Irish heartthrob

Irish actor Liam Neeson’s 30-year career includes an Oscar-nominated performance in Schindler’s List. Hizreen Kamal looks at some of his notable on-screen roles in conjunction with the release of the naval war action film Battlefield

Darkman

1 - NEESON was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Actor in this 1990 American superhero action film directed by Sam Raimi. He played Peyton Westlake, a scientist who was attacked and left for dead by a ruthless mobster after his girlfriend ran foul of a corrupt developer. The film brought his name to public attention.

Schindler’s List

2 - IN this 1993 Steven Spielberg film, Neeson played German businessman Oskar Schindler who saved more than 1,000 mostly Polish-Jewish refugees during the Holocaust by employing them in his factories. His performance earned him nominations for Best Actor for the Oscar, Bafta and the Golden Globes.

Michael Collins

3 - THIS 1996 historical biopic, written and directed by Neil Jordan, starred Neeson as General Michael Collins, the Irish patriot and revolutionary who died in the Irish Civil War. Neeson received the Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actor while the film won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

Taken

4 - ACTING beside Famke Janssen and Maggie Grace in this 2008 action film, Neeson played a retired Central Intelligence Agency operative who sets out to find his teenage daughter who was kidnapped by a sex slavery ring while travelling in Europe. The movie was a worldwide box office hit.

Kinsey

5 - NEESON plays American biologist Alfred Kinsey in this 2004 biography which illustrated the latter’s life and his contributions to the world of human sexuality research. Besides being nominated yet again for a Golden Globe Award, his convincing portrayal earned him Best Actor at the Irish Film Awards.

Batman Begins

6 - NEESON played Batman’s greatest nemesis Ra’s al Ghul in this 1995 update of the masked crusader by Christopher Nolan. He will be reprising his role in the upcoming Nolan’s sequel The Dark Knight Rises, slated for release in July.

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

7 - NEESON’S role as Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn in the 1999 prequel to the Star Wars saga earned him a nomination at the Saturn Award for Best Actor though the film was panned by critics and the bumbling Gungan (his travelling partner, Jar Jar Binks), became a subject of pop culture ridicule.

Clash of The Titans

8 - IN this 2010 remake of the 1981 film of the same name, Neeson played the Greek mythological god Zeus who helped his son Perseus (played by Sam Worthington) restore order on Earth. The film, heavy on CGI effects, was a hit that spawned the recently-released sequel Wrath Of The Titans.

Love Actually

9 - IN Richard Curtis’ British romantic comedy film Love Actually (2003), Neeson played a widowed writer who helped his son reconnect with his life. The film was nominated at the Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast.

Rob Roy

10 - THE 1995 historical drama saw Neeson as the 18th Century Scottish folk hero who led the rebellion against feudal landowners in the Scottish Highlands. hizreen@nst.com.my

Clash of The Titans

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Kinsey

Taken

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Irish heartthrob

Irish actor Liam Neeson’s 30-year career includes an Oscar-nominated performance in Schindler’s List. Hizreen Kamal looks at some of his notable on-screen roles in conjunction with the release of the naval war action film Battlefield

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