Thursday 23 March 2023

Alternate Best Actor 1961: Peter Finch in No Love For Johnnie

Peter Finch did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning a BAFTA, for portraying Johnnie Byrne in No Love For Johnnie. 

No Love For Johnnie follows an MP as he struggles with love and his political career. As the Labor party refuses to give him a cabinet position and his wife leaves him. 

A quick sidebar I will say the more I see from Peter Finch the more I am impressed by his career-best work in Network, if only because this has been a bit of a reverse-engineered look, where I started with his final and best feature film performance, and have retroactively seen what his more expected presence was. This is to the point, I imagine if I had gone in the opposite direction I likely would've said "I didn't know he had THAT in him in" regarding his final film. Because the rest of his work, while consistently good and often more than that, fits much more within a certain type of somewhat repressed Englishman, dealing with emotional turmoil in a rather subdued way, as seen in Far From the Madding Crowd, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Girl with Green Eyes, and I'm sure more than that. No Love For Johnnie fits right into that ilk, as we enter into the film as we meet the middle-aged man trudging along in his existence, noted because of his political status, though that seemingly goes only so far. 

I'll say perhaps a flaw with the film itself is how it limits our sympathies with Johnnie, I mean come on, young Billie Whitelaw is into you, and she's literally a stairwell away, and you DON'T GO FOR THAT, get your stuff together Johnnie! I mean...uh we don't get really any of the men before this current situation, we get some mentions but even those are limited, so we start with the man in his hole, which is a bit of a curious start. The most we get before this is a brief interview with Johnnie over his party's success, and Finch delivers it with a politician's direct overtures and sort of muted emotion. He presents Johnnie as the statesman even as he suffers disappointment in not being selected for the "front row" and any kind of important position in the government. Finch portrays this rejection with a quiet resignation over the disappointment rather than any kind of more extreme heartbreak. His Johnnie as a politician seems set within a certain line of experience, of a man never quite where he'd like to be, but as someone who managed to be somewhere. 

We follow Johnnie home where his wife announces she's leaving him, and Johnnie is left alone, despite again his upstairs neighbor being quite eager to comfort Johnnie. Again what we see in Finch's performance is mainly resignation over this fact as he just seems to exist within this general sorrow, though honestly only turns to overt frustration when Whitelaw's Mary tries to comfort him. There we see a very aggressive side to the man, one that isn't all that pleasant honestly, and decreases any sympathies one can have for the man, even if he does halfheartedly apologize later on. Finch's performance I should say isn't the issue I have in this, mostly, in that everything he is depicting feels authentic, and in that sense, he makes Johnnie feel real, even if real in the sense Johnnie's isn't someone I'd particularly like to give my time or attention to. I would say perhaps another actor could've had more overt charm, which would've created a more inherent sympathy, even with the character's flaws, that isn't really the case for Finch whose general presence is fairly cold. 

Johnnie's journey is about attempting to reclaim love and his political life, one by dating a young model and the other by attempting some minor disruption of his party. In both, Finch is entirely convincing, albeit not entirely compelling in depicting both of these aspects. We see him in the depiction with the younger woman where Finch presents the sort of dormant lust in the man, and a bit more human desperate need for affection from the woman. Contrasting that as the politician we do get shades of a man a bit shrewder in his methods, whereas Finch does have this sort of precise delivery and manner as per expected of a man deep within the system. Again in both Finch does make the struggle feel real of the man filled with the need for happiness as he pours out all he's got towards the young woman, and contrasting that determination of the man trying to regain his power as best he can. I'll admit as much as I found Finch made all this believable, all this feel real, I just still didn't really care about Johnnie or anything that was going on with him at any point. And I can care about some reprehensible characters if compelling enough, but Johnnie isn't quite there. 

Part of this disconnect for me I do think is that we come into Johnnie with this perspective, where we are barely given a sense of the passion that put the man into politics. This is touched upon very briefly, and Finch has little to work with in terms of establishing this as something more substantial within his performance. The fact that he's even a further left labor politician feels cursory because what the man really stands for doesn't really come up. The most we get otherwise is Johnnie explaining his old struggles with his wife who never shared or showed that much affection for him. Finch is certainly good in the scene in showing the old pains as something that is quite severe in his manner, as tension in his eyes as something he's held onto for some time, but also something he just continues to live with it, even in pain. We see the slow defeat of the man, who has apparently been defeated personally all his life, as the title says there's "No Love for Johnnie". Finch depicts this breakout effectively enough as this breakdown of self-pity, with the emotion of it feeling real, though again still the emotional impact on me, as a viewer stays quite limited. Johnnie never becomes someone I terribly find all that engaging to explore, so he just kind of exists as he is. So when he finally finds some success, with a key conflict within, I personally just felt indifferent. And is this Finch or the writing? Well, mostly the latter I think, which I don't think does Johnnie any favors throughout because I do think the film needed more meat within the character's passions and his loneliness. Finch on the other hand does what he can, and does deliver a good performance, though I do feel strangely limited by shortcomings of that script. 

