Alternate Best Actor 2004: Tony Leung in 2046

Tony Leung Chiu-wai did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Mr. Chow in 2046.

2046 is the sequel to In The Mood For Love as we follow Mr. Chow after that “not quite” love affair. 

2046 honestly went beyond my expectations for a sequel to the seemingly perfect self-enclosed effort of In the Mood For Love. As that film seems like it should never have a sequel but if there’s a story to tell one can always make a sequel even when it seems like there shouldn’t have been one. In this instance it doesn’t at all touch what happened so beautifully in that previous film, that is wisely guarded as the perfection that it is, what 2046 posits is how does a man continue on after that perfect romance that he never happened. Focusing on Leung’s Mr. Chow, a character who exists within the potential alternative romantic arrangements, is frequently found in the small apartments he inhabits. Leung’s performance, which in the previous film was all about this specific state of being and realizing the moments of quiet vulnerability, is a much more varied and open performance, befitting a man who in his way lost it all but needs to continue regardless. Within each potential alternative Leung’s performance then becomes a reflection of this attempt to deal with essentially missing out on what seemed like his ideal happiness with Mrs. Su (Maggie Cheung). What we see in the film is different forms of how he expresses himself through each new woman in his life, some romantic some not, but all in reaction to the unconsummated relationship that will forever define his life. 

The first ironically played by Carina Lau, Leung’s eventual actual wife, is the first and seemingly most obvious messy rebound attempt at a relationship. Leung’s great in this relatively brief attempted rekindling of a love affair where there’s kind of the innate sense of failure behind his attempted romantic overtures. There’s an immediate sense of defeat in every moment of Leung’s reactions where he potently suggests Chow as someone looking essentially for some reassuring romance but also already preemptively seeing it as something that will work out. Leung presents someone very lost within himself without an obvious avenue for escape through another. So naturally this one does not work out particularly well particularly when she doesn’t seem overly interested in Chow to begin with and disappears soon afterwards, possibly due to violent circumstances. So Mr. Chow returns as his apartment dweller but also initially for financial need becomes a fiction writer again, something that had been sparked by his relationship with Mrs. Su, and in a way the moments of speaking on the writing, there's a bit more a spark Leung himself brings suggesting that old romance when there’s this optimism in the man he speaks of in his writing. 

That aspect of his writing is something the film returns to and is an aspect to yet another set of relationships for Mr. Chow, however these are largely platonic and often observational. As Mr. Chow also observes and occasionally interacts with the landlord’s daughters, at two separate times in his life. Leung is great in fashioning in these interactions the attempt at some kind of wisdom of relationships in these moments even when it involves rejecting one of the daughter’s advances. Leung brings a more reflective quality in his way of watching the lives of these women play out in their own ways, where there is an ease, even a gentle humor about him at these times. Leung excelling particularly when he gets to speak what he can say he’s learned in any way, of course still in his own way, such as when speaking about his relationship with Mrs. Su and what they wrote together. Leung again delivers a combination of a maturity and pathos in these moments, where you do see the undercurrent of the weight of that memory that very much defines the man, while also having the wistful distance of someone showing just how much appreciation Mr. Chow has for that time even if those thoughts are both a burden and a relief. A very specific emotion that Leung not only makes so naturally observed, but also pulls you into this mind frame so potently. 

An aspect that we see when Mr. Chow finds a literal different Ms. Su (Gong Li) who is a gambler he comes across after he has lost much money outside of Hong Kong. This is not a recreation of any sort with the other Su, rather Leung finds a new path in his portrayal of this situation as he presents a kind of fascination with her that isn’t typical lust nor real affection, rather just almost her as a figure beyond his normal conception of reality. She is an enigma and Leung is excellent