They say that Harrison Ford used to be shy. The man whose smugness made billions, the man who saved America and the galaxy time and time again with sheer moxie and disarming confidence, and supposedly he used to be shy. Until he took an acting class in his senior year in college, that is. Acting! It really can change the world.
Harrison Ford is the quintessential movie star, maybe the greatest in the history of the medium. He’s handsome and intelligent and dashing and he always looks like he can’t believe this crap is really happening to him. Whether he’s squaring off against Nazis and the supernatural, fighting a villainous empire with little teddy bear people, or jumping off a dam because Tommy Lee Jones doesn’t care who killed his wife, he confronts practically every situation with a mixture of steely resolve and sympathetic frustration. Audiences swiftly glommed onto that, this hero who wasn’t so much reluctant as he was annoyed. He became the modern action star for a modern age, and we’re still living in the entertainment environment he terraformed to this day.
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Ford was not an overnight success. He worked his but off in small roles in forgotten flicks like A Time for Killing (1967) and Getting Straight (1970), and small parts on TV series like “Kung Fu” and “Love, American Style.” He was cast in Francis Ford Coppola’s classic thriller The Conversation (1974), but he’s barely in it. He worked as a carpenter to support himself during these early years. He made a sun deck for actress Sally Kellerman (MASH) and worked as a roadie for The Doors. He only got his big break in George Lucas’s second film American Graffiti because the fledgling director hired him to install some cabinets. (Makes you wonder if George Lucas held onto them.)
But Ford finally achieved breakout stardom in Lucas’s Star Wars, and everything changed. He was the only member of the film’s young cast to become a worldwide box office sensation in films that didn’t have lightsabers in them. He played the iconic action heroes Indiana Jones and Jack Ryan, he starred in one classic thriller after another, and sometimes he was even allowed to do a little “real” acting in films like Peter Weir’s cynical coming of age drama The Mosquito Coast (1986) and Mike Nichols’ saccharine but lovable amnesia tale Regarding Henry (1991). Funny thing about Regarding Henry: it was written by a young screenwriter named J.J. Abrams. Have you ever heard of him? He’ll be pretty important to Ford’s career over 20 years later.
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Although Ford was the biggest movie star in the world throughout the 1980s and most of the 1990s, the turn of the century wasn’t particularly kind to his career. Late attempts to tackle serious dramas like Random Hearts (1999) and Extraordinary Measures (2010) made no impression on audiences, and even his attempts to take the piss out of his dramatic persona fell flat. Have you ever seen Hollywood Homicide? No? Well, don’t start now. And the less said about last year’s idiotic and inert corporate espionage “thriller” Paranoia, the better.
But although his career took a sidestep over the last 15 years, Harrison Ford has never left us. Many of his best films are required viewing for audiences young and old, and keep getting reintroduced to young generations who will continue to revere him. And he’s set to return to some of his most beloved roles in the near future. Ridley Scott has a Blade Runner sequel being written for Ford as we speak, and despite an unfortunate on-set injury, he’s still set to star in Star Wars: Episode VII for that J.J. Abrams guy. What a ritz.
Harrison Ford is one of the greats, but like many of the greats, not all of his films are created equal. His best films aren’t always the best remembered, and his best remembered films aren’t necessarily always his best. So we here at CraveOnline invite you to take a look back at Ford’s long, storied career with our picks for The Essential Harrison Ford: 15 Must-See Films. Only the best performances and only the best movies. Did we leave out any of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.
Slideshow: The Essential Harrison Ford: 15 Must-See Films
William Bibbiani is the editor of CraveOnline’s Film Channel and the host of The B-Movies Podcast and The Blue Movies Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
The Essential Harrison Ford: 15 Unforgettable Films
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American Graffiti (1973)
"Hey, you see this Milner, you tell him I'm lookin' for him, huh? You tell him I aim to blow his ass right off the road."
Harrison Ford had been acting for years but finally made a real impression in George Lucas's to teenaged life in the 1950s, a tapestry of interconnected stories taking place over the course of a single night. Ford played Bob Falfa, an energetic street racer whose heart is warmed just enough by co-star Cindy Williams.
