Who do you think is the most memorable movie character ever and why?

Osgood in Some Like it Hot



I saw this film as a small child. I've always remembered Osgood's lovely acceptance of all the things which Geraldine/Jerry presented as obstacles to a relationship.

From the movie "To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)", the lawyer Atticus Finch.

Nino Manfredi in Down and Dirty (Brutti, sporchi e cattivi in Italian, directed by Ettore Scola) or
Nino Manfredi in Bread and Chocolate (Pane e Cioccolata in Italian, directed by Franco Brusati)

Wonderful acting in films that were dramatic, comic, sad, and wise in varied ways

toss up
its either Samuel Jackson in his role as Jules in "PULP FICTION"
or , Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More in "A Man for All Season"

As an allaround greatest living movie actor today, Its gotta be Tom Hanks. His versatility and competence probablyput him among the top 5 living actors.

I have to get settled down from the day's activities before I can think much about it, but I do want to say that Dustin Hoffman played several of them.

I thought Ratso Rizzo by Hoffman was one of the greatest character roles.

Absolutely.

Mouse Alexander (Don Cheadle) in Devil in a Blue Dress. Small part but it's stuck in my head.

Patton in Patton.

Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird.

I agree about Patton.

I will get some flack for including Tom Cruise as Ron Kovic, in Born on the Fourth of July.

Back to Down and Dirty and Bread and Chocolate, as I failed to name Nino Manfredi's characters and links would have been helpful, sorry about that.

Down and Dirty has had various titles. When I saw it (several times over a bunch of years), that was the name.
Here's imdb on it -
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074252/
The name of his character was Giacinto Mazzatella, which I'm sure I forgot immediately if not sooner.

Bread and Chocolate -
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070506/
his character was Nino Garofalo

I also love Liza Dolittle and Henry Higgins.

I never got "The Graduate" but my fvorite Hoffman Role was his Jack Crabb and Little Big Man in "Little Big Man"

That's the thing about Hoffman. If you don't care for one great role, he has lots more to choose from.

Darth Vader. As a icon of perfect evil, he was ideal, using mystical powers to choke to death bearers of bad news, betraying his mentors, towering in black over his minions. Then comes the act of redemption. Do you think you could find anyone even slightly into movies who would not recognize the character and have an opinion?

Second vote would be Harry Potter, but he was a book character before a movie character. If we opened that up, the list gets a lot bigger.

But then are they recognizable because they are a movie character or primarily from the book? Romeo and Juliet are two of the most recognizable characters world wide and well woven into most Western cultures. They've been in movies, but were those memorable movie characters or are they known primarily from the public's non-movie experience?

I guess I should ask you as the original poster to better define "memorable" and "movie character". What does memorable mean to you? Left a lasting impression on the viewer? Made a significant impact on the culture? And does movie character mean that the character is best known from the movie as opposed to book, play, cultural reference, historical reference or does that not matter?

Oh, somehow that reminds me, but.. it started with a book by Newton Thornbird. I liked that too, read it after I saw the movie, but the movie was up there among those I have best liked ever.

Cutter's Way, John Heard, so good - as Alex Cutter
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082220/
He made Cutter come alive.

Let's not forget Jack Nicholson in "One flew over the cuckoo's " or "Shining"

Then Robert de Niro in many many movies "Awakening" comes to mind with
Robin Williams, who is also very memorable - "Good will hunting" or
"Good morning Vietnam" and so on.....

we have but ne 'most memorable'.I cheated by saying it was a tossup for me

No wire hangers!