As today marks the birthday of Tom Hanks, we're looking back over the quintessential everyman's versatile filmography.
Originally starting off in broad comedies such as 'The Money Pit', 'Splash!' and 'Bachelor Party', Hanks soon progressed into more dramatic roles with the likes of 'A League Of Their Own', 'Sleepless In Seattle' and the Oscar-winning 'Philadelphia'.
Here's our pick of his five best scenes.
5. 'TOY STORY' - "YOU! ARE! A! TOY!"
One of the most interesting characteristics about 'Toy Story' is the fact that not only did John Lasseter aim for actors who looked nothing like their characters, he also chose actors who were known for their physical comedy. You only need to look at something like 'The Money Pit' to see that Hanks is one of the great physical comedy actors, and yet he's in a movie where only his voice is carried. In spite of all that, it still works and you still have the same sense of physical comedy in Woody that you'd get from a real-life Hanks performance. This scene is a perfect example - with Woody's arms flailing in the air as he loses his temper with Buzz, only for him to respond with a straight answer. It harkens back to 'Laurel & Hardy'; the idea of a straight man / idiot versus a flapping, over-the-top hothead.
4. 'A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN' - "There's no crying in baseball!"
Again, much like Woody, Hanks' performance as the foul-mouthed, ill-tempered Coach Jimmy Dugan is all about the physical approach and using his voice as another instrument to deliver comedy. This scene, in particular, is a perfect standout because the camera's off him for most of it - but we still hear his voice and his gestures flying out as he roars at a young baseball player. As well as this, it also played against Hanks' persona as a sort of homely everyman. Here, he's wide-eyed and raging - and just hilarious to watch.
3. 'CAPTAIN PHILLIPS' - "I'm... I'm OK..."
Paul Greengrass' method of shooting movie is often free-form, no steady shoots and a moving frame which allows for actors to give a more authentic, real performance. It doesn't necessarily matter if they're out of focus, or not fully in shot, as long as they're working the scene and getting across the point of it. However, this final scene in 'Captain Phillips' is pretty breathtaking for a number of reasons. The entire movie, Hanks' character has a sort of steely resolve in the face of unrelenting chaos; he's calm, collected and while everything is going to shit around him, he's relatively quiet and keeping his guard up. It's only when the madness has subsided and that he's finally free does he begin to break down and we see just how much of a toll the ordeal has taken on him.
2. 'SAVING PRIVATE RYAN' - "What's the pool on me up to now?"
'Saving Private Ryan' was unique at the time for taking World War II and bringing it down to an emotional, human level with unfettered performances by its cast. While the movie is known for its sweeping score by John Williams, the incredible realism of the D-Day Landing, it's the smaller moments of the film that pack the biggest punch - and this scene is, by far, the standout of the film. After taking a gun emplacement - and losing two of their own in the process - the squad of US Rangers led by Hanks begins to break down and pick at one another. Just as it looks like it's about to come to a head, Hanks' character immediately relieves the tension with a simple admission about his life before the war - and what it's ultimately done to him.
1. 'PHILADELPHIA' - "The prejudice surrounding AIDS exacts a social death which... precedes actual death."
'Philadelphia' was the movie for which Tom Hanks won his first Oscar, and by far it, it's his most vulnerable and human. There are so many scenes to chose from in 'Philadelphia'; leaving Denzel Washington's office after being rejected yet again, the scene where he talks about opera, but this by far encapsulates the story in one, simple scene and with Hanks' performance. It's not flashy or loud, it isn't about huge drama or thundering dialogue - it's just a quiet room with two men examining a law book and determining the truth; that there is a case to be answered for and that discrimination has been perpetrated against him.
