The Top 10 Sam Neill Films

“We always have to remind ourselves of how fragile life on this planet is and what responsibilities we have.“ - Sam Neill

Today we have lost a legend in the world of cinema, Sam Neill. Described as a “rare actor” by the senior editor of Hello!, Neill’s career spanned over five decades, gracing our screens in blockbuster Hollywood hits as well as independent films. Performances such as Mark in Andrzej Żuławski‘s Possession and Alan Grant in Spielberg’s Jurassic Park will stay with movie fans for decades to come, securing Sam Neill as an all-time great.

A list of the best performances by Sam Neill (IMDb)

A man (Richard Roxburgh) the Australian government blames for 1990s political woes blames his mother (Judy Davis), a communist Stalin seduced in 1951. - Letterboxd

The mother of a severely traumatized daughter enlists the aid of a unique horse trainer to help the girl’s equally injured horse. - Letterboxd

Robert Redford broke his toe during the making of this film after a horse stepped on it. Not long after, Neill would go on to make matters worse by also stepping on it, the falling out that followed slowed filming for two months.

After a freak accident, an invisible yuppie runs for his life from a treacherous CIA official while trying to cope with his new life. - Letterboxd

An aspiring young physician, Robert Merivel found himself in the service of King Charles II and saves the life of someone close to the King. Merivel joins the King’s court and lives the high life provided to someone of his position. Merivel is ordered to marry his King’s mistress in order to divert the queens suspicions. He is given one order by the king and that is not to fall in love. The situation worsens when Merivel finds himself in love with his new wife. Eventually, the King finds out and relieves Merivel of his position and wealth. His fall from grace leaves Merivel where he first started. And through his travels and reunions with an old friend, he rediscovers his love for true medicine and what it really means to be a physician. - Letterboxd

An Australian couple takes a sailing trip in the Pacific to get over the recent loss of their son. While on the open sea, they come across a sinking ship with one survivor who is not at all what he seems. - Letterboxd

Spielberg cast Neill in Jurassic Park because of his performance in this film, it is also where Sam Neill met his wife, Noriko Watanabe.

Young and beautiful Lara is loved by three men: a revolutionary, a mogul, and a doctor. Their lives become intertwined with the drama of Russian revolution. Doctor Zhivago is still married when he meets Lara. Their love story is unfolding against the backdrop of revolution which affects the doctor’s career, his family, and his love to Lara. - Letterboxd

Sam Neill plays the part of Kamarovsky In this film, who in the 1965 version was played by Rod Steiger, Neills acting mentor.

This heroic story follows the life of Karol Wojtyla, a Polish Roman catholic who ascends the throne of St. Peter as Pope John Paul II. As a young boy, Karol is a bright and talented student. Archbishop Sapieha recognizes the very special, moving qualities Karol possesses and encourages him to consider the priesthood. Although determined to study Polish literature, Karol turns to the church; he is ordained and studies in Italy, France, and Belgium. Torn by fear and repression in post-Stalin Eastern Europe, Karol becomes a poisonous thorn in the communists’ side. His deer reverence and commitment return him to Poland as Pope John Paul II. - Letterboxd

A new technologically-superior Soviet nuclear sub, the Red October, is heading for the U.S. coast under the command of Captain Marko Ramius. The American government thinks Ramius is planning to attack. Lone CIA analyst Jack Ryan has a different idea: he thinks Ramius is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find him and prove it - because the entire Russian naval and air commands are trying to find Ramius, too. The hunt is on! - Letterboxd

Sean Connery actually spent time onboard the U.S.S. Puffer (S.S.N. 652) to prepare for this role, he was given commander status and could give instructions to service men (with the Captains permission)

When an arranged marriage brings Ada and her spirited daughter to the wilderness of nineteenth-century New Zealand, she finds herself locked in a battle of wills with both her controlling husband and a rugged frontiersman to whom she develops a forbidden attraction. - Letterboxd

Of the fifteen awards Holly Hunter was nominated for this film she won fourteen!

A young woman left her family for an unspecified reason. The husband determines to find out the truth and starts following his wife. At first, he suspects that a man is involved. But gradually, he finds out more and more strange behaviors and bizarre incidents that indicate something more than a possessed love affair. - Letterboxd

A wealthy entrepreneur secretly creates a theme park featuring living dinosaurs drawn from prehistoric DNA. Before opening day, he invites a team of experts and his two eager grandchildren to experience the park and help calm anxious investors. However, the park is anything but amusing as the security systems go off-line and the dinosaurs escape. - Letterboxd

The excessive rain during the scenes involving the T-Rex actually caused the robotics to malfunction, producer Kathleen Kennedy recalls, "The T. Rex went into the heebie-jeebies sometimes. Scared the crap out of us. We'd be, like, eating lunch, and all of a sudden a T. Rex would come alive. At first we didn't know what was happening, and then we realized it was the rain. You'd hear people start screaming."

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Love Tom’s face

Alex