Willem Dafoe's unforgettable roles

Dafoe is not an American blockbuster celebrity. Although he has played in a few commercial flicks, he is usually cast in daring productions by visionary directors. Such movies are naturally a focus of the Berlinale, so it comes as no surprise that Dafoe is a regular guest at the film festival (here in 2014, for Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel") and even served as a jury member in 2007.

The epic western film "Heaven's Gate" from 1980 was to be Dafoe's silver screen debut — until he was edited out. It was anyway one of the biggest disasters in film history. But the negative reviews didn't hurt Dafoe's career. After a string of minor roles, he scored big with 1985's political thriller, "To Live and Die in L.A." The film is screened at this year's Berlinale in Dafoe's honor.

Dafoe's real breakthrough came just a year later when he starred in Oliver Stone's critically-acclaimed movie "Platoon." Portraying an American sergeant who has been serving in Southeast Asia for many years, his performance was so convincing that he was nominated for an Academy Award. However, he lost out to Michael Caine for the award for best supporting actor Oscar.

As Dafoe is best-known for playing ruthless villains, many were surprised when he turned up in Martin Scorsese's "The Last Temptation of Christ" as the one and only Jesus Christ himself. The controversial 1988 film, which drew protests from Catholics the world over, hit cinemas just a few months after the action movie "Off Limits," in which Dafoe plays a military policeman.

In 1988, Dafoe was everywhere, the actor having also starred in "Mississippi Burning," a film by British director Alan Parker that received 7 Oscar nominations. Dafoe plays a young FBI agent in the 1960s who comes to a small town in Mississippi to investigate the disappearance of civil rights activists before becoming entangled in deep racism and a far-reaching conspiracy.

Unfortunately, the 1990s were not as fruitful for the American actor. He was twice nominated for a worst performance Golden Raspberry for his roles in "Body of Evidence" and "Speed 2: Cruise Control." Dafoe broke the curse in 2000 when he excelled as German silent film actor, Max Schreck, in "Shadow of the Vampires" — for which he received his second Oscar nomination.

Dafoe is known for shooting two, three or more films a year, usually in collaboration with leading American and European directors. The early 2000s were no exception. Among his renowned roles was the charismatic seducer John Carpenter in Paul Schrader's study of sex addiction and hedonism, "Auto Focus" (2002).

At the beginning of the new millennium, Dafoe took part in a series of commercially successful and well-received blockbusters. First, he appeared as Green Goblin in the 2002 "Spider-Man" movie, and then portrayed a quirky German in Wes Anderson's "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" from 2004, a film in which he showcased his comedic qualities.

Dafoe is so popular in Europe that it is easy to forget he is an American actor. His appearance and diction have made him the favorite of several European directors such as Lars von Trier, who cast him and Charlotte Gainsbourg in the scandalous psychological thriller "Antichrist" from 2009. Numerous violent sex scenes in the Danish director's film sparked heated debates.

Willem Dafoe is renowned for his edgy screen presence in dramatic roles, but his sensitive side comes out in films like Abel Ferrara's "Pasolini" from 2014, the actor portraying the legendary Italian director in his final days. "Dafoe bears an uncanny resemblance to his subject as he drifts through a lovingly realised world of beige interiors and cruisy exteriors," wrote the Guardian.