Saturday 15 June 2019

Alternate Best Actor 1963: Peter Breck in Shock Corridor

Peter Breck did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Johnny Barrett in Shock Corridor.

Shock Corridor follows a journalist as he goes undercover to solve a murder, or win a Pulitzer prize...whatever comes first I suppose.

Director Samuel Fuller is one of the interesting rarely mentioned directors of his period. This isn't to say he specialized in making masterpieces however his storytelling offered particularly unique perspectives for the period with a notable daring for the time. This is evident here as he broaches the subject of mental illness. I'll admit the film opens with a fundamental flaw in it damns exploitation of  such things then proceeds to engage in such things itself, especially in its depiction of nymphomaniacs as basically sex crazed zombies. Having said that film captures a vivid atmosphere within its setting and there is a certain fascination to see a film of the period even attempt to broach the subject matter even if it may be rather flawed as such. As is common with a Fuller film, Peter Breck leads and is not a particularly well known actor, or even a character actor of the period. Why this is, isn't exactly a mystery from the outset of the film. We meet his Johnny Barrett as he prepares to go undercover at the mental institute with the help of his editor, a doctor and some begrudging help from his stripper girlfriend Cathy (Constance Towers). Breck isn't all that charismatic of a performer and as he speaks of his wish to either catch the killer, or fame, lacks a requisite drive to really setup Johnny as someone in over his head for the wrong reasons. Breck is very calm at the prospect, a bit too so, and there's no sense initially that anything should go wrong, other than the sledgehammer objections offered by Cathy.

To enter in however he needs to put up the front of a man sexually obsessed with his sister, to be played by Cathy, and here we get Breck's performance within a performance. Well he's a bit better than crazy pretender William Powell in Love Crazy, but Powell was trying to be funny. Actually I shouldn't mock to much as the sort of seething insanity Breck offers with some needed internalized subtlety, however this is usually put aside for a bit of shouting. A lot of shouting from Johnny, and really the other insane cast members, that sadly typically feels more like hot air than genuine anguish as it is all a bit too thin and overcooked. This initially though is just the front towards Johnny's real intention, though really the film's subplot, to find the murderer. In this we return to Breck's somewhat bland, though not entirely bad, approach as the driven reporter. He delivers at least enough of an incisiveness in his eyes as he listens for clues, though only problem is how it is so detached from creating a real sense of who Johnny is. Does he care about the patients? Is trying to care? Is he completely selfish? Is his drive to find the killer leading towards madness? Well the question to all of these is...maybe.

The reason for this is the lack of nuance, and really connection within Breck's performance. In a given scene he very much accentuates what is needed for that given plot development bit, and little more than that. In this even there are somewhat mixed results. His nadir are the yelling and screaming moments, which remain hot air even as it is suppose to be that Johnny is genuinely becoming crazy. There's no notable difference though in the way Breck plays the "acting" from the "reality". He doesn't connect that  growing madness with the drive to solve the case which could've been an impetus towards his eventual madness. Those are separate as a calm and cool reporter. In his moments of the inmates we have the scenes where he is sympathetic towards them and those that are not. Breck portrays both just fine, though doesn't create a sense of conflict in terms of exploitation their testimony. This is as his portrayal of Johnny never creates an complexity in his methods, or in turn his character. He is whatever the scene needs him to be, and his own work does not push the character forward. The one element of his work that does have any forward momentum is his portrayal of the physical wear of the situation. In there Breck actually does create that connective tissue between scenes as his physical work creates a greater sense of exasperation and wear from being in the mental institution. Sadly this does not even connect to his mental state where is the failing of his work. In the climactic moment of the film we have Johnny going hard to find the murderer which should be the revelation but through the deterioration of Johnny. Breck though just plays it as a little angry making his the next scene as a catatonic seem downright goofy. It doesn't help that Breck's blank stare is just kind of vapid and corny, rather than haunting. I love to find a great performance from an unknown actor, however this is sadly not one of those. This is a shame as the elements of a great performance do exist in the character of Johnny, however Breck's middling if not often lackluster approach does not realize that potential.

