The Beauty of Purely Physical Acting

Martin Freeman exhibits, possibly better than any current actor, the ability to convey ordinary, everyday emotion through physical gestures and expressions.

See posts here and here and here.

Another type of physical acting is the actor who knows how to move. Keanu Reeves, for all the criticisms he receives regarding his inability to "emote," is a beautiful creature to watch.

Aldis Hodge exudes the same spare elegance in Leverage. 

Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings runs about and occasionally gives speeches, but he uses his body exactly right in places, including at the end of the first movie.

Aragorn answers Boromir's horn. He strides down the hill towards the rampaging orcs. He appears almost eager, amused, ready to finally stop skulking about and put his abilities to the test. 

It's a beautiful moment. 

And bad guy Bolg is even more enchanting to watch than Azog from the Hobbit trilogy. 

Bolg is Azog's second-in-command (and his son). Played by Lawrence Makoare at 6'4" he moves with engaging fluidity. Azog, Manu Bennett, tends to stomp around (in a good way), but Bolg actually saunters. When he strides into a fortress to greet Azog or faces off with Legolas, he moves with impressive quickness. There's a litheness to his movements, which conveys personality as well as confidence. 

This type of acting deserves major kudos. Kudos!