Defiance or delusion?

Sometimes with good makeup & wardrobe actors can pull it off. Other times NOTHING is going to make you believe what you see on the screen. I've mostly had issues with actors portraying someone of a different race or cultural background. Not only are they a stretch to believe visually, they also have strange sounding accents or use of speech trying to convince you.

Alec Guinness - Japanese
View attachment 6036

Mickey Rooney - Japanese
View attachment 6037

Yul Brynner - American Indian
View attachment 6038

Warner Oland - Japanese​
View attachment 6039

Boris Karloff - Japanese
View attachment 6040

So many more... Shirley MacLaine played the part of a Japanese woman, Victor Mature was American Indian in a film, Godfrey Cambridge played the part of a white man, David Carradine starred as someone Chinese.
 
Excellent examples, Lois. Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany's was a horrible, horrible affront to the Japanese, and, having been filmed in 1961, was long enough after the war to have put away those stereotypes.

Carradine as Kwai-Chang Caine in Kung Fu is another regrettable example, in that case he was given the role that Bruce Lee was supposed to have had. It was actually the second time he stole a role from Lee - the other was a movie called Circle of Iron - Lee was considered "too Chinese" for the part, which was that of an Oriental martial arts master. :crushed:
 
I believe that a lot of the movies from the 50's had actors that were not appropriate for the part, but that was how Hollywood worked back in those days. Indians looked like costumed actors and actresses, but no one cared. The one you have labeled "Yul Brynner" is actually Jeff Chandler, and he played Cochise in many of the western movies.
It wasn't just the actors that didn't fit. Movies that were set back in the 1800's had horses with 1950's saddles and bridles, and the pretty little log cabins had lacy window curtains, and many other things which probably didn't happen back in those days either.
Truthfully, I still like that better than some of the gruesomely realistic movies we have now days. I thought Jeff Chandler made a wonderful Indian chief ! !
 
Thanks for the correction Happyflowerlady about Jeff Chandler photo not Yul Brynner. Were they separated at birth? LOL

I found another photo. I had to laugh at this one. Just how believable is Katherine Hepburn here?
View attachment 6041

In the link Gael provided of actors portraying much younger characters... The ones who stand out most to me for not looking the age of their character are:
Audrey Hepburn doesn't look 18 in Breakfast at Tiffany's,
Leonardo DiCaprio doesn't look 16 in Catch Me If You Can,
Malcolm McDowell doesn't look 15 in A Clockwork Orange
and Judy Garland doesn't look 11 in The Wizard Of Oz,
 
i_am_Lois said:
Sometimes with good makeup & wardrobe actors can pull it off. Other times NOTHING is going to make you believe what you see on the screen. I've mostly had issues with actors portraying someone of a different race or cultural background. Not only are they a stretch to believe visually, they also have strange sounding accents or use of speech trying to convince you.



Alec Guinness - Japanese
View attachment 6036

Mickey Rooney - Japanese
View attachment 6037

Yul Brynner - American Indian
View attachment 6038

Warner Oland - Japanese​

View attachment 6039

Boris Karloff - Japanese
View attachment 6040

So many more... Shirley MacLaine played the part of a Japanese woman, Victor Mature was American Indian in a film, Godfrey Cambridge played the part of a white man, David Carradine starred as someone Chinese.
Click to expand...

Now you're touching on a whole other subject, that of casting out of ethnicity. And Hollywood has been outrageous in the past with that. It still occurs but not to the insulting level it once did.
 
i_am_Lois said:
Thanks for the correction Happyflowerlady about Jeff Chandler photo not Yul Brynner. Were they separated at birth? LOL

I found another photo. I had to laugh at this one. Just how believable is Katherine Hepburn here?
View attachment 6041

In the link Gael provided of actors portraying much younger characters... The ones who stand out most to me for not looking the age of their character are:
Audrey Hepburn doesn't look 18 in Breakfast at Tiffany's,
Leonardo DiCaprio doesn't look 16 in Catch Me If You Can,
Malcolm McDowell doesn't look 15 in A Clockwork Orange
and Judy Garland doesn't look 11 in The Wizard Of Oz,
Click to expand...

Good array there, Lois!
 
Yes, nice post, Lois......I think Mary McConnell's casting in Dances with Wolves was really bad with her big hair and very modern haircut...her looks and acting were just way off as the character she was portraying....not believable.
 
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