| Author | Message | ||
     Ewan Talisker McEwan Member Username: Ewan_mcewan Post Number: 83 Registered: 02-2008 |
I saw a crappy movie the other day called Bandidas that I watched just cuz Penelope Cruise and Selma Highek was in it. But Dwight Yoakum was in it playin a villain and he was great. So it made me think about some of the good and bad jobs musicians have done in movies... Dwight Y. - Great in Bandidas and Sling Blade David Bowi - very good in the Man that Fell to Earth, not good in Labyrinth - his hair was distracting Elvis Costello - only okay in 200 Cigarettes, but great in the Larry Sanders Show Bob Dylan - kinda lame in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Bruce Springsteen - truly 'orrible in the cornball intro to his Im on Fire vid. A good thing that he never made a movie oh wait - he was in High Fidelity and was decent James Tailor and Dennis Wilson - not major thezpeans, but still they were good enough to not ruin 2 Lane Blaktop Tom Waits - pretty danged good in Down by Law and quite servisable in many others. The Beatles - pretty funny in their movies, unlike.. Elvis Presley - thank the Lord he could sing cuz he couldnt act too well tho his movies are so silly theyre fun. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 1095 Registered: 10-2004 |
I agree about Tom Waits in Down by Law, but let's not forget John Lurie, who was also in Down by Law, as well as Jarmusch's Stranger than Paradise. Bowie was amusing in the Hunger, too. Ice Cube was okay in Boyz in the Hood and Friday. Let's see... there was Madonna in Desperately Seeking Susan, though it's been too long since I've seen that, so I can't remember if she was actually any good. Flea was fine in Suburbia as an LA street punk, although he was really just playing himself. He also had that small role as one of the nihilists in the Big Lebowsky (and Aimee Mann did a very brief cameo as girlfriend to one of the nihilists). Then we have Bob Geldoff as the main character in Pink Floyd's the Wall, which was, well, kind of silly. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 975 Registered: 09-2006 |
Lou Reed was pretty funny in a one-joke role as a spacy rock poet named Auden (geddit?) in Get Crazy. Sang a very fine song called "Baby Sister" at the end, too. I think I remember hearing that he was in One Trick Pony too, but never saw it. Which brings up Paul Simon, who was good in things like Annie Hall...as that and his SNL appearances showed, he has a flair for kidding himself. I've liked Mos Def in the few things I've seen him in, even Hitchhiker's Guide, where some thought he was really miscast. Oh, and Dylan did an amazing job of acting in Don't Look Back... | ||
| Dr Girlfriend Member Username: Doctor_girlfriend Post Number: 55 Registered: 10-2007 |
Lou was great in Get Crazy, a dumb but fun movie. I saw him in One Trick Pony and he was very wooden. and, of course, he was in Blue in the Face and maybe Smoke as well (didn't see it). some people will get mad at this, but Glen Hansard of the Frames was really great in Once. Yo la Tengo played the unnamed Velvet Underground in I Shot Andy Warhol with Tara Key being sort of an androgynous Sterling Morrison on lead guitar. Costello's done lots of gratutious cameos, like in the Spice Girl movie and Talledega Nights. guess he needs the money. Bowie was hilarious on Extras, though he was playing himself. the guy in Stars was an actor before he was a singer, of course...he's good enough to quit his day job! how about Flight of the Conchords--good actors and parody musicians. Debbie Harry in Union City--boring! and then there's Scarlett Johansson, who will add "not able to sing" to her "not able to act" status when she releases her upcoming album of Tom Waits covers (it's true)! | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 976 Registered: 09-2006 |
Yeeeikes, that is scary...if we wanted to start wading through the swampland we could, of course, do this thread's opposite: actors who attempt to rock. Juliette Lewis covering PJ Harvey...(Homer Simpson shudder). I first caught Get Crazy on late-night cable way back in the mid-80s and was very pleasantly surprized...the hit-to-miss ratio was a lot higher than the many other copycats that followed the style of Airplane!. Can't remember if Lou was in Smoke or not, it's been too long. Debbie H. was sort of half-there in Videodrome, though that may have just been the way she was told to play her character. My turn to go out on a limb: I liked parts of Human Highway quite a bit... | ||
| Jerry Clark Member Username: Jerry Post Number: 801 Registered: 08-2004 |
