Top 5 Performances: Morgan Freeman

He's given so many unremarkable performances in unremarkable films recently that it's easy to forget what a talent Morgan Freeman can be. Here are his top 5 performances. 

5. Unforgiven

Unforgiven is a pretty unforgettable Western, not one of my personal favourites but it certainly is a fantastic achievement on a directorial and writing scale. The performances are all great too, and Freeman's quiet, understated performance as haunted, retired gunslinger Ned Logan is fantastic as he has such great chemistry with Clint Eastwood, and generates such warmth and sympathy to make his exit properly jarring.

4. Street Smart

The film is kind of terrible and I can't even defend Christopher Reeve's performance (most of his non-Superman work was okay, this was not), it was a pretty big flop too, the only thing I can really recommend here is Freeman's performance as pimp Fast Black, who finds himself implicated by Reeve's reporter in a convoluted case of false reporting. Freeman is both suave and chilling in portraying such a despicable fiend. There's not a moment to his dynamic performance where he doesn't carry some threat and his mellifluous voice is used to unique perfection as a tool for menace.

3. The Shawshank Redemption

The film I've come to admire as a true masterpiece. Everything about it coalesces into magical filmmaking, from the technical aspects of cinematography and soundtrack to the excellent script and of course, the performances. Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne is of course the highlight, giving a cool, calculating and moving performance as the wrongly convicted man, but Freeman's brilliant work as secondary protagonist Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding should not be diminished whatsoever. Freeman's beautiful voiceover narration is crucial alongside the soaring score to many of the most beautiful moments of the film, and he generates such a crusty charm and chemistry with the rest of the cast with his humorous, lovable performance ('Maybe it's because I'm Irish'). Then in his standalone scenes of his parole meetings and of course, his ending, he nails each moment perfectly. A great performance.

2. Driving Miss Daisy

Definitely one of the most unfairly chastised Best Picture winners, I mean who did they want to win, the overblown Born on the Fourth of July? It's not a masterpiece but still, an extremely good film that delivers exactly what it advertises: a tale about the growing affinity between the titular Miss Daisy (a brilliant Jessica Tandy), an elderly wealthy Jewish lady, and her African-American driver Hoke Colburn. This wonderful odd couple relationship is realized beautifully by the performances of Tandy and Freeman, with the latter's jovial, extroverted and extremely charismatic approach blending perfectly with Tandy's deadpan and slowly warmthful depiction of Miss Daisy. Freeman ages in an extremely convincing manner over the film, handles the racial subtexts of the film with deep sensitivity, and makes the deeply moving third act and final scenes where he cares for a dementia-inflicted Miss Daisy, sad but still very sweet. This was Freeman's true breakout into leading roles and he certainly deserved it.

1. Se7en

David Fincher's masterpiece is a brilliantly constructed thriller of paranoia and fear around every corner, greatly amplified by not just Fincher's direction, cinematography, the set design and the resisting of excess gore and bloodshed be using implication to render the violent and haunting images all the more viscerally effective (I'll get into more detail in a future post), but also the performances. Brad Pitt, Gwenyth Paltrow and especially Kevin Spacey are all excellent in delivering very aptly stylized and gritty performances in tone with the film, but MVP honours have to go to Freeman as Detective William Somerset. Freeman delivers an old-style gumshoe detective of sorts performance by attuning a very distinct sort of incisive intelligence to his Somerset, generating a fantastic rapport with Pitt, and making each step of his investigation so compelling to watch. Beneath that crusty old-timer veneer though is also a core of heart and remorse that's wonderfully weaved into several moving anecdotes dotted across the film. This is a great performance that utilizes both the gruff and grit, and sensitivity, of Freeman's onscreen persona to craft a unique charater not only enhances the style of the film but also adds so much pathos and heart to its dark conclusion.

6. Glory
7. Gone Baby Gone
8. Bruce Almighty
9. Lucky Number Slevin
10. Million Dollar Baby