MovieChat Forums > The Ladykillers (2004) Discussion > Worst Actor: Marlon Wayans

Worst Actor: Marlon Wayans


I was very disappointed in The Ladykillers and would love to see Marlon Wayans (or 'Moron' Wayans as I like to call him) get the Worst Actor award given at The Razzie Awards. I hated Wayans' acting and character in this film. He annoyed me worse than any character I've ever seen in a movie! I got sooo sick and tired of him screaming the "F" word over and over...and over! However, the bottom line is: Marlon Wayans sucks in this film and should get a well-deserved award for his stomach-turning acting. Any agreements? Any disagreements? (You must be insane if you do disagree)

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although I cringed at the foul language in the movie, and regretted it because it was the only thing that prevents me from showing it to my kid, otherwise I thought the movie was hilarious, and thought that Marlon Wayans did a great job of portraying his character. Overall I think it's a very, very funny movie, and well done.

Jedi-R-Us

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Marlon played a character that the script called for him to play. Him being a stereotypical "hippity hop" character was part of the plot. It got him fired from his job, it created bunch of arguements between him and the dynamite guy and it added to the old lady's distrust of the crew. If he played it any other way then the above story lines wouldnt have worked. Do you guys actually think that the Cohens didnt call for Marlon to play the character the way he did? 100% guaranteed that it was the Cohens idea for Marlon to play a charicature wannabe hip hop gangsta type. Thats why he had the same exact look that he had in the Dont be a menace movie.

As far as the language, thats how gangstas talk, it wouldnt be authentic without the crude language.

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Without him, to me the movie would be boring. Der typ is sooo diggermässig witzig , is doch derbe geil dassa mitgespielatt hat, wat habta denn? Ihr scheiss otzen!!!!!!!

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Marlon Wayans played Gawain exactly as the Coens wrote it and he did a great job!! He was an angry black gangsta who was so clueless it was funny. His friction with Garth was great. Gawain just didn't like him or trust him and had no idea how to talk or listen to any white person. Like Professor Dorr and Mrs. Munson, Gawain was operating in his own separate world.

You can download the script. It's a hoot even just to read it. This bit below struck me very funny - plenty of F bombs, but it's not potty humor.


Garth: I wasn't born here, you know. I'm from Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Gawain: What the phuk?

Garth: Scranton. Pennsylvania. Came down here in a Greyhound bus with the Freedom Riders. Do you know who the Freedom Riders were, MacSam?

Gawain: No, and I don't give a phuk. Just tell me when the phuk they gonna leave. Damn!

Garth: The Freedom Riders, my fine young man, were a group of concerned liberals from up north, all working together, just like we are here. Involved citizens who came down here so that local black folk could have their civil liberties. So that people like you could have the vote.

Gawain: You know what, man?

Garth: What, brother?

Gawain: I don't vote. So phuk you!

Garth: You little phukin ingrate.

Gawain: And the bus you rode in on, jackass!

Garth: Let's step outside, MacSam!

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Oh and umm,..................Requiem For A Dream.

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Yeah Requiem for a dream is testemant to the amazing acting potential of Marlon Wayans

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Have u not seen requiem for a dream ?

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If I ever meet this "Tenenbaum17" person, I will seriously kick this guy in the nuts.

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I agree with jasonewu. This guy's an assclown.

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Requiem for A dream was great film. However, Marlon Wayans wasn't that great in it. In this film, he was incredibly out of place but you have to blame the writing for the character itself. A hiphop gangster is way out of place of the Ladykillers

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i think the marlon wayans character was brilliant and brought a lot of comedy to the roll , can't see the big problem with him tenenbaum17 , brilliant film

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He is the best *beep* actor ever.. Love him.. Ghettoblaster! Love It... The Wayans Bros, love it ! :D

"A red sun rises - Blood has been spilt this night" Legolas - J.R.R Tolkien -

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Don't know if anyone else has said this, but...I agree, his performance wasn't exactly great. But he has proved that he can act. Just watch Requiem For A Dream (2000). He is a great supporting actor.

-Ben

"Public transport is for jerks and lesbians" - So true...

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I believe he played the role he had good. He played a archetype in a modern society and certanly did it well.

P.S. I don't understand the fuss about "Requim For A Dream". It is increadibly overrated.

