Absolutely heartbreaking to hear he passed, he will be greatly missed

Rest in peace, Alan Arkin, was sorry to hear about his passing. He gave us memorable lines and characters.

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is an underrated gem. All the performances are good, but it's Arkin who best manages to rise above the foolish decision to update the setting to the present day, rather than the 1930s when Carson McCullers' novel was set. (Maybe that was done for budget reasons?) Sondra Locke's character and her relationship with Arkin's Mr. Singer have always resonated with me on a personal level, but I think her character arc as a young woman with musical ambitions might have been even more powerful if the earlier setting had been maintained, since more opportunities were opening up for women by the late 1960s. Still, a wonderful movie with a very strong cast of characters. I'm happy to see it awarded such a high place on this list.

I’m so pissed I didn’t know he passed until I saw this video… I loved him what a phenomenal actor 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽 btw I remember reading about his Oscar snub for Wait Until Dark and he said “One doesn’t get nominated for being mean to Audrey Hepburn” what a talent he will be missed

I have good memories of watching "The Russians Are Coming-The Russians Are Coming" back when it was released in 1966. My mom really loved Alan Arkin's performance in that film.

I am SO thrilled you chose Wait Until Dark for number one!!! He is so fantastic in this! My choice too for his best performance, with Slums of Beverly Hills and Little Miss Sunshine are tied for second. Alan Arkin was so great! His eyes even before he opened his mouth told a story....emotional eyes 👀. He will be missed.

He was so great, and I'm so glad Wait Until Dark was your number one choice. It was the first film of his I saw, and I remember the first time I saw it was actually the same year Little Miss Sunshine was first released. I was quite thrilled when he got that Oscar.

I've had a crush on Alan Arkin since his wonderful 2 hr slow burn performance in The Russians Are Coming. He was just so jolly attractive in his submariner outfit.

RIP Alan Arkin. He lived along life and gave many great performances. Great video Brian, keep up the great work!

I have a 'claim to fame' with Alan - I was an extra in the Australian movie Captain Invinsible! My brother as a scout was signed up - but I got roped into it and appeared with Alan on screen! So there is that xx

Great tribute, Brian. To add my two cents, while he had no shot in winning the Oscar for The Russians Are Coming in spite of the Golden Globe comedy actor win (since Paul Scofield won everything he needed to for A Man For All Seasons), I would say he actually had a decent chance at winning Best Actor for The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter. Cliff Robertson in Charly had won the National Board Of Review before winning the Oscar, Alan had won the New York Critics Choice Award for Best Actor, Ron Moody in Oliver! won the Golden Globe for Comedy/Musical Actor, and Peter O'Toole in The Lion In Winter won the Golden Globe for Drama Actor. A great actor he was on the whole, RIP.

Catch-22 (1970) and Little Murders (1971) are among the greatest and most underrated comedies of all time.

FREEBIE AND THE BEAN is the best. Hilarious with James Caan. Constantly arguing and fighting with each other. ❤ I haven't seen some of the films off this list, but im going to now. But of all the Alan Arkin films ive seen, Freebie and the Bean is my favourite. Its good all the way through, but the ending is awesome ❤

This is really great. I love how you actually let the clips play, and don't talk over them. Your instinct is good! I also share your love for Mr. Arkin. Cannot believe he's gone. Also, I had a similar experience with Catch-22. Read the book, amazing but dense, saw the movie, didn't care much for it. Saw it again about a year later, liked it way more. Funny how stuff like that happens.

Wait Until Dark 😭😭😭

I loved his appearances on Northern Exposure.

I totally agree with your first two choices. For me, number one would be a toss up between Wait Until Dark and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. BTW, you probably knew but didn’t mention it in your video, Alan Arkin said he wasn’t nominated for an Oscar for Wait Until Dark because one doesn’t get nominated for being mean to Audrey Hepburn.

I had to rent the In Laws after learning of his death. His performance in that movie was outstanding. One of my favorite movies.

Thank you so much I really learned a lot I really think he truly wanted to be an actor not just a star. Great job

I saw a movie as a kid that I can’t remember- I know that Alan Arkin was a cop and Valerie Harper played his cheating wife. I fell in love with him then. His performances never disappointed.

A great ( but subtle) comedy ,with three great actors is GOING IN STYLE, made in 2017 . Alan Arkin has equal billing with Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine, no car chases or gunfights but tells how the three men get revenge on the Bank, which cancels their work pensions with no notice . Great performances from everyone. Why not try the trailer?

I am going to watch and rewatch a lot of his films. I haven't seen Simon now it's a must I love Arkin and I absolutley adore Madeline Kahn .I love Little Miss Sunshine it's one of my favorite movies of all time.He's superb. Looking forward to the 2012 Oscar video and I will take another look at Arkin vs Murphy.