Yeah, this feels sleazy. Dare I mention Sting. Quadrophenia is good, he is shit, but gets to utter the C-word, so that's a draw. Dune is just a mistake throughout. He's so miserable, it's like someone keeps playing his future solo output to him. I think Roger Daltrey was excellent in McVicar, what a swear-fest that was!!!! | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 1098 Registered: 10-2004 |
Speaking of Sting, what about Brimstone and Treacle? That was entertaining on a purely mindless, visceral level. Haven't seen that one in ages, though. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 977 Registered: 09-2006 |
Chris Isaak, not bad as the smarmy but tough FBI agent in the first half hour of Fire Walk With Me. And hey, Bowie had a memorable cameo in that one, too. | ||
| Pat Boland Member Username: Pat_boland Post Number: 44 Registered: 05-2005 |
Does anyone remember Bowie appearing in a couple of episodes of early 1990's US sitcom 'Dream On' - he was perfect as the obnoxious movie-director Sir Roland Moorecock. Dylan was woeful in 'Masked and Anonymous'. Michael Stipe appeared as Captain Scrummy in 'The Adventures of Pete and Pete'. Iggy Pop also appeared on the show as did Syd Straw as the excellently-named Miss Fingerwood. Hilarious stuff. Loudon Wainwright III has popped up in a few roles over the years. Surprisingly (for me anyway) he's no great shakes as an actor. Maybe I dreamt this but did Johnny Cash once show up in The Little House on the Prairie? | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1085 Registered: 01-2005 |
I think the best ever was Dexter Gordon, who played the lead character in Round Midnight. He was nominated for the Oscar as Best Actor. Art Garfunkel in Nicholas Roeg's Bad Timing. Roeg fell in love with and married Theresa Russell, who was the female lead of Bad Timing. Garfunkel was also in Catch 22 and Carnal Knowledge. John Doe of X has been in a half dozen movies or so, bit parts usually. Dwight Yoakum was also in Red Rock West, a great neo-noir sleeper movie from the mid 90's starring Nicolas Cage, Dennis Hopper and Lara Flynn Boyle (Donna from Twin Peaks) and the late, great J. T. Walsh. This was when Cage gave a shit about acting before he sold his soul to the almighty dollar and decided to act in big money crappy action films. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 1100 Registered: 10-2004 |
Henry Rollins had a brief role as a cop in Lynch's Lost Highway. Hell, if it weren't for all those tattoos, he could sure pass for a cop. And Seu Jorge was in the Life Aquatic, though I can't remember if he actually did any acting; all he did was play beautiful, bossa nova styled renditions of old Bowie songs, sung in Portuguese, which was one of my favorite aspects of that movie. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 978 Registered: 09-2006 |
Loved the exchange between Rollins and his fellow guard in that movie: "That wife-killer in there looks pretty f----d up." "Which one?" (Raucous laughter from both guards) Forgot about Garfunkel...thought he was wooden in Carnal Knowledge, but have been meaning to see Bad Timing for years - no time like the present. I don't know if John Doe appeared as part of the band in the sleazy bar sequence in FWWM, though he did play on the song that's heard. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1086 Registered: 01-2005 |
I can't forget Robyn Hitchcock, who was in the remake of The Manchurian Candidate playing the mysterious character Laurent Tokar. Aimee Mann was missing a toe and Flea had all of his toes, but that didn't mean they both couldn't be a couple of Nihilist characters in The Big Lebowski. | ||
| Jerry Clark Member Username: Jerry Post Number: 802 Registered: 08-2004 |
Johnny Cash was definitely in a Columbo film. As a gospel singer/preacher who elaborately murdered his wife. Red Rock West is excellent, more twists than a bag of fusilli! Mick Jagger basically played himself in Performance with a bit of Keef thrown in for good measure. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 980 Registered: 09-2006 |
Speaking of Columbo, do we count Pat Boone? Because I think I remember him from one of those as well. Sinatra was pretty good in Manchurian Candidate and Suddenly...haven't seen any of the other dramatic performances he got kudos for, just crap like Ocean's 11. | ||
| David Gagen Member Username: David_g Post Number: 153 Registered: 02-2007 |
Levon Helm great in Coalminers Daughter. | ||
| Wilson Davey Member Username: Wilson Post Number: 189 Registered: 05-2005 |
Julian Cope once appeared in an episode of Bergerac as a Car Mechanic ! How I would love to see that... | ||
| Geoff Holmes Member Username: Geoff Post Number: 355 Registered: 05-2005 |
Brings a whole new meaning to Autogeden! | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1087 Registered: 01-2005 |
Good call David. Levon was also decent in The Right Stuff. | ||
