This past week, the world mourned as the news broke that Hollywood star James Gandolfini had passed at age 51, while vacationing with his family in Italy. Scheduled to receive an award from the Taormina Film Festival, the screen icon suffered a serious heart attack in his hotel room after a day of sightseeing and dinner with his loved ones. In spite of extensive attempts at resuscitation, doctors were unable to revive the three time Emmy Award winner. As friends, relatives and fans from around the globe grieve and pay their respects; we take a look back at his career and list the ten definitive performances of James Gandolfini.
10. Bear - Get Shorty
Starring alongside an all-star cast including John Travolta, Danny Devito and Gene Hackman, many may be unaware that the Hawaiian shirt wearing, beard sporting, stunt-man, bodyguard of gangster Bo Catlett (Delroy Lindo) was in fact a slightly more youthful James Gandolfini. While admittedly a minor role, he serves as an integral part of arguably one of the finest casts ever assembled. His interactions with Travolta, which see him repeatedly beaten, battered and thrown down stairs, serve as comedic high points of the production. His short, punchy dialogue provides a welcome counterpoint to the often intricate and lengthy monologues of the central characters making Get Shorty minor, but distinctive, highlight of his storied career.