Key films of James Garner

James Garner had his first important film role supporting Marlon Brando in Sayonara, one of the biggest box office hits of 1957. Released only a few months after Garner was shot to popularity with the Maverick TV series, the film helped to launch his career, earning him a golden globe as most promising newcomer.

Garner does well as a young business tycoon courting Natalie Wood in this so-so comedy drama and at times interesting satire of the business world. Though he had a couple of starring roles before that, Cash McCall is the first where Garner brings his charming Maverick conman persona to the big screen and shows himself to be a credible and bankable movie star.

For an actor principally known for light roles, Garner delivered a commandable dramatic performance, supporting Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine in this sensitive drama. Ultimately, his role was not large enough to be an important influence in his career, but since the film has become something of a classic, it would become on of his most well-known dramatic film roles (together with Murphy's Romance and The Notebook that would come much later).

Garner gives his best film performance to date as the prison camp's scrounger, gathering all the necessary elements for the escape through his charm and ingenuity. His main co-star, Steve McQueen, may be more well known for this film, but Garner arguably gives a superior performance, perfectly balancing understated humor with more serious acting when needed. His tongue-in-cheek comedy moments with the German guard, Werner, are delightful to watch, while in his friendship with the forger (Donald Pleasance), he displays a more serious and caring side of his character.

The first of his two comedies with Doris Day (the second being Move Over Darling) is the one where Garner gives his better performance, showing himself to be one of the most engaging leading man of romantic comedy of the period. Released almost at the same time, The Thrill of it All and The Great Escape were both big hits at the box office in 1963, confirming Garner as a major movie star. In fact, he was #16 in the Quigley Poll's top 25 box office stars of 1963.

In this classic war parody, Garner gives one of his strongest and most thoughtful performances as a self-professed coward convincing Julie Andrews of the virtue of survival over heroism. He handles intelligent and complex dialogue, while retaining his charm and humor, creating a unique characterization. Another success at the box office, the film has also earned considerable critical recognition over the years.

Though in a less humorous vein, Garner is very good as a US officer made to believed he is suffering from amnesia by his German captors. A suspenseful and original war-time espionage adventure, 36 Hours has continued to elicit interest and popularity over time, making it something of a minor classic.

In an atypical role, Garner portrays a rather dark, stoic and vengeful Wyatt Earp in this unadorned western, which realistically revisits the gunfight at OK Corral and its aftermath, as well as the evolution in the characters and friendship of Earp and Doc Holliday. Not exciting enough for most audiences, the film bombed at the box office, though it has earned critical recognition among fans of the genre. Garner's acting may have seemed cold and stiff to some, but he creates a mature and forceful figure of Earp, effectively hinting at the suppressed rage and growing disillusionment of his character.

Coming at the heels of several box-office flops and Garner's declining popularity in the late 1960s, Support Your Local Sheriff was a welcomed surprise hit. It showed that Garner could still deliver a successful and thoroughly delightful performance, reminiscent of his Maverick days.The film is one of the best western comedies coming out of Hollywood, and it provided one of Garner's most memorable roles.

Some felt James Garner was not quite right in the role of private detective Philip Marlowe, who had been portrayed in the 1940s by the likes of Humphrey Bogart. They failed to realize that Garner was creating his own characterization of the private eye, one that would eventually inspire Jim Rockford in the Rockford Files TV series and bring Garner renewed popular and critical acclaim. As he would later play Rockford, Garner plays Marlowe with a laid-back wit and charm, expertly delivering his lines with a natural irony. This helps to make this complicated mystery classy and entertaining.

Once again reprising his western con-man persona, this time in a slavery-era setting, Garner delivers another strong performance in this exceptional parody on slavery. It's a mystery why this original, enjoyable and intelligent film is not more well-know and appreciated, but it has nothing to do with the wonderful work of the two leads, Garner and Lou Gosset Jr.

After 6 seasons of the Rockford Files and a couple of forgettable films, Garner successfully returns to the big screen, reuniting with Americanization of Emily co-star Julie Andrews. While he gives a good performance, he is a bit overshadowed by the more lively performances of Andrews and Robert Preston.

With age, Garner evolved in an increasingly capable dramatic actor, adding a somewhat darker cynicism and depth to his characterizations. This is evident in Murphy's Romance where he plays a no non-sense aging widower, charming enough to win over Sally Field coming out of a broken marriage. For his excellent performance, Garner received his first and only academy award nomination for best actor.

Mel Gibson may play Maverick in this highly successful western comedy, but Garner shines all the way as grizzly lawman who turns out to be Gibson's dad and is in fact the original Maverick. By the 1990s, Garner was not very active on the big screen, so this was somewhat of a comeback role for him, successfully returning to the character for which he had originally become famous.

As the husband of a woman suffering from alzheimer, Garner gives perhaps the best and most touching dramatic performance of his career, earning critical and popular acclaim at the age of 76. Though he made a few other films after that, The Notebook is the crowning achievement of a long and outstanding career.