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Tom Hanks' "Four Pretty Good Movies"

Which are the FOUR "pretty good" movies featuring Tom Hanks? (please select 4)

  • Splash

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • News of the World

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • The Post

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Nothing in Common

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Dragnet

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Sully

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • The 'Burbs

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • Big

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Turner & Hooch

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Joe Versus The Volcano

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • A League of Their Own

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Sleepless In Seattle

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Philadelphia

    Votes: 6 27.3%

  • Forrest Gump

    Votes: 10 45.5%

  • Apollo 13

    Votes: 9 40.9%

  • Toy Story (and/or any sequel)

    Votes: 6 27.3%

  • That Thing You Do!

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • Saving Private Ryan

    Votes: 10 45.5%

  • You've Got Mail

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • The Green Mile

    Votes: 5 22.7%

  • Cast Away

    Votes: 6 27.3%

  • Road to Perdition

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Catch Me If You Can

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • Captain Phillips

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Bridge of Spies

    Votes: 4 18.2%

  • The Polar Express

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • The Da Vinci Code (and/or either of its sequels)

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Charlie Wilson's War

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Saving Mr. Banks

    Votes: 1 4.5%
  • Total voters
    22
  • Poll votes is visible for users with special permission.
  • Poll closed .
I'm just speculating, but I think if he's only picking a handful of his films as "good" his standard of quality probably leans toward films that are more than just entertainment. So I think Apollo 13 and Saving Private Ryan are givens, not so sure about the other two.

Maybe Sleepless In Seattle if he's including any fictional titles - it's iconic and a good/touching story that he might be proud/nostalgic about. But I would expect the fourth (and maybe the third) to also be films that somehow matter, not just fictional entertainment, well known or highly regarded films. So that would rule out at least half the list.
 
BBC Radio 4 (the PM program) were just discussing this topic.
 
TM2YC said:
Dragnet, Philadelphia & Forrest Gump for sure. The last two have regularly made me cry and Dragnet should be viewed as one of the greatest comedies of the 80s, instead of just an comedy from the 80s.


The 4th one, I'm less sure. Either: Apollo 13, That Thing You Do!, The Green Mile, or Toy Story 3.
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Agree. Philadelphia is his all time great masterpiece. He will always be remembered for Forrest Gump. Both of those are all time great movies on any list. The other two are a bit tricky. I think Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile, Castaway or Road to Perdition. He probably only picked the first two himself.
 
I’m sure he picked Forrest Gump and many love it. I thought it was good when I first saw it, but feel it hasn’t aged well for me. For me, it’s one of the most undeserved Oscar wins out there, for both actor and movie. There were five nominees that year and two are a slam dunk over Gump for me and one more is still a better choice. But I know many feel the movie and performance deserves all the accolades it got. I’ve got no quarrel; just stating my opinion.
 
Forrest Gump is a classic. I've never seen it, but it's well regarded and everyone knows it. I'm certain it's one of the four. I would've voted for it if I wasn't being petty at the time.

On another note, Joe VS The Volcano should be talked about more. I'm certain that it's not one of the four, but it is a neat and unique film. When I watched it, I remember thinking that Joe was the most relatable movie character I'd seen...which probably isn't a good thing, hm
 
Hot take: I own and have read the brilliant 'Road to Perdition' comic books (inspired heavily by the 'Lone Wolf & Cub' manga) and therefore I think Sam Mendes' movie is sh*t. I theorise that anybody who thinks it is good, has not read the comics :LOL: .
 
TM2YC said:
Hot take: I own and have read the brilliant 'Road to Perdition' comic books (inspired heavily by the 'Lone Wolf & Cub' manga) and therefore I think Sam Mendes' movie is sh*t. I theorise that anybody who thinks it is good, has not read the comics :LOL: .
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I better read the comics then because i love Road to Perdition :D
 
Saving Private Ryan is pretty meh after the landing sequence, IMO. I voted for Apollo 13, Charlie Wilson's War, and Bridge of Spies as seriously good films. But I haven't seen Philadelphia, Joe..., or several others.
 
Gaith said:
Saving Private Ryan is pretty meh after the landing sequence, IMO. I voted for Apollo 13, Charlie Wilson's War, and Bridge of Spies as seriously good films. But I haven't seen Philadelphia, Joe..., or several others.
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I was torn between Bridge of Spies and Catch Me If You Can for my fourth pick. I’m not sure I made the correct choice.
 
UPDATE
With 20 votes cast, a few titles finally picked up some recognition, but we're definitely seeing a consensus develop.
Out of 30 possible choices, 9 just don't appeal to anyone enough to get a Top 4 nod.
But what's more interesting to me is that Hanks' filmography really runs the gamut, and there's a lot of choice here. When thinking of the top 4 films in anyone's career, how many actors would get votes for 21 different films?! (I guess there's the possibility that some people couldn't choose because nothing stands out, but I believe for most people it's that there are so many good ones.)
Even still, only 7 films have five votes or more, so we're seeing those pull away from the pack. For the most part, I think they're the ones most people would suspect. There's plenty of time for defenders of his maybe less-appreciated films to rally for their favorites though!

