Best Jack Nicholson Movies - Memorable Characters In Classic Movies
John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is a retired American actor and filmmaker with a 50-year career. He is renowned for his portrayals of comedic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes, and villains in both leading and supporting parts. He portrayed the "eternal outsider, the sarcastic wanderer" in several of his works, someone who fights against the social order.
Author:Paolo ReynaReviewer:Iram MartinsOct 12, 202137.4K Shares680.6K Views
John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is a retired American actor and filmmaker with a 50-year career. He is renowned for his portrayals of comedic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes, and villains in both leading and supporting parts. He portrayed the "eternal outsider, the sarcastic wanderer" in several of his works, someone who fights against the social order.
The road drama Easy Rider (1969), the drama Five Easy Pieces (1970), the psychological drama One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975); the comedy-drama Terms of Endearment (1983), As Good as It Gets (1997), and About Schmidt (2002); the neo-noir mystery Chinatown (1974), the horror film The Shining (1980), the superhero film Batman (1989), the legal drama Batman (1989); the neo-noir mystery Chinatown (2006). He's also directed three films, including the sequel to Chinatown, The Two Jakes (1990).
He is the most nominated male actor in Academy Award history, with twelve nominations. He received the Academy Award for Best Actor twice, first for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) and again for As Good as It Gets (1997); he also won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Terms of Endearment (1983).
He is one of just three male actors to win three Academy Awards and one of only two to be nominated for acting in every decade from the 1960s to the 2000s. He has six Golden Globe Awards under his belt and was honored by the Kennedy Center in 2001. He was one of the youngest performers to receive the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award, which he received in 1994.
The Little Shop Of Horrors (1960)
Roger Corman directed The Little Shop of Horrors, a 1960 American horror comedy film. The film is a comedy about an inept florist's assistant who cultivates a plant that feeds on human blood, written by Charles B. Griffith. Green Thoughts, a 1932 tale by John Collier about a man-eating plant, may have influenced the film's idea. Griffith may have been influenced by Arthur C. Clarke's 1956 science fiction short tale "The Reluctant Orchid," according to Dennis McDougal (which was in turn inspired by the 1905 H. G. Wells story "The Flowering of the Strange Orchid").
Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph, Mel Welles, and Dick Miller appear in the picture, all of whom had previously worked with Corman on prior projects. The Passionate People Eater, which was released under the title The Passionate People Eater, is a unique comedy that combines dark humor with farce, as well as Jewish humor and parody elements. The interiors of The Little Shop of Horrors were filmed in two days using sets left over from A Bucket of Blood on a budget of $28,000 (about $240,000 in 2019).
When it was released as the B movie in a double feature with Mario Bava's Black Sunday and subsequently with the Last Woman on Earth, the picture eventually acquired a cult following via word of mouth. With local television broadcasts and the appearance of a young Jack Nicholson, whose minor part in the picture has been extensively marketed on home video versions of the film, the film's popularity grew. Little Shop of Horrors, an Off-Broadway musical based on the film, was adapted into a 1986 feature picture, and the show was revived on Broadway in 2003, all of which have brought attention to the 1960 film.
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The Shooting (1966)
The Shooting is a 1966 American Western film directed by Monte Hellman and based on a Carole Eastman script (using the pseudonym Adrien Joyce). It was created by Nicholson and Hellman and starred Warren Oates, Millie Perkins, Will Hutchins, and Jack Nicholson. The plot revolves around two guys who are recruited by a mystery lady to follow her to a desert hamlet several kilometers away. Throughout their trip, they are pursued by a black-clad gunslinger who seems bent on murdering them all.
Back-to-back with Hellman's comparable Western Ride in the Whirlwind, which also featured Nicholson and Perkins, the picture was filmed in the Utah desert in 1965. Both films were exhibited at many foreign film festivals, but the Walter Reade Organization did not acquire U.S. distribution rights until 1968. There had been no interest in the pictures from any other American distributor. Walter Reade forewent a theatrical release in favor of selling the two films straight to television.
The Shooting Trailer
Easy Rider (1969)
Easy Rider is a 1969 American independent road drama film directed by Dennis Hopper and written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern. Fonda and Hopper portray two motorcyclists transporting the profits of a cocaine transaction across the American Southwest and South. Easy Rider's popularity ushered in the New Hollywood period of filmmaking in the early 1970s.
Easy Rider examines the social environment, problems, and conflicts facing teenagers in the United States during the 1960s, such as the development of the hippie movement, drug usage, and communal living. It is a "touchstone for a generation" that "caught the public imagination."In sequences depicting the usage of marijuana and other narcotics, real drugs were utilized.
Easy Rider was released on July 14, 1969, by Columbia Pictures and grossed $60 million worldwide on a production budget of just $400,000. The acting, direction, writing, music, and graphics have all been lauded by critics. Later on, Hopper, Fonda, and Southern were nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Easy Rider was added to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress in 1998.
Easy Rider (1969) - Original Trailer
Five Easy Pieces (1970)
Five Easy Pieces is a 1970 American drama film directed by Bob Rafelson and starring Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, Susan Anspach, Lois Smith, and Ralph Waite, and written by Carole Eastman (as Adrien Joyce) and Rafelson.
Bobby Dupea, a grumpy oil rig worker whose rootless blue-collar life belies his affluent upbringing as a piano prodigy, is the protagonist of the film. When Bobby hears that his father is dying, he goes to Washington to see him, accompanied by his sleazy girlfriend.
CaroThe film received four Academy Award nominations and five Golden Globe nominations, and in 2000, it was named to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress's yearly list of 25 motion films considered "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important" and recommended for preservation.