| Ewan Talisker McEwan Member Username: Ewan_mcewan Post Number: 91 Registered: 02-2008 |
For the reverse equation, Zooey Descanel, a b-actress, has a disc out with M. Ward thats sposed to be good. She and He, or somethin like that. MOst of those, btw, have been terrible. Those when an actor tries music. Bruce Willis? Sheer torture. Don Johnson? God help us. Eddie Murphy? I don't care if his baby wants to potty all the time, he feckin sucks! And Cybill Shepard? Cybill I knew Peggy Lee, was friends with Peggy Lee. You maam, ain't no Peggy Lee. Scarlet Joehansen has a disc coming out of Tom Waits songs. Good Lord I say - does the world realy need that? I mean she may be a hot mama and all, but that is treading on some sacred groud there baby. And the worst is Sting. He should just stick to actin, though he ain't very good. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 1105 Registered: 10-2004 |
Let's not forget Keanu Reeves and his "grunge" band Dogstar. That was something the world could've done without. Say what you will about Eddie Murphy, but his "Boogie in your Butt" rap is hilarious. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1093 Registered: 01-2005 |
I bet Michelle Pfeiffer could be a decent jazz singer if she wanted to be. Her singing in The Fabulous Baker Boys was more than passable. I wonder why she never cut an album? Has anyone seen the Zooey Deschanel movie Tin Man? It was made for the Sci-Fi channel. | ||
| Ewan Talisker McEwan Member Username: Ewan_mcewan Post Number: 94 Registered: 02-2008 |
But who cares how she sings long as shes writhing on top of the piano in a red dress? agreed about Keenu, but his acting might actually be worse than his music. He has the range of a Daisy air gun. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 1111 Registered: 10-2004 |
You know who did an okay acting job? Joe Strummer in Jarmusch's Mystery Train. I need to watch that one again, it's been years since I've seen it. And what about Straight to Hell? I've never actually seen this, but I know it was universally panned by critics. Directed by Alex Cox - of Repo Man and Sid and Nancy fame - Straight to Hell had a rock-star cast with Elvis Costello, Shane MacGowan, Joe Strummer, *and* Courtney Love *before* she made our lives just a little more miserable with her vapid music and wretched public persona. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1099 Registered: 01-2005 |
Unless they start giving Oscars for uttering the best whoa in a movie, I think it's safe to say Keenu will never get his golden statue. He did do a decent job playing a whacked out redneck though in The Gift. | ||
| spence Member Username: Spence Post Number: 2254 Registered: 05-2005 |
Matthew Sweet, Christ don't pretend to be a WWE star! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYQGZUiBG vo | ||
| joe Member Username: Dogmansuede Post Number: 408 Registered: 07-2006 |
scarlett knows she can't sing already! see about half way through the other boleyn girl. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1047 Registered: 09-2006 |
Forgot James Taylor and Dennis Wilson's intentionally cipher-like performances in that classic early-70s existential road movie Two-Lane Blacktop. With the great, great, great Warren Oates watching their back. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1048 Registered: 09-2006 |
Oops, just noticed that they were mentioned in the very first posting here...my bad. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1183 Registered: 01-2005 |
Robbie Robertson in Carny, an early 1980's Jodie Foster movie. Gary Busey was also in it. It has yet to be released on DVD. Levon Helm was also pretty good in another movie, The Right Stuff playing the true character-flight engineer Jack Ridley who aided Chuck Yeager in many of his test flights. | ||
| Ewan Talisker McEwan Member Username: Ewan_mcewan Post Number: 201 Registered: 02-2008 |
Wasnt ol Levon in Coal Miners Daughter? He played the town pervert from Butcher Holler or something... | ||
| Peter Collins Member Username: Tyroneshoelaces Post Number: 144 Registered: 05-2005 |
Roger Daltry (who of course was Tommy in, er, Tommy) also had rather a large part in one or two series of dimension-hopping series Sliders. And Roy Harper made his one and only acting appearance in a 1972 film called Made. Oh, and while I'm on here, the film O Lucky Man featured not only a very young and beautiful Helen Mirren, but a band led by Alan Price. He had to do a little acting. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1184 Registered: 01-2005 |
'ol Levon played Lorettee Lynn's coal miner daddy. Tommy Lee Jones played the wild man from Butcher Holler, Doolittle Lynn, who married 13 year old Lorettee. Good thing too, if he would have waited another years she would have been passed her prime. |