66 comments:

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: If any of the other contenders are below a 4, could you review someone else in their place, a la Chatterjee in Mahanagar (The Big City), if they're deserving.

Also, ratings and thoughts on the rest of the cast?

Luke Higham said...

Ew!, hopefully everyone else will do far better than this.

1. Björnstrand
2. McGoohan
3. Redgrave
4. Sordi
5. Breck

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

1. Björnstrand
2. McGoohan
3. Redgrave
4. Sordi
5. Breck

1. Lancaster
2. Shaw
3. Mastroianni
4. Ronet
5. McQueen

Luke Higham said...

Tahmeed: Is Chatterjee definitely Lead because I have him down as Supporting.

If anyone else were to get below a 4 it would most likely be Ronet because Malle Leads haven't lived up to expectations in terms of ratings.

Emi Grant said...

Well, guess I'm skipping this one.

1. Bjornstrand
2. Redgrave
3. McGoohan
4. Sordi
5. Breck

Luke Higham said...

Tahmeed: Though Ronet is a request of mine so honestly, I don't see anyone else being replaced.

Bryan L. said...

Hahaha Oh my...

1. Bjornstrand
2. Redgrave
3. McGoohan
4. Sordi
5. Breck

Anonymous said...

Ouch. I guess I should avoid this.

Louis: Your thoughts on the production design of Once Upon a Time in the West. Maybe it's just me, but I've never seen the production design of the film being as praised as much as the cinematography. Kind of like how I feel that the cinematography of Alien is not praised as much as the production design. It's another major element why the film is the masterpiece that it is IMO.

Anonymous said...

Guys, are there any performances you feel regrets about requesting and any that you were pleased not to have done given the outcome.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous: I somewhat regret Cillian Murphy in Sunshine since we could've had Amalric in Diving Bell and The Butterfly far sooner.

Though they were reviewed, I'm glad I didn't request Price in Witchfinder General and Manesse in Au Revoir Les Enfants as they would've ended my 4+ rating winning streak.

Luke Higham said...

I will have no regrets whatsoever with Ledger however as I love A Knight's Tale and it'll probably give us Bettany first from the supporting lineup.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Luke: Ledger is definitely a good request, I can see him getting a 4.5. His work gets better on every rewatch.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Thoughts on Kurosawa direction in The Hidden Fortress, Ran and Throne of Blood

Luke Higham said...

RIP Franco Zeffirelli

RatedRStar said...

Larry Tucker probably stuck out most from this film but even then I dont think he was that good.

RatedRStar said...

RIP Franco Zeffirelli

RatedRStar said...

I really was shocked at how poorly mental illness is portrayed in this film, in 1963 it would have been considered good for the most part but never would anyone truly believe that nymphomaniacs act like this.

RatedRStar said...

I must have been drunk when I decided to suggest Liu Kai Chi and Daniel Wu against the same performer from the same film....Nicholas Tse who was clearly better in both cases.

Bryan L. said...

RatedRStar: Your Top Ten Performances by the gentleman in your profile picture?

Bryan L. said...

RIP Franco Zeffirelli

RatedRStar said...

Bryan L.:
1. Notorious
2. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
3. The Passionate Friends
4. The Invisible Man
5. Casablanca
6. Lawrence of Arabia
7. Now, Voyager
8. Caesar and Cleopatra
9. Mr. Skeffington
10. Angel on My Shoulder

Charles H said...

Lol, did not expect to see this in the line-up considering how stacked this year is.

1. Björnstrand
2. McGoohan
3. Redgrave
4. Sordi
5. Breck

Bryan L. said...

RatedRStar: Thanks.

Charles: I actually did think this performance would be a hidden gem haha.