Rip to a legend! Also, Could we maybe get a John Goodman elusive Oscar vid 🙏

Catch -22 is the best anti war movie ever. I fell in love with Alan Arkin watching it.

R.I.P. Alan Arkin

A true talent ❤

I love the "serpentine" scene from In-Laws. Hilarious. I never liked the film Catch-22. The book is one of the all time greats and it's really an unfilmable book. As far as movies go, MASH which came out the same time is a far superior film. Your insight about Catch-22 is interesting. Maybe I need to give it another chance. I don't know.

May his memory be a blessing.

Thank you for posting this. You did a good job putting this together.

Our assigned reading in my 9th grade English class in 1968 was The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter. After we read the book our teacher somehow had a copy of the movie on 8mm film and we watched it from a projector over two class periods on a screen pulled down over the blackboard . Pretty adult stuff but I bet there isn't any of us to this day that don't remember that touching, heartbreaking performance by a very young Alan Arkin..

I recently found a movie called "Thirteen Conversations About One Thing," in which Alan Arkin appeared. I also liked him in "Mother Night."

I absolutely loved Alan Arkin. It's almost impossible for me to pick my most favorite of his movies. Your list is great! I'm so glad you had Wait Until Dark high up on your list. I think the In Laws should have been ranked much higher though. One movie you didn’t mention Freebie and the Bean, the good buddy cop movie he was in with James Caan.

You blew it. Arkin's finest performance is is the made-for-television "The Defection of Simas Kudirka" (1978), along with Catch 22 and the evolution sequence in Simon.

I discovered your post for the 10 greatest Donald Sutherland performances and that led me to this video for the great Alan Arkin. I truly enjoy your videos and the attention that you give to these amazing artists. Alan Arkin was always one of my favorites. Again, as with Donald Sutherland, a completely unique talent. You've already mentioned many of my personal favorites including Wait Until Dark, Little Miss Sunshine, Edward Scissorhands, Glengarry Glenn Ross and Argo. A few others from my list would have to include two that you listed in your honorable mentions...Slums of Beverly Hills and The Kominsky Method. I also have to bring up Indian Summer, Noel and Sunshine Cleaning. Alan Arkin was an absolute gem!

Argo was so good, just a great under-rated movie, Arkin was so perfect in it. We camped a few times in Guaymas, Mexico were the Catch 22 movie was filmed, The Runway & buildings were still there in the 1970's. I didn't know anything about the book or movie, but later, when I was older, I watched it, and saw the set in the background. I sure enjoyed the Komeski method.

The best interview ever on TCM was with Mr Arkin, He was so brilliant recalling his long career. He seemed like a person who really loved his life's work. He said people stilled called out serpetine, serpentine, when walking down the street. The in laws was hilarious. He left a great body of work. RIP.

Thank you for your quick work! Our favourite on screen grandpa is gone :(

you completely nailed this! another honorable mention is Freebie and the Bean

Thank you so much!

Well done! Including So I Married...one of my absolute favorite characters ever! Even though he reported to a quorum.

Wait Until Dark is still one of my favorite movies to this day. First saw it over 20 years ago and i love it. He's so good at being creepy, it's insane. Also it's crazy how much younger Alan looks like 90s Paul Riser🤔☺️

I would also recommend Popi, a 1969 film. In an interview with Bob Costas, Mr. Arkin revealed that he hated playing Roat in " Wait until Dark " because he had to terrorize Hepburn. He regarded her as having " such a lovely presence, " almost like royalty in real life, so having to treat her so badly really bothered him for years. What a guy!

Do investigate all of ARKINS films. He was so unique and great!

Agree wholeheartedly about Wait Until Dark

Would love to see more top tens like these of other actors

Nice tribute. Well done.

Loved loved LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE!! Funny you can do ELUSIVE vids for virtually all the actors in that movie (also loved the Paul Dano Elusive vid!)

The heart ❤ and catch 22 are my favorites Both...unforgettable!

OMG So I Married an Axe Murderer is my FAVORITE Mike Myers movie!!! ❤❤❤

I was sad to hear Arkin had passed, but he got to live a long, active life and his career was just phenomenal. Glad to see Wait Until Dark at number one (mainly because it's my number one too lol): it's remarkable how he mixed charm and creepiness so well in that, he was every bit as great as Hepburn. Btw you should try watching The Return of Captain Invincible if you haven't-- it's a bad movie, but it's funny-bad and Arkin is hilarious as the world's worst superhero.

Catch-22 is one of my favourite movies ever!!

