Burt Reynolds -vs- Warren Beatty

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Which guy do you feel is the better actor?

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There was a time when Beatty would have been the clear winner - not that Burt couldn't act, he just rarely did.

But, his elder statesmen years, and I'm thinking primarily of Boogie Nights and Striptease - in the former, I'm going to say, he gave one of, if not, the strongest performances in a film that had a lot of them. In the latter, along with Ving Rhames, he was just so into the part that it makes the movie watchable.

ETA: So, I'm saying too close to call.

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Beatty has the better resume', but I would say I like Burt's best better than Warren's best.

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I agree with this. Beatty's resume is much better, and I like him over Burt anyway, but I would say as an actor, Burt Reynolds is still a bit better.

Turd Ferguson

Burt was the biggest grossing star in the world for like 4 or 5 yrs. Both these guys absolutely destroyed the womens though, I'd be interested in those resumes by comparison.

You are selling Beatty short. Beatty contributed much more to the film industry. When I was a dumbarse kid, I liked Burt better. as a man, I appreciate Beatty more.

Other Beatty films of note:

Splendor in the Grass 1961
McCabe & Mrs. Miller 1971
Shampoo 1975
Bullworth 1998

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In his prime, Beatty was almost as famous for his love life as he was for his movie-making, having been connected with a galaxy of female celebrities, a who's who list reported to include Madonna, Julie Christie, Diane Keaton, Isabelle Adjani, Michelle Phillips, Leslie Caron, Natalie Wood, Lana Wood, Cher, Britt Ekland, Joan Collins, Maya Plisetskaya, Susan Strasberg, Candice Bergen, Morgan Fairchild, Raquel Welch, Kate Jackson, Mamie Van Doren, Bernadette Peters, Carole Mallory, Carol Alt, Christine Kaufmann, Christine Keeler, Jean Seberg, Barbara Harris, Barbara Hershey, Barbara Minty, Barbra Streisand, Juliet Prowse, Bebe Buell, Bitten Knudsen, Joyce Hyser, Jessica Savitch, Princess Margaret, Claudia Cardinale, Jane Fonda, Brooke Hayward, Mary Tyler Moore, Bianca Jagger, Connie Chung, Diana Ross, Diane von Fürstenberg, Diane Sawyer, Diane McBain, Diane Ladd, Diane Baker, Melanie Griffith, Elle Macpherson, Linda McCartney, Stella Stevens, Annette Stroyberg, Dayle Haddon, Judy Carne, Greta Chi, Robin Menken, Germaine Greer, Twiggy, Elizabeth Hubbard, Liv Ullmann, Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia, Iman, Vanessa Redgrave, Janice Dickinson, Inger Stevens, Goldie Hawn, Dewi Sukarno, Marisa Mell, Samantha Eggar, Stacey Nelkin, Brigitte Bardot, Pat Cleveland, Margaux Hemingway, Joey Heatherton, Vanity, Serena, Jaid Barrymore, Joni Mitchell, Daryl Hannah, Jacqueline Kennedy, Christina Onassis, Maria Callas and Carly Simon.

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Beatty IMDb

..and Ishtar..mike drop

Agreed..at a point in time, Burt was indeed the man..can't remember ever thinking that about Warren

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Burt was great in Deliverance and Longest Yard

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I agree - that was part of my, "It's not that Burt couldn't act, he just rarely did." - I was specifically thinking of those 2 films. Deliverance was a serious movie and Burt showed both leading man ability and serious acting chops. The Longest Yard was a subversive film against prison life, but they kept it as light and entertaining as they could - very much like Cool Hand Luke - and Burt was great in that, as well, although a lot of what he did was deliver one-liners, that's what the part called for.

Man, I loved Sharky's Machine. Great movie. Watched it so many times on Channel M (pre- cable days ).