Alternate Best Actor 1994: Kevin Bacon & David Strathairn in The River Wild

 Kevin Bacon did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite being nominated for a Golden Globe, for portraying Wade nor did David Strathairn for portraying Tom in The River Wild.

The River Wild is a dated though more than decent thriller about a family going on a rafting trip who unfortunately come randomly in contact with some thieves making an escape on the same river. 

So return back to the reliable Kevin Bacon. Bacon is an interesting case in that I'm not sure I'd call him fully underrated, but one could easily make the case for him to be deserving of being an Oscar nominee, though probably a one time Oscar nominee would suffice. Speaking of one time Oscar nominees, we have David Strathairn here as well, an actor of kind of similar caliber even despite that previous aforementioned fact. Here we have them playing dueling leading roles, though Bacon was campaigned in supporting for this film, as the man who initially shows up at the start of the trip. The man who seems to be such a friendly stranger that you know he's gotta be up to no good. Bacon though is pretty good in bringing on the charisma here however. He finds the right ease about it that even within the obvious setup, Bacon delivers on the setup in making his Wade genuinely charming before he's going to really reveal himself. Now Strathairn on the other hand plays the overworking husband to Meryl Streep's rafting expert Gail, and father to Joseph Mazzello's Roarke. Strathairn being rather ideal as the "boring guy" in the early scene, having that sort of pressured manner that is just ideal of a man whose thoughts seem to be caught on elsewhere as the film opens, and he initially claims to be unable to make the trip. Strathairn's just one of the actor's whose presence is just ideal, and frankly you expect he could be some footnote in the film to be forgotten form much of the proceedings. This just as you believe Strathairn strictly as the "forgettable" guy, though he's not a forgettable performer. 

Bacon is good at playing up the charm adding a bit of southern twang similar to his JFK work though downplaying slightly here to ease into some sort of generalized idea of the potential other man as Gail has second thoughts about her marriage due to her husband's focus on work. Strathairn on the other hand is wonderfully goofy and seemingly out of his depth as he initial shows up last minute to the trip. As the early scenes go on we get the minor flirtation well played by Bacon with a sense of manipulation in the approach. Strathairn takes a convincing approach in portraying the combination of Tom's frustrations with his wife's interactions with Wade, and even his son getting too comfortable with the other man. As the scenes go on though Strathairn naturally realizes the more charming sides to charm. What I like about Strathairn's work is that without the obsession of either work or jealousy, he shows that Tom isn't an entirely different man however there is just a gradual warmth that reveals itself within the frame of the pretty straight laced guy. Strathairn brings the right earnest quality to this making the moments of reconciliation with Streep genuinely a strong scene. This as they realize a strong chemistry, after purposefully having a more strained one, both creating the right sense of intimacy in their interaction and just the right degree of playfulness in the moment. Strathairn's performance working as really kind of quietly revealing the greater depths of what we initially take his Tom as, one thing, but he is more. 

Immediately after the reconciliation we hit the overt thriller element as Wade and his partner Terry (John C. Reilly), reveal themselves as thieves and Wade being a gun touting killer. I'd say in these scenes Bacon borders on going over the top several times, I'd say though he basically hold back, though some of his specific readings maybe go out of bounds just slightly. Still Bacon brings a natural intensity and viciousness that works well for the role creating the right sense of menace in his work. Strathairn I suppose is a bit of a balance to Bacon as he stays in a strict reality where Bacon's work is definitely that of a 90's thriller, both in a good way and a more dated way. Strathairn though is terrific in bringing an honesty to the thriller element by showing both a real fear but also sense of persistence within his character. His silent reactions add up to a great deal in bringing the intensity of the scenes, just as much, if not more so, than Bacon's performance. This as any given scene of threat Strathairn makes it real. This in showing that while Tom is more than meets the eye he also isn't some superhuman.This in the most overt thriller scenes he shows the very real fear of the threat of death in every expression. Now the film, while doesn't become bad, gets a little repetitive in its third act as we keep getting Wade flopping around as Gail tries to trip him up on the river, meanwhile Tom trails behind trying to surprise Wade downriver. This doesn't give either too much to work with, but I'll give particular credit to Strathairn in doing his best to make these scenes compelling by consistently granting them as the actions of a normal man even as he goes to these great lengths. These as every moment of climbing a cliff or taking a leap, his work brings a strict sense of both the conviction of the character in his eyes, while also making the sense of danger still within at the same time. Bacon's work becomes less memorable during this time, though he makes up for it in his final scene. This as he takes upon the best sort of quiet repentant tone as he tries to trick Gail. Bacon's delivery being wonderful insincere while being sincere, before quickly reverting back to his true vicious nature for the final moment. In the end both Bacon and Strathairn, the reliable actors that they are, give fine performances here with Bacon properly realizing the expected trappings of the genre, while Strathairn doing his best to try to elevate it.