Personally, aside from what's already been mentioned, I think both Charlie Wilson's War and Captain Phillips don't get enough love. They are films that really hinge on Hanks' performance, and he gives it. Captain Phillips in particular is the rare role where Hanks (almost) disappears into it. He's so much less recognizable (and not in a bad Elvis way) than the other films, and he really nails the tricky New England coastal accent. His performance is so understated throughout the film, and his big moment is so earned, I found it a surprisingly engaging movie.
 
I know I used to like either Turner & Hooch, or K-9, much more than K-9, or Turner & Hooch but I can't remember.

Maybe a reason was given already and I missed it but not all Hanks films are in the poll. The Ladykillers remake and Elvis were good movies for example.

 
Last edited:
Jrzag42 said:
Joe VS The Volcano should be talked about more.
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This is another one that scored pretty low across the board, but I'm aware that like The 'Burbs, it's a real cult favorite for some, hence its inclusion.

TM2YC said:
Hot take: I own and have read the brilliant 'Road to Perdition' comic books (inspired heavily by the 'Lone Wolf & Cub' manga) and therefore I think Sam Mendes' movie is sh*t. I theorise that anybody who thinks it is good, has not read the comics :LOL: .
Click to expand...
I am guilty of thinking the movie is awesome, and not having read the comic beforehand. That said, I have since looked at the comics, and can appreciate both. I think that's the secret: never watch the movie second, you'll be let down 99% of the time.

TM2YC said:
Maybe a reason was given already and I missed it but not all Hanks films are in the poll. The Ladykillers remake and Elvis were good movies for example.
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Yes, I addressed this here. Ladykillers is routinely held up as one of the worst Coen Brothers films. I'm aware there are people out there who would say "So what? It's one of the worst of the Top 18 Films of All Time?" but I'm not trying to cater specifically to that point of view. Ladykillers may certainly have its fans, but if I have to choose what makes the upper half of Hanks' filmography, there just wasn't room.

Elvis is a great movie, but Hanks' performance was pretty universally panned. It seemed an easy film to leave off this particular list.
 
Hanks won two Oscars, back to back. He is the only person to do that since/besides Spencer Tracy. He won those for Philadelphia (which is his truly greatest acting turn) and Forrest Gump (which everyone will remember him for...that and Toy Story. If you were just going by his acting prowess, then Elvis should be considered. Negative criticism aside, Hanks was very in character as a morally reprehensible creep.
 
ArtisDead said:
Philadelphia (which is his truly greatest acting turn)
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One of the greatest scenes in all cinema:


We were shown 'Philadelphia' at school when I must have been about 13-14 and that scene was burned onto my brain.
 
DavidPumpkins.gif
 
UPDATE
I know the buzz from Hanks' comment has died down some, as news outlets have all since picked up the comment and ran with it. Both Vulture and The Guardian took the tact of trying to figure out which ones Hanks himself might have been referring to. They both used previous comments he'd made in interviews, but interestingly still came up with different lists.
Vulture guessed Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Saving Private Ryan, and Cloud Atlas.
The Guardian guessed A League of Their Own, Castaway, Cloud Atlas, and That Thing You Do.
Surprisingly, the lone film they both guessed, Cloud Atlas, got mixed-to-negative reviews, and was an ensemble film. Of all the performances in it, Hanks' is the one that was most often criticized.
Many outlets noted that Hanks had given an interview where he "ranked" his top films, but in the interview itself, he said “I wouldn’t do it according to the way the movies came out, I would do it by way of the personal experience that I had while I was doing them, which is very different.”
Accordingly, Far Out magazine decided to actually pick his top four by how they came out instead. They selected Saving Private Ryan, Toy Story, Philadelphia, and The Green Mile.

Most of the films that have popped up on multiple lists have also gotten a lot of votes in the poll here, but it's that pesky fourth spot that's the trick. Right now, there's a 3-way tie for that position, so tell all your friends to come vote!
 
The poll is set to close today and the "official" decision on Tom Hanks' films will be in. This got me wondering if it was possible to do the same with a great actress, and then wondering who that actress would be?

I mean, there are lots of greats, but who would be the closest to Tom Hanks, career-wise? I'm think of basically someone who's been playing lead roles since around 1990 and still is. The top candidates I could think of would be Sandra Bullock, Julia Roberts, Winona Ryder, Nicole Kidman, Jodie Foster, Meryl Streep, Helen Hunt, Demi Moore, Jamie Lee Curtis, Holly Hunter, Rene Russo, Kim Basinger, Glen Close... there are more I'm sure but I would think these would be the ones most likely to get agreement.

Anyone have an opinion on who the female Tom Hanks would be? (and follow-up, I'd want to imagine what their "four pretty good movies" would be...)
 
mnkykungfu said:
Anyone have an opinion on who the female Tom Hanks would be?
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The first thing that comes to mind is Meg Ryan, simply because she was in a few movies with Hanks. I don't actually know anything about her career though.

I always have trouble coming up with actresses, especially from before the 2000's. I dunno why.
 
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