As two of the greatest American actors of all time, Steve McQueen and Paul Newman dominated the often minor classic films of the 1960s, and finally starred together in the 1974 disaster picture Tower of Hell. After Inferno, McQueen, who battled cancer, only made a few more movies, with Tom Horn playing his last role before his death in 1980.
Although Newman is still alive and kicking, his glory days seemed to end when he hit 1980 and although he starred in many movies, none of them came close to the performances in his early career.
So this brings us to the first in the series of discussions of actors versus actors, McQueen versus Newman, with a focus on what we consider the first of their careers, in 1958 (the year Newman in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof) until 1974 (when the two shared the screen in Tower of Hell).
Co-writer Pat Harrington will take Newman’s side, while I (Guy Stuller) will defend McQueen.
In the period we are talking about, who made the best films and how much influence did each actor have in making great films?
PH – I would like to argue that Newman’s better films in the mentioned period of cinema are from titles. head and shoulders‘s most films were made over time. Cat On A Hot Tin Roof was just the beginning of a bright 16-year span that included such classic films as “The Long, hot summer,” “Hustler,” “Hud,” “Hombre,” “Cool Hand Luke,” “Stimulus” and “Hair Inferno.”
What has drawn people to Newman over the years is his ability to produce his most humane side to his roles, whether it’s the hard-luck “Fast” Eddie Felson in “The Hustler” or the proud Bricks in “Cat On a Perniciously Hot Tin Roof.” He shows charm as a convict. let it take root, and arrogance, so that you despise your elder brother. Paul Newman came to your theater as a guy you can have years, and so you helped redefine acting.
GS – We must talk about what many McQueen haters argue, throwing the most successful movies starring McQueen< /a> into the spotlight have been done and there is no doubt that The Magnificent Seven (TM7) and The Great Escape each rank high on the list. To those who think, I say, “There you go,” but in those casts, McQueen shines the brightest on both sides.
As much as Yul Brunner tried to control TM7, he failed; McQueen developing-characters in much more depth started almost from the beginning of the film. There was a mystery in the character of McQueen, something to let the imagination, frankly, James Colburn and Eli Wallach put on an even better appearance than Brunner. McQueen’s impact though, his scenes make you forget how dull Brunn and how badass Robert Vaughn were in the film.
Tack on “The Cincinnati Kid,” “The Thomas Crown Thing,” “Bullitt,” “The Getaway” and “Papillion,” in which McQueen dominated the screen in starring roles, I think we have a winner.
And the victor is: Worthy running, Worthy.
Turn around as the discussion continues.