Michael McCarthy said...

I’ll try to predict this lineup now:

1. Patrick McGoohan (5)
2. Gunnar Björnstrand (4.5/5)
3. Michael Redgrave (Haven’t seen yet)
4. Alberto Sordi (4.5)
5. Peter Breck (Haven’t seems but I feel like I don’t have to)

Hopefully I’ll get to watch The Leopard and The Organizer soon so I can predict the other lineup.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your thoughts on these anime openings?
https://youtu.be/-77UEct0cZM (My Hero Academia)
https://youtu.be/r3KX9GFCmQA (Le Chevalier D'Eon)

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: This might be a bit of a controversial question, but it's one I've thought about a lot.
What are your thoughts on actors, ie the ones in the MCU, getting paid millions of dollars for one film? Don't get me wrong, I know that if films make a lot of money, the actors definitely deserve their share of the profits-after all, audiences go to see them, and that draw does deserve to be rewarded. And I guess it makes sense from an economic standpoint as well, as there is a high demand and low supply of their labour. I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm rambling, once again.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: And of course, if you don't want to answer my above question, feel free to disregard it.

Calvin Law said...

Halfway through season 5 and man Man all this buildup with Stannis is amazing, so many of these scenes in the North are just phenomenal. Shame that apparently based on what I remember from discussions on here that I might be sorely disappointed soon.

Louis: your thoughts on the ‘You are Shireen of House Baratheon’ scene, Jorah and Tyrion seeing Drogon, and the Ramsay telling Reek to apologise over dinner/the subsequent Boltons scene?

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Calvin: Oh Dillane delivers all the way, that's for sure. Not to mention, you still have Hardhome to look forward to :)

Louis Morgan said...

Tahmeed:

Towers - 2(Her performance is one note melodrama throughout the film. The character should be the moral center however she plays every moment as a hysterical mess that sadly leaves even their relationship rather lacking.)

Best - 3(His sort of insane moments as Jeb Stuart are decent enough as a mad man, his moments of revealing his past are also decent. Nothing amazing as portrayal of mental illness goes, but certainly not bad. When he gets a bit bigger, it becomes a little much however.)

Rhodes - 3(The same goes for Rhodes who is actually pretty powerful in his quiet moments of revealing the man's trauma caused by racism. He has some great quiet moments, that aren't exactly perfectly balanced with his moments of hysteria.)

Tucker - 3.5(The best performance, and the least yelling, so perhaps there is a connection there. Tucker does even have a couple more extreme moments however he tempers them properly. This is as he succeeds most in creating a cohesive character in each facet including those extremes, but most often in creating the slightly affable, if definitely off, state of mentally broken man child.)

My Hero Academia - (Song's a little a rushed for my liking, and as with many of these "I have no idea what's going on". With this one I'm not sure I could quite catch the rhyme or reason to it either, though certainly quite a bit of frames per second there.)

Le Chevalier D'Eon - (Well I didn't mind the ballad so much, nor the Gothic imagery, though the CGI/traditional didn't quite cohere for me. Though the pure traditional were fairly striking to me.)

I understand the frustration with such things, especially when VFX studios are routinely going bankrupt who one might say are rather essential to the success of super hero films. In film in general the *star* no longer really exists as films are sold on actors, rather critical praise, properties, concepts and directors (which is what they should be if you ask me) unless you're Leonardo DiCaprio in America, The Rock, Vin Diesel or Tom Cruise internationally. So that really isn't necessary. The thing is the super hero films have created a different indispensable actor doing to connection with the character that becomes irreplaceable. I don't exactly approve, but I do understand.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

The production design is indeed outstanding as well and perhaps not given enough credit due to the amount of exteriors. The thing is those exteriors are great and so filled with atmosphere and character. Take even the opening train station which has just so much right in its design that creates a real sense of a desolate train stop that creates such character right from the outset. Take that in contrast to the pseudo grandeur of Morton's personal train car with his portrait of the sea. The work is far more lived in than the typical set whether that be the town, the McBain farm, or the roadhouse.

