Am I the only one here who doesn't care for Jack Nicholson? He isn't anything compared to the greats of Hollywood's Golden Age. In fact, he is symptomatic of the sad state of Hollywood right now.
He doesn't really try anymore. He was great in the 70s. Ever see Carnal Knowledge?
I, however, am not one of them. Do you know that he has won an Oscar every decade since 1980?
I do miss the past Hollywood greats though and love to watch "old" movies.
Jack Nicholson is one of my favorite actors.
His restaurant "Chicken Toast" scene in Five Easy Pieces was incredible and his role in Easy Rider was great, as well as many others, especially One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Ed
I don't think he's particularly indicative of anything in Hollywood right now. He's a sort of grand old man, who works infrequently and usually turns a fairly predictable performance, like Brando after Godfather. Of his recent movies, I really liked his performance in "The Pledge" (2001), which didn't play on the famous Jack persona at all. His others at least nodded to it.
If you want a read on the state of Hollywood right now, look yunger: Forrest Whitaker, with his oversize frame and lazy eye, is no matinee idol, but by God, he can act. If Djimon Hounsu can get a good dialect coach so he's not limited to roles where his African accent makes sense, he will be a force to be reckoned with. Leo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp are matinee idols with real acting chops, and let's not forget Christian Bale, Ewan McGregor, and (I never expected him to be as good as he is) Mark Wahlberg.
In the less-glamorous character ranks, we have Philip Seymour Hoffmann, John C. Reilly, Don Cheadle and Ving Rhames. Moving a few years older, you have William H. Macy, and (love or hate their politics, you have to admit their skills) Alec Baldwin and George Clooney. Another FReeper thought Clooney looked a bit like Cary Grant tonight; my first thought was Clark Gable.
On the distaff side of the aisle, there are plenty of actresses every bit as glamorous as the goddesses of old, and probably stronger actors. Start with the C/Kates: Blanchett, Beckinsale and Winslet. Add Charlize Theron, and I'll just stop there because I could go on all night. Except to add that Helen Mirren is slightly older than my dad, and she's still hot.
Bottom line, the golden age of Hollywood is now. Of course, a whole lot more crap is produced, because a whole lot more of everything is produced, and Sturgeon's Law still applies. Movies are like the rest of the media -- there's a lot more stuff, and it takes more work and discrimination to find the good stuff, but there's more and better good stuff than ever. You've just got to look for it.