Over the years,Stanley Kubrickhas been continuously praised as one of the greatest filmmakers of all time—and by some, even as the single best ever. Like all great directors, the auteur could certainly direct a hell of a performance out of any actor. Indeed, his filmography is full of exceptional displays by some of his time’s best thespians, fromJack NicholsontoKirk Douglas.
The best performances in Kubrick’s films tend to be intense, mysterious, and often with just the perfect dose of humor. He was an artist who could craft the most fascinating characters seemingly out of thin air, usually holding dark secrets that could alter the course of any narrative. Of course,it’s no surprise that he always found the perfect artists to cast in these roles, and always knew how to direct them to their fullest potential.
10Tom Cruise as Dr. William Harford
‘Eyes Wide Shut’ (1999)
Kubrick suddenly died of a heart attack just six days after the screening of the final cut ofEyes Wide Shutfor Warner executives and the film’s stars,Tom CruiseandNicole Kidman, which has even led to some wild theories that he was assassinated by the powerful elites whose sexual deviances his movie exposes. Whatever the case, the fact of the matter is that it’s a phenomenally interesting final outing for one of history’s best directors,as well as one of the greatest performances by the legendary Cruise.
Cruise was cast completely against type as a jealous, tormented, and deeply angry husband who begins feeling paranoid about just how faithful his wife is to him. It’s an exceptionally interesting pair of eyes to seethis sicko worldof Kubrick’s creation through, with Cruise never shying away from the high degree of vulnerability that the eroticism and torment of the role demands of him.
Eyes Wide Shut
9Douglas Rain as HAL 9000
‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ (1968)
Voice acting is a widely underappreciated profession, as proved byperformances as perfectasDouglas Rain’s in Kubrick’s2001: A Space Odyssey. Rain delivers one of the greatest voice performances of all time in what’s perhaps the greatest sci-fi movie of all time, playing the calculating and sinister HAL 9000, an artificial intelligence that’s rendered evil in the eyes of the characters (and the audience) due to a programming conflict.
HAL 9000 is a terrifying antagonist. Particularly in these confusing times of AI paranoia, he’s a horrifyingly timely representation of the fear of humanity’s creations rebelling against them as a result of their own mistakes. Rain embodies these themes and HAL’s personality perfectly, deliveringa consistently calm and serene performance that contrasts the computer’s actionsvery strongly. It’s a voice performance that feels remarkably human, which makes HAL all the scarier and makes what he represents all the more compelling.
2001: A Space Odyssey
8Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance
‘The Shining’ (1980)
It may be famously disowned and disliked by the source material’s writer,Stephen King, for being a rather poor adaptation of the spirit of his novel; butThe Shiningis universally praised as one of the greatest horror movies ever made, and it’s hard to disagree with the consensus. The force of nature that spearheads this terrifying film isJack Nicholson’s wild performance as Jack Torrance, the writer left in charge of the Overlook Hotel for the winter, which slowly drives him out of his mind.
Some have criticized Nicholson’s performance for feeling like Jack was fully prepared to kill his wife and son from the get-go, but we’re dealing with Stanley Kubrick here. With the man who’s perhaps the biggest perfectionist that has ever sat in the director’s chair, it’s impossible to entertain the idea that this wasn’t intentional. Nicholson does absolutely everything that the material asks him to do and then goes well above and beyond that. It’s one ofthe scariest performances in any horror movie, capturing Jack’s deteriorating humanity but also focusing on his horrifying and chaotic progression into madness.
The Shining
7James Mason as Prof. Humbert Humbert
‘Lolita’ (1962)
It may not beone of Kubrick’s best movies, though it’s certainly one of his most controversial, butLolitahas a lot to offer—acting-wise and otherwise.Sue Lyonis electric as the title character,Peter Sellers’s over-the-top performance isn’t without its fans, but it’sJames Masonwho steals the movie as the lead character, Humbert Humbert, the middle-aged scholar who becomes infatuated with a 14-year-old girl.
James Mason was, and remains, critically underrated, andthis may just be his best and most complex performance. He captures the themes that Humbert represents, from sexual and artistic obsession to the values of the European Old World, absolutely flawlessly, and his chemistry with Lyon is otherworldly. It’s not one of the showiest performances in a Kubrick film, but it’s precisely that unique subtlety that makes it so powerful.
6Shelley Duvall as Wendy Torrance
For many years—far too long—, the lateShelley Duvall’s performance asThe Shining’s Jack’s wife, Wendy Torrance, was one ofthe most underrated performances of all time. In recent years, however,it’s been the subject of a re-evaluation that’s slowly realizing not just the brillianceof the performance, but also the value of everything that the monumental Duvall endured on set in order to deliver such a strong piece of work.
Her Wendy is the glue that holds the movie together.