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well, I'm not making a fuss about it, but there is some great acting Requiem For A Dream. And Wayans certainly performed better in Requiem than the Ladykillers.

-Ben

I write messages on money. It is my own form of social protest.

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Marlon Wayans is a good actor. I disagree. Check out Requiem for a dream.

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I saw this movie back in 2004 and I knew very well after watching this that there would be a thread specifically aimed at Marlon Wayans. Either bad or racial one. And you my friend put those two into one. First of all, it's your opinion, only yours which makes no nevermind to us other LadyKillers fans because we enjoyed it and thought Marlon Wayans was funny and did his part very well. I also cannot understand how you can label an actor as worst ever only after watching him in only one movie. Now that's asinine. I've seen him in other movies, movies that required him to dive deeper into his character and all I can say is that he pulled it off just fine, like any other talented actor. I thought his role was very stereotyped, as usual in the racist Hollywood, because how often don't we see mediocre black actors or newcomers as gangsters or gunholders with bad attitude. Want an example from the movie? Tzi Ma's first appearance in the movie when he's been hold at gun sight with does two hilarious brothers. You see what I mean? It's funny as hell but it gives me after a while a bad feeling. Why couldn't just two whiteboys dressed up like Eminem walk in and say "Dragon Lady". And no, no one would ever complain about them being racist because it would be considered funny because of the obviousness. Anyways, back to this stupid thread issue. I'm starting to think that you have something personal going on against the actor Marlon himself. I could call you a racist but what favour would it do for me? There are millions of people like you, unfortunately. If you can't seperate movie characters from real life people then you definitely need a head-examine.

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...how you can label an actor as worst ever only after watching him in only one movie. Now that's asinine.

Actually, it's not asinine at all. If some actor gives a really lousy performance, or if an actor gives a great performance at a part that really turns off the audience, he could well find himself being ostracized at the box office. Good ol' box office poison. That's not really his fault, except in as much as he might have had more vision to choose a better project or perhaps to choose a different tack to approach the creation of this character he's playing.

It's like putting your hand on a hot stove. Or smelling some stench that turns your stomach, if the negative effect committed to memory is strong enough, someone will not give him another chance. That's human nature and the law of survival and it has little to do with the audience being open minded or not.

there would be a thread specifically aimed at Marlon Wayans. Either bad or racial one. And you my friend put those two into one. First of all, it's your opinion, only yours which makes no nevermind to us other LadyKillers fans

This is a discussion board, not a board exclusively belonging to fans of the movie. Discussion which is critical of the movie is not "trolling", it's discussion and you would do well to keep an open mind and listen to other points of view. If you want a thread where everyone agrees that the movie is great, maybe you need a fan club meeting and not a discussion board. Allow for other points of view besides your own.

Frankly, I found his performance to be such a turn-off that I would probably go out of my way to NOT see him in anything else. His brothers, particularly Damon, are actors I admire greatly. But, to me, this guy is awful, yes, based on this performance. It is now an obstacle which prevents me from appreciating any of his better work, if in fact any exists.

Using the race card to shout down someone's opinion of why they do or do not like this guy is a cheap shot. That is so old. O.J. again and again. If the character is designed to portray a certain cultural archetype, then that may or may not go over so well with audiences. Personally, I could do without this portrayal, it shows me nothing but the worst. Why elevate a pile of sh*t and put it on a movie screen and ask people to pay a sawbuck to watch it? I say "no thanks." And I would give the same response to that even lower mound of excrement, "eminem", were he in the part. If this is a piece of commercial art for which I'm being asked to pay money and it includes that character as portrayed by Marlon Wayans, I'll pass and spend my money on something else. It's as simple as that.

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You are stupid, both for not liking Wayans in this film, and for being afraid of "the 'F' word." What are you, in the 3rd grade?

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Marlon Wayans is a great actor obviously Tenenbaum18 hasn't seen Requim for a Dream..... And he played this part excellent as well. He portrayed the character from the script so stop trying to bring a brother down!

Im done here.

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I am not a Marlon Wayans fan by any stretch... he's a good comedian in sketch shows...(In Living Color) but yeah he wasn't the best in this film at all. In fact , Tom Hanks seemed kind of weird too in this film (like he was doing someone a favor by being in it). But it still one of my favorite movies. Best performance Irma P Hall... Now she should have gotten an award for best supporting for her role.

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