TOP 10 LANCE HENRIKSEN

I feel like this blog has lost a little direction lately, so I decided to boost the thing up with a dose of the always fantastic Lance Henriksen. Lets not forget, this blog concerns B-movies and Mr. Henriksen could quite possibly be heralded as one of the greatest, if not greatest, B-movie actors of all time. Even if he isn't the lead, its hard for him to not steal the show in every movie he stars in. I feel bad for you if you haven't seen him shine, but if you are a frequent visitor of this website you will realize that every movie is rated by *Lance Approvals*. That is how important he is to us and the entire low budget film community. Now to get on with the list, I have ten top performances by the man himself that will go down in B-movie history:

10) Detective Hal Vukovich in "The Terminator"

Although it is a somewhat minor role, this was the start of Lancemania. Here Lance plays the sidekick detective to the frustrated but heroic Ed Traxler. He has some funny lines here and there and is ultimately gunned down by Arnie. Lance plays this role with ease and adds a little flavor to a somewhat generic role. A little trivia that many Lance fans may already know: Lance was originally going to play the Terminator until James Cameron chose Arnold in the end. Lance even showed up to the studio in full Terminator attire to scare the producers.

9) Sergeant Neff in "Damien: The Omen II"

Every son of satan needs an authoritative guardian on earth, and in "Damien: The Omen II" that guardian takes shape as a young Lance Henriksen playing a military school Sergeant. He looks after the young boy and tries to help in the moulding of young Damien as the next leader of hell. Lance does a fine job playing subdued evil.

8) Emil Fouchon in "Hard Target"

Lance takes the action film villain to a whole new level in the Van Damme picture "Hard Target". Not only does he steal the show from other quality B movie studs such as Arnold Vosloo "Darkman II: The Return of Durant" and "The Mummy", but he even outdoes the always superior action scenes by John Woo. This was Woo's introduction into America and he was still trying to find his steps, but he chose a perfect lead villain in Mr. Henriksen as he hunts down people for game, and does so in style.

7) Hank in "Survival Quest"

Rarely do we get Lance in a completely heroic and moral role, even as a good guy. We do get this with "Survival Quest" though, one of the most forgotten movies of the 1980s. Lance is one with nature and battles the always great Mark Rolston who you may also know as one of the grunt soldier in "Aliens". "Survival Quest" also has an early appearance by Catherine Keener, but really Lance steals the show once again. This film won't be remembered for it's story or other actors, but for Lance's pure awesomeness.
6) Dr. Jarret in "Man's Best Friend"

This movie is BAD. Like really BAD. Think "Beethoven" meets "Cujo" meets "Deadly Friend", but once again Lance manages to deliver quality in a den of garbage. The sheer awesomeness that he took this role seriously and put a lot of time and effort into it proves that the man is capable of greatness.

5) Jack Powell in "Nature of the Beast"

This film may be the only time Lance is ever matched in awesomeness. The co-lead star of this film is none other than Eric Roberts. This movie was basically straight to video in the mid 90s, and having these two clash is a B-movie dream. Throw in the creepiest director alive ("Powder, "Jeepers Creepers") and you have Lance getting some help from every corner to add to his already self awesomeness.

4) Ed Harley in "Pumpkinhead"

This role and movie has pretty much become legendary in the horror B-movie circuit. Directed by the late great special effects wizard Stan Winston, we have Lance in pain seeking revenge on some teenagers for his dead son through the power of an evil monster. Sadly, I have not seen his cameos in the recent straight to DVD sequels, but I doubt they can top the greatness of this role. Hard to believe this could be topped, but somehow Lance does it.

3) Chains Cooper in "Stone Cold"

Before "Sons of Anarchy" made biker gangs cool again, Lance Henriksen was the baddest biker in B-movie history. Not only does he battle the NFL bad boy Brian Bosworth, he surrounds himself with violence and debauchery throughout this entire film. It is hard to take this film seriously, but in all seriousness, Chains Cooper may be the baddest dude ever.

2) Jesse Hooker in "Near Dark"

This was hard not to put as the #1 Lance film. Not only is this my favorite "vampire" movie of all time, this is probably one of the best movies of the 1980s. Lance spent extra money buying special costume ideas to terrorize innocent people to prepare for this role. This shows how awesome Lance is. He spent probably a thousand dollars and countless hours staying in character to play the leader of a vampire gang, when most A-list celebrities don't even bother identifying with the character. If there was an oscar for awesomeness, Lance would have won it.

1) Bishop in "Aliens"

The most recognizable role of his career, and probably one of the most recognizable androids of all time. Although he is not the lead, he steals every scene with his presence as the creepy quiet android known as Bishop. Too bad he won't be most remembered for a starring role, but Bishop has a prominent role in the film, and also plays a factor in the rest of the Alien franchise. I'd let him play the knife game with my hand any day.

Honorable Mention: "Millenium" is one of the greatest television series' of all time, but since it isn't a film I decided to leave it off the list. Also worth acknowledging are his performances in "Powder", "Excessive Force", "The Quick and The Dead", and many many more...