Who gave the best performance in the PT?

TPM - Qui Gon Jinn

AOTC - Yoda / Kenobi

ROTS - Palpy / Kenobi / Yoda

 

Without a doubt, Ian McDiarmid.

 

TPM = Neeson although I thought portman was brilliant in this film. Her greatest SW performance (especially as Queen Amidala).
AOTC = Hayden Christensen
ROTS: A three way tie between Ian McDiarmdid, Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor.

OVERALL: HAYDEN CHRISTENSEN

Firstly I like to say that had Neeson been in more films than TPM, he would have won by a mile. His performance in that film is the greatest in any Star Wars film. But because their roles are more dominant, this goes to either Ewan or Hayden. Ian and Liam are probably the greatest actors in the films (along with Ewan) but their roles is too small to be compared to Hayden/Ewan. It is very difficult to chose as I think Hayden is brilliant in both films (especially when he is evil) and Ewan is brilliant in his Guinnes interpretation. if I have to chose one over the other, it would have to be Hayden. He is to me so convincing that it is frightening. And like another poster said earlier, he has to be good if he manages to make Anakin redemption worthy after all he does. You do feel sorry for him and that is down to Hayden's performance. My vote goes for Hayden although Ewan and Ian are probably better actors overall (besides majority of the posters here goes for Ian and Ewan so Hayden deserve to get it).

 

TPM - Liam Neeson

AOTC - Ewan McGregor

ROTS - Ian McDiarmid (sp?) and Ewan

although these had the best performances, ewan performed best overall in the prequels, since ian and liam had limited roles in the whole trilogy.

 

TPM - Liam Neeson

AOTC - Christopher Lee

ROTS - Ian McDiarmaid/Ewan McGregor

(Honorary mention has to go to CG Yoda's performance, ILM did a great job!!)

 

Ian McDiarmid's acting was consistant throughout the entire PT, I would personally say he was the best. Followed very closely by Ewan Mcgregor.

 

An interesting thread. Considering all the criticism the PT gets for acting, there are definitely moments of brilliance.

TPM- Neeson, Portman, and McDiarmid all shine in this one. Neeson came across as wise and introspective, and very fatherly and compassionate, and at the same time he came across as appropriately roguish. He nailed every facet of Qui-Gon's character. I'm also quite a fan of Natalie in this role, especially the scenes as queen. Her posture and gaze are simply captivating, and she uses her eyes to tell quite a lot despite her monotone. And when she does add the slightest inflection, it was perfectly placed. Indeed, she was regal and haunting as the queen. Her scenes as Padme, while not quite as stirring, were all quite on par, IMO. And McDiarmid, while usually recognized for his consistency, I do think some overlook his performance in this film because of ROTS. From the moment he appears as Sids as a hologram, EVERYTHING he says is extremely menacing and truly quotable. His inflection and intonation are flawless. This carries straight on into his performance as Palpatine. There's such subtlety here, he comes across as ALMOST entirely sincere, but every now and then, you since a smugness, an ego. I think, from an acting standpoint, my favorite scene in this film is when Palpatine comes in on the Queen and Jar Jar to announce is nomination. From Jar Jar and the Queen's opening conversation, which comes across as wholly sincere and touching, to the Queen's decision to go back, and her resolve NOT to sign the treaty, to Palpatine's plea for her to stay, which McDiarmid does an excellent job of making Palps sound like he's "acting." This scene is brilliantly played by all parties.

AOTC- Unfortunately, the weakest film of all six in this area. I can't say anyone's performance really stirred me. McDiarmid was excellent again, though he was given less to do. Hayden and Natalie, sadly, had nothing to work with. "The Confession" was quite good, though. Ewan's performance was certainly acceptable, but not really inspirational. Lee does an admirable job, unfortunately his character isn't particularly intriguing or captivating. Oz's Yoda shined as always, and might have been the strongest in this film. All-in-all, a lot of decent performances, but little that stands out.

