Saturday, 13 September 2025

Alternate Best Actor 2004

 And the Nominees Were Not:

Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice

Christian Bale in The Machinist

Gael García Bernal in The Motorcycle Diaries

Mads Mikkelsen in Pusher II

Paddy Considine in Dead Man's Shoes

nor

Irrfan Khan in Maqbool

Tony Leung Chiu Wai in 2046

Yuya Yagira in Nobody Knows

Shah Rukh Khan in Swades

Bill Murray in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou

Predict either set or both.

And an out of competition review of Daniel Brühl in The Edukators.

45 comments:

Louis Morgan said...

Catch Up Ratings:

Bob Trevino Likes It:

Saving Leguizamo.

Ferreira - 3.5
French - 2
Jones - 3
Spencer - 3

Eddington:

Phoenix - 3.5
Pascal - 3
Stone - 3
Butler - 3
Grimes - 2
O'Connell - 3
Ward - 2.5
Hoeferle - 2
Collins - 2.5
Hidaka - 2
Mann - 2

The Luckiest Man in America:

Hauser - 3.5
Goggins - 3
Strathairn - 4
Williams - 2.5
Anderson - 3.5
Geraghty - 2.5
Harrison - 2.5

Honey Don't

Qualley - 1.5
Plaza - 2.5
Evans - 2.5
Day - 1.5
Connolly - 2.5
Eichner - 2
Beans - 2
Ryder - 2

Sorry Baby:

Victor - 4
Ackie - 4
Hedges - 3
Cancelmi - 3
McCormack - 2
Lynch - 3.5

Freaky Tales:

Pascal - 4
Ellis - 3.5
Normani - 3.5
Thorne - 3.5
Mendelsohn - 3.5
Yoo - 3
Cloud - 3
Hanks - 3.5

The Ballad of Wallis Island:

Key - 3
Basden - 3
Mulligan - 4
Ndifornyen - 3.5

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

1. Considine
2. Mikkelsen
3. Pacino
4. Bale
5. Bernal

1. Khan (Swades)
2. Murray
3. Yagira
4. Khan (Maqbool)
5. Leung

RatedRStar said...

1. Considine
2. Mikkelsen
3. Bale
4. Pacino
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. Leung
4. Khan (Swades)
5. Khan (Maqbool)

RatedRStar said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
RatedRStar said...

Louis: Could you see a film for me during 2004? no review of course as I know you obviously have a lot on, but you might be somewhat pleased when I tell you what its for.

Robert MacFarlane said...

1. Considine
2. Pacino
3. Bernal
4. Mikkelsen
5. Bale

1. Murray
2. Khan (Swades)
3. Leung
4. Yagira
5. Khan (Maqbool)

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Louis: I would normally never ask this, but do you think you could consider writing up SRK's review before/by October 3rd (my birthday). Only if your schedule allows, of course.

Luke Higham said...

1. Considine
2. Mikkelsen
3. Pacino
4. Bale
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. SR. Khan
4. Leung
5. I. Khan

Luke Higham said...