96 comments:

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

I've liked everything I've seen Finch in (love him in Madding Crowd), but yeah, his performance in Network is an all-timer.

Louis: Your thoughts on the rest of the cast?

Robert MacFarlane said...

I appreciate your Billie Whitelaw thirst

Calvin Law said...

If this was made today it would star Peter Capaldi and be directed by Adam McK- (gets stifled).

I liked him a lot but completely get your reservations (down to the Whitelaw frustrations).

Emi Grant said...

There's a Vertigo remake in the works: https://deadline.com/2023/03/vertigo-remake-robert-downey-jr-steven-knight-alfred-hitchcock-james-stewart-paramount-pictures-davis-entertainment-team-downey-1235308636/

I don't not trust Steven Knight or RDJ, but just... WHYYYYYY

Emi Grant said...

Also, here's the premise for Adam McKay's next film, which Robert Pattinson seems attached to: https://puck.news/streamings-long-slow-journey-to-television/?_cio_id=f6c60601ab8301dced02&utm_campaign=What+I%27m+Hearing+-+LEADS+%283%2F23%2F23%29&utm_content=What+I%27m+Hearing+-+LEADS+%283%2F23%2F23%29&utm_medium=email_action&utm_source=customer.io

What a terrible day for cinema.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

On an unrelated note, finished Shrinking, and Harrison Ford is great. Cast ranking:

1. Harrison Ford
2. Jessica Williams
3. Jason Segel
4. Luke Tennie
5. Lukita Maxwell
6. Christa Miller
7. Michael Urie

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

It's pretty amusing how the movie's title matches the general takeaway from this review.

Tim said...

Yesterday i saw Lost in Translation completely for the first time. It works ok as the Bill Murray show and in some conversations between him and Johansson. Other than that it can be a bit boring, the chaacters can be annoying (even Johansson early on) and it can be quite awkward when it wants to be funny, which i think is based on the direction.

Coppola wrote a dramedy but directs it straight up like a very realistic drama, almost documentary like, which sucks out a lot of the comedy. Early on Murray is in a lot of technically comedic situations, but because it's told so manner-of-factly, it just doesn't feel like that's intentional. Like, when he hyers a hooker later on who gives him i weird show you don't end up laughing, you just feel like he does; you think this is ridiculous and want it to stop.

Overall this is the kind of movie that i like to think about a lot more than i actually enjoy watching it.


Murray - 4/4.5
Johansson - 3.5
Ribisi and Faris - 2.5 (will most likely have forgotten that they were in this within a month)

8000S said...

Louis: Who would you cast as these politicians in a biopic?

Hubert Humphrey (Must not be Tarantino)
Robert F. Kennedy
Harold Stassen (Could make a comedy due to how many times he tried to win the Republican nomination)
Ted Kennedy
Eugene McCarthy
Walter Mondale
Michael Dukakis
Margaret Chase Smith (Some people voted for her in the 1964 GOP primaries)

Shaggy Rogers said...

Hey guys.
Can someone help me look up the name of a movie? I'll describe the story as follows:
A couple of parents who have many adopted children and are the perfect image of an American family. However, they hide a secret: they are thieves, children are used to rob convenience stores. Years later, one of the daughters decides to report her parents to the police.

The film is inspired by facts. I believe that the film was made directly for TV due to the low production and the performances of the cast, mainly the actress who plays the mother who does not change her expression throughout the film.

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

Louis: Your casts and directors for 1990s A Serious Man and 2020s The Gambler?

Shaggy Rogers said...

Hey guys. Talk about your bets on

Louis' Top 5 Best Cinematography:
1. Sacha Vierny - Last Year at Marienbad
2. Kazuo Miyagawa - Yojimbo
3. Yoshio Miyajima - The Human Condition III: A Soldier’s Prayer
4. Sven Nykvist - Through the Glass Darkly
5. Freddie Francis - The Innocents

Louis' Top 5 Best Score:
1. Masaru Satō - Yojimbo
2. Georges Auric - The Innocents
3. George Bruns - One Hundred and One Dalmatians
4. Henry Mancini - Breakfast at Tiffany
5. Dimitri Tiomkin - The Guns of Navarone

Tony Kim said...

Shaggy: No clue, I'm afraid. Do you remember when it came out?

Emi: Did you read the THR piece about that movie? Say what you will about McKay, but it's sad that even he's having trouble getting backing for a non-blockbuster in this day and age.

Anonymous: Regarding Williams, it was MW herself who decided to be placed in that category, reasoning that the scenes she was given were similar to projects in which she played the lead.

Louis: I also agree that she would've swept in Supporting, though I think JLC and Condon were going to be nominated regardless.

What are your favourite "paycheck performances", i.e. cases where an actor clearly took a project beneath their talent for the money but turned in a good performance nonetheless?

Shaggy Rogers said...

Tony: I believe it came out in the early 2000's.

I remembered more of the story (SPOILERS ABOUT THE ENDING): When the mother (the head of the family) is arrested, she calls a black male accomplice to chase her daughter and make a threat. When family members are judged, everything ends with a happy ending and that accomplice just disappears out of nowhere without leaving any reason for him to have given up.