Anonymous:

Well let's begin with the first two which are two of the greatest Shakespearean adaptations ever put to film, though each offering alternative approaches to both the material and Kurosawa's approach. In Throne of Blood, he very much makes Macbeth a horror story, which makes sense, and is an extremely effective depiction of the descent of this character. The use of the Noh influence is brilliantly realized though I love that Kurosawa uses it to infuse style without overwhelming it either. This leading to such powerful moments most notably his depiction of the witch, as a monster of a Japanese fairy tale and the realizations of the prophecies of doom. Kurosawa's brilliance though is his intelligent use of performers, knowing when to pull back just to let Mifune and Yamada shine in essential moments of the play. The masterful intertwining of the two though comes within the grand finale, that is sheer, if not insane, ambition as he dispenses with a grand battle to instead focus on Macbeth being destroyed by his own men. This in just a terrifying, yet captivating sequence of the arrows, that has this epic scale within the accomplishment, yet intimate in allowing us to see the despair of Mifune's performance.

His work in Ran is less of a genre bend for Shakespeare, but rather shows simply what one can do with the material in creating a most epic of tragedies. Kurosawa though does not simply adapt at any point, and his direction is again one of such daring. This creating a tale less of the foolishness of a king, but rather the trickling down effects of cruelty. The film is almost as this end of the world in a way, as he presents the tale to grand scale with an initial calm. This calm that spirals out of control, to bloody destruction created through essentially sins of a father but in so many ways. Kurosawa's brilliance is his ability to balance of tone and scale. He leaves importantly the human, quiet interactions, that offer the bits of goodness, within the grander tapestry of the erasure of nearly all of that. This with such unforgettably realized sequences where Kurosawa grants such visceral detail most notably the destruction of the third castle. As much as the grand scale, amplified by such incredible combination of the colors, sounds and acting, all weaved together by a true master. He is able to do as much though with just a silent moment, so impeccably framed, of a blind men, shown almost as the "last man on earth" and a final reminder of the fallout of this great tragedy.

Louis Morgan said...

Shifting gears, The Hidden Fortress is a testament to the sheer range of Kurosawa as just a truly entertaining romp, of course it wouldn't be Kurosawa without some dynamic choices, the first being our POV of the two peasants who happens upon our heroes. That in itself creates such fantastic choices by Kurosawa in offering a less traditional approach, often as this eavesdropper/onlooker finding ourselves on some greater battle, that is just genius film making. Of course this is supplemented by just some dynamite invigorating action work, that is especially remarkable for the time in creating chase scenes and fights, that one can easily call particularly influential in how many years beyond so much of it is. This is Kurosawa's greatness, even as his subject matter is far less earth shattering, he makes a great film, this one a great entertainment with his sights on such, and delivering such a thing without hesitation.

Calvin:

I refuse to comment on the first scene as it is such a waste of a great scene.

Jorah and Tyrion at least isn't ruined by anything and is the best moment of their interaction. This with the wonderful recitation and the real sense of mystery and imagination in the moment/Dinklage's reaction.

The Reek moment is great by virtue of Alfie Allen's acting that captures such a powerful heartbreak in it. I will say the moments themselves, are well acted, Iwan Rheon included (as Pilou Asbaek's work should perhaps makes us all appreciate him all the more), with he and Michael McEhlhatton doing a great trade off of power, one in mania, the other in cold command. Overall though some it is dancing around two things we already know will happen, in not exactly the most captivating of ways, though perhaps I'm judging too much on the end result.

Calvin Law said...

Hardhome was great. Wouldn’t say it’s my favourite so far, probably just outside of my top 10 favourite episodes, but it was great.

John Smith said...

