Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2021: Sean Penn, Tom Waits & Bradley Cooper in Licorice Pizza

Sean Penn did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Jack Holden and neither Tom Waits did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Rex Blau in Licorice Pizza. 

Licorice Pizza has its various vignettes one of them involves our leads Alana (Alan Haim) and Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman) broken apart slightly by Alana trying out for a film starring one Jack Holden, who is William Holden all in except half of his name. Penn is well cast with a proper grizzled voice for your William Holden type, and the right steely world weary stare as we see Alana acting with him for an audition. On the way out though Holden asks Alana out by comparing her to Grace Kelly. In the date where we get the real insane meat of the material. Now this might be surprising to everyone but it seems like Sean Penn might have some experience at being a pompous self-absorbed actor, because he really plays one well. Penn is great by having no chemistry with Haim whatsoever kind of looking through her as though he's looking at himself in her eyes, and speaking literal lines from an old film of his with such strong conviction, however not towards anyone or anything. Penn rather playing it as a man entirely stuck in his old performance, this is only broken by seeing Tom Waits as his old director Rex Blau, a stand in for Mark Robson, and this might be surprising to everyone but Waits might have some experience at being a complete kook, because he really plays one well. Together you get a mixture of pure wonderful insanity. 

 

Penn and Waits both doing the proper good old boy banter and interactions that can only be truly deciphered by the two men stuck in the conversation. When not speaking to each other in pure nonsense the two kind of only do one thing, that is live out their glory days through remembrance. Penn literally speaking every word as though he's on set with an unshakable conviction. Waits in turn is the mad director, who literally directs everyone out at the restaurant, is proper kooky madness. Now maybe Waits just wandered on set and did this himself, I wouldn't say that was impossible, either way its quite the sight. I love Waits waving around his arms performing his direction, looking at everything as though he's seeing just the perfect shot, and is a mad bit of Waits, which is always appreciated. Both performances are indulgent in the best way possible as two men just lost in their past and what they love. I have particular affection for the sheer madness on Penn's face in his final expression just as he's about to perform an old stunt, and the face that only brims with an even greater lunacy as he goes to make his jump with his delivery of "I'm coming Nancy" one of pure unadulterated exuberance. Waits and Penn delivering two lunatics meant for each other in short but oh so entertaining order, as two men past their prime but more than willing just to live in their past whatever way they can.

Bradley Cooper did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite being nominated for a SAG award, for portraying Jon Peters in Licorice Pizza. 

Well Penn and Waits are but a warmup act for the real showstopper Hollywood weirdo in hairdresser turned giant spider loving movie producer Jon Peters. A character, who unlike Mark Robson and William Holden, goes by his real name, and apparently the real Jon Peters was cool with this whole portrayal, except apparently wanted to be even creepier. That says a lot and suggests a man with an even greater insanity than our previous Hollywood crazies. Cooper even walking onscreen suggests what he's doing here is going to be something special with the unique sashay of his as he approaches Gary and Alana who are delivering him a waterbed. Just the way Cooper walks says too much about Peters as it can only be a 70's hairdresser who could quite walk the way he does, it is hard to quite describe what the walk is other than perfection. It's fascinating because it is both this more feminine sort of flamboyance but with this sort of overly masculine stride. It by itself already makes this a hilarious performance but that's just him walking into the scene. Cooper's scene then of pseudo interrogating/instruction Gary on how to approach dealing with his house is the definition of flawless comedic work by Cooper. Cooper's delivery is genius as it is this kind of hostile yet casual, intense yet hippie style breezy. Cooper some how is both, however the one thing it is, is comic gold. Cooper's frustration with Gary's inability to pronounce his girlfriend's name, Barbara Streisand, is beyond perfect somehow.

 