Hotel Rwanda (Re-watch for Cheadle)
The Woodsman (Re-watch for Bacon)
Kill Bill Vol. 2 (Re-Watch for Carradine if an upgrade’s possible)
Troy (Re-Watch/Director's Cut))
Spider-Man 2 (Re-Watch)
Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (Re-Watch)
Dodgeball (Re-Watch)
Collateral (Re-Watch)
The Incredibles (Re-Watch)
Howl’s Moving Castle
Shrek 2
Alexander (Final Cut/Vangelis)
King Arthur (Mads Mikkelsen)
Hidalgo (Viggo Mortensen)
Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (For Matthew Lillard’s performance)
Omagh
Something The Lord Made (Alan Rickman)
Hawking (Benedict Cumberbatch)
Man On Fire (Denzel Washington)
Bad Education (Gael Garcia Bernal)
In My Father's Den (Matthew Macfadyen)
Miracle (Kurt Russell)
The Assassination Of Richard Nixon (Sean Penn)
As It Is In Heaven (Michael Nyqvist)
Kings And Queen (Mathieu Amalric)
I, Robot (Alan Tudyk)
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (Clive Owen/Malcolm McDowell)
Veer-Zaara (Shah Rukh Khan)
Tony Takitani (Issey Ogata)
Virumaandi (Kamal Hassan)
The Ladykillers (Tom Hanks/Coen Brothers)
The Terminal (Tom Hanks/Steven Spielberg)
Friday Night Lights (Billy Bob Thornton)
De-Lovely (Kevin Kline)
Beyond The Sea (Kevin Spacey)
Enduring Love (Daniel Craig)
Undertow (Jamie Bell)
Stage Beauty (Billy Crudup/Rupert Everett)
Lost Embrace (Silver Bear Best Actor Winner)
Love In Thoughts (Daniel Brühl/August Diehl)
The President's Barber (Song Kang-Ho)
Vera Drake (Imelda Staunton/Phil Davis)
Maria Full Of Grace (Catalina Sandino Moreno)
Being Julia (Annette Bening)
Clean (Maggie Cheung/Nick Nolte)
A Very Long Engagement (Marion Cotillard)
Dear Frankie (Emily Mortimer)
Ladies In Lavender (Maggie Smith/Judi Dench)
My Summer Of Love (Emily Blunt/Paddy Considine)
Yesterday
The Bridesmaid
Intimate Strangers (Sandrine Bonnaire)
Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow (Theo Angelopoulos)
The Chorus
The Bourne Supremacy
Mean Creek
Moolaadé
House Of Flying Daggers
The Hidden Blade
Kung Fu Hustle
3-Iron
Tropical Malady
The Taste Of Tea
Three... Extremes
A Moment To Remember
Life Is A Miracle
Head-On
Primer
The Consequences Of Love
Before The Fall
Wimbledon
In Good Company
Ella Enchanted
Starsky & Hutch
Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
13 Going On 30
The Butterfly Effect
Cellular

Luke Higham said...

Louis: I assume the Whannell review will be coming up very soon.

Thoughts on:
Garner, Brolin, Ehrenreich and Madigan in Weapons
Phoenix in Eddington
Strathairn in The Luckiest Man In America
Victor and Ackie in Sorry Baby
Pascal in Freaky Tales
Mulligan in The Ballad Of Wallis Island

Matt Mustin said...

1. Considine
2. Pacino
3. Mikkelsen
4. Bale
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. S.R. Khan
4. Leung
5. I. Khan

Matt Mustin said...

Also, I'm OK being alone on this, but I kinda think William Hurt is lead in The Village.

Razor said...

1. Considine
2. Mikkelsen
3. Pacino
4. Bale
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. Shah Rukh Khan
4. Leung
5. Irrfan Khan

Matt Mustin said...

Also on the films to watch list: Jarmusch's Coffee and Cigarettes

BRAZINTERMA said...

5º Gael García Bernal
4º Christian Bale
3º Al Pacino
2º Mads Mikkelsen
1º Paddy Considine

5º Irrfan Khan
4º Tony Leung Chiu Wai
3º Shah Rukh Khan
2º Bill Murray
1º Yuya Yagira

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Thought The Long Walk was riveting, taken to the next level by two tremendous leading performances. Some brief, mostly spoiler free thoughts below:

Jonsson - 5 (my MVP if only because of how he technically has less direct focus, but is just as soulful, charismatic on his own and of course the incredible chemistry with Hoffman. Also, very challenging role in how the set-up could have lead to a very sanctimonious performance, but he never has a false note.)

Hoffman - 5 (he and Jonsson give a masterclass here on how give great reactionary and physical work, but also manages to properly subvert the 'wholly good lead' while very much being that too. He and Jonsson make the idea of resistance by decency and compassion so tangible and beautiful. He has a line delivery here that I won't spoil, but I think Louis and the rest of us would be be hit hard by.)

The rest of the cast is uniformly decent, and by the structure of the film, are designed to have a standout moment to themselves as you get to know them. I'd give a 2.5 to Wang and 4 to Plummer, but other than that, I concur with Louis's ratings.

Michael Patison said...

