Favourite Morgan Freeman performance?

[CaptainCanada]

Possibly the greatest living actor (I named his work in The Shawshank Redemption my favourite performance of all time a while ago) - but in what movie was the best?

As already stated, I voted for Shawshank; really, the only downside to that performance was that it was so incredible that he mostly gets hired to do minor variations on it ever since.

 

[auntiehill]

I would also choose Shawshank, but Glory comes in at a very close second.

 

[Gil T.Azell]

Got to go with Shawshank.

 

[Too Much Fun]

Probably his hitman character in "Nurse Betty", just because most of it was so different from what he usually does. I like Morgan Freeman, but he plays pretty much the same character in every movie - wise old romantic. In "Nurse Betty", I got a kick out of him swearing and being violent. Of course at the end he turned into a big softie again in his bedroom conversation with Renee Zelweger.

 

[Aragorn]

I don't understand how he got an Oscar for Million Dollar Baby when he's had so many better roles and MDB was a bit of a nothing role. Probably one of those instances where the actor's been snubbed so many times they just give it to him (Paul Newman for The Color of Money comes to mind).

 

[Trekker4747]

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeNxVaPVAlU[/yt]​

He makes Listerine sound like spousal abuse (It hurts because it loves you, baby) but he sells it soooo well.

 

[Too Much Fun]

I don't understand how he got an Oscar for Million Dollar Baby when he's had so many better roles and MDB was a bit of a nothing role. Probably one of those instances where the actor's been snubbed so many times they just give it to him (Paul Newman for The Color of Money comes to mind).

Bingo. And like I said, he was playing the same character in that he always plays. That's why I think of it more as a reward for all his roles he's been snubbed for, not so much one for a role where he really stretched his acting muscles.

 

[CaptainCanada]

Million Dollar Baby was really the first big award-worthy performance he'd given since Shawshank back in 1994 (Se7en came out in 1995, but that wasn't really an Oscar movie, and the Shawshank phenomenon hadn't really begun by then anyway) - he spent 1995-2004 mainly doing blockbusters. The Academy seized the opportunity to give it to him (and it was a great performance, of course, but largely a reprise of the role of Red).

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I'm not a huge fan of his films, but I do like the IMAX film (Cosmic Voyage) he narrated.

 

[1001001]

He hasn't done shit since The Electric Company, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I always thought that Freeman was rather Vulcan-like in his performances. He could have played Tuvok's father on Voyager if such an episode had been done...

 

[Too Much Fun]

Really? You're calling Mr. King of Warmth and Wistfulness Vulcan-like?

 

[stj]

Freeman's Uncle Cuddly routine was best done as God in Bruce Almighty, I think. And his best villain was done in Hard Rain.

 

[caisson2delta]

He has had so many really good roles that it was hard to choose, but I opted for his role in Glory. A close second for me would be his role in Unforgiven.

 

[B.J.]

I liked his performance as God in Bruce Almighty and Evan Almighty, but I also liked him as the President in Deep Impact, which was a very different role.

 

[Jack Bauer]

He was just perfect in Shawshank. You forgot Lucius Fox...in the two Nolan Batmans.

 

[trekkiebaggio]

I'm going to be a bit different and go for his performance in Lean on Me.

 

[Kirby]

Shawshank is probably his best, but I really enjoyed him as God in Bruce Almighty.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

I'll go with The Shawshank Redemption...but really, this guy never puts in a substandard performance. He is always great in whatever he does.

 

[Trekker4747]

I'd also like to thrown in his narration of the SciChannel series "Through the Wormhole" where he likens great universal awesomeness with his boyhood growing up in the south.