ROTS- McDiarmid was simply electric. He played both aspects of his truly dichotomous character flawlessly. The screen was truly alive every moment he was on it. Christensen did a superb job, I felt. As others have said, I, too, got chills with the "I hate you line." And I'm deadly serious. I had goosebumps in the theater at that point. Portman did a wonderful job, especially considering she once again was given the very worst of Lucas' dialogue. I agree with Ebert and Roeper, she gave the last half of the film a "heart." She kept it human. And McGregor, whom I do love, finally came alive in the last half of this film, IMO. Everyone truly seemed at the top of their game (at least as far as SW goes) in ROTS.

Overall, I'd probably say McDiarmid for his consistent brilliance. But, I think, as I pointed out, there are many other notable performances in these films.

 

Ian McDiarmid and Ewan McGregor.

I honestly was not incredibly interested in the character of Palpatine until seeing ROTS. Perhaps, current politics come into play a bit in my finding interest in the character. I love to see someone play a bad guy that just gives you chills. He had Palpatine down. He knew him. The patient manipulation, the slitheriness. The thing that cemented the performance for me was facial expression. The half smile when he told Anakin about saving his wife from certain death, and when he talked about Plagueis' death being ironic. Most of all, the smile after Vader's "nooooooooooo". I haven't liked a bad guy portrayal this much since Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs.

Ewan McGregor just was solid throughout the trilogy in a leading role. McDiarmid's role was more supporting in 1&2.

 

star wars films are very much in the "action" genre.

i neither expected, nor saw, any genuinely good "acting" in any of them.

but for an oustanding bit "action" performance, i'd have to go for Ray Park, a.k.a. darth maul, in TPM. pure magic - made the hair on my scalp stand up... so, so, much better than those ridiculous CGI swordfights that looked like a couple of kitchen appliances whirring round each other at dizzying speed.

 

Ewan and Ian, definitely.

 

Liam Neeson gave the best performance.

 

Boga!

 

Over all best, tie between Ewan and Ian...

Honorable Mention- Hayden Christensen: To have salvaged a highly unlikeable character, that is Anakin in AoTC, and have turned him into a complex, more mature, arrogant, confused, and quite insane character in Episode III took allot of skill. Its a shame it was nearly brought down by those horribly awkward scenes he had with Portman in all of the movies. But he still made Anakin a likeable character (in Episode III anyways), look at how many Anakin avatars there are now, and look at how most of us have accepted Shaw being replaced with Anakin in RoTJ. Definitely worth notice.

 

TPM - a tie between Captain Panaka and Ric Olie

AOTC - a three way tie between Corde, Zam Wesell, and Captain Typho (even though Jai is an amazingly nice guy)

ROTS - all those battle droids

 

TPM - Liam by a mile.

AOTC - I'll have to go with Ewan in this one though I think Christopher Lee deserves some credit too.

ROTS - Ewan just ever so slightly over Ian. An honorable mention for Hayden and the combined talents of Frank Oz and the team at ILM for Yoda.

Overall - Ewan because he did a decent job in TPM, he was the acting highlight of AOTC and he totally blew me away in ROTS and had me all emotional at the end.

 

Ian McDiarmid . He was working the background in TPM and AotC but came to roost in RotS.

 

While acting has never been the strongsuit of any Star Wars picture, the saga is certainly not bereft of fine acting performances. It is difficult to say with any certainty what type of acting is being used. From everything that Hayden Christiansen and Ewan McGregor have said of their performances, I'm inclined to believe that both used a type of method acting (acting in which the actor attempts to internalize and live out the actions of his character), but it's clear that the performances of the more minor characters (a Panaka or Typho, for example) draws from an "expressionist" type of pre-method acting. Many of the characters throughout the Star Wars saga exhibit distinctly human psychological characteristics such as jealousy, fear, love, hate, etc., thus making it possible for the actor to connect with his or her character on a more tangible emotional plane. The characters of the Prequel Trilogy are more psychologically complex than those of the Original Trilogy, giving the actor greater room for interpretation and emotional complexity. However, since these characters are still archetypes of a sort, many performances won't satisfy as much as others (which explains the disdain for Jackson's performance as Mace Windu).

