“Picture a girl who took a nosedive from the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down.” The scene: Captain Miller and Private Ryan reminisce about their lives. As if the script wasn’t enough, Damon takes it a step further and adds a new layer of depth.
He tells a made-up story about when he saw his brother kissing a girl. Luckily, it added a lot to his character, and it remains one of the most remembered scenes in this film. To this day, the movie is still revered as one of the best depictions of the horrors of war.
The Dark Knight
*Clap, clap, clap…*
The scene: Everyone claps for Gordon’s promotion. The joker joins in with a slow clap that carries on after everyone else stops applauding. “The Dark Knight” was released in 2008 and included some big names like Christian Bale and, of course, the late Heath Ledger.
As one of the most iconic bad guys in cinema history, the Joker has been played by numerous actors. But, Heath Ledger arguably did it best because of how immersed he was in his character, which allowed him to improvise a lot of his lines and actions. His extended clapping in this scene was a definite show-stopper.
Good Will Hunting
"Son of a gun. He stole my line."
The scene: Will’s therapist is reading a letter written to him by Will. Robin Williams has delivered some amazing performances in his career, but this is one of his best - and it was completely unscripted! Also, this wasn’t the only line that he made up for this film.
He showed off his impressive improvisation abilities several times throughout this iconic movie. The movie went on to win a hefty two Oscars, which went to the main protagonists Matt Damon and Robin Williams, not to mention the additional seven Oscar-nominations that it received.
The Silence Of The Lambs
"f-f-f-f-f-f-f-f-f-v-v-v-s-s-s!"
The scene: Clarice Starling and frightening Hannibal Lecter are talking through the wall of the prison cell. He is describing in detail how he ate a human liver with "fava beans and a nice Chianti."
Anthony Hopkins plays a brilliant psychiatrist who also happens to be a complete psychopath who eats human flesh. In this eerie scene, as well as in the rest of the film, his goal was to be as spine-chilling as possible, which he definitely succeeded in doing. When filming this scene, he decided to include the sucking of flesh, which resembled eating the human liver, by making noises with his teeth and lips that is iconic to this film.
Deliverance
"Squeal like a pig."
The scene: A group of hillbillies is attacking Bobby who was played by Ned Beatty. “Deliverance” was released in 1972. It was intense, and it was suspenseful, and really managed to keep viewers on the edge of their seats thanks to all the tension-filled scenes.
This gory, disturbing scene was reconfigured to fit both cinema and television showings. The dialogue was changed, so they would not have to film two versions of the same scene for the film. Whoever came up with the new line is unknown, but regardless of who did it, it made for an incredible scene.