Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1970: Christopher Plummer in Waterloo

Christopher Plummer did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington in Waterloo. 

Waterloo gives a detailed overview of the battle that would be Napoleon Bonaparte's last attempt to maintain his power in France. 

A film that strictly falters because of the leading bombastic turn of Rod Steiger as Napoleon. The film is divided into two halves, of focusing on the French and English in the battle. It takes the focus of the French on a more strictly personal level, showing the particular investment Napoleon has in the battle, basically as it means his final end if he loses. Sadly Steiger creates no empathy for this cause, and leave a large hole in the story. Christopher Plummer though offers the counterpoint to this, as we initially meet his Duke of Wellington at some formal gathering with his family, as he just about to set out to battle. Against the extremely emotional state of Bonaparte, we instead we see Plummer who exudes just an extremely relaxed and even casual manner. This as even as his wife speaks of herself as some kind of Bonaparte fan, Plummer's reaction to this is with a genuine smile, if minor disinterest. Plummer's manner showing someone wholly comfortable within himself and even more so comfortable with what he will be facing next. Plummer's ease instantly establishes Wellington as the proper foe who isn't treating the battle as his last chance but rather seems to be looking upon it almost with a certain academic sense. In this Plummer creates the idea of a man who faces the battle with an ease and grace and the utmost preparedness. Even when remarking on Napoleon it is with commendation for the man's strategic skills,  which Plummer delivers with the utmost sincerity of one craftsman respecting another. 

Throughout the opening stages of the battle Plummer's performance gives the film some much needed comic relief by depicting Wellington's very confident and casual manner initially within the war. Plummer though makes this work in just showing it to be essentially the natural way in which to broach the fight. This in one particularly enjoyable moment where he is casually sitting underneath a tree with a newspaper as the enemy approaches. Plummer's blithe delivery of Wellington's response is funny, but in the right way as he makes it convincing within the Duke's calm approach to war. This even in within dealing with his troops where Plummer depicts as ease in his demeanor such as coming across an obviously thieving troop who tries to come up with an excuse to steal a pig. Plummer is great in this scene in his quiet and warm chuckle before promoting the man for defending an untenable position. Plummer makes it great by showing really the specific sort of camaraderie with his men in the moment, as his reaction, even towards the criminal soldier, is one of admiration for his men. This as he further speaks of them it is with this utmost pride that Plummer naturally reveals a genuine emotion even within the seemingly quite calculating commander. Plummer in particular creating this great contrast against what should be the emotionally draining portrayal of Napoleon, which sadly we don't really get but still Plummer does his part even if not properly reciprocated. Now as much as I think the film was designed for Bonaparte to be the emotion, the battle to be brutal action, and Wellington to be the balance by offering some natural humor to the proceedings, its off because of Steiger's contribution is so off. Having said that, Plummer basically picks up the slack for Steiger best he can in depicting Wellington's own arc towards the battle. This in slowly the weight of the losses and casualties get to the man. This is quite deftly realized in Plummer's work in every reaction as the battle wages granting a true sense of his personal investment in those who are dying. This slowly losing that casual manner to show a genuinely caring man beneath it all, which again was alluded by his pride in the man earlier. This until by the end Plummer earns the film's most potent emotion in depicting the sadness in the deaths within his expression, and wholly earning his final exasperation with the nature of war. Plummer creates a natural depiction of this loss of the lust for the battle, and creates the most poignant element in the film through his performance. I only wish his off-screen rival was up to Plummer's performance as the film would've been far better for it. Still completely on his own merits, Plummer delivers a terrific turn here, which doesn't make up for his co-star, but does fill in some of the dramatic void left by him.