Gaining an Appreciation for the Talent of Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is one of the biggest selling and most adored film stars of all time. He has charm, intelligence, and looks, but most of all, he has incredible acting talent. America loves Denzel Washington.

The first thing that you have to do in order to appreciate the talent of Denzel Washington, is understand how far he has come since his earliest acting jobs. He started with made for television movies in the late 1970's, but most will remember him from his six year stint as Dr. Phillip Chandler from the 80's megahit hospital drama, "St. Elsewhere." If you don't remember St. Elsewhere, suffice it to say that it was the "ER" of its time. The huge ensemble cast featured the likes of Mark Harmon, Howie Mandel, Helen Hunt, Alfre Woodard, and Ed Begley, Jr., and many other easily recognizable actors, but Denzel Washington became the true "Movie Star" out of them all. The first season of "St. Elsewhere" can be rented from Netflix by clicking here.

Denzel Washington has the ability to portray any type of character. This can be witnessed by observing his comedic performance in 1981's Carbon Copy, and his Oscar winning dramatic performance in 2001's "Training Day." In "Carbon Copy," Denzel Washington plays the son of an impoverished African American mother. Upon his mother's demise, Denzel's character learns that his father is a filthy rich, white businessman whose all-American family just happens to be extremely racist - they just don't know it. Father eventually meets son and the antics begin. In "Training Day" Denzel Washington's character is a horribly corrupt cop with a serious God complex. A rookie officer is assigned to shadow Denzel's character, and the newbie experiences more criminal activity in his "training day" than a lot of cops experience in a lifetime - from both sides of the law. Both of these films can be obtained from Netflix, click on each of the hyperlinked film titles for more info.

Another acting skill that Denzel Washington has mastered, is the ability to climb into the soul of a complex character and bring him to vibrant life on screen. In Jonathan Demme's Oscar winning 1993 film "Philadelphia," Denzel Washington plays a homophobic lawyer who is charged with the task of defending an illegally terminated gay lawyer. The client, played by Tom Hanks, was dismissed due to discrimination against gays and ignorance about AIDS. Denzel Washington utilizes his talent to clearly reflect the demons his character has to wrestle with as he battles discrimination and bias both in his court case and in his own heart. Denzel Washington delivers an emotionally charged performance, and Tom Hanks matches him blow by blow. Get Philadelphia from Netflix by clicking here.

Finally, Denzel Washington gives a mind blowing performance in Spike Lee's 1992 epic biographical film, "Malcolm X." Many of us are already familiar with the life of the slain Muslim human rights activist, but the story is thoroughly engrossing with Denzel in the lead whether one knows the story or not. In this role, Washington is so convincing as Malcolm X until he literally looks exactly like the man, regardless of the fact that the two men do not actually resemble each other at all. It was Denzel Washington's dedication to studying the man's mannerisms and speaking voice which allowed the seamless portrayal from actor to character. Get Malcolm X from Netflix by clicking here.

You can read Denzel Washington's full biography, and check out his entire filmography on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB). The vast majority of his movies can be found in the Netflix library for rent, or from Amazon.com for purchase. Denzel Washington delivers an outstanding performance in virtually everything in which he appears. Viewing the four aforementioned recommended films should get you off on a good start to gaining a true appreciation for the acting talent of Denzel Washington.