Forest
Whitaker: His Top 10 Films
Two
of Hollywood’s finest go head to head in the ultimate battle for
redemption in Two Men In
Town, which arrives on DVD on 6th July. Forest
Whitaker leads in this modern-day western as a good-willed Muslim
ex-con with violent tendencies opposite Harvey Keitel, a vengeful
sheriff who makes it difficult for him to get back on the straight
and narrow.
Whitaker,
a former college football star turned opera and drama student, is now
considered one of the most intense and captivating actors in the film
industry. He won a Best Actor Academy Award and a BAFTA for his role
as Idi Amin in The Last
King of Scotland and was
awarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007. On 6th
July, he stars opposite Harvey Keitel in TWO
MEN IN TOWN. Here is a
look at ten of his best to date:
TWO
MEN IN TOWN (2015)
This gritty, no-holds
barred psychological thriller tells the story of troubled youth Will
Garnett (Whitaker) who is finally being released after an 18-year
long stretch in prison. With the help of an idealistic parole agent
(Brenda Blethyn ) and his new-found Islamic faith, Garnett struggles
to rebuild his life and overcome the violent impulses which torture
and possess him. However, Bill Agati (Keitel), the vengeful Sheriff
of the small New Mexico border county where Garnett is released, has
other ideas. Convinced that Garnett is irredeemable and major a
threat to the security of his county, Agati launches a vicious,
sustained campaign to return Garnett to prison for life. A
brilliantly understated revenge drama which asks the question: can we
ever truly leave a dark past behind and start again?
Lee Daniels’
The Butler 2013
In Lee Daniel’s
The Butler, Forest Whitaker dons the role of Cecil Gaines, who
served eight presidents as the White House’s head butler from 1952
to 1986. Forest Whitaker shines in this heart-warming story, as Cecil
gracefully walks the line between formality and servility. David
Oyelowo plays his troubled son, who becomes entrenched in the black
power movement with Oprah Winfrey portraying Cecil’s wife. There
are also superb presidential turns from Robin Williams, Alan Rickman,
John Cusack, Liev Schreiber and James Marsden.
The Great
Debaters (2007)
Forest Whitaker stars
alongside Denzel Washington in this story about a black college
debate team in the 1930’s. Although Washington steals the show in
this empowering drama, Whitaker gives a powerful and assuring
performance, supporting as James Farmer Senior, the father of debater
and future civil fights figure James Farmer Jr. A little known fun
fact about this great film is that the actor playing Forest
Whitaker’s son was named Denzel Whitaker!
The Last King
of Scotland (2006)
Forest Whitaker took
home a Best Actor Academy Award and BAFTA in 2007 for his terrifying
yet brilliant portrayal of Ugandian dictator Idi Amin in The Last
King of Scotland. James McAvoy co-stars as Nicholas Garrigan the
Scottish doctor who is taken under the wing of Amin and becomes his
personal physician. As Nicholas becomes closer to Amin, he uncovers
the truth behind the dictator’s savage autocracy.
Good Morning,
Vietnam (1987)
An
unorthodox DJ, Adrian
Cronauer, played by
the eternally missed Robin Williams, shakes things up when he is
assigned to the US Armed Services Radio station in Vietnam. There
Cronauer meets and befriends Private First Class Edward Montesquieu
Garlick (Forest Whitaker), who becomes his sidekick and co-presenter.
Cronauer's irreverence contrasts
sharply with many staff members and soon rouses the ire of two of his
superiors, Second Lieutenant Steven Hauk and Sergeant Major Phillip
Dickerson who do their utmost to have Cronauer and Garlick deposed.
The Crying
Game (1992)
Forest pushes the
envelope of sexuality in his film The Crying Game; about a
British soldier named Jody, who is kidnapped by terrorists and held
hostage by the Irish Republican Army. While with the IRA, Jody
(Forest Whitaker) convinces one of the guards to look after his
girlfriend who is actually a pre-op transsexual.
Fast Times at
Ridgemont High (1982)
This ‘80s teen
classic was Forest Whitaker’s breakout film, in which he played the
gloomy and intimidating high school football star Charles Jefferson.
In a fantastic scene, Whitaker thrashes his Lincoln High rivals on
the field, mistakenly thinking they wrecked his car and wrote racial
slurs, and wins the big game for Ridgemont in a blowout.
Ghost Dog: The
Way of the Samurai (1999)
Blending quiet nobility
with a killer instinct, Forest Whitaker plays Ghost Dog, a mob
assassin and self-taught samurai who is obsessed with order and his
strict personal moral code, drawn from the philosophies of the
Japanese warriors. When Ghost Dog becomes dispensable to his mob
superiors, he must fight for his life in high-octane fights, samurai
swords and plenty of action.
Where the Wild
Things Are (2009)
Visionary director
Spike Jonze brings Maurice Sendak's beloved children's book to the
big screen In the fantastical Where the Wild Things Are. In
the film Forest Whitaker plays Ira, the slow-witted but goodhearted
monster who has a very calming effect on the group, despite his
talent for punching holes in tree trunks. Whitaker’s soothing voice
takes the audience to different world... literally!
Zulu
(2013)
Orlando Bloom stars
alongside Forest Whitaker in this intense drama about policemen, Ali
Sokhela (Forest Whitaker) and Brian Epkeen (Orlando Bloom) who
investigate the brutal murder of a young white woman, apparently
provoked by the availability of a new illegal drug. With an
intriguing premise and Whitaker providing excellent tension and grit
throughout, this crime drama is a well paced and fairly unpredictable
ride for audiences.
Bird
(1988)
Clint Eastwood directs
this heartfelt study of saxophonist Charlie Parker, played by Forest
Whitaker. This film shifts back and forth through Parker’s brief
life before his heroin overdose at the age of 34. Charlie Parker is
beautifully and sensitively acted by Whitaker who took home a San
Jordi Award for Best Foreign Actor for his work in this powerful
film.
***
TWO
MEN IN TOWN arrives on DVD from 6th
July 2015, courtesy of Signature Entertainment.
