To call Jeff Bridges "the most underappreciated great actor of his generation," as did Janet Maslin in herreview of "American Heart" (1992), became something of a cliché in contemporary film criticism. Hailed for his relaxed, naturalistic performance style, Bridges remained an A-list leading man for over four decades without the benefit of ever having been a box-office champ. Furthermore, Bridges accomplished this feat without ever having to resort to the broad self-parody of such contemporaries as Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson and Robert De Niro. Basically a character actor with leading man looks, Bridges built his reputation with a wide assortment of parts in various genres. Much like the late, great Spencer Tracy, however, Bridges’ greatest talent was his ability to take on complex, morally ambiguous characters with such ease that people accused him of playing himself.