Why is morgan freeman so awesome

He is one of the most respected performers currently making movies. His critically acclaimed work is universally regarded as authoritative yet serene; commanding, powerful, and dignified yet warm, graceful, and discreet.

Even back in the late s, when Freman was just entering hiSemperiod of artistic maturity and stardom with two Oscar nominations in three years for Street Smart , best supporting actor and Driving Miss Daisy , best actor , the film authority Pauline Kael was already asking: Is Morgan Freman the greatest actor in America today? In a blaze of dazzling versatility proclaiming an artist at the top of his game, the year signaled Freman eagerly anticipated return to the Broadway stage in the Mike Nichols production of The Country Girl as well as his resonant contributions to Hollywood summer blockbusters Batman: The Dark Knight and Wanted.

Presence is Freman old-fashioned virtue, explains the director and choreographer Debbie Allen, who worked with Freman as one of Amistad producers. I have never seen anyone so powerful. In elementary school, he was the star of the school play. By age 12 he had won a statewide drama competition, and by the time he was in high school he was already performing on the radio in Nashville. Following a stint in the U. Air Force as a mechanic from to , Freman first went to Hollywood, but it was in New York City that his impressively varied acting careerspanning the theater, television, and eventually the moviesgot started.

The stage showcased his versatility right from the start. In he appeared on Broadway in the legendary all-black production of Hello, Dolly! National recognition first came to him on television and he became a beloved teacher-entertainer to America children when in he created the popular character Easy Reader on the highly praised public television show The Electric Company.

He taught me my first noun. Then Street Smart came out in and Morgan Freman became a star. In the following two years he appeared in Clean and Sober, Johnny Handsome and the film version of Driving Miss Daisy, which led to another Oscar nomination and more extraordinary reviews such and Vincent Canby rave in the New York Times : Though the character never appears to be tough, it is a tough performance.

We encounter several good moments, thanks to Freeman's magnetic performance and to the film's relatively competent direction. Director Jerry Schatzberg provides the appropriate stage and atmosphere for his movie. Although the movie was shot in Montreal, Canada, 42nd street and Harlem in the movie is gritty enough to fool foreign audience members like me.

Robert Irving's average functional music is one of lucky low-budget scores in 80's that doesn't sound dated and Miles Davis' trumpet is its biggest asset. There is an amusing uptown party scene where Fast Black and one of his girls, Punchy, are invited and steal the show.

It's not every day you hear Freeman ingratiatingly saying "You have the prettiest tits I've ever seen. Punchy is played by Kathy Baker and she is the other reason to watch this movie. Baker, who has also enjoyed a lengthy career after this movie, gives a thankless performance as lively and interesting as Fast Black. She has her own moments, as Punchy seduces Fisher in a hotel room and suggests something unsaid about her character with just small facial changes when she comes to learn that Fisher is a Harvard Graduate.

Evasive and manipulative if she wants to be, she has a kind heart, unlike Fast Black, and begins to like Fisher and care about him. Fast Black does not approve of this and, especially, of her independent thinking.

The result is a terrifying sequence of a game cat-and-mouse with a small pair of scissors. This is a testament to Baker and Freeman's talents. I was completely riveted by its sheer fierceness while watching the movie for the first time on cable late at night several years ago. Believe me, you have to see it for yourself. Nevertheless, "Street Smart" is not a hidden or underrated masterpiece. I noticed some clumsy moments here and there and there are glaring weaknesses in the screenplay.

It tries to comment on success and its price, but the former is less interesting and far less plausible than the latter. Even to the eyes of an outsider like me, Fisher's overnight success is pretty much entirely the writer's creation. It's simply unbelievable that some unknown magazine writer would suddenly become the reporter of a popular TV show named after the movie's title. Oh, by the way, I can suggest better, catchier title for that silly show with sting cameras set up for misdemeaning civil servants: "Gotcha!

In the case of the late Christopher Reeve, he is merely adequate while approaching blandness. Even if his character is supposed to be a sort of blank canvas for the colorful supporting characters surrounding him, Reeve is less convincing as the man trapped in a complex situation because of his lies.

I think the movie could have been better with other actors with more presence, like James Woods , as Gene Siskel suggested. It should be noted, however, that Reeve agreed to appear in "Superman 4" in order for the production of this movie to be green-lighted. Freeman and Baker both got a big breakthrough thanks to that.

There is also the notorious "Third Act Syndrome". Like many lesser thriller, the hero gets smarter after making many unwise choices and succeeds in outsmarting the villain. His clever trap is based on an unconvincing set of several coincidences and the ending conveniently and preposterously follows. As a result, the movie becomes nearly unforgivable by dumping its fascinating character into this sappy ending, wrapping-up in less than 10 minutes. Regardless of the drawbacks, Freeman and Baker's performances survive in the end.

Their performances make the movie more fascinating than it actually is. The movie comes alive whenever their characters and their mean streets appear, and they are enough for my verdict to lean to "See it" despite my many grumbles. If you have not watched "Smart Street" yet, I really recommend to watch this movie and to be prepared to see the lesser-known side of Freeman's talent.

He's 72 now and he may never be as dynamic as he was in this movie, but I think there is still a possibility for him to play another vicious villain.