6. Burt Munro
An understated, entertaining biopic who was more cult hero than historical figure of note, even though Burt Munro's exploits on his heavily modified Indian Scout motorcycle are well documented. In The World's Fastest Indian, Hopkins portrayed the bike fanatic in a genial and charming performance that perfectly captured Munro's underlying eccentricity as well as his charismatic genius, but again, his performance was very much the only real resemblance to the character.
How They Really LookedHopkins' Version
He's not even trying in this one. Aside from the slightly back-combed hairstyle that Munro favoured, there was very little to work with for the visual side of the role, though Sir Anthony could have dropped a few pounds to portray the famous motorcycle enthusiast, but that's probably unnecessary nit-picking. Munro wasn't exactly the most well-known of Hopkins' subjects, which is perhaps why there was little need to undertake a total transformation, but it's difficult to see the image above as anything but Hopkins on a break from filming in his civilian clothes. That is perhaps why he is clearly so comfortable in the role, and why his performance was so engaging, even if his lack of physical transformation was equalled in his inability to nail a convincing New Zealand accent, which frequently slips back to the sing-song tones and recognisable vowels of his normal Welsh tongue.