Six Critically Acclaimed Movies Starring American Actor Charlie Sheen

If you are like most TV viewers, you probably know American actor Charlie Sheen from the long-running CBS sitcom, Two And A Half Men. Or from the recent barrage of news reports on his personal life and professional demise. Or maybe you've heard about his live national tour, the Violent Torpedo Of Truth /Defeat Is Not An Option Show.

But prior to his television career and bizarre media blitz, Sheen had starring roles in several award-winning, critically acclaimed feature films. And he caught the acting bug at a young age.

The son of veteran actor Martin Sheen, Charlie (born Carlos Estevez) took an early interest in his father's acting career. In 1974, at nine years of age, he had a small role in his father's made-for-television movie, The Execution of Private Slovik.

During his teen years, Sheen's major passions were baseball and acting. Along with two of his friends, Rob Lowe and Sean Penn, Sheen produced and starred in a number of amateur films. After high school, he pursued several different acting roles, including the 1984 teen war movie Red Dawn.

In 1986, director Oliver Stone gave Sheen his big break -- a memorable lead role in the Oscar-winning Vietnam war drama Platoon. The film's success boosted the young actor to super-stardom. Platoon, and his subsequent movies, established Sheen as a huge box office draw in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Here are six critically acclaimed, mostly award-winning films starring Charlie Sheen. The movies are arranged in order of release.

What is your favorite Charlie Sheen movie? Tell us about it in the comments section below, and be sure to cast your vote in our poll.

Charlie Sheen's breakthrough came in 1986, with a lead role in the Oscar-winning war drama Platoon. Written and directed by Oliver Stone, the movie is based on Stone's experiences as an infantryman in the Vietnam war.

Sheen portrays Chris Taylor, a young soldier caught in the middle of a moral crisis. His character struggles daily to maintain "not only my strength but also my sanity."

The realities of war captured in Platoon counter the vision of war portrayed in The Green Berets, a 1968 John Wayne movie that provided rationale for America's involvement in the war.

A winner of eighteen different film awards, Platoon received four Academy Awards, including those for Best Picture and Best Director. Sheen is joined by an ensemble cast that includes Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Keith David, Forest Whitaker, and John C. McGinley.

Following the success of Platoon, Stone cast Sheen in the 1987 crime drama, Wall Street. Stone made the film as a tribute to his father, a Depression-era stockbroker.

Wall Street tells the story of a young stockbroker willing to do anything to succeed -- even trading on illegal insider information. A picture of the 1980s excess that declared "Greed is good," the film reportedly inspired many people to find work on Wall Street.

This award-winning film also stars Martin Sheen, Daryl Hannah, and Michael Douglas, who won the Oscar for Best Actor.

Stone, Douglas, and Charlie Sheen (in a cameo appearance) reunited for a 2010 sequel called Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.

Sheen continued to establish himself at the box office with the 1988 film Young Guns. The action-western follows the adventures of American frontier legend Billy the Kid and his gang of outlaw gunmen.

A blockbuster hit, the movie features a talented ensemble cast. Emilio Estevez (Sheen's real-life brother) stars as Billy the Kid. Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dermot Mulroney, Casey Siemasko, and a host of veteran actors also appear in the film.

Christopher Cain directed the award winner, written by screenwriter John Fusco. Fusco also wrote the screenplay for Young Guns II, a 1990 sequel directed by Geoff Murphy. Although Estevez reprises his role in the sequel, Sheen does not have a part in the film.

"A comedy with bats and balls." That's the tagline for Major League, another hit for Charlie Sheen. The 1989 sports satire follows the exploits of a fictional version of the Cleveland Indians baseball team.

The new owner, a former exotic dancer whose husband does not survive their honeymoon, deliberately builds a team of horrible players -- specifically so they will lose games and she can move the team. When the team uncovers her plot, they start winning to spite her.

Directed by David S. Ward, this award-nominated comedy film also stars Tom Berenger, Corbin Bernsen, and Wesley Snipes.

The popular movie spawned two sequels -- Major League II and Major League: Back To The Minors -- but neither film was as successful as the original movie.

Hot Shots! is a 1991 comedy spoof of the 1986 action drama Top Gun, an Oscar winner that starred Tom Cruise.

The parody stars Charlie Sheen as an emotionally unstable fighter pilot who must overcome his personal nightmares to save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers. His target? Saddam Hussein's nuclear plants.

Written and directed by Jim Abrahams (of Airplane! fame) and co-written by Pat Proft, the award-winning parody also spoofs Rocky, Superman, Gone With The Wind, Dances With Wolves, and other movies.

Cary Elwes, Valeria Golino, Lloyd Bridges, and Jon Cryer join Sheen in the original film, whose success spawned a 1993 sequel, Hot Shots! Part Deux.

"All for one and one for all!" That's the theme for The Three Musketeers, a 1993 comic adventure inspired by the classic Alexandre Dumas novel.

The Walt Disney film follows the adventures of young d'Artagnan on his quest to become a musketeer. This version simplifies the original story, taking great liberties with French history.

Charlie Sheen stars as Aramis, a religious man, expert swordsman, and libertine. Other cast members include Kiefer Sutherland, Oliver Platt, Chris O'Donnell, and Rebecca De Mornay.

Directed by Stephen Herek from a screenplay by David Loughery, this award winner did well at the box office. The movie is pure escapism with high action, light-hearted banter, and swashbuckling fun.

© Annette Smith. All rights reserved.

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