Looking Back: Favorite Performances of the Decade

Upon analyzing the list of the best Frat Pack films of the decade, I realized my favorite performances differed considerably.   I won’t get into what should or shouldn’t count. There are performances from the Apatow players, semi-dramatic roles and not a lot from the definition “Frat Pack Classics.” But these are the roles, that in my opinion, defined the great performances from the body of work  given to us by Hollywood’s Comedy Clique this decade.

10. James Franco as Saul in Pineapple Express (2008):
While Saul isn’t a huge turn from Franco’s Daniel Desario character on Freaks and Geeks, it was a shock seeing how easily he stole the film from under the likes of Seth Rogen and Danny McBride. The raspy voice, the squinty eyes, the slow speech; Franco dove right in and kudos to director David Gordon Green and producer Judd Apatow for letting him go all out (in a role originally written for Rogen.) Franco’s Golden Globe-nominated performance in Pineapple Express as Saul, the lonely drug-dealer, basically reignited Franco’s career, almost like how Old School brought Vince Vaughn back to the comedic fold.
Signature line: “The monkey’s out of the bottle, bro.”

9. Steve Carell as Uncle Frank in Little Miss Sunshine (2006):
Carell’s first major dramatic work could have placed on this list solely for the opening credits shot. Tearful, dreary red eyes with a dark, off-setting beard, sitting in a wheelchair by himself in a hospital; this isn’t the Steve Carell we knew. Carell’s turn as Frank, the gay uncle recovering from a suicide attempt, might be the most underrated performance in one of the decade most-celebrated films. Perhaps the most shocking aspect of this great performance (part of the film’s SAG’s  Ensemble Performance award win) is how Carell is a master of subtlety. Instead of his usual comedic set pieces that involve yelling, this time, his big moment is a quiet, inspirational monologue about the joys of pain.
Signature line: “Who is that? Nietzsche? So you stopped talking because of Friedrich Nietzsche? …Far out”

8. Leslie Mann as Debbie in Knocked Up (2007):
Knocked Up was the unveiling of Judd Apatow’s new comic arsenal: a team of 20-something stoners with special guest Paul Rudd. And the entire film was stolen from every one of them by Leslie Mann. There was so much more to the role of Debbie beyond “the bitchy wife.” She was the face of growing up. Fearful of aging, being alone; she criticizes others because of her own personal insecurities. Her “Doorman!” outburst was the pivotal moment of Knocked Up. Her tears were the same as Rogen and Heigl’s; the sad realization that their innocent youth is behind them. Much of Debbie’s brutal honesty was the reality of the real world awaiting the film’s younger characters. Leslie Mann’s Debbie, capped by such biting line delivery, was one of the best female comedic performances of the decade.
Signature line: “He’s playing fetch… with my kids… he’s treating my kids like they’re dogs.”

7. Luke Wilson as Richie Tenenbaum in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001):
When first released, The Royal Tenenbaums was received as a tour de force from Gene Hackman (whom is still brilliant as Royal Tenenbaum.) But years later, fan appreciation for Luke Wilson’s understated performance as Richie, the downward spiraling tennis player sibling, has rightfully become one of the amazing ensemble’s most beloved characters. In love with his adopted sister, returning from a tennis match meltdown, Wilson shares a lot of similarities with Carell in Little Miss Sunshine. The difference is the most haunting moment, the infamous “Needle in the Hay” scene. With complete silence, Wilson shaved off his (now iconic) hair and beard, attempting suicide without a shred of fear. Easily one of the most disturbing moments of the decade, it was Luke Wilson’s finest moment as well as the film’s.
Signature line: “I’m going to kill myself tomorrow.”

6. Vince Vaughn as Jeremy Grey in Wedding Crashers (2005):
There wasn’t much new to Vaughn’s Wedding Crashers performance. It was the same Vince we’ve loved since Swingers: fast-talking, arrogant yet charming. What stood out is that those strengths could carry an entire film. While Owen Wilson was the film’s lead, Vince Vaughn ran through like a machine gun; this was his movie. Perhaps the most impressive part is considering how much dialogue Vaughn tears through in just a two-hour comedy.  From his bad boy dancing, to his unfortunate football and quail-hunting accidents, Vaughn emerged as a full comedic powerhouse, building on what had already been established in Old School and Dodgeball.
Signature line: “This broad’s fucked three ways towards the weekend. But you know what, Father? I dig it! It turns me on.”

5. Seth Rogen as Ronnie Barnhardt in Observe and Report (2009):
This will probably be the most-debated choice on the list, simply because how divided the actual film was received by audiences. Rogen, whom many criticized for only playing “himself,” boldly chose director Jody Hill’s Taxi Driver-vision of a mall cop gone vigilante instead of something more mainstream. As Ronnie Barnhardt, Rogen channels a grovel-voiced darkness we hadn’t seen from him. Part of Ronnie is an idiot whose delusions border on insanity, another part is a chemically-inbalanced man from a troubled home. Like Ronnie, the film is bi-polar in tone. One scene has Rogen silently miming “Fuck You” to Aziz Ansari 8 or 9 times, and another shows his face bruised and bloodied after a police beating. It’s a performance inspired just as much by Fight Club as it is by Anchorman, and its one that will be revisited in years to come.
Signature line: “The world has no use for another scared man. Right now, the world needs a fucking hero.”

