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" There are some actors and actresses who can improve any movie simply by being in them. R.I.P.D., a new action comedy/comic-book adaptation out this weekend, proves this rule. Trailers for the film don&amp;#039;t inspire the greatest confidence: The film looks like a goofy Men in Black clone, but with ghosts instead of aliens. But the film&amp;#039;s greatest asset is all over that trailer: Jeff Bridges. We know what you&amp;#039;re thinking: Why is Jeff Bridges channeling Yosemite Sam, and will I ever respect the star of Starman  again? To put your mind at ease, here are five non-Coen brothers-related reasons we still love Jeff Bridges. Duane Jackson in The Last Picture Show (1971)      As Duane Jackson, Bridges seethes with pent-up frustration. As a star football player, he struts around knowing that he&amp;#039;s one of the two biggest fish in his hometown&amp;#039;s microscopic pond. But that delicate balance is upset after his girlfriend, played by Cybil Shepherd, loses interest and tries to use him to get another man. Jackson snaps at everyone because he knows his time in the sun is over. Bridges&amp;#039;s breakout performance is still devastating because he&amp;#039;s at his most vulnerable whenever he picks a fight. That One Guy in King Kong (1976)      You may be worried that the Dude&amp;#039;s presence may not be enough to sustain your interest in R.I.P.D. But worry not, here is proof positive that he can make any movie, no matter how megalithically boring, a little better. I mean, come on, even King Kong gets turned on by Jeff Bridges. Wow, wow! Richard Bone in Cutter&amp;#039;s Way (1981)      In Cutter&amp;#039;s Way, Bridges plays Richard Bone, a happy-go-lucky companion to John Heard&amp;#039;s drunk/maladroit would-be detective. Bone is reluctant to indulge Heard&amp;#039;s righteously angry search for answers in a murder investigation. He chafes at the thought that he&amp;#039;s responsible in some way and has to act on his conscience. But more importantly, Bone is the pragmatic splash of cold water that Heard&amp;#039;s Alex Cutter needs most. In this scene from the moody and acidly funny neo-noir, Bridges gets to the heart of his character&amp;#039;s disagreement with Cutter: Who are we to right other people&amp;#039;s wrongs? Max Klein in Fearless (1993)      Fearless&amp;#039;s portrayal of survivor&amp;#039;s guilt is largely as indelible as it is thanks to Bridges&amp;#039;s performance as Max Klein. Klein&amp;#039;s personality is totally changed after he survives a devastating plane crash. He&amp;#039;s characterized by an unsettling mix of panic and serenity, a counter-phobic mess that courts danger with a seemingly clear-eyed intensity. You can never really tell if he&amp;#039;s actively working toward destroying or improving himself. Bridges expertly walks that insane emotional tightrope, and makes you believe that it&amp;#039;s entirely possible that Klein is both driven insane and inspired by his trauma. Wild Bill Hickok in Wild Bill (1995)      Bridges stars as the famous gunfighter-turned-sheriff in this stodgy but satisfying cine-memoir of Hickok&amp;#039;s last days. Director Walter Hill&amp;#039;s faith in Bridges&amp;#039;s performance is apparent from the way he never lingers too long on the actor&amp;#039;s face. The film is a series of nigh-mythical anecdotes leading up to Hickok&amp;#039;s murder. Bill isn&amp;#039;t even the lead character in his own story, more like a walking icon that the film&amp;#039;s supporting characters all talk about/to but rarely have a conversation with. But whenever Bridges is in the film&amp;#039;s spotlight, he effortlessly makes its bigger-than-life interpretation of the character seem real enough. That&amp;#039;s not nothing considering how many people Hickok is shown killing in the film (see above video for proof). Follow The Culture Blog on RSS and on Twitter at @ESQCulture. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a23926/jeff-bridges-roles/>