing J Lo playing someone else, if that makes sense. That's what makes "Out of Sight" so different for me. She's really good as Karen Sisco.
Who are some other actors that you find mediocre or just plain bad, yet still put out one good performance?