1. Björnstrand
2. McGoohan
3. Redgrave
4. Sordi
5. Breck

1. Lancaster
2. Shaw
3. Mastroianni
4. Ronet
5. McQueen

Bryan L. said...

Louis: Your thoughts on the direction for Mandy? It gets more impressive the more I think about it.

For example, I love how Cosmatos even managed to include a bit of nuance in the ending where Red pictures Mandy in the passenger seat after he defeats everyone. And the comedic moments of course...

Matt Mustin said...

Does anybody know what I can watch that will convince me that Diego Luna is not a terrible actor, because I'm not buying it so far.

Calvin Law said...

Y Tu Mama Tambien.

Bryan L. said...

Matt: I'll second on Y Tu Mama Tambien. It's also a precursor of sorts to Roma, as in the slice-of-life film that Cuaron was attempting with Roma.

Matt Mustin said...

I guess I probably should check Y Tu Mama Tambien out, as a fan of Cuaron. Also, I find Gael Garcia Bernal to be a pretty decent actor.

Incidentally, my question regarding Luna comes from my just having watched Milk, where I found him to be truly awful.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Interestingly enough, I've read that David Hemblen, the voice for Magneto in the X-Men was offered the role for the first live-action X-Men. Chris Potter apparently also wanted to play Gambit, who didn't appear in the film.

Thoughts on this? George Buza appeared in the film as a truck driver and Hugh Jackman actually got to meet Cal Dodd and listened to his voice to get a feel for the character.

Calvin Law said...

Alright, confession: overall I thought Season 5 was actually mostly great if a mixed bag. My major reservations honestly begin and end with Stannis' arc, and really it's more of a 'one or the other' thing with me in that regard. The Shireen sacrifice scene was haunting; but if you go for that, you gotta continue Stannis' arc. Make him live with his mistake, live with watching his destiny crumble before him, give him a road to redemption. Or have him spare Shireen, get a soldier to take her to Castle Black, and honestly would make his demise all the more powerful as he falls to the Boltons. But I thought most of the other stuff was great, North was repetitive but had great acting (and to be honest THAT scene, while not perfectly executed, I felt was handled far better than its season 4 equivalent), I actually really liked everything in Meereen, so sue me, Dorne was fine outside of the terrible Sand Snake acting (and poor Myrcella, damn this was a dark season), King's Landing was pretty strong, and all Jon Snow stuff was fantastic.

1. Stephen Dillane
2. Jonathan Pryce
3. Alfie Allen
4. Sophie Turner
5. Kerry Ingram
6. Kit Harrington
7. Diana Rigg
8. Liam Cunningham
9. Peter Vaughan
10. Lena Headey

HM: Carice Van Houten, Iain Glen, Gwendoline Christie, Alexander Siddig, Michael McElhatton

Calvin Law said...

Although I will admit there were way too many plot 'events' that I felt just happened for the sake of being 'shock' factors.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your thoughts on Kerry Ingram's performance in Game of Thrones.

Luke Higham said...

Michael Fassbender's finally gonna play a suave spy. :)

Matt Mustin said...

Luke: He did already, in Inglourious Basterds.

Luke Higham said...

Matt: I meant in a traditional spy/espionage drama instead of a war film.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Your thoughts on the direction, screenplay and editing of Seven.

Mitchell Murray said...

Everyone here: Most disappointing loses for oscar nominated actors and actresses; By that I mean performers who've been the most cruelly snubbed, based solely on the quality of their nominated performances/competition.

For example;

Willem Dafoe (Just last year, even, but mainly because of "Shadow of the Vampire")
William H Macy and Edward Norton for 96'
Michael Keaton
Honestly, the bulk of the best actor fields from 93', 94' and 98'

Rooney Mara for both her nominated turns
Saoirse Ronan for her first two nominations
Sigourney Weaver for her two leading nominations
Kate Winslet for "Eternal Sunshine")
Gabourey Sidibe and Carey Mulligan for 09'

I'm sure I'm missing a whole bunch, but those are the ones the came to mind right now.