Did You Know...?
Harrison Ford refused to cut his long hair for American Graffiti because he thought it was a small part. He opted to wear a hat instead.
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Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)
"Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid."
Harrison Ford's first iconic role (of many) finds him played the smug, sarcastic intergalactic smuggler Han Solo, who injected a welcome and infectious air of disbelief into an otherwise completely sincere space opera. Solo was the wild card, the man who was in it for the money, until a feisty princess and an idealistic farm boy warmed his heart... a little.
Did You Know...?
George Lucas originally intended to cast a black actor as Han Solo. Future Empire Strikes Back co-star Billy Dee Williams auditioned for the role that eventually went to Ford.
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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
"Never tell me the odds."
The second Star Wars split up the cast, sending Luke Skywalker off for Jedi training and sending Han Solo and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) off on a suspenseful chase through an asteroid field. Their bickering romantic chemistry gave the Star Wars trilogy its real emotional core, at least until the Luke finds out the truth about his father.
Did You Know...?
When Princess Leia says "I love you" to Han Solo, he replies "I know." Ford came up with that line himself. The original line of dialogue was, "Just remember that, Leia, because I'll be back."
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Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
"It's not the years, honey. It's the mileage."
Harrison Ford's second iconic role, and first franchise centered entirely around how awesome he was, found him trotting the globe to unearth a magical artifact before Hitler's cronies could find it. Ford's decidedly modern take on a classical pulp protagonist turned Indiana Jones into a uniquely turn of the century character, and one of the great action heroes of all time.
Did You Know...?
As part of the process used to "age" Indiana Jones's iconic hat, Harrison Ford and costume designer Deborah Nadoolman each sat on it.
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Blade Runner (1982)
"I have had people walk out on me before, but not while I was being so charming.:"
Harrison Ford played the polar opposite of Indiana Jones in Ridley Scott's influential sci-fi detective story Blade Runner: Rick Deckard, an old fashioned character in a futuristic world. Deckard's on a mission to find and deactivate a group of rogue replicants - robots who look like and sometimes think they are real humans - but he may (or may not) be one himself.
Did You Know...?
Ridley Scott wanted Rick Deckard to wear a 1940s fedora hat, in keeping with Blade Runner's film noir influences, but decided against it because Harrison Ford wore one in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
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Star Wars: Episode VI - The Return of the Jedi (1983)
"I have a really bad feeling about this..."
Han Solo may have finally accepted that he's one of the good guys by the time Return of the Jedi hit theaters in 1983, but Ford was just as entertaining as ever, smarming it up and finally seeing his romance with Princess Leia through to its happy end.
Did You Know...?
The Return of the Jedi is the only movie in which Han Solo speaks directly to the droid R2-D2. But all he says is, "C'mon! C'mon!"
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Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
"Nothing shocks me. I'm a scientist."
Ford's second outing as Indiana Jones is simultaneously darker and way less mature than the original, and seems to represent a precocious child's take on an old-fashioned serial adventure. Girls are icky, little kids can save the day, and grown ups always let you down... unless they're Indiana Jones.
Did You Know...?
While Harrison Ford was chained to a rock during the whipping scene, Barbra Streisand came out in leather gear and whipped him for making Hanover Street ("the worst movie [she] ever saw") and making a lot of money for The Empire Strikes Back. Ford's Star Wars co-star Carrie Fisher jumped in to "save" him. The moment was filmed. You can watch it here.
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Witness (1985)
"I'm learning a lot about manure. Very interesting."
Harrison Ford earned his first - and, to date, only - Oscar nomination for Peter Weir's smart crime thriller Wtiness. Ford plays John Book, a detective who goes undercover to protect an Amish murder witness (Lukas Haas) and tries not to sully Kelly LeBrock's virtue in the process. Witness is a film riddled with close calls and masterful suspense.
Did You Know...?
Sylvester Stallone turned down Harrison Ford's role in Witness, a decision he later claims to have regretted.
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The Mosquito Coast (1986)
"Why do things get worse and worse? They don't have to. They could get better and better. We accept that things fall apart."