Throughout the long history of horror movies, there haven’t been very many performances that have conveyed a true sense of being absolutely beyond horrified as provocatively as Duvall’s inThe Shining. Her Wendy is the glue that holds the movie together, the audience surrogate that for far longer than it deserved didn’t get her rightful recognition. Vulnerable, sweet, and absolutely terrified, Duvall’s performance is worthy of every bit of compensatory praise that it’s been getting over the past few years.
5Vincent D’Onofrio as Pvt. Pyle
‘Full Metal Jacket’ (1987)
Kubrick’s Vietnam War masterwork,Full Metal Jacket, is packed with incredible performances. But one of the most special and the one that many people remember the film for isVincent D’Onofrio’s turn as Private Pyle, a dimwitted young man who’s bullied into losing his mind by his peers and superior at the training grounds. D’Onofrio is in the movie for a surprisingly short time, but that brief period is more than enough for him to prove what he’s made of as an actor.
D’Onofrio’ssympathetic and funny performance, which quickly takes a turn toward the horrifyingly dark, is one of the best elements of one ofKubrick’s best cast ensembles. His work is the fulcrum that the film’s themes of the dehumanization of young soldiers caused by war hinges on, and its deceivingly layered nature is one of the many surprises that Kubrick had in store in his second-to-last film.
Full Metal Jacket
4R. Lee Ermey as Gny. Sgt. Hartman
D’Onofrio may be one ofFull Metal Jacket’s biggest surprises, but it’s pretty much universally agreed that the best and most memorable performance of the movie isR. Lee Ermey’s as Gunnery Sergeant Hartman. He was an actual former U.S. Marines drill instructor who was initially hired as a technical advisor, but after auditioning for the role of Hartman, Kubrick cast him in a heartbeat.
Although Ermey hasa rather limited amount of screentimelike D’Onofrio, he makesthe absolute best of those few minutes that he’s on screen and ends up stealing the whole film. Some may argue that he’s not actually doing much real acting, but creating a character as menacing and larger-than-life as Hartman is a feat that can’t be understated. The way Ermey makes the Gunnery Sergeant attack the individuality of the new recruits is some really compelling and terrifying stuff, and the way it all culminates is one of the movie’s biggest shockers.
3Kirk Douglas as Col. Dax
‘Paths of Glory’ (1957)
It took a couple of pretty bad movies for Kubrick to find his footing as a director, but once he got into his unique rhythm, there was no stopping him.Paths of Glorywas his fourth-ever feature, and it’s by far one of his best and most special. It hasKirk Douglas(who Kubrick would collaborate with again three years later inSpartacus) playing Colonel Dax, an upstanding officer of French soldiers who refuse to continue a suicidal attack and are prosecuted because of it.
Paths of Gloryis one of the most effective anti-war movies of all time, never glorifying war in any way and instead transcendentally examining its horrors and the way humanity can combat them. It rests on the shoulders of Douglas, who delivers one ofthe best performances ever seen in a war film. Nuanced, timeless, and powerfully subtle, it’s a performance that shines through its big speeches and monologues as much as it does through its quieter, more understated moments.
Paths of Glory
2Malcolm McDowell as Alex DeLarge
‘A Clockwork Orange’ (1971)
Another one of Stanley Kubrick’s most controversial movies, as well as the one that shotMalcolm McDowellto international renown, the infamousA Clockwork Orangeis perhaps the director’s most violent film. The film explores themes of free will, oppression, duality, and youth in the most interesting ways, and McDowell embodies each of those themes to utter perfection.
This career-defining performanceis the best of the actor’s filmography, an expertly messy and surprisingly sympathetic piece of work thatmakes Alex DeLarge one of Kubrick’s most layered and interesting protagonists. Equally charming and disturbing, amusing and terrifying, McDowell’s performance showcases tremendous amounts of range and is the main reason the movie works as well as it does.
A Clockwork Orange
1Peter Sellers as Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake / President Merkin Muffley / Dr. Strangelove
‘Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb’ (1964)
It’s quite interesting that the best performance in the filmography of a director best-known for his dramatic work comes from a comedy. Indeed, Peter Sellers’s triple performance inDr. Strangeloveis the main reason why the film is so iconic, and is perhaps one of the greatest comedic performances in history. As hilarious and varied as it is complex and intriguing, Sellers gives the best work of his whole career in this exceptional Kubrick masterpiece.
Dr. Strangeloveis one of thecomedy movies with the best acting.George C. Scott, for instance, is also impeccable in his role. But it’s undeniable that Sellers is the one who steals the show with his portrayal of each of his three characters—though, for obvious reasons,his portrayal of the enigmatic title character is the most iconic and memorable of all. His performance can be lighthearted, cynical, over-the-top, and utterly mad, capturing the growing insanity of the whole movie flawlessly. Kubrick could direct some extraordinary acting performances, and this one gives more than enough proof.
