TOP 10 KEVIN BACON
MOVIES
February 16, 2001
"There are two types of actors:
those who say they want to be famous and those who are liars." Kevin
Bacon
Kevin Bacon is one of the most versatile and
hardest working actors around (some 48 movies in 22 years), but for the life of
me I can't figure out why I was asked to come up with his Top 10 movies. In any
event, here they are, with some modifications from my original radio list (JFK
has been relegated to the "Close but No Cigar" category, while Telling Lies in
America has been promoted.
And if you're interested in the Six Degrees of
Kevin Bacon, try this
site
10. Telling
Lies in America (1997): Hey, he plays a disc jockey in
Cleveland. Any wonder that it made the list?
9.
The Big Picture (1989): One of the better movies made concerning
the movie business. Bacon plays a younger, aggressive film school graduate who
is determined to make his award-winning script his way. Good luck in Hollywood.
8. Murder
in the First (1995): Bacon co-stars with Christian Slater and
Gary Oldman (and Bacon's real-life wife, Kyra Segwick) as an abused prisoner in
out for as in the 1930s. An interesting movie and a very strong portrayal by
Bacon.
7. Stir
of Echoes (1999): Bacon stars as a man who doubts the true
powers of hypnosis, the changes his mind. A creepy movie with a good
performance by Bacon.
6.
My
Dog Skip (2000): Although Bacon has a relatively small part in
this winning movie, he directs more of the action then you'd think. And any
movie with Diane Lane can't be too bad. Good family entertainment -- and Clint
Howard is in it, and his brother doesn't even direct!
5.
Tremors
(1990): One of my all-time favorite "beware the creatures" movies. Bacon and
Fred Ward try to protect a sleepy, miserable desert community from giant
man-eating worms. Very funny in parts, and the scene where one of the worms
breaks into the basement of survivalists Michael Gross and Reba McEntire is not
to be missed.
4. A
Few Good Men (1992): It's hard to steal a movie from Tom Cruise,
Jack Nicholson and the Demi Moore. And the Bacon, as Captain "Smiling" Jack
Ross, doesn't. But he does give an effective performance in a good supporting
role.
3.
Diner
(1982): Steve Guttenberg (pre-Police Academy, thank goodness), Daniel Stern,
Mickey Rourke, Timothy Daly, Paul Reiser and Ellen Barkin Joined Bacon in this
ensemble comedy/drama about a group of buddies hanging around a diner in
Baltimore. One of Berry Levinson's best.
2.
Apollo
13 (1995): Bacon plays astronaut Jack Swigert in support of Tom
Hanks and Bill Paxton in this very well made Ron Howard movie -- and Clint
Howard is in it!
1. Animal
House (1978) -- I know, I know this isn't exactly Bacon's
greatest role, but it is a great movie. Although his performance falls flat at
the end (giggle), his "Thank you sir, may I have another?" will live on in
movie history.
Close but No Cigar
(in Alphabetical Order)