Denzel Washington tops an all-star cast that includes Meryl Streep and John Voight this summer, in the remake of the 1962 psychological thriller, "The Manchurian Candidate." Denzel plays a career soldier who uncovers a conspiracy of mind-controlled assassins, and when we talked to him, he told us what's in his head that makes him such a special actor.

His Oscar win and countless box office hits prove it, but just how is Denzel so good at what he does? "I'm still excited by the process," a modest Washington responded.

And he revealedl the secret behind creating his big screen, tough-guy persona: "Doing a film allows you to tap into certain areas of your life. It may be a small thing, it could have been a time in your life when you were nine and wanted to get back at somebody. Had I been bigger, I would have, you know, thought about 'I'd hang him from the building by his ears' or something."

That toughness was certainly on display in Denzel's recent release, "Man on Fire," as well as in his 2001 Oscar-winning turn as a dirty cop in "Training Day." But is he really that tough in real life? "Well, I haven't cut anybody's fingers off in my own life," laughed Denzel.

And that's just the kind of intensity and good humor that will always make Denzel a "Candidate" for Oscar gold.