Did any movie star make braver choices than Kevin Costner, at the peak of his powers?
Mel Gibson made one or two, and there are actors and actresses who took the occasional gamble.
And yet Costner whilst choosing a few commercial projects kept taking them, time after time.
Ive left one or two out.
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But these 28?
Kenneth Branagh took the helm forJack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, with Chris Pine in the title role.
Theres sufficient mystery to him, and he gets a reasonable amount to do.
Its far from his best thriller, but its not a bad way to spend two hours.
But Ive always had a bit of a soft spot for the film.
We wrote more onThe Bodyguardhere.
Swing Vote
Im an American arent I?
Thats the backdrop of the film, although inevitably it spends a lot of time at the fore.
Elsewhere, theres a father-daughter story, and a growing companionship to fit in.
The result is a good, one-watch film.
HoweverMcFarlandis a welcome, engaging piece of work fromWhaleRiderdirector Niki Caro.
But Costner gives it weight, as does the young cast.
A good, solid piece of work.
Furthermore, Costner and Wright make a couple at least worth registering an interest in.
But its Newman who steals it.
Imagine too thatTop Gunwas a lot longer, and spent more time with the instructor than the student.
There, friends, is the rough recipe forThe Guardian.
Oh, with a dose ofCliffhangersprinkled on top.
By distance, Costners character is the most interested and here it comes deep.
The film has too much baggage around him though.
For Love Of The Gamenonetheless has its merits.
Costners made lots of long films, to be fair, but this one feels it.
Its not a bad film, butFor Love Of The Gameis well below Costner and Raimis best.
His attempts to brass it out become gradually less convincing.
Its not a heavy tension between them, but its a notable one.
Costners work is fine, and youd happily trust him to work on your house.
Hes your go-to-guy if you want a loft conversion.
Theres no Costner in that one, though…
20.
Draft Day
Youre on Twitter?
Directed deftly by Ivan Reitman,Draft Daydoesnt quite play out as the comedy you might expect.
Bonus nerd spot: a pre-Black PantherChadwick Boseman.
Waterworld
Nothings free in Waterworld… Itisan aquatic retread ofThe Road Warrior.
Itdoeshave huge logic gaps.
Yet accepting that, Ive always quite liked it.
Its a mess, certainly, butWaterworlds an entertaining one.
Id take it over many CG-driven bloated blockbusters, certainly.
Corrall an event that full films have been wrapped around before.
Its almost blink and you miss it in this one.
But theres a sense thatWyatt Earp whilst beautiful to look at overstays its welcome by some time.
Yet its not without significant merits.
The Postman
Wouldnt it be great if wars could be fought just by the assholes who started them?
Costner turned downAir Force Oneto makeThe Postman.
In spite of all the hassle and snark he got in exchange, we suspect he doesnt regret it.
Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves
This isEnglishcourage
A film of real contrasts.
Theres an awful lot to like aboutRobin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.
But there are also troubles.
I struggle with it for all its qualities now Im more aware of whats happening.
Theres that song, too.
You might have heard of it.
Co-star Judd Nelson is also strong.
Costner plays Denny Davies here, a friend of widower Terry, played by the always-brilliant Joan Allen.
Theres something grown-up and non-gimmicky about the storiesThe Upside of Angerwants to tell, and how it tells them.
Do seek it out.
Silverado
All I did was kiss the girl!
Ah, the mightySilverado.
A really, really good western this.
Everywhere you look inSilverado, you find a good performance
.
Highlights include Brian Dennehy, Danny Glover, Kline and Scott Glenn.
Theres Linda Hunt on a stool, too.
Not that he needs to.
Eastwoods infamous for shooting quickly, and using the first take wherever he can.
Costner and hes not the first actor to reportedly grumble about this prefers at least two or three.
Eastwood, on at least one occasion, was said to have just moved on, leaving Costner behind.
John Badhams referred to this in his book,John Badham On Directing.
Out of this however comes arguably Costners best, and riskiest, performance.
That was not such a common switch on 20 years ago.
When the film focuses on them, its excellent.
When it switches attention to Eastwoods U.S Marshall, its less interesting.