4. Robert Downey Jr as Kirk Lazarus in Tropic Thunder (2008):
The only Oscar-nominated performance on the list, it’s a performance that for many reasons is a miracle. Downey followed his career comeback in Iron Man by wearing black-face in a Ben Stiller comedy. What could have been the stupidest career move of the decade ended up being the most brilliant. Playing Kirk Lazarus, an acclaimed Australian actor… playing Sgt Osiris, an African-American war hero, Downey had to completely shatter his public persona while his comedic co-stars generally revisited previous characters. And as if his performance wasn’t complicated enough, director Stiller then had him play an Austrailian actor, playing an African-American man disguised as a Vietnamese man. This had to be explained, because the catch phrase, “A dude playing a dude disguised as another dude” just doesn’t do that moment’s complexity enough justice.
Signature line: “Everybody knows you never go full retard.”

3. Will Ferrell as Harold Crick in Stranger Than Fiction (2006):
One of the decade’s underrated gems, Stranger Than Fiction, garnered praise when first released but is rarely discussed just three years later. Will Ferrell gave a semi-dramatic role, full of sadness, fear and confusion, yet still found brief moments to be “Will Ferrell” (ie: yelling at the sky.) But like Carell in Little Miss Sunshine, his best moments are his most restrained. Whether it’s his whispered singing of Wreckless Eric’s “Whole Wide World,” or his tearful train ride home realizing there’s no way to stop his own death, Ferrell displayed the heart and yearning that’s always been at the center of his characters. He’s always been sweet at the core, but it’s never been his primary character trait like in his Golden Globe-nominated performance as Harold Crick. One of the true discoveries is just how effective Ferrell can be when subtle. It’s an angle we hope Hollywood will someday let him embrace again.
Signature line: “It’s not schizophrenia! I just hear a voice in my head”

2. Jack Black as Dewey Finn in School of Rock (2003):
Given the darker performances on this list, how could such a light-hearted playing-to-type rank so high? Because it was a film written around the performance. Jack Black’s Tenacious D persona had already been known, but until School of Rock, there was no depth to the High Fidelity wild man. We knew he could do John Belushi, but as Dewey Finn we saw Black also had a John Candy-sized heart to match. Unlike most of the performances on this list, Black didn’t have many peers to bounce off from. He was on his own, surrounded by a team of mostly first-time child actors. With only his energy and a few out of tune guitar chords, his first musical instructions (the “Smoke on the Water” jam session) is one of comedy’s finest moments. With so little surrounding him, Black could have easily come off as crass and oaf-ish; if that scene didn’t work, the entire premise would fail as well. But his genuine charisma not only carries that scene, but strapped us in for an entire film establishing Black as a wildman peer of Belushi, Farley and Carrey.
Signature line: ” Its gonna be a really tough project, you’re gonna have to use your head, your brain and your mind too. “

1. Steve Carell as Andy Stitzer in The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005):
Derek Zoolander, Ron Burgundy, Frank the Tank… all immortal characters from this decade, and certainly their films rank much higher as an overall product according to our list. But why Carell in Virgin? The film (with Wedding Crashers) signaled the beginning of the R-Rated Comedy era. And it came at the decade’s half-way point. It was a changing of the guard from broad SNL-sketch toned films to more real-world centric films. And Steve Carell, a virtual unknown at the time, became the face of change. Literally. The Virgin poster itself deserves a spot on this list. But that poster is exactly why Carell as Andy matters. Director Judd Apatow found a likeable unknown from Anchorman and The Daily Show, to create a star in the image of the everyman. Five minutes on-screen and you already empathize with him: a nice guy, lives alone, rides a bike, has seemingly boring weekends. But the film’s premise makes us care about him. In the hands of a less charismatic actor, it could have been another straight-to-video Jason Biggs movie.

And it’s Carell’s ability to also handle the more adult moments (ie. the Catherine Keener and kids 2nd half) that separates it from being just a crass sex comedy. Carell channels both Ben Stiller (the tortured nerd) and Tom Hanks (the endearing nice guy) capable of both R-Rated jokes about transvestite prostitutes and the awkwardness of taking his girlfriend’s daughter to a Planned Parenthood clinic. By the film’s surprise “Aquarius” Bollywood dance sequence, Carell’s natural screen presence makes you forget he was an unknown, instead bouncing around like the comedic heir to Jim Carrey and Will Ferrell. Oh yeah, and he waxed his chest too. That’s counts for a few points, right?
Signature lines:
“Is it true that if you don’t ‘use’ it, you ‘lose’ it? “
“You know how when you grab a woman’s breast… it feels like… a bag of sand. “
“Nooooo! Kelly Clarkson!”
“You know what? I respect women! I love women! I respect them so much that I completely stay away from them!”

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Honorable mention:
John C. Reilly in Walk Hard
Will Ferrell in Zoolander
Isla Fisher in Wedding Crashers
Jason Segel in Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Vince Vaughn in The Break-Up.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 27th, 2009 at 4:09 pm and is filed under Frat Pack, Jack Black, James Franco, Leslie Mann, Luke Wilson, Robert Downey Jr, Seth Rogen, Steve Carell, Vince Vaughn, Will Ferrell. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.