Paul Winfield makes judges and officers seem human without diminishing their authority. We value his resonant voice and his humour, though these dependable supporting parts can leave us wishing he had more to do.
Fi1m perspective
In Presumed Innocent (1990), Paul Winfield plays Judge Larren Lyttle. His wit is particularly welcome in Alan J. Pakula's patient courtroom mystery, whose solemnity occasionally slows it down. We laughed, and felt some relief: Lyttle's humour gives us a break from that heavy atmosphere without making the judge seem any less capable. It is a supporting performance worth seeking out in a film we warmly recommend.
The lead in Sounder (1972), as sharecropper Nathan Lee Morgan, had already shown how much he could bring to a family drama. There is warmth and intimacy in that work, and it matters when looking at the succession of uniforms and professional titles that followed. In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), he was Captain Clark Terrell; The Terminator (1984) cast him as police lieutenant Ed Traxler. The jobs became a recognisable habit of casting, but they were a narrow use of an actor who could carry a film.
James Cameron's The Terminator is a pursuit thriller. We rate the film highly for the force of its pursuit and Linda Hamilton's performance, even when the violence becomes numbing. Winfield's crusty Traxler belongs to the recognisable human world against which Arnold Schwarzenegger's menace makes sense. The resonant voice helps: it lends weight to the officer without requiring the film to stop and announce his importance. Cameron has a chase to keep moving, and Winfield can establish a figure of authority within those limits.
His voice also found work in narration and animation, while film and television kept using him chiefly in character parts. The frustration is how often the task comes down to supplying authority, however well he does it. We should be wary of praising his dependability so much that we stop asking what else a film might let him do. Start with Lyttle for the wit, then give Sounder an evening of its own.
Biography
Paul Edward Winfield (22 May 1939 – 7 March 2004) was an American actor. He appeared in film, television and on stage from the mid-1960s until his death.
Winfield received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his leading role in Sounder (1972). He was nominated for an Emmy Award for portraying Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1978 miniseries King. Other notable film roles include Captain Clark Terrell in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Lieutenant Ed Traxler in The Terminator (1984), Walter Wright in Cliffhanger (1993) and General Casey in Mars Attacks! (1996). He played Judge Larren Lyttle in Presumed Innocent (1990).
Winfield also voiced characters in animated series including Batman: The Animated Series and Spider-Man, and appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation. He won an Emmy Award for a guest role in Picket Fences.
