Antonio Banderas: 5 Awesome Performances & 5 That Sucked

3. Miguel Alvarez - Philadelphia (1993)

Just a year after his official breakout performance in Mambo Kings (a film he had to learn his lines phonetically for, so poor was his English), Banderas starred opposite Tom Hanks in the heart-breaking, hugely important Philadelphia. The performance and the success of the film earned Banderas his mainstream break-through and wide attention.

Even though the film centres on Hanks' transformative performance and Denzel Washington's power, Banderas' normalcy and passion is just as important. In the context of a film industry that still hadn't made any real attempt to realistically show homosexual relationships on screen, the presentation of "normal", non-demonised figures like Hanks and Banderas' lovers was a major stride forward.

In a film not played for obvious political gains, his Miguel is a picture of restraint and of emotional devastation and endurance, and the subtlety of the performance should not be forgotten simply because it sits alongside more showy performances in the film or in Banderas' career.