HOT: Splash

Here we have the first teaming of what will eventually become many between Tom Hanks the actor and Ron Howard the director.

I remember really enjoying this film when I was younger, probably the first film where I started to like Tom Hanks.

Anyway, Splash stars Hanks as Allen Bauer. We first meet Allen on a ferry boat as a young child. He sees something in the water and decides to jump in despite not knowing how to swim. It is here that he meets a young Madison, who keeps him safe until he is saved.

Cut to years later and Allen is in charge of his family's produce business, along with his older brother, Freddie (John Candy). Freddie, however, is more into living than working, so most if not all of the business decisions are thrust upon Allen - add that to fact that his girlfriend has just left him and Allen is about to have a minor breakdown.

With that he decides to take an unplanned trip to Cape Cod, where he first met Madison (even though he thinks she might have been a figment of his imagination).

Allen rents a boat to take him across and we learn that he still has not learned how to swim. Of course, he falls out of the boat and gets hit in the head by the boat. Madison (Daryl Hannah) rescues him yet again.

During her rescue, Allen drops his wallet and Madison gets it off the ocean floor - oh, and Madison just so happens to be a mermaid.

She uses his licence to get his address and tracks him down. Despite not knowing how to speak, Allen takes her in and immediately begins to fall in love with her. She does learn English, however, by watching television and the love affair between Allen and Madison begin. She is, however, keeping this one major secret from him.

Meanwhile, Walter Kornbluth (Eugene Levy) is trying to track down Madison to prove that mermaids exist. He saw her on an ocean excursion, but dropped his camera before he could get a picture - now it is his one goal to show he is not crazy and expose Madison for the mermaid she is.

Will Kornbluth expose her? Will this be a deal breaker for Allen? Will Madison be able to last outside of the ocean for so long?

I have to admit, Splash was a pleasant surprise - I hadn't seen it in a long time, but I still enjoyed it. Maybe not as much as I enjoyed it when I was younger, but honestly it still held up for me.

I really enjoyed the relationship between Hanks and Hannah - plus the trio of Hanks, Candy and Levy were great together.

Grade:

Top 10: Secondary Actors

Well, after a week off (thanks to my absent-mindedness) the Top 10 Tuesdays have officially returned.

This week, I have come up with my Top 10: Secondary Actors. This is a list of talented actors, who possibly, but probably not, could carry a film in a starring role. They are best known as the sidekick, the villain, the best friend.

So here is my list of the week (in reverse order as always):

10) Stephen Tobolowsky
Notable Films: Thelma & Louise, Basic Instinct, Sneakers, Single White Female, Groundhog Day, Memento, Adaptation, Freaky Friday, Robots, Wild Hogs.

9) Brent Spiner
Notable Films: Star Trek, Phenomenon, Dude Where's My Car?, I Am Sam, Independence Day, The Aviator, Material Girls, Superhero Movie.

8) Bruce McGill
Notable Films: Animal House, Wildcats, Three Fugitives, Little Vegas, My Cousin Vinny, Cliffhanger, Black Sheep, Courage Under Fire, Ali, Shallow Hal, Runaway Jury, Vantage Point, Recount.

7) Jason Bateman
Notable Films: Necessary Roughness, Breaking the Rules, Love Stinks, The Sweetest Thing, Starsky & Hutch, Dodgeball, The Break Up, Smokin' Aces, The Kingdom, Hancock, Juno.

6) Stephen Root
Notable Films: Ghost, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dave, Office Space, Bicentennial Man, O Brother Where Art Though?, Ice Age, Finding Nemo, Jersey Girl, Idiocracy, No Country For Old Men.

5) Eugene Levy
Notable Films: Vacation, Splash, American Pie films, Armed & Dangerous, Father of the Bride, Multiplicity, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, Cheaper By The Dozen 2, Bringing Down the House.

4) James Cromwell
Notable Films: The Man with Two Brains, Revenge of the Nerds, Pink Cadillac, Babe, Eraser, L.A. Confidential, Deep Impact, The Green Mile, Space Cowboys, The Sum of All Fears, I Robot, Spiderman 3.

3) Gary Cole
Notable Films: Lucas, In the Line of Fire, A Simple Plan, Office Space, The Gift, Dodgeball, The Ring Two, Talladega Nights, Breach, Conspiracy, Pineapple Express.

2) Joe Pantoliano
Notable Films: Risky Business, The Goonies, Running Scared, La Bamba, The Fugitive, Bad Boys, Congo, Bound, U.S. Marshals, The Matrix, Memento, Daredevil, Majestic.

1) Steve Buscemi
Notable Films: Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Rising Sun, Pulp Fiction, Airheads, Big Daddy, Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, Con Air, Armageddon, Ghost World, Big Fish, The Island.

That's my list. I may try to do Secondary Actresses next week, but will need some ideas - so please post some. Thanks.