Tim said...

not gonna lie, i think John Wick 4 might be my favorite in the franchise. It's certainly the funniest.
Other than 2 and 3, the emotional connection and actual talk about John`s character are back on the level of the first film (and they actually mention his wife again, believe it or not!) while also setting up a really good antagonist with Donnie Yen whom you surprisingly do not want to see die and has an actual relationship with John, which makes their final fight tons of fun.
While the fight scenes are not exactly as zany as they could be (there is nothing in here i would equivalate to the knive museum fight in 3) they are still hella creative and one has one of the coolest long takes i have seen in a while.

If i were to point out negatives: the villain kinda sucks, the firt big fight in the japanese hotel goes on for too long and has no real sense of progress and there is a moment late in the film that i guess was supposed to be comedic but nobody in the theatre laughed and it just seemed over the top (I`ll just say: stairs)

But other than that i had tons of fun

Louis Morgan said...

John Wick 4 is basically the John Wick sequel I was waiting for. While it may be a bit longer than it needs to be (not all sequences are equal), John is a little too impervious to being hit by vehicles, and it still doesn't have as much of an emotional drive as the original, this one I finally did feel some emotion again. This one does basically the right version of so much, to the point, it feels like they wanted to erase almost all plot points from the third one, given they give two major developments from that film just quick dismissive lip service. Instead, we get the Wick chapter I wanted, one with clear stakes, clear progression, and some emotional weight behind the action sequences. And we basically get the better or good version of so many of the other sequel attempts, Bill Skarsgård being a better weasel than whatever Riccardo Scamarcio was doing in the second film, Clancy Brown making for a far better broker than Asia Kate Dillon, and Donnie Yen putting all sequel antagonists to absolute shame in comparison. The beautifully shot action scenes were the expectation, but it was nice to actually care about them beyond the technique again.

Reeves - 3.5
Yen - 4
Skarsgard - 3
Fishburne - 3
Sanada - 3.5
Anderson - 3.5
Reddick - 3
Sawayama - 3
Adkins - 2.5
McShane - 3.5
Brown - 3.5

Emi Grant said...

Tony: I don't wish ill on other filmmakers, but I wouldn't consider myself worried about it.

Louis Morgan said...


Tahmeed:

Holloway, Pleasence, Johns, Keen, Rogers - 3(I think all give good performances, but it shows where the show should've let them explore way more than what we get. We just get quick bits of the politics from these very talented actors, so it's a shame they can't explore more.)

Peach - 3(I think she's fine in terms of depicting the sort of flirtatious interest that grows to conflict but I don't think we ever fully sense the connection between her and Finch though they don't have bad chemistry.)

Whitelaw - 3.5(My personal *ahem herm* feelings aside, I think she does as much as she can to try to make something interesting out fo the role and does convey a lot with a whole lot of a little. In terms of playing really the undercurrent of what she really feels in every interaction with Finch, creating a real sense of her conflict and struggle in not quite saying what she means while also suffering from his callous manner towards her.)

8000's:

Hubert Humphrey - (Of course not, I'd never willfully cast Tarantino.) Michael Stuhlbarg
Robert F. Kennedy - Chris Pine
Harold Stassen - Vince Vaughn
Ted Kennedy - Alden Ehrenreich
Eugene McCarthy - Matthew Rhys
Walter Mondale - Kyle Chandler
Michael Dukakis - Jason Schwartzman
Margaret Chase Smith - Sigourney Weaver

Ytrewq:

A Serious Man 1990's directed by Albert Brooks:

Larry Gopnik: Albert Brooks
Arthur Gopnik: Jeffrey Tambor
Sy Abelman: Saul Rubinek

Tony:

By "In Contention" I did not mean in terms of the nomination, they were going to be nominated regardless, I meant in terms of the win.

Gene Hackman - Superman
Harrison Ford - The Force Awakens
Stephen Dillane - Game of Thrones
Alec Guinness - Star Wars
Laurence Olivier - Marathon Man
Sigourney Weaver - Alien 3

Anonymous said...

Louis what would've been your "double features" for each of the best picture nominees this year?

Calvin Law said...

Also really dug Wick 4 and agree with Louis on pretty much all fronts, especially Yen.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

Everything Everywhere All At Once/It's A Wonderful Life
All Quiet on the Western Front/Come and See
Avatar The Way of Water/Ferngully 2: The Magical Rescue
The Banshees of Inisherin/Becket
Elvis/Love & Mercy
The Fabelmans/Still Walking
Tar/The Entertainer
Top Gun: Maverick/Creed
Triangle of Sadness/The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Women Talking/Mass

Anonymous said...

Luke, Whenever Louis finishes Ingmar Bergman's filmography, what do you think will be his top 5 films of his.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous:
1. Fanny And Alexander (I'm expecting it to get the most wins from 82 and is in my opinion the most likely to dethrone The Secret Of NIMH for Picture)
2. Persona
3. The Seventh Seal
4. Autumn Sonata
5. Cries & Whispers

Bryan L. said...

