Favorite Actor Duos

Guys have a lot of time for useless things and one such thing that I did was to make note of the movies that I watched and to give them ratings. Now it looks like a mini SMDB…. Srini’s movie database! :) The leisurely hobby continued for so long and now it’s been over a 1000 flicks (not inclusive of Indian movies). Just like every movie lover I started of with action, thrillers and comedy. But over the years the taste has changed; back then classics like Casablanca or Lawrence of Arabia was a tiresome watch. I always had to hold on to the remote and be ready with the forward button!! There was no conversation for so long. But these days, things seem to have changed. Cannes or Academy nominations make a lot more sense to me.


Choosing a good movie was such a tough ask. Having so many out there, I really don’t want to waste my time watching a crap. I would rather spend some time reading the plot, review and also ensure that it has a good rating. But you can’t do that always… !! We do miss the suspense factor, right?? There is a whole lot of a difference in knowing or not knowing if this is gonna be a great movie. So how nice it would be to walk in and just watch your favorites director or star's flick. Not worrying about the plot or how good the movie is, just watch it for the directing excellence or for the actor’s presence. Here are few of those actors that I would watch without a question. The Legendary duos, as I call


De Niro- Al Pacino

Who wouldn’t adore the young Don and Michael corleone?? A few guys would love at least one, but for the rest (most) of us just love them both. They have had a remarkable start with ‘The Godfather’ and have come a long way since then. For time and again they have made a lasting impression with some awe-inspiring performances. The insanity of power in ‘Scarface’ or a conceited blind man in ‘Scent of a woman’ the Italian does nothing less than perfect. Not every actor looks great when they show off anger. But for al pacino, he has always carried an angry man’s charm! The one thing that makes him special.


To me, the only worthy comparison of his times is Robert De niro. I would even watch a whole movie to just see his cameo. The raw emotions of a boxer in “Raging bull” or a fiery gangster in “The untouchables”, he has set clear benchmarks for the new age actors to learn! But luckily he has been a Scorsese hero and clearly has some unfair advantage :) All the eight movies that they have worked together are one of its kind and a few the greatest of all times. Wish Di Caprio could keep up those standards and does a good job as a Scorsese Hero!


Sharukh – Aamir

Unlike an actor duo like before, I would rather call this is an Actor-Star duo. Now don’t question if this is worth a pick after talking about the previous pair. We cherish what we have and these stars are special in their own way! No Hollywood actor can act, dance, fight and entertain Indian audience! :) Even Jackie chan stepped down to Kamal on that grounds. We do have some great actors. Not to mention who is the better actor here, Aamir surpasses the feet by a long way. But despite the fact, sharukh has reached the pinnacle of stardom. Though we wish to see more of his acting like in ‘Chak de’ and ‘Swades’, he guarantees a movie with some awesome entertainment. 


On the other hand Aamir has evolved a lot from a sweet lover boy to a visionary to Indian film. With ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ and ‘Rang de basanti’, he has made it to the status of a living idol to the young bloods in north India. Daring to experiment more than any other star, evident in his directorial debut "Tare Zameen Par". I never understood a Hindi film better, without knowing Hindi!! :) And after watching the movie, I walked away with a heavy heart and also noticed that everyone walked out the same way.  Like everyone wanted a teacher who would have changed their lives! And I wonder if anyone else could bring such an effect with a happy ending climax.


Rajini – Kamal

Kamal once said ‘Devar Magan’ without Sivaji would have been soulless! And to me… Tamil cinema without Kamal is just the same. There wouldn’t be one soul that wasn’t moved by his performances. Fifty years of acting and he’s still not tired! No actor has been here for so long with as many milestones. The peak of all was ‘Nayagan’. A Tamil movie in the Time 100 is just more than a Oscar to us!! And he is the complete meaning for versatility when it comes to movie making. An actor, dancer, lyricist, director, writer and I don’t think there is a department where he hasn’t had his hands on.


Finally… coming on to ‘Thalaivar’. Its so hard to put it in words the adulation and love we have for him. We forget reality and get sublimed to his on screen presence and charisma. No matter what he does we would watch with our jaws open, a gift that only he enjoys! If anyone else does his crazy stunts, we would tear the screens apart! :)  But not for him, not for Rajnikanth! Because in Popular Tamil Culture, he is more than just an actor. He has been a phenomenon of my time. I really lost count of watching ‘’Thalapathi”, but for sure its over a hundred!! Yet most people don’t recognize his acting skills to this date. Wish they watch ‘Mullum Malarum’ before criticizing anymore. He is an all capable actor who shed his true color just to entertain the masses. And he has successfully done it for decades. Even at his age, kids fantasize him in the recent Shankar films. There are superstars all over the history but not anyone is on par to his die-hard fan following. The only thing we regret about him is the false hopes he set on politics! Except for that he is flawless as an ‘entertainer’.