All of that having been said, there is one performance that sticks out in the prequel trilogy, not necessarily because it is an inherently superior performance, but because it is an archetpyal character portrayed with a perfection that would have made Alec Guinness proud. Liam Neeson's portrayal of the maverick Jedi Knight and father-figure/mentor Qui-Gon Jinn is rich and compelling, emphasizing Qui-Gon's compassion as well as his stubborness. Qui-Gon, as I mentioned, is probably the most archetypal character of the Prequel Trilogy, and Lucas obviously wanted to highlight the similarities between Qui-Gon and Alec Guinness' Obi-Wan Kenobi. With little to work with in the way of historical detail (a la Oskar Schindler) or psychological complexities with which to empathize, Neeson must have drawn from his own experience as a father and mentor, imbuing Qui-Gon with all the qualities that made Guinness' performance so wonderful.

There are other wonderful performances in the prequel trilogy, including great performances from the underrated Hayden Chistiansen, and the ever-reliable Scot Ian McDiarmid. McDiarmid creates a Palpatine dramatically different from the cold, arrogant Emperor of Return of the Jedi. Instead, Palpatine is cunning, manipulative, and resourceful. His words are seductive to the Senate, to Queen Amidala, and with the most dire consequences, to Anakin. McDiarmid provides necessary eloquence and charm to a role that cries out for it. As Darth Sidious he is as campy and playful as he was in Return of the Jedi, and while some have been less than impressed with his over-the-top performance in Revenge of the Sith, I loved how he continued with the charm, while adding a psychotic, paranoid edginess, that was, while campy certainly, thoroughly entertaining. Christiansen's Anakin is also imbued with a humanness that, while annoying in Attack of the Clones is always compelling, and finally, in Revenge of the Sith, absolutely heart-breaking. While some mock Christiansen's line readings as wooden and stilted, I commend him for attempting something unique, daring, and different.

Ultimately, the performance I found the most impressive was also the performance I consider the most challenging, McGregor's Obi-Wan Kenobi. Re-inventing a role pioneered by the revered Alec Guinness was certainly a Herculean task. McGregor had to employ a very complex form of method acting to pull it off. Not only did he have to fit himself inside the character, challenging enough as that may have been, but he also had to channel the spirit of Alec Guinness to convey a character that had already been portrayed by another actor. Thus McGregor had to adopt Guinness' gestures and articulations as his own. Not only did he do this, but he imbued Obi-Wan Kenobi with characteri

 

Ian McDiarmid...Ewan....and Neeson.

 

1. Ewan McGregor because he's been consistently brillaint throughout all the films, especially ROTS

2. Hayden Christensen

3. Ian McDiarmid

 

I'd definitely give it to Frank Oz as Yoda throughout all three!

Also an honoralbe mention for Liam Neeson as Qui Gonn, although he was a useless character!

 

1.Ian McDiarmid
2.Liam Neeson
3.Ewan McGregor

All three did fantastic jobs.

 

1a. Ian McDiarmid & 1b. Ewan McGregor:Ewan excelled in AOTC & ROTS. McDiarmid's play over all 3 gave him an ever so slight slight edge.
2. Frank Oz & ILM with Yoda. The computer work with Yoda in II&III would leave me ok with GL editing the puppet out of ESB & ROTJ.
3. Liam Neeson. Very similar impression as Alec Guniess'.Wish they would have given him at least a voice over in ROTS.
4. Christopher Lee. Even GL's writting couldn't ruin his performance.
5. Hayden. Stop slaying the guy for GL's dialogue!!! I thought he was excellent in ROTS.

Natalie Portman dissapointed me. I still don't know why she's called a great actress. I say that fully aware I'm going to get killed by all her fans on this site.

 

Christopher Lee.
Ian Mcdairmid.
Ewan Mcgregor.
Hayden Christensen.
Natalie Portman.
The best!