Louis: Your past film roles for Michelle Yeoh, Cate Blanchett, Bill Nighy, and Colin Farrell?

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

Bryan: He suggested the roles for Nighy under his Oscar nominee review.

Bryan L. said...

Ytrewq: Oops, I hadn't caught that. Thanks.

Louis: In that case, Brendan Fraser instead of Nighy?

Luke Higham said...

Jonathan Majors career could be finished. What a shame if this is true.

Matt Mustin said...

Luke: I...don't even want to talk about it.

Anonymous said...

Good. He's overrated. Michael B Jordan was the real star of Creed anyway.

Marcus said...

Anonymous: Majors could have been a better actor than Mifune and still deserve the consequences of his actions, his ability isn't relevant here at all.

Calvin Law said...

Louis: thoughts on the drug room fight scene in The Raid?

8000S said...

Louis: Your thoughts on Setsuko Hara, Machiko Kyo and Hideko Takamine as actresses.

Anonymous said...

I haven't seen many people here commenting on Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis being finished. Will it go now?

Mitchell Murray said...

So on a random film viewing note, I watched 2021's "The Suicide Squad" tonight. It strangely has many of the same problems as the first film; Wierd music choices/transitions, tonal issues and excesses, unsuccessful humour, Amanda Waller (both writing and performance from Davis, frankly). Harley Quinn also really feels shoehorned into this movie, and I honestly think the character could be given a rest in favour of less represented DC heroines (Zatanna, Black Canary and Huntress, to name a few).

In another universe, I might've outright hated this movie just as I did with the 2016 version. But by virtue of Elba, Cena, Capaldi and shark man...I'll admit, I had a good time.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your thoughts on the Succession season 4 premiere and MVP?

Tony Kim said...

Louis: Kerry Condon says she auditioned for Lisbeth in Fincher's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. How do you think she would've fared in the role?

Also, can you see Condon in Caitriona Balfe's role in Belfast, and Balfe in Condon's part in Banshees?

Calvin Law said...

Thought that Succession premiere was a fantastic start. Great power play dynamics and hilarity but my god, devastating finish, and yes, Snook and Macfadyen MVPs. Everyone on top form though.

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Is there a possibility of Broadbent, Considine and Frost getting reviewed for Hot Fuzz.

Anonymous said...

Killers of the Flower Moon is releasing on October 20th.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: If Williams was campaigned in Supporting for The Fabelmans, who do you think she would have been nominated over, and who would replace her in Lead Actress?

I think she would have ended up getting the nod over Chau (the love for EEAAO could have been enough to get Hsu in with Curtis), and Deadwyler was probably #6 anyway after Riseborough's late surge.

Louis Morgan said...

Bryan:

Yeoh:

Margot Channing
Ripley
Karin (Secrets of Women)

Blanchett:

Constance Porter
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Miss Scarlett

Farrell:

Richard "Dick" Dudgeon
Willems (Outcast of the Islands)
Tom Jones

Fraser:

Dr. Benjamin "Ben" McKenna
Dragline
Bob Woodward

Calvin:

A great scene that shows several tenets of a great fight scene. One being the action itself is compelling, has great choreography that feels so visceral, and the editing doesn't let up but also does not feel jumbled. There are no breaks between opponents, but you feel the defeat of each foe before the next one immediately attacks, creating the right punctuation points. Then just great work in terms of using the environment as part of the fight, whether that is using what's around as weapons or for an assist in a takedown but also the great table run at the end.

8000's:

Hara is just the embodiment of this pure naturalism as a performer, in that you don't ever think of her performances as performances because she just so naturally is. And that isn't to say she's the same in every role, but there is that consistent quality of her work that you are simply meeting a person in each one.

Kyo contrasts that greatly and is very much I think closer to Mifune as Japanese performers go in terms of the array of work being in general more stylized though with striking emotional cores to her work, which could be more subdued when he wants to be. She's someone I definitely have only skimmed the surface of her work, however, each performance stands on its own in what she brings. Whether that is the very different sides of the wife in one performance of Rashomon, the much more subdued work in A Face of Another, or the mysterious ghost from Ugetsu. Each makes an impact and each is very different.

Takamine from what I've seen feels in the vein of someone like Bette Davis or Joan Crawford, though more consistent from what I've seen, in that her performances are very upfront if not confrontational in the way her presence is used onscreen. Her common films are melodramas and in those melodramas, she delivers this sharp particular kind of intensity, though also often with a genuine emotional core about it. Her performances though also make themselves known as a Takamine performance, which is why I compare her specifically to those Hollywood starlets, and in this instance, I do mean it as a compliment.

Tony:

I have no idea about Lisbeth because that is such an idiosyncratic role, you'd just have to see it and see if it works. She could've been brilliant because Mara is very different there than in so many of her roles, but I'm sure she would've been very different from what Mara did.

