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Haywire - Ewan McGregorAs Hal Fields, an elderly man who comes out after spending his entire life in the closet, Christopher Plummer charmed his way to a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe Award this past Sunday. He took time out during his acceptance speech to thank his on-screen son and Beginners co-star Ewan McGregor, referring to him as "that scene-stealing swine from the Outer Hebrides." Though his geography is a tad off (the Scottish actor is from Crieff in the lower Highlands, far from the Outer Hebrides) his observation itself is spot on. McGregor is, without a doubt, one of the most consistently engaging and naturally charismatic actors the big screen has to offer.

After undeservedly languishing in a string of under-the-radar films over much of the past decade, Mike Mills' charmer of a film seems to us to signal a bit of a career renaissance for the talented (and still ridiculously handsome) Scot.

Though Beginners hit theatres last July, 2012 is set to bring us even more Ewan on the big screen.  First up is an against-type villainous turn in Steven Soderbergh's action-packed Haywire (opening Friday), followed by Lasse Hallstrom's Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, Bryan Singer's big-budget fairy-tale Jack the Giant Killer, 2011 Sundance favourite Perfect Sense, and Juan Antonio Bayona's supernatural drama The Impossible.

Given he's about to turn up just about everywhere, film-wise, the timing seemed right to take a look back at some of his very best performances to-date. So read on to see what Ewan roles made our list!



Young Adam

 #5 Joe Taylor - Young Adam (2003)

Having abandoned the indie scene in the early part of the decade for blockbuster fare like Star Wars and Black Hawk Down, this intense, atmospheric character piece courtesy of Scottish director David McKenzie sees McGregor re-discover his darker roots. Like many of his star-making turns in the '90s, his take on the hard-edged Joe - a man emotionally paralyzed by his inability to act - is at once sympathetic and repugnant. Joe also happens to be one in a long line of McGregor characters with a proclivity for getting their kit off for uncomfortably realistic love scenes. That fearlessness serves the story extremely well and leads to one of Ewan's best and most haunting roles.


Velvet Goldmine

 #4 Curt Wild - Velvet Goldmine (1998)

The late '90s saw McGregor take on a wide variety of roles in both indie and bigger budget films, but one key supporting turn that stands out more than most of his lead performances is the fascinating Curt Wild in Todd Haynes' love letter to glam rock, Velvet Goldmine. Uncannily channeling glam god Iggy Pop, McGregor's American rock star Curt Wild is completely engrossing and his affair with Bowie stand-in Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is nothing short of mesmerizing. The actor's American accent could use a little work at this point in his career but it doesn't really detract much from the live-wire energy he conveys as the trend-setting, slightly vulnerable Wild. Goldmine also gets bonus points for the fact it brings us a love scene involving McGregor, Christian Bale and an obscene amount of glitter.

For a slightly less erotically-charged scene between McGregor and Bale, check out the clip below.

Buy Velvet Goldmine now!




Revolutionary Road

 #3 Oliver Fields - Beginners (2011)

Though his performance has been largely over-shadowed by co-star Christopher Plummer's excellent turn as Hal, McGregor turns in one of his very best as his lonely, distracted, and emotionally confused son Oliver. There's a refreshing, touching honesty and realness to this slightly lost soul as he copes with his father's unexpected, late-in-life admission and unrelated illness. So it's hard not to feel a kind of joy as Oliver discovers it's never too late to make a fresh start or to find love. That's all down to a fantastic auto-biographical script from director Mike Mills and to a consistently engaging performance from McGregor. Bonus points for Oliver's heartbreaking and occasionally hilarious conversations with his father's dog Arthur.

Watch Ewan and Christopher is the trailers for this remarkable film below.

Buy Beginners now!





#2 Christian - Moulin Rouge! (2001)

When Baz Luhrmann's film hit theatres in 2001, the on-screen musical was, for all intents and non-Disney purposes, dead. So it follows that Moulin Rouge! should not have worked. After all, an emotional musical made entirely of anachronistic pop hits, shot in a music-video style so hyperactive that it made even the most MTV-addicted fan blink in wonder shouldn't draw crowds. But it did. Co-lead Nicole Kidman got the majority of critical praise, but it's McGregor's performance as aspiring writer Christian that makes up the real heart of the production. There are few contemporary actors who could pull off its roll-call of requirements - broad physical comedy, naive romantic charm, heartbreaking angst - and do it so smoothly and sincerely. 

And don't even get us started on those golden tenor vocals of his...check them out for yourself as sings and acts his heart out alongside Kidman below.

Buy Moulin Rouge now!




Trainspotting

 #1 Renton - Trainspotting (1996)

After Shallow Grave, their first successful collaboration, director Danny Boyle and Ewan swiftly planned another go-round. Adapted from Irvine Welsh's attention-grabbing cult novel, their second film brought audiences an atmospheric, serious, comicly dark look at the lives of heroin junkies in Edinburgh. McGregor is at his absolute electric best as lead addict Renton, a character so wholly charismatic and nasty, you're not sure whether to love him or hate him. With charisma to burn and a devil-may-care attitude, he made the world sit up, take notice and crave more...and, like many, we've never gotten over the addiction.

Watch the iconic scene that hurtled Ewan to stardom below. But be warned, there's some coarse language!

Buy Trainspotting now!


Want more Ewan? And let's be honest, who doesn't? Check out our recent interviews with him now:

Over to you - what's your favourite Ewan McGregor role? Join the discussion below!



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