Harrison Ford reteamed with his Witness director Peter Weir for The Mosquito Coast, a bitter and powerful film about an obsessed inventor who drags his family to the jungle to start a new, utopian life together. There are... complications. Ford gives his most unhinged performance opposite Helen Mirren, who plays his overly devoted wife, and River Phoenix, who plays his increasingly doubtful son, and who would later play a young Ford in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Did You Know...?
Harrison Ford has said that of all his films, Mosquito Coast is his favorite.
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Working Girl (1988)
"You're the first woman I've seen at one of these things that dresses like a woman, not like a woman thinks a man would dress if he was a woman."
Although Harrison Ford is considered the quintessential leading man, he rarely played a straightforward romantic lead. His best was easily Mike Nichol's dramedy about an ambitious wall street assistant (Melanie Griffith), who bamboozles Ford in an attempt to prove herself in a man's world. Ford is at his boyish best in Working Girl: effortlessly sexy and downright hilarious.
Did You Know...?
Working Girl is one of two films that "explain" how Harrison Ford got a scar on his chin. His character claims he was trying to pierce his ear, fainted, and hit his chin on a toilet.
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (199
"Nazis. I hate these guys."
The third Indiana Jones adventure took a turn for the wacky, with the rugged Ford joining forces with his stuffy father, played by Sean Connery, on a quest to find the Holy Grail before those danged Nazis do. Ford and Connery are a surprisingly natural comedic duo, and some of the action sequences rank amongst the franchise's best.
Did You Know...?
The Last Crusade is the other film that "explains" how Harrison Ford got a scar on his chin. Indiana Jones accidentally cut himself the first time he used a bullwhip. (In reality, Ford got his scar in a car accident.)
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The Fugitive (1993)
"I didn't kill my wife!"
Harrison Ford plays Dr. Richard Kimble in The Fugitive, a pulse-pounding adaptation of the classic TV series about a wrongly accused man on the run, and trying to find the one-armed man who really did it. Tommy Lee Jones won an Academy Award for playing Ford's dogged pursuer, but Ford grounds the film with his intense and sincere performance.
Did You Know...?
The Fugitive is Harrison Ford's second film - in a row! - that Harrison Ford starred in after Alec Baldwin turned it down. The first was Patriot Games (1992).
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Clear and Present Danger (1994)
"How dare YOU, sir!"
Ford's first outing as Jack Ryan, Patriot Games (1992), was a decent enough revenge thriller, but the follow-up is smart espionage filmmaking at its finest. Ryan finds himself at the center of a complicated conspiracy that leads all the way to the White House, and a climactic confrontation with the President of the United States that gives Ford ones of his most unforgettable scenes.
Did You Know...?
Although Harrison Ford only took the role of Jack Ryan in Patriot Games after Alec Baldwin turned it down, Baldwin only got to play the role in The Hunt for Red October (1990) because Ford had already declined it.
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Air Force One (1997)
"GET OFF MY PLANE!"
Not content to merely shout at the American President, Harrison Ford decided to play one himself in Wolfgang Peterson's hokey but thoroughly enjoyable Die Hard riff. A deliciously over-the-top Gary Oldman has taken Air Force One hostage, and only the President himself can take him down. Air Force One is dumb jingoism at its best.
Did You Know...?
Air Force One director Wolfgang Peterson wasn't allowed to see the real Air Force One... until Harrison Ford made a phone call.
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42 (2013)
"Someday you're gonna to meet God, and when he inquires as to why you didn't take the field against Robinson in Philadelphia, and you answer that it's because he was a Negro, it may not be a sufficient reply!"
After a career slump in the early 2000s, Harrison Ford decided to play someone other than Harrison Ford in Brian Helgeland's touching ode to Jackie Robinson, 42. As Branch Rickey, executive for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Ford gets to chomp cigars, put on a larger than life accent and help usher in a new age of Civil Rights. Robinson does all the work... Rickey just gives him a chance.
Did You Know...?
In 47 years of acting, Branch Rickey is the only real-life character Harrison Ford has ever played in a movie.