Condon is very easy to see excelling in that role in Belfast. Balfe is more of an unknown to me because I haven't seen the needed overt comedic chops, however, I haven't NOT seen them either, so I just don't know. It does seem like perhaps she has a more overtly assertive presence innately that would be less fitting for Siobhan though. But again can't say for sure since I've seen little from Balfe.

Anonymous:

I think I probably speak for many where Megaopolis is something I hope is great, however, due to Coppola's track record in recent years I'm not going to build any expectations up. So it is a wait-and-see. And sure, it's good that it has finished shooting, editing I imagine will probably take a while, particularly as it's a personal passion project, so we still might not see it for some time. But we'll see.

Tahmeed:

I think there's a scenario where Bassett might've missed, as I think her critics/Globes win gave her a bit of extra prominence in the conversation that could've been lost if Williams had swept. I agree Hsu was probably protected by the overall EEAO momentum, and maybe it was Chau however given the Fraser/Makeup win maybe not.

I agree Deadwyler was probably #6.

Louis Morgan said...

Tahmeed:

The Succession premiere was amazing, frequently hilarious but also the mechanics of the business/family fight was effortlessly captivating once again. Also agreed with Calvin regarding the ending, was actually a bit surprised with how emotional I found it given how that relationship has been framed throughout the show. MVP to MacFadyen, however Snook and Cox very close, all three extraordinary in my mind, although everyone else was also great.

Louis Morgan said...

Luke:

Maybe.

Tony Kim said...

Tahmeed: Probably Bassett. Chau was in the eventual Best Actor winner and IIRC had better reviews than Bassett did at the time. I agree Deadwyler would've been nominated in Williams' stead, though.

Louis: What do you think of Jesse Plemons in these roles?

Charlie Meadows
H. I. McDunnough
Derek Vinyard
Jacob Mitchell
Dewey Cox

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

Louis: Thoughts on these moments?

-"What now" (Breaking Bad)
-"You're done" (The Night Of)
-Business card "duel" (American Psycho)
-Damn It Feels Good to Be A Gangsta (Office Space)
-"Eat the pennies, Quizboy" (Venture Bros)
-Dr Evil demands the money (Austin Powers:IMOF)

Tony Kim said...

Actually, on second thought, I'd replace Dewey Cox with Jim Kurring.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Your thoughts on these Oscar-nominated songs?

- “How Do I Live”
- “Travelin’ Thru”
- “Til It Happens To You”
- “Listen”
- “Two Hearts”
- “I Have Nothing”

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: Your thoughts on 'Freedom/The Execution Bannockburn' from Braveheart?

Perfectionist said...

This might be a stupid question but..... does anybody think that maybe for real, some actor somehow might have ended up on this blog 😂😂, and possibly witnessed himself getting reviewed for a performance of his, be it a great rating or bad rating???

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Perfectionist_ad: Don't think it's happened yet, but I have always imagined how Denzel would react to getting a 4 for Malcolm X.

Tim said...

Somebody show this blog to Clooney, please

Marcus said...

Tatsuya Nakadai would be very happy, George Clooney and Sean Penn...probably not.

Calvin Law said...

I think it would be incredibly funny if Eddie Redmayne came across his review for The Danish Girl on here.

Louis Morgan said...

Tony:

Charlie is a tougher sell because I think he needs that gentle giant quality that gets subverted and Plemons isn't quite there physically.

I mean recasting a Cage part is always tough because he's so idiosyncratic, but maybe, I could see that type of hapless energy from him.

Maybe with Derek Vinyard, though I don't think he has *quite* the right type of innate charisma for the kind of cultish leader aspects of the part.

Can 100% see him as Jacob and Jim.

Ytrewq:

"What Now" - Not sure what scene you're referring to?

You're Done - (If I'm thinking of the correct scene. I mean mostly there for the greatness of Bill Camp's performance, which is decidedly badass without looking obviously as such. And you see his character really in full force in terms of his sort of intensity of his interrogation and his dismissiveness towards the guy he knows is actually guilty.)

Business Card - (I don't love American Psycho, but this is a pitch-perfect scene in terms of realizing the specific dark satire of the shallow business world. It's blunt, but hilariously so in just the visuals of all the cards with their vague differences, and reactions of Bateman throughout the scene by being so flustered throughout, particularly in his reaction to Paul Allen's card.)

Damn it feels good to be a gangsta - (Very cathartic montage within the film it just really expresses joy finally in what we had seen been the opposite up till then.)

Eat the Pennies - (Enjoy the extreme pettiness per the revenge and the strangeness of the revenge as enacted. While the show I think could get lost in bits sometimes, that one is pretty gold.)

Dr. Evil Demands Money - (Hilarious in the reflection of inflation, with the dramatic pull in every time being pure gold for the first time of the first price demand and the reaction from the crowd before the double take. Also, side note, you see where I kind of hated what happened to Myers's performance later on, as he has some edge of a real Blofeld type that makes his silliness funny, where he went full goofy later on, as evidenced by his genuinely sinister, if still silly, "really?" at the end.)