ButA Perfect World a financial disappointment, and no awards magnet is still a real treat.
Its just a shameA Perfect Worldseems to have all but disappeared.
And as a result,Mr Brooks-an at-times quite brilliant thriller has flown under many peoples radar.
Yet this is Costner very much against punch in, in the title role of Earl Brooks.
Hes a seemingly everyday man, who just happens to have a murderous alter-ego, personified by William Hurt.
He also draws an excellent performance from Costner, not least in exploring his relationship with his daughter.
If I have a problem withMr Brooksits the last five minutes.
Not because theyre bad, rather because they have the potential to be absolutely wonderful.
But saying more would spoil it.
And its Costner really stretching himself too.
But heck, did he strike gold withHidden Figures.
Im coming to the others shortly…
9.
No Way Out
Hi Bill.
Could you end the slide just?
The BBC was fulfilling its public service quota right there.
This is a taut, tight, windy, brilliant thriller, and one of Costners pivotal breakthrough roles.
Plus: a bit on bonking on Christmas Eve.
Were sure Santa would approve.
Kicking off relatively early with that sex scene then, one that was marvellously spoofed inHot Shots!
Part Deux, Costner is a naval officer whos tasked with investigated a murder in Washington.
One Pentium 4 processor could kill this film dead.
This was back when making romantic comedies for adults meant targeting the brain more than the bedroom.
Although, er, there is a bedroom in it.
Quite a nice one, as it happens.
Were it not for one other film, itd be his finest baseball movie.
But aBull Durhamstage musical?
Thats a thing…
7.
Tin Cup
Can I have a mulligan?
For me, the best Hollywood romantic comedy of the 2000s.
Enter, then, Rene Russos Dr Molly Griswold, whos in need of lessons.
Keeping sentiment aside, Shelton and Costner deliver for a second time here.
Hopefully, theyll find a third project to unite on in due course.
Dances With Wolves
Nothing I have been told about these people is correct
You probably know the stories.
Contention remains thatDances With WolvesbeatGoodfellasto those Oscars, but thats no slight against Costners film at all.
It was and is a compelling western (one backed by a gorgeous John Barry score).
There, he discovers that things werent quite as he was expecting.
Its patient, widescreen cinema, and remains rightly popular.
Thirteen Days
If the sun comes up tomorrow, it is only because of men of good will.
And Costner takes on the role of his advisor, a non-showy part in whats effectively an ensemble drama.
The pair are free grazers, taking their cattle across the land without a farm of their own.
And that brings them into tension with those who see such free grazers as leeching off others.
In particular, Michael Gambons off-kilter sheriff.
Yet there are lots of things going on here.
The passing of an old way of life to new.
Charlies attraction to Annette Benings Sue.
The treatment of outsiders, not conforming to the expectations and ways of a modern society.
And then the really quite wonderfully explored relationship between Costner and Duvall.
Duvall, in particular, is terrific.
Costner the director is too, opting for substance over showcasing.
JFK
Testify
It is a great movie, wrote Normal Mailer in his 1992Vanity Fairreview ofJFK.
Im a big fan ofJFK, but I can sort of see where he was coming from.
Stone weaves together, well,everything.
Sutherlands scene in particular still sends chills down the old bones.
Hes good value too.
Debate raged from day one about Stones use of facts here, and whether they were facts after all.
Repeat viewings including that of the slightly more sinister extended cut have done nothing to dampen that.
Director Brian De Palma doesnt shy away from it once.
A superb thriller this, that does a lot in two hours.
The extended album is expensive, but golden.
Field Of Dreams
You want to have a catch?
I think I watchedField Of Dreamsat the perfect time.
Well, the first time.
Ive watched it umpteen times since.
But I really do.
But theres substance and little features throughout.
The temptation is surely to follow the actor.
Not here, and its telling of Robinsons unfussy unfolding ofField Of Dreams story.
Costner has said before that the film boils down to one line.
At least in this film).
Timothy Busfields Mark may come across as a bad guy here, but his intentions are good.
Its brilliant, unfussy filmmaking, packing an emotional wallop that few films have come anywhere near since.
And it sits proudly at the top, for me, of Costners films.
