Whether they walk onto the screen with Bruno’s flamboyant strut or Bond’s deadly finesse, actors can make their marks on cinematic history with their body language as well as their words. In a few cases, those walks have become the stuff of legend and gone on to be at least as well recognized as the movies they appeared in. Here are ten such walks deemed worthy of being named MTV Movies Blog favorites.
10. Harvey Keitel in “Reservoir Dogs”
If you’re talking about walking scenes in movies, there’s no one more imitated or more likely to have put hair on the chests of the actors who made it. Flanked by Michael Madsen and Steve Buscemi, Keitel led Tarantino’s black little parade into the opening credits as Mr. White and no one’s been able to wear a suit quite as well since.
9. Kevin Spacey in “The Usual Suspects”
Don’t read number nine if you haven’t seen the end to one of the best screenplays ever written. But if you have you know that Kevin Spacey’s fake cripple walk was convincing enough to fool audiences and Agent Kujan. And like that, Spacey pulled off one of the best movie-ending visuals ever seen with his mid-stride switch from limping thug to criminal mastermind.
8. Pam Grier in “Foxy Brown”
Foxy Brown’s deadly gait is one of the most intimidating visions you can ever see coming around the corner. Pam Grier matches Keitel in her ability to walk like someone who could kill a man and no one can seamlessly swing from a step into firing a pistol with half the lethal elegance she displayed in this 1974 classic.
7. John Turturo in “The Big Lebowski”
The greatest on-screen dance in a bowling alley was immediately followed by the greatest victory walk ever shot in a bowling alley in the immortally hilarious “Jesus” scene from “The Big Lebowski.” Turturo’s flick of his heel followed by his flailing arms and a quick slow-motion kiss at John Goodman and Jeff Bridges is a perverse masterpiece.
6. Jason Schwartzmann in “The Darjeeling Limited”
Jason Schwartzmann possesses the arcane ability to look extremely awkward but utterly badass at the same time when Wes Anderson films him in slow motion. Whether it’s tossing flower petals at a funeral or walking alongside the train in “The Darjeeling Limited,” there’s something nerdily magnificent about watching him walk anywhere.
5. Anthony Daniels in “Star Wars”
Anthony Daniels pretty much defined the dorky robot walk for all time as C-3PO in the six episodes of “Star Wars.” Ask anyone now how a droid would walk who is fluent in more than six million forms of communication, and there’s no denying that this protocol droid was and is the gold standard hobbling about in the deserts of Tatooine.
4. The Velociraptors in “Jurassic Park”
If for no other reason than that they’ve spawned ridiculous copycat performances for the ages on YouTube, the Velociraptors in “Jurassic Park” undeniably have one of the finest stylized CGI walks that anyone has ever put on screen. Don’t believe me? Watch the kid in this video.
3. Mike Myers in “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery”
The only walk on this list worthy of being called shaggadelic is the one that kicked off Myers’ run as the most and in most cases far too often quoted British spy in film. (Sorry, James. You know it’s true.) Packing all the style of Turturo’s Jesus and the Velociraptors into one epic swagger, Myers created a cultural landmark with this stroll that the Brits never even asked for.
2. Michael Jackson in “Moonwalker”
Named for the King of Pop’s trademark dance move, this movie was the middleman that took Jackson’s backwards crawl from being a concert party trick to a phenomenon spawning two unforgettable video games. Now, if only we U.S. residents could only get it on a legal Region 1-friendly DVD.
1. Ben Stiller in “Zoolander”
The only competitive walk on this list overseen by judge David Bowie is Ben Stiller’s ultimate performance opposite penultimate walker Owen Wilson. Derek Zoolander may have officially been disqualified in his underwear-ripping nail-biter of a performance, but he single handedly made the best case on record for runway walking as an Olympic event.
What your all-time favorite walk captured on film? Do you think our choices are worthy? Sound off with your reactions and own picks in the comment section below!
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