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

"How Do I Live" - (One where it is almost impossible to look at it in a certain way, where the song was so ubiquitous for a while, still is to an extent, and I'll admit I really am just not a fan of 90's pop instrumentation, which both versions of the song feature. Having said that, it is one of Warren's better songs, as the overarching romantic ballad is very much effective in that, particularly in its very grandiose build, but it does work. And the lyrics are as straightforward as they can be, but again do work in just its overtness.)

Travelin' thru - (Well I do think Parton uses Travlin Thru one too many times, and don't exactly love the blend of the kind of more traditional folk styling that is fused with alternative kind of tribal qualities. Somewhat of it works wonderfully well though in being this passionate folk ballad about acceptance. Imperfect I feel, but I do like parts of the song.)

Til It Happens to you - (Benefits from expectedly powerful vocal work from Lady Gaga, but the overall song is kind of a messy blend of different ideas that I don't think particularly effectively cohere, and I feel it just kind of wanders around for a while. The repetition of the chorus though does work in parts. Important subject matter, but not a great song.)

Listen - (As ballads go, I wouldn't say it is quite distinct enough to be truly memorable as ballads go. And hits pretty much-expected beats in terms of every aspect of being the "dramatic emotional ballad", but it doesn't hit them at all poorly. It works well enough as such, even if it doesn't stand out as such.)

Two Hearts - (I'm afraid I don't quite have the same feeling towards Phil Collins as the South Park guys, and do find this to be a pleasant enough song. Has a nice beat to it, and just a pleasant sort of romantic cheeriness. Does a lot of the Collins traits, particularly in the swiftness of repetition, but it is a pleasant enough repetition. I would say really the weakness of the song is the attempted segue doesn't entirely work, and the song works best with the simpler repetition.)

I Have Nothing - (Speaking of 90's pop arrangements...but to an even greater extreme here, as I can like synth but for whatever reason, the particular blend that was so frequently featured in the 90's just rubbed me the wrong way rather consistently. There are parts of it that I do like in this song, Houston's vocals certainly do bring a bit of power to them, and the "I have nothing" build is effective in its moment. Again kind of messy as it goes around different places, but it is potent enough on the whole.)

Tahmeed:

I mean it is why I do love the film because that scene never fails to hit me with the sheer power of the emotions of it. That is of Wallace's final moment as we are coming off such visceral brutality, though Gibson actually merely makes you think you see more than you do leading up to it, and for me earns wholly the emotional earnestness of both Murron's ghost and that final defiant last yell in his last breath. And we get the payoff of so much in the following scene that is one of the most inspirational endings to cheer for, with seeing the remembrance for Wallace by his friends, particularly Gleeson's expression, and just the catharsis of seeing Robert finally live up to Wallace's belief in him, with the simple but perfect "You've bled with Wallace" that leads to the most dramatic of charges, where you don't need to see the result because you just simply know it. Overtly dramatic, epic filmmaking at its finest.

Matt Mustin said...

The only way an actor who's been reviewed on here would find this blog is probably only if someone in their camp showed it to them, which actually as I say that is not out of the realm of possibility.

Perfectionist said...

Calvin: I SECOND that 😂😂. I think that performance/review was on my mind when I asked this question.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: I actually meant the track 'Freedom/The Execution Bannockburn' from the original soundtrack/score (don't know why it's titled that).

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Thoughts on the trailers for Master Gardener and Asteroid City.

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

Louis: You once listed the moment in question as one of Aaron Paul's very best scenes from the show, though I don't remember Jesse saying "What now?" verbatim (the closest thing to it would probably be the scenes of him arguing with Walter over what to do with Krazy 8).

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Have you seen How The West Was Won.

Anonymous said...

Your top 10 hardest types of roles to portray in general?

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

Also to throw my two cents in, actors have to deal with negative reviews of various quality all the time throughout their careers, so I think most of the people reviewed here would be pretty chill about their work getting analyzed here in such detail (hell, even Clooney was self-aware enough to apologize for Batman & Robin). The only exceptions would be the ones notorious for throwing hissy fits like Edward Norton and Sean Penn.

Anonymous said...

Louis: I just hope that Megalopolis is just a good movie that is on the same level as Dracula or even Peggy Sue Got Married in which I like, if Coppola manages to do that he can finally retire happily from cinema and end his career well.

Anonymous said...

Talking about if the actors knew about this blog, I imagine George C. Scott's reaction if he saw that he was #1 overall. Probably Scott would ask Louis to remove his name from all posts.

Bryan L. said...

Ytrewq: I was thinking the exact same regarding Clooney & Penn. The former would probably just take it in stride and/or shrug it off, though he’d appreciate the review for The American. I don’t think he takes himself *that* serious.

Penn would punch the screen in anger though.

Luke Higham said...

Penn will get a 5 for The Thin Red Line yet he'd still think Mystic River is his best work.

Hound said...

Sorry if you've already covered it but I noticed that Robert Forster is a (well deserved) 5 for Jackie Brown. Am I imagining it or was he originally a 3? If so, what changed your mind?

Luke Higham said...