Group 1:
1. Paddy Considine
2. Gael Garcia Bernal
3. Christian Bale
4. Mads Mikkelsen
5. Al Pacino

Group 2:
1. Bill Murray
2. Shah Rukh Khan
3. Irrfan Khan
4. Yuya Yagira
5. Tony Leung Chiu-wai

Emi Grant said...

1. Considine
2. Pacino
3. Bale
4. Bernal
5. Mikkelsen

1. Yagira
2. Murray
3. S.R. Khan
4. Leung
5. I. Khan

Robert MacFarlane said...

Tahmeed: I saw someone mention something about a line delivery on Bluesky that they said reminded them a lot of his old man. I guess I should see it now.

Jonathan Williams said...

1. Considine
2. Pacino
3. Mikkelsen
4. Bale
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. S.R. Khan
4. Leung
5. I. Khan

Matt Mustin said...

Nobody Knows is another excellent film from Kore-eda and it's getting a little reduntant to keep saying that.

Yagira-5
The rest of the kids-4
YOU-4.5

Luke Higham said...

Louis: For tomorrow, can I have your updated Oscar predictions with thoughts on each category.

Ytrewq Wertyq said...

1. Considine
2. Pacino
3. Bale
4. Mikkelsen
5. Bernal

1. Murray
2. Leung
3. Khan (Swades)
4. Yagira
5. Khan (Maqbool)

Tony Kim said...

1. Murray
2. Yagira
3. S.R. Khan
4. Leung
5. I. Khan

Harris Marlowe said...

Very excited for this round. I have to think it'll go on for longer than usual - 12 reviews and a shit-ton of watching/rewatching.

Louis, which category are you putting Leguizamo in?

Maciej said...

1.Considine
2.Pacino
3.Bernal
4.Mikkelsen
5.Bale

1.Murray
2.Leung
3. Yagira
4.I. Khan
5. S.R. Khan

Perfectionist said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Calvin Law said...

1. Considine
2. Bernal
3. Mikkelsen
4. Pacino
5. Bale

1. Yagira
2. Shah Rukh Khan
3. Leung
4. Murray
5. Irrfan Khan

Anonymous said...

Calvin: Murray is a 5, Cal.

Luke Higham said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Luke Higham said...

Hamnet won People's Choice. Surprisingly, both Frankenstein and Wake Up Dead Man are runners-up.

Michael McCarthy said...

1. Christian Bale
2. Paddy Considine
3. Mads Mikkelsen
4. Al Pacino
5. Gael Garcia Bernal (The only one I haven’t seen, I may update this if I get to it in time)

Have only seen Murray from the bottom set.

Perfectionist said...

1. Considine
2. Bernal
3. Mikkelsen
4. Pacino
5. Bale

1. Murray
2. Leung
3. Shahrukh Khan
4. Yagira
5. Irrfan Khan
I have only seen Considine and Leung here.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

I will say given Louis liked Khan a fair deal in Dil Se, it makes me feel confident in him doing well here. Part of that is that he's actually very good in the musical sequences in Swades, instead of the performances being (purposefully) set aside in the former film.

Louis Morgan said...

Will get to performance thoughts soon but not yet.

RatedRStar:

Name the film.

Tahmeed:

I will try to do so.

Harris:

Supporting though he is on the border.

Luke:

Is Whannell lead?

Matt Mustin said...

Louis: Whannell and Elwes are the leads in Saw

Robert MacFarlane said...

Does that mean I have to finally watch Saw as homework?

Louis Morgan said...

Luke:

Best Picture:

One Battle After Another (Winner)
Hamnet
Sinners
Sentimental Value
A House of Dynamite
The Secret Agent
Wicked For Good
Frankenstein
Marty Supreme
Avatar: Fire and Ash

Based on the early word One Battle may be PTA's Oppenheimer/No Country but we will see. At the very least sounds like it will definitely be in for the nominations. Hamnet with that Audience win has gone above and beyond, plus historical subject matter hard to deny. Sinners is trading focus for WB but obviously has all the early buzz to back it up. Sentimental Value still as Neon's likely best push. A House of Dynamite is Netflix's pony therefore will get many a nomination. The Secret Agent may get pushed out by US contenders but certainly has the potential. Wicked For Good as long as it delivers. Frankenstein thanks to the audience runner-up I think gets probably a Nightmare Alley like run. Marty Supreme just based on the trailer. Avatar will do absurdly well at the box office and will be there, even if it is more of the same.