Bravooooo! I was right all along! When I started watching this wonderfully researched video upload….I was…surmising, Wait Until Dark will be No. 1 Arkin the great was slitheringly manacingcin the movie, his disappearaaaance into the character will send shivers up and down your spine…terrorizing a helpless blind woman. And, and the blind woman was even portrayed with effective fragility by an ever looooveable pixie: Hepburn

Exceptional List on an Exceptional Actor

For me my favorite Alan Arkin's performance is Popi it's a movie from the late 60s . I was really upset when Alan Arkin beats Eddie Murphy for the Oscar for best supporting actor. I still think that Eddie Murphy should had won the Oscar for best supporting actor but I am glad that he won the Oscar

Totally agree!!! ❤

I read The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter 50+ years ago but I didn’t know a movie was made .... if Alan Arkin is in it, I've got to see it.

Love him❤️🙏🏼

I couldn't believe that he was the actor in 'Wait Until Dark'"! I, also thought that Alan Arkin's, 'Inspector Clouseau', was very funny. Just his manner of speaking could make me laugh. I must confess that I believe Alan Arkin maintained his sexiness as he got older. I'm 52 years old and I know that in life things come to an end, it doesn't mean that my heart won't feel the pain. Brilliant actor, but my heart is....💔

Alan Arkin was so good in Axe Murderer they copied that 'role' in The Other Guys!!! Which I love too!

sorry also Popi! have you seen that? he is phenomenal

I loved his very low-keyed, lovely performance in "Rafferty and the Gold Dust Twins" opposite Sally Kellerman and Mackenzie Phillips, but no DVD. WarnerVideo tweeted me once: "There's no audience for it."

Luckily I’ve seen the lion share of this wonderful actors work (yes being in your mid 50s, and starting to be a serious film buff when I was 13 in 1980 and lots of VHS, discs, streaming and theater showings among the years has helped lol). Other standout work includes Mother Night, Fourth Wise Man, Seven Percent Solution, Popi, Last Of the Red Hot Lovers, Hearts Of The West, and Freebie and the Bean.

While I was watching this video, all I kept saying to myself was where's "Wait Until Dark." I wasn't disappointed! He is unbelievably creepy and scary in this movie.

Have you ever read the book of The Heart is a Lonley Hunter? The author I think is Carson McKellen. It's a wonderful book. I read it in high school. It was such a good read. That house, that family. If Alan Aarkin is the character I think he is playing I am going to watch it and enjoy every moment of it. What a fantastic tribute to an amazing man.

GlenGarry Glen Ross is the first movie that comes to mind when I think of Alan Arkin, closely followed by Rocketeer

Loved him with Jimmy Caan in Freebie and the Bean!!!

Jack Lemmon was great in EVERY role he was in - HUGE fan of his. If you have not seen the movie Dad - which seems no one has seen but me - OMG THAT is his best later role for sure!

I was a little surprised there is no mention of "The Seven Percent Solution".

No, Glen must be higher. Finest acting movie maybe of that decade. Everyone should've been nominated, Lemon, ugh. Arkin had maybe the hardest role because he has the tough, Tough job of Active Listening. Hence, not showy, nobody notices, but so difficult in film to do.

You missed one of my favorites even though he only had a small role, Little Murders.

I LOVE Slums of Beverly Hills - ANOTHER film never talked about!

You should see Thirteen Conversations About One Thing.

You need to see two little known TV movies, Escape from Sobibor, and the Other Side of Hell. Disturbing, riveting, brilliant. BTW, in a talk about his work at American Cinematheque, Arkin said he HATED working with Terence Young, too dictatorial and unwilling to consider actors' input. Nevertheless...

Popi and Freebie and the Bean could have at least be on the Honorable Mentions.

U forgot Standup Guys 2913. He does more than hold his own against the greats Walkin and Pacino

Along with The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Simon is my favorite.

Captain Invincible was my favourite

❤

I absolutely loved him in, so I married an ax murderer. I was trying to place that so thank you. Rest in peace.

Freebie and Bean Should have been on this list

Freebe and the Bean with James Cann a great movie.

And was a comedy Legend rest in peace

So I Married an Axe Murderer is the best comedy of the '90s.

I heard his audio books for days and weeks when I thought I was at the lowest of my life oh sir I was wrong;

Catch 22 was his best performance, not even close.

Axe murderer was great

Freebie and the Bean??

WHAT?!? no Freebie and the Bean??? Cinematic men of culture everywhere are disappointed . . .

I loved this movie!!! What older actor can play a heroin addict?

Not sure the nom for wait until the dark should have be for supporting but have be a while since i saw the movie. Have to Say my favorite performance was maybe kominsky metod

Yo forgot Popi.

Freebie and the Bean.

The in laws

Little Miss not his Best.Have a bunch of work.

He did not deserve a nom over Leo in Django that year. Bad nom

Arkin was boring, that's why his movies are so forgettable.