You know Richard Jenkins by looks but by not by name, right? I mean, he’s one of the most prolific character actors in modern cinema yet has never truly achieved the name recognition he so greatly deserves. The guy’s been nominated twice for an Oscar and I’m guessing most couldn’t name which movies they were. It’s too bad because I’m willing to bet that he’s one of those actors that when you do see him on screen think, “Oh, yeah, I know him. This part is gonna be good.” I feel the same, and so, I’m going to choose a few times he’s made a movie better simply by being in it. I’m not going to list his Academy Award nominated performances from The Visitor and The Shape of Water, two movies you should absolutely get your eyes on, only supporting roles that prove he’s one of the best. Here’s 5 films I recommend.
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Step Brothers
Every once in a while, the movies find a couple of actors that when combined fit like peanut butter and chocolate. That’s the definition of Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, some of the funniest people to ever share the screen, despite not all their movies together really clicking like they should, but that’s for another discussion. In director Adam McKay‘s 2008 comedy Step Brothers, the two play, well, um, step brothers who in their forties come to live together, though there is a twist. They’re basically adolescents who have never really grown up and become independent, and now, need to clean up their acts.
Jenkins is Mr. Doback, the father of Dale (Reilly). He marries Nancy (Mary Steenburgen), mom to Brennen (Ferrell), and after raising one misfit who won’t get out of the house, now is forced to handle another, and it does not go well, mostly because he just wants to save up and take his new wife on a sailing trip around the world. Sure, the movie is mostly predictable but it fires with hot lead when Ferrell and Reilly find their groove, though it’s the underlying performance of Jenkins, who is like a teapot on a stove that gives this thing its best moments, playing a guy who wants better but is stuck in a kind of a inescapable hellish nightmare populated by twin devils that are out to get him. He’s very funny is what I’m saying and is entirely the reason to watch this movie.
Bone Tomahawk
Okay, now I’m gonna swing the pendulum way to the other side and spotlight a film that I think was the best movie of its year, but also one I recommend with a disclaimer the size of Florida in that it’s not an easy movie to watch. It’s director S. Craig Zahler‘s chilling western horror show Bone Tomahawk, a piece of terror that is incredibly well-made, even better acted, and features a slew of powerfully emotive moments that not just linger with you but seer themselves into your brain for all time to come.
Either way, Jenkins is Chicory, a local deputy who spots something strange in the arrival of Purvis (David Arquette), notifying Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Kurt Russell). Purvis is witness to true savagery and this leads to tragedy when one of the townsfolk is murdered and others, including Purves, another deputy (Evan Jonigkeit), and the doctor’s assistant Samantha (Lili Simmons) go missing. Chicory joins the group to find him, and now part of a group of highly skilled gunmen, is the elder voice of reason haunted by his past, and it is Jenkins utter saturation of who and what Chicory is that gives this secondary role such meaningful impact. This guy transforms himself. It’s invigorating to watch.
The Cabin in the Woods
Here’s one that probably most remember, the 2011 Drew Goddard horror film The Cabin in the Woods, a genre movie that worked to give all the tropes of such a fresh twist, and while some – including me – may quibble with how that twist is revealed and when, the whole thing is undoubtedly a super fun experience with plenty of “Oh yeah” moments. Seriously, this is a movie that actually has some cleverness to it and manages to be scary and funny with an ending loaded with cool questions.
Jenkins is Sitterson, and if I tell you who he is in the movie, well, then I’ve spoiled the whole movie so even though the film is going on (egads!) ten years old, I’ll steer clear of giving away the plot. Suffice to say, when he gets to say, “Like the difference between an elephant and an elephant seal,” you get in on the film’s motivations and latch on for the ride. No matter, Jenkins is one of those actors who can be in a film that is totally off the charts absurd and level in with an enormous amount of authority. That’s Sitterson. That’s why you watch.
Snow Falling on Cedars
I won’t deny that director Scott Hicks‘s 1999 drama is one of my favorite movies because, well, it is. There’s something so deeply mesmerizing by its lush presentation and personal story that every time I watch it, which is a stupid lot of times, it just gets better. It stars Ethan Hawke is Ishmael Chambers, a young local newspaper reporter on a new case about the curious death of a fisherman, supposedly at the hands of a Japanese competitor. This takes place right after World War II so tensions are already high and we learn that as a younger man, Ishmael was involved with a Japanese girl (Yûki Kudô). It’s really a courtroom drama but it’s so much more than that.
Jenkins is Sheriff Art Moran, and while his part is small in the film itself, here’s another time where what he does with the role is subtle and authoritative. I love what he does with so little, the smallest of expressions and the way he speaks. In only a few frames, he’s able to convey a heavy history that resonates what it should in a town where there is a lot of history. Again, he’s not in this very much, but what he does have is presence while on screen and it matters just as it should. That’s the stuff right there.
Killing Them Softly
Here’s one you might not know very well, though it earned some acclaim at the time. It’s director Andrew Dominik‘s violent hitman film Killing Them Softly about a hired killer named Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt) on a job to reset the balance among mobsters after a high stakes card game gets knocked over. It’s about the crimes, the consequences, and the philosophy behind it all that make it an interesting watch, combining good laughs with hearty action and a slew of smart performance. It’s not for everyone and Pitt sort of goes against the grain, but I recommend a look, just for, well, you can already guess.
Jenkins is Driver, a shadowed mafioso who puts Cogan on the case, and, as his name implies, tends to spend a lot of time in a car. What he does while in the car is why we’re here. Sure, several great movie parts have characters in cars, of course, and I’m in no way going to set about ranking or comparing. However, I really like what Jenkins does behind the wheel, and more so, the way he controls a conversation, the mannered dialogue and intensity, even when he’s supposedly meant to be laughing. Jenkins teamed with Pitt prior in 2008’s Burn After Reading, where he played an entirely different character, and if we want to compare the spectrum of what Jenkins can do, these are two roles that show it well. Watch more Richard Jenkins movie is the real theme here. Goodness knows, he’s been in a lot.