Director:

PTA - One Battle After Another (Winner)
Chloe Zhao - Hamnet
Ryan Coogler - Sinners
Joachim Trier - Sentimental Value
Kathryn Bigelow - A House of Dynamite

These seem like a representation of the top five, though probably a bigger director's branch swerve somewhere in there maybe Kleber Mendonça Filho.

Matt Mustin said...

Robert: It's actually not that bad. It's not great, but it's kinda just a C-grade Seven.

Louis Morgan said...

Actor:

Paul Mescal - Hamnet (Winner)
Timothee Chalamet - Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another
Jeremy Allen White - Deliver Me From Nowhere
Jesse Plemons - Bugonia

Not an easy one to predict. Mescal evidently could campaign either way, but playing Shakespeare, in such a lauded performance, going through those events in his life sound ideal for a winning performance...the pause is his category/screentime then. Chalamet sure if Marty is a thing as he continues to have the buzz in general. Doesn't sound like DiCaprio will have the same degree of detraction this time so no reason to bet against if this is PTA's ticket. White as the standard biopic performance, which begin with a little bit of a boost. And Plemons just for his reviews, though it doesn't sound like Bugonia will do a Poor Things/The Favourite overall. But there's also Crowe with the great reviews, though the middling film reactions give me pause (if he was running supporting I'd predict him), Jordan as a top five lead makes sense. And Johnson or Fraser I could easily see getting SAG at the very least.

Jessie Buckley - Hamnet (Winner)
Renate Reinsve - Sentimental Value
Amanda Seyfried - The Testament of Ann Lee
Cynthia Erivo - Wicked for Good
Rose Byrne - If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

Buckley seems like she has it all so while I'll admit my bias, this has nothing to do with that, as she evidently has the film, the role, the performance. Reinsve seems logical though I could see her a SAG snub that comes back later. Erivo, sure though I wouldn't be surprised if she misses out. Seyfried has the reviews though it sounds like the film is the tougher sell, but playing a historical figure often helps. Byrne by the earliest buzz, but again sounds like her film might be a bigger sell. Something true with several potential contenders though like Lawrence, Roberts and Sweeney. Maybe I should throw in Stone but feel they may forget her this time, like Battle of the Sexes.

Emi Grant said...

Louis: Is this your first exposure to the Saw franchise?

Louis Morgan said...

Supporting:

Stellan Skarsgard - Sentimental Value (Winner)
Sean Penn - One Battle After Another
Adam Sandler - Jay Kelly
Delroy Lindo - Sinners
Jeremy Strong - Deliver Me From Nowhere

Skarsgard seems like an ideal potential winner. Penn seems primed for a nomination based on the strong word for him. Have Sandler just as general goodwill, and he got great reviews despite Jay Kelly not exactly getting the greatest notices. Strong to go with White plus his general buzz as a performer. Lindo I can buy missing easily but the category seems like there's enough room at the moment for him to make it.

Elle Fanning - Sentimental Value (Winner)
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas - Sentimental Value
Ariana Grande - Wicked For Good
Gwyneth Paltrow - Marty Supreme
Emily Blunt - The Smashing Machine

Going with both Sentimental Value ladies. Grande sure, though I could see her miss as from my knowledge her arc was in the first. Paltrow sure if Marty is a thing. Blunt is one I think many will say is a package deal with Johnson, but there's times that's not the case (Hunt for The Sessions), where I could see this as "now you're in the club fully" nomination. Obviously not the most confident with this category. Waiting on slightly specific word on supporting ladies in OBAA. Madigan I think will be the favorite of many but not sure she can go the distance as a sole nominee...well maybe with makeup. Mosaku maybe if Sinners REALLY performs.

Louis Morgan said...

Emi:

In terms of actually watching one of the films, yes.

Lucas Saavedra said...

Louis: What are your ratings for the cast of Nobody 2?

Matt Mustin said...

Tramell Tillman is the first black man to win an Emmy for Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, which doesn't sound true, but apparently is.