Five Easy Pieces - Trailer - (1970)
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Carnal Knowledge is a comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Jules Feiffer that was released in 1971. Jack Nicholson, Art Garfunkel, Ann-Margret, Candice Bergen, and Rita Moreno are among the cast members.
Carnal Knowledge (1971) Trailer | Jack Nicholson | Candice Bergen
The Departed (2006)
Martin Scorsese directed and William Monahan wrote The Departed, a 2006 American crime thriller film. It's a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs, and it's also based on the real-life Boston Winter Hill Gang; Colin Sullivan is based on corrupt FBI agent John Connolly, and Frank Costello is based on Irish-American gangster Whitey Bulger. Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, and Alec Baldwin play supporting roles in the film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, and Mark Wahlberg.
Boston is the setting for the film. Irish mob boss Frank Costello (Nicholson) infiltrates the Massachusetts State Police by planting Colin Sullivan (Damon) as a mole; at the same time, the police assign undercover state trooper Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) to infiltrate Costello's crew. When both sides realize what's going on, Sullivan and Costigan try to figure out who the other is before they're found out.
The Departed was a critical and commercial success, winning a total of four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing at the 79th Academy Awards. It was Scorsese's first and only Best Director win, and Wahlberg was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Six nominations for the 64th Golden Globe Awards, six nominations for the 60th British Academy Film Awards, and two nominations for the 13th Screen Actors Guild Awards were also given to the film. For his performance, DiCaprio was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Drama (he was also nominated that year for Blood Diamond in the same category), a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
The Departed Official Trailer #1 - (2006) HD
About Schmidt (2002)
Alexander Payne co-wrote and directed the 2002 American comedy-drama film About Schmidt, which stars Jack Nicholson in the title role. Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, and Kathy Bates also star in the film. It is partly based on Louis Begley's 1996 book of the same name.
New Line Cinema released About Schmidt in theaters on December 13, 2002. On a $30 million budget, the film was a commercial and critical success, grossing $105,834,556. About Schmidt was available on DVD and VHS. On February 3, 2015, it was released on Blu-ray for the first time.
About Schmidt (2002) Official Trailer - Jack Nicholson, Kathy Bates Movie HD
As Good As It Gets (1997)
As Good as It Gets is a romantic comedy-drama film directed by James L. Brooks and co-written by Mark Andrus, released in 1997. Jack Nicholson portrays a misanthropic, homophobic, and obsessive-compulsive novelist, Helen Hunt portrays a single mother with a chronically ill son, and Greg Kinnear portrays a gay artist in the film. On December 25, 1997, the picture was released in cinemas and was a box office success, earning $314.1 million on a $50 million budget.
Nicholson and Hunt won Academy Honors for Best Actor and Best Actress, respectively, becoming As Good as It Gets the first picture since 1991's The Silence of the Lambs to win both main acting awards. It was also nominated for Best Picture but lost to Titanic in the end. On Empire magazine's "The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time" list, it is rated 140th.
As Good as It Gets (1997) Trailer #1 | Movieclips Classic Trailers
Hoffa (1992)
Hoffa is a 1992 American biographical crime film based on the life of Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa, directed by Danny DeVito and written by David Mamet. Before ending with Hoffa's mysterious disappearance, the majority of the story is told in flashbacks.
Hoffa is played by Jack Nicholson, and Robert Ciaro is played by Danny DeVito, who is a composite of several Hoffa associates over the years. Supporting actors include John C. Reilly, Robert Prosky, Kevin Anderson, Armand Assante, and J. T. Walsh. 20th Century Fox distributed the picture, which was released on December 25, 1992.
The picture got mixed reviews and only made $29 million on a $35 million budget, with reviewers appreciating Nicholson's acting but criticizing the plot.
Hoffa (1992) Trailer | Jack Nicholson | Danny DeVito
A Few Good Men (1992)
The 1992 American courtroom drama film A Few Good Men is based on Aaron Sorkin's 1989 play of the same name. The film was directed by Rob Reiner, who also produced it with David Brown and Andrew Scheinman. It stars Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kevin Bacon, Kevin Pollak, J. T. Walsh, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Kiefer Sutherland and was created from a script by Sorkin himself.
The film follows the court-martial of two US Marines accused of murdering a fellow Marine, as well as the trials and tribulations of their attorneys as they prepare a defense for their clients. The picture, which was produced by Castle Rock Entertainment and distributed by Columbia Pictures on December 11, 1992, had its world premiere at Westwood on December 9, 1992.
The picture garnered widespread praise for its screenplay, directing, ideas, and acting (especially that of Cruise, Nicholson, and Moore) and went on to make nearly $243 million on a $40 million budget. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, in addition to critical and financial success.
A Few Good Men (1992) Trailer #1 | Movieclips Classic Trailers
Paolo Reyna
Author
Paolo Reyna is a writer and storyteller with a wide range of interests. He graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Media Studies.
Paolo enjoys writing about celebrity culture, gaming, visual arts, and events. He has a keen eye for trends in popular culture and an enthusiasm for exploring new ideas. Paolo's writing aims to inform and entertain while providing fresh perspectives on the topics that interest him most.
In his free time, he loves to travel, watch films, read books, and socialize with friends.
Iram Martins
Reviewer
Iram Martins is a seasoned travel writer and explorer with over a decade of experience in uncovering the world's hidden gems. Holding a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Management from the University of Lisbon, Iram's credentials highlight his authority in the realm of travel.
As an author of numerous travel guides and articles for top travel publications, his writing is celebrated for its vivid descriptions and practical insights.
Iram’s passion for cultural immersion and off-the-beaten-path adventures shines through in his work, captivating readers and inspiring wanderlust.
Outside of his writing pursuits, Iram enjoys learning new languages, reviewing films and TV shows, writing about celebrity lifestyles, and attending cultural festivals.
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