Hound: He was a 3.5 at the start, then a 4 and went up to a 5 last April.

Hound said...

Thanks Luke

Mitchell Murray said...

Also, my two cents on the "Asteroid City" trailer....

I'm intrigued. I generally like Wes Anderson, and this looks like another dose of his particular style and energy. I don't have much more to add, but I will say its nice to see Scarlett Johansson make a live action appearence in Wes' movies.

8000S said...

Luke: I'm curious, what do you think Louis' top 5 Ozu will be once he more or less completes his filmography?

Louis Morgan said...

Luke:

I probably should just shut up since I like every Wes Anderson film to at least some degree, but that film looks like it might give you a Wes Anderson overdose with the extreme purity of his style on display. Again, I'll probably like it regardless, but looks like he went even deeper to that extreme he was working with when he did the French Dispatch.

The Master Gardener looks like any recent Schrader, which means I probably won't care for it, the only question is if I will like Edgerton, so I will see it at some point just for him.

Tahmeed:

I mean some of the very best of Horner, with some of the most powerful orchestral swell you'll ever hear, and it just is really overpouring with emotion, yet to me is still never too much with just that mix of the first half between sort of the "cruel" drums with the passionate strings beneath them as they build against one another, until the strings win out in one of the great bits of motif that musically represents Wallace's last breath as it builds with the bagpipes so perfectly. Then the second half does a brilliant variation on it, again drums now with woodwinds however instead of clashing this time, they cohere together as this magnificent blend that couldn't be more inspirational if it tried, as the strings return as the inspiration of Wallace returns to a grand triumph of all the ideas as one with the bagpipes now taking the lead as this representation of the Scottish spirit that is just flawlessly realized.

Ytrewq:

Unfortunately I can't remember what I was referring to either.

Anonymous:

I made a top five in Kenneth McMillan's reviews from 84.

Luke:

I've seen parts of it, but since Ford is one of several directors I don't consider it one of "his films" per se.

Luke Higham said...

8000S: This is a shot in the dark.
Tokyo Story
Floating Weeds
An Autumn Afternoon
Late Spring
Late Autumn

Anonymous said...

Louis: Your thoughts on these scenes https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=M5arBwdFT_Y https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yp2G586zOEE

Marcus said...

Louis: I usually ignore them, but there might be some comments you'd want to delete on Brendan Gleeson's review for The Guard.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

Great sort of juxtaposition of emotional conviction against logical reality with just how dramatic Jesse is, and Paul's great in playing it very much on the emotional edge of someone who just got the tar beaten out of him. Against Odenkirk being so low key in Saul saying "yeah that's a bad idea". And a scene that is proof that Jesse is in many ways a fool who was culpable in his own moral demise later on as this scene is not only him doubling down on the "life" and is doing so in a way that forces Walter to have to be a part of it. And this is probably what I mean by the "what now" scene.

The second though is perhaps Jesse with a bit more clarity, and Paul is moving in portraying the desperation of it all. Although it does slightly speak to a delusion in Jesse that everything is Walter's fault, and yes Walter was a catalyst to many things, Jesse being part of being a drug dealer would've taken him down a similar, though perhaps less grandiose life to begin with, in fact he probably would've been killed by Emilio or another rival dealer at some point.

Marcus:

I'm not sure if those or the anti-Boris Karloff stan confused me more.

8000S said...

Louis: Your thoughts on the voice of Tom Conway.

Perfectionist said...

I am a bit confused about something regarding 1990 rankings. I have mostly overlooked that year ever since I come on this blog, so I have only noticed that recently. Is Byrne a 4.5 or 5 for Miller's Crossing?? I assume it's former because of no review, unless it's in the cards.

Matt Mustin said...

Perfectionist_ad: 4.5, at least for now. He should be a 5 though, if you ask me.

Perfectionist said...

Matt: Oh yeah I agree. A huge fan of that performance. He would easily be my runner up to Liotta....

Calvin Law said...

Louis: thoughts on 'Fanny Pack' and 'In Another Life' from EEAAO's score?

Fully agree with Matt and Perfectionist_ad on Byrne. He might be my win for the year, actually.

Tim said...

he should be a 5 indeed, but nothing will ever dethrone Caan for me

Anonymous said...

Which actresses do you think could have done the most justice to Nell and Carly Marshall?

Sissy Spacek seems the obvious choice for Nell but I suppose she might have been too old for the part at that point

Michael McCarthy said...

I just saw the new Dungeons & Dragons movie and y’all…the reviews aren’t doing justice to how much fun it is. The visual effects are so unique and creative and every single cast member is having a blast in the most infectious way.

Louis Morgan said...

Agreed with Michael regarding Dungeons and Dragons, it's just a whole lot of fun in a very pure way. It isn't any sort of grand achievement, but it's not trying to be either. It wants to be a charming romp, and that it is.

Pine - 4
Rodriguez - 2.5
Page - 4
Smith - 3.5
Lillis - 3
Grant - 3.5
Coleman - 3
Head - 2.5
? - 3

Louis Morgan said...

