Best Hollywood comebacks

In movieland, few words are more cherished than “comeback.” And 2008 has been a year of reassuring comebacks. Mickey Rourke and Robert Downey Jr. top the list, while the jury is still out on Tom Cruise and Jim Carrey.

Comeback is a generic word, freely tossed around. To qualify for a comeback, an actor doesn’t need to have gone away. He just needs not to have been noticed.

Examples, both past and present:

Rourke is the real thing, with his tender, mesmerizing performance in The Wrestler definite Oscar-bait. The role of a has-been wrestler almost mirrors Rourke’s own status. Once a critic’s favorite, he’s made relatively few films in the last decade, with 2006’s Stormbreaker a critical and box-office dud. But he’s been navigating the comeback trail with great finesse, appearing on talk shows, apologizing for past excesses and even chatting up his pet Chihuahua.

Downey has never gone away. He was wry and witty in 2007’s Zodiac, but the film was not widely seen. His terrific turn in Iron Man helped make the comic book movie a Marvelous hit, and he followed it with inspired hilarity in Tropic Thunder. The one-time bad boy and substance abuser is now a Hollywood kingpin, to be seen in ‘09 as Sherlock Holmes, co-starring Jude Law and Rachel McAdams. One misstep, however: He started dissing The Dark Knight once the Batman epic surpassed Iron Man as the year’s biggest blockbuster.

Gwyneth Paltrow has announced that she wants to concentrate on her family and no longer cares about “carrying” a movie. So, after a slew of largely unseen artsy endeavors, Princess Gwyn made a wise career move by playing Pepper Potts in Iron Man. She was accessible, jolly and a regular salt-and-pepper gal who had strong chemistry with Downey. If Iron Man was a comeback for Downey, it was no less so for Paltrow.

Jim Carrey and Tom Cruise are hoping for holidays greetings.

Carrey’s last hit was 2005’s Fun With Dick and Jane, but it was a fleetingly popular film that few even remember. Otherwise, his recent starring vehicles have bombed. Yes Man, which borrows heavily from Carrey’s own Liar, Liar, opened nicely but below expectations. Carrey and Company are blaming its meek opening week on the weather.

Cruise’s alleged fall from grace has been widely documented. But his comic bit in Tropic Thunder won raves, including a Golden Globe supporting-actor nod, while his down-with-Hitler opus Valkyrie, opened Christmas Day with strong advance tracking but mixed reviews. Still, don’t count Cruise out. He knows how to play the game.

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