Cooper playing it as this essential need that Gary pronounce it right or else it's somehow a waste for him to date Streisand to begin with. What I love so much is that Cooper throws in the asides so naturally as he breaks his fixated stare to comment on that Gary would probably find her even more intolerable than Jon Peters is himself in his own measure. Cooper like natural yet insane switching of gears in the moment is wholly fascinating and also again hilarious. This in his clear disregard for Gary's excuse for the lateness of the delivery to quickly question the size of his penis hole. Before turning it into a threat, that Cooper speaks with as much ease as the first question, as he threatens to put the excuse up in that hole, followed by calling him a "cocky motherfucker" like it's just a natural name of endearment for him, though probably more likely one of hatred. The way Cooper is looking down at Gary, it is with this zen hatred, for the lack of a better word. This as his eyes are piercing yet he still gives off that hippie air of peace. Cooper showing this one of a kind stream of consciousness so articulately but also just so humorously. This is to the point you need to watch Cooper's work more than once just to catch every little tidbit of his performance like his quick insert "we're both from the streets" to Gary as some strange camaraderie suggestion. This before returning to being confrontational with his extreme ego as he tells Gary about his car and that his only problem is "that he loves tail" to much as though this is a routine admittance for him. Then Cooper's way of saying "I love it so much" as though he's having a miniature orgasm just in the description of it, before switching immediately to question Alana's status in relation to Gary's is again just insane perfection. Asking him the questions as part interrogator part horny mad man. I adore thought he kind of doubt in himself as he ask Gary if he likes Barbara Streisand. There being this weakness for a moment as he says to himself "I do too" as though he's not quite sure in his relationship despite all that he puts into it. This before Cooper ends with that same zen ease as he threatens to murder Gary's family if they mess with his house before he leaves to go to the movie theater. 

 

Absolutely brilliant work from Cooper, would be the greatest purely comedic performance of the year from that alone...but wait there's more. As much as I would've been happy with what we got of Cooper Peters, he walks back on the scene to which I'll admit I was tempted to applaud on my initial viewing of this film in the theater. Cooper's first act was already great, but he decides to come back with additional variations on this theme, and I must say just the sight again of him walking back up the street with his ridiculous gait fills me with such joy. Cooper now shows a slightly wounded Peters, having been stranded for not having enough gas in his car. Cooper shows a rage that KNOWS NO BOUNDS, now if I'm comparing a performance to Dennis Reynolds at his peak, you know I love it.  Cooper announcing "There's no GASO in the GOD DAMN CAR-O motherfucker" to his housekeeper(?) with hysterical intensity is true comic greatness, as Cooper so aggressively retrieves a gas can before taking off in the truck with Gary and Alana. To be repetitive I love everything about Cooper's ride down the road, as after getting the indication that she's not with Gary Cooper switches to flirt mode in Peters. His voice softens and his head turns as he demonstrates value by acting as though he is deeply caring about finding out more about Alana. Cooper turns on the charm, and the most ludicrous part about it, is it is easy to see how his method could easily work. This as he speaks to her with the brightest of smiles and looks at her as though she's the only person in the world for him at this moment. My favorite part of the spiel being his compliment on her driving skills and with the same smile dismissing his "competition" with his disregarding "Gary can't" regarding Gary's driving ability. Peters ending this by creeping fully on her as he "Helps" her avoid his car down the road. Cooper leans in and uses his whole voice as though he's decided to attempt to turn the whole thing into a porno for a moment, and is perfect at being so shameless in his sleazy method as literally crawls on top of Alan.

 

But there's more as we see Peters approach a crowded gas station to get gas. Walking again but now with these random knee snaps forward of a man reading to rumble...for some reason. Cooper's level of aggression is that of a beautiful insanity. Cooper stealing of the nozzle is pure hilarity through the sheer ferocity he brings as though he is ready to kill the guy at the pump if he doesn't step back. Sadly PTA cut the rest of the scene, because it wasn't about Alana and Gary, I'm not one to question as talented of filmmaker as PTA, but I'm questioning him a little bit on that decision. We do thankfully get just one more delicious morsel of Cooper as Peters is walking the streets terrorizing the local stores and coming onto the local women. It's brief but the intensity of both acts, and the shift of gear between them is once again flawless. And there is something that feels just right as we hear Cooper exiting while using the flirting soft voice while asking about the best peanut butter from two women then quizzing them on their tennis skills with the utmost interest. Now did I just ramble on and on to describe every second of this performance, yes you better believe I did, because every second of this performance should be describe and cherished for the comedic greatness it is. This is from someone who hasn't even always loved Cooper's comedic turns, but this is how you do it. I'll be honest I haven't laughed at performance quite so hard or so consistently in sometime as I did at Cooper here. I was worried, well not really but it's a thing you say, that the impact might be diminished on re-watch, but no, it only became all the potent. Yes he's only in the film for a few minutes, but so what, they are the most entertaining few minutes of 2021 as far as I'm concerned, so what's missing in Cooper's performance? Absolutely nothing. So if you didn't notice, yes I adore this performance, every second of the nuttiness worthy of comparison to the golden god, therefore the highest praise one can give...at least according to the golden god.