8000's:

If we're referring to the announcer from 101 Dalmatians, must say that's not a great deal of game tape, anything from that aggressively prim proper and polite English to be sure.

Anonymous:

Both films are terribly written, Foster and Lange are bad, however the material isn't helping them in any instance. I don't think there's saving Nell in the slightest, but I do think Spacek would've been better if too old. While I think the film still would've been bad, I think she would've been less twee about the whole thing.

Blue Sky, while it was always going to be bad, is made far worse from Lange's hamminess, Susan Sarandon, Sigourney Weaver or particularly Kathleen Turner would've been far better.

Calvin:

Well I would say both are the best parts of the score for me. Fanny Pack being an effective sort of twisted martial arts style score though skewered through sort of a techno insanity, honestly sounding almost like when in a fighting game when the clock starts running out with the overt sort of dramatics of it.

In Another Life is part ambient mood at first in the distance of the work that is kind of this quiet bit of inspiration that slowly builds from seeming that coldness of the score, to something more powerful and truly winning in creating this emotional catharsis in just the way the vocal reveal themselves.

Anonymous said...

Louis how would you rank the John Wick series and the villains?

Anonymous said...

Louis: Thoughts on the cast of Dungeons & Dragons?

Bryan L. said...

“Rodríguez - 2.5”

Does she just play Letty again, like in Widows, or…?

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

1. 1
2. 4
3. 2
4. 3

We'll say antagonists as I wouldn't call Caine or really even Cassian a villain.

1. Caine
2. Viggo Tarasov
3. Iosef Tarasov
4. Mr. Nobody
5. The Marquis
6. Killa
7. Kirill
8. Ms. Perkins
9. Chidi
10. Cassian
11. Zero
12. The Adjudicator
13. Ares
14. Santino
15. The Elder

Anonymous:

Pine - (Pine being charming, funny, with a bit of emotion and singing too, what's not to like when he hits that gear? That's the case here and this is just Pine being in leading man mode in just the right way, and just creates an endearing lovable rogue style energy.)

Rodriguez - (For me this is yet the same exact performance she always gives, and I think there was room for a lot more with this character. To the point her performance I think made it so one key moment didn't hit as well as it could've just because she didn't endear herself to me as much as I think was capable with this character as written, because she just does her standard routine.)

Page - (I think this is only the second thing I've seen of his, but quite enjoyed him here, in portraying dashing and goodness to such an extreme that it becomes rather amusing. Although I think he hits just this fantastic balance between being funny, while also completely selling the idea of the character's goodness at the same time, which is a pretty neat trick he pulls off.)

Smith - (I'll admit going in I had serious concerns because I was not a fan of his bumbling routine in Jurassic World, however found his bumbling routine worked much better here. Creating more of a balance between the angles he comes at it so it's not one note, finding variation in the haplessness sometimes being fully joke, ironic and sometimes actually emotional. Finding a nice variation that became fairly endearing to me.)

Lillis - (Doesn't get too much to do in terms of stretching her performance wise, but I did like her general presence here.)

Grant - (Grant doing sleazy what's not to like? Basically a variation on Phoenix but, that doesn't bother me at all, when it is properly entertaining and despicable variation as such.)

Coleman - (Limited role but I did like the sense of emotion she found in her scenes with Pine.)

Head - (I'm EVIL performances are a tough sell, and I thought she was just fine. Doesn't stand out, but does the job much like the character.)

? - (Kind of more dramatic really than I would've expected from the opening joke of the bit, but fine work as such.)

Michael McCarthy said...

Louis: Very glad you enjoyed it overall, but I’d go higher on Smith, Grant, and ESPECIALLY Rodriguez. The fact that most of her performance was physical played into her strong suits, her chemistry with Chris Pine was *perfect* and I’ll just fully disagree with you and admit her big scene made me cry like a baby.

Michael McCarthy said...

Also one other thing I have to say related to this movie? Chris Pine has chemistry with literally everyone he shares a scene with. He’s a straight up dream come true of a scene partner.

Mitchell Murray said...

Huh....I'll admit, all this praise for the new D&D film has given me pause. I've never played the game itself, and the reputation of the older movie is well earned. So even with the trailer, I guess I had no real reference to gauge it's quality when it was first being marketed. Therefore, seeing so much fanfare for it is a nice surprise.

Though on a related note, I have seen the first episode of "The Legend of Vox Machina", which I very much enjoyed and so I would be interested in continuing the series.

Tony Kim said...

While I haven't seen D&D yet, I'm not surprised it's getting good reviews despite flopping at the box office. The trailer made it look fun and energetic but the sort of thing that's too niche for the general public to be interested in.

Louis: Speaking of Plemons, do you think you can see Harry Melling or Barry Keoghan as Todd Alquist?

Have you given your alternate roles for John Cazale anywhere?

Tony Kim said...

Strike that, it appears I was looking at the wrong numbers: the film is actually doing fine financially. I suppose what I should've said was that it's a surprise to see the film performing well given how niche D&D is.