Bryan L. said...

Mitchell: Off the top of my head

Richard Farnsworth in The Straight Story
James Mason in The Verdict
Richard E. Grant in Can You Ever Forgive Me? (Especially since we missed out on a great speech by Grant. Also, did they HAVE to give Ali a 2nd one?!)
Sessue Hayakawa in The Bridge on the River Kwai

Bryan L. said...

Oh yeah, I'd include Keaton as well, since Redmayne has been...uh..."underwhelming" on the whole since then.

Mitchell Murray said...

And on that note I forgot to include Grant myself.

RatedRStar said...

Claude =(

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Mitchell:
For me:
Russell Crowe/Tom Wilkinson for A Beautiful Mind/In the Bedroom
James Stewart in It's A Wonderful Life
Tom Courtenay in Doctor Zhivago
Al Pacino in The Godfather (I haven't seen Cabaret though)
Richard Farnsworth in The Straight Story
Peter O'Toole in The Lion in Winter (he was never going to win in 1962, so I think the Academy messed up royally here)


Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your thoughts on the following South Park episdoes:

"You Got Served"(has one of my favourite Butters moments)
"Raisins"
"Pre-School"

Emi Grant said...

Mitchell:

Keaton and Grant last year immediately come to mind, and Malek's win, despite not being a bad one, is not aging well with me. Of course, Rooney Mara's 2 nominated turns, and I would agree with Ronan not winning for Brooklyn as well. Thomas Haden Church for Sideways.

And even though I haven't watched Milk yet, I'd probably add Mickey Rourke's performance for The Wrestler, since it's a personal favorite of mine.

Calvin Law said...

Mitchell: Bob Hoskins for Mona Lisa is hands down the most frustrating.

Calvin Law said...

Thought I’d just note since I haven’t seen it on here before, but Meera Reed needs more appreciation for everything she’s done lol (and yeah I got to THAT episode).

Luke Higham said...

Calvin: If you're referring to Hold The Door, your thoughts on the final scene as well as the Hardhome massacre which I forgot to ask about before.

Gus B. said...

Mitchell: Liv Ullman in Face to Face, Barbara Stanwyck in Stella Dallas and Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence.

Anonymous said...

Guys, are there any actors that you hope won't remain fiveless once all is said and done.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous:
Christopher Plummer (Just on his reputation and longevity in the profession, I'd like to think he'll get one, though I can't say which)
Nicol Williamson (Should get 2 with The Bofors Gun and The Reckoning, though I'd love it if he got one for Excalibur)
David Warner (Time After Time)
Charlie Chaplin (Should go up for The Great Dictator)
Paul Dano
Helen Mirren (Her very best work was in Elizabeth I though I have seen bits of Prime Suspect)
Jim Broadbent
Christopher Lee
Steve Martin
Alan Bates

Would've put Ian McShane, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Jared Harris down but they're five equivalents for Deadwood, Game Of Thrones and Chernobyl respectively.

Luke Higham said...

Louis: By the way, have you seen any TV in the past month, I know Legion is returning next week.

Bryan L. said...

Luke: You think Dano could get a five equivalent if Louis gets around to War & Peace?

Luke Higham said...

Bryan: I bloody well hope so, that might be him at his most endearing from what I've seen. I wouldn't rule out There Will Be Blood either since I at least see him going up to a 4.5 for that.

Have you seen War & Peace, if so, your thoughts on Dano.

Really looking forward to 2016 for that reason along with The Hollow Crown: The Wars Of The Roses and The Night Manager.

Bryan L. said...

Luke: I haven't seen it either, although I'll be sure to let you know when I do.

I'm currently doing a cleanup round of 2010s films I haven't gotten around to, so I'm more focused on that/films in general.

Louis Morgan said...

Let me get to all those thoughts on the next post.