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lanatic001 — 14 years ago(April 16, 2011 04:40 PM)
It's refreshing to know that there's such a great thread devoted to this wonderful, versatile actor! For my money "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" would be my favourite Heflin performance, but he's also great in "Johnny Eager", "Green Dolphin Street" and "The Three Musketeers" (his chemistry with Lana Turner is fantastic).
As others posters have already said he always gave an outstanding performance, always elevating the films he was in to a higher plain. -
RobbieCalifornia — 14 years ago(May 26, 2011 10:39 PM)
The Prowler, no contest. A great thriller, and a super performance by Heflin. I saw that movie many years ago, and will never forget it. He was a great actor, I'd watch him in anything. He was one of a kind.
I had the good fortune to meet his wife Frances once, she was volunteering at a school for mentally handicapped kids while my son was a student there. A lovely, vivacious lady. -
lazierfan — 12 years ago(October 19, 2013 08:16 AM)
To have played opposite Maureen Stapleton in the role of Gurrero in "Airport" was probably on par with "Marty" along the lines of a mentally deficient man getting on in years. Completely panned and ignored in my generation but really a milestone for popular cinema to have such a prominent part with all the character flaws. You could tell Maureen was giving her all to show the audience her love but her hopelessness, and the years she had invested in her husband's life, affecting her life. Heflin's reaction to this, even though the scenes they shared were brief, was completely real. The monsters and demons he was fighting and the gradual closure of his married life was so dramatic, but the audience never felt manipulated.
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DavidLanceRoten — 12 years ago(February 18, 2014 06:32 PM)
Johnny Eager, for the obvious one. For the not so obvious, as Lee Hackett, in Gunman's Walk. I think he did really solid work in that Western.
"Never do today what you can always do tomorrow. Gives you something to look forward to -
manage-932-700755 — 11 years ago(August 10, 2014 02:20 PM)
"Johnny Eager," in which Heflin won the best supporting actor academy award. In fact his performance was one of the greatest performances by any actor who won that particular award. Some people have mentioned that he stole the film from the two leads- Robert Tyalor and Lana Turner. Lana had a relatively small role, so I think the view is accurate wiht respect to her. The film was one of Taylor's best roles, and I'm not sure than Heflin stole the film from Taylor. But it was close. Heflin was dominant in many of the scenes he and Taylor did together, and there were quite a number of them.
I haven't seen too many of Van's films. But others after "Johnny Eager" that were oustanding were "Shane," "Airport," and the TV drama he did wiht Jose Ferer (title escapes me).
Back to Johnny Eager, this crime drama is an underrated fine film. Not only are Taylor and Heflin outstanding, but Turner is beautiful and sexy, and the other character actors suhc as Edward Arnold, Glenda Farrell, and Robert Sterling were among the best. So was Gypsy price, the greyhound dog (lol). -
Basil33 — 10 years ago(April 06, 2016 06:12 AM)
He was good in everything, even when the film itself was not great. Have you read the new biography about him? It is really well-written and researched I think. It is high time he got the recognition he deserves.
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peopleschampion-39581 — 9 years ago(August 04, 2016 07:35 PM)
Huge Heflin fan here. Here's my list of my top 5.
- Shane
- 3:10 to Yuma
- Patterns
- The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
- Johnny Eager
Honorable Mention. The Prowler. Act of Violence. Kid Glove Killer. Gunman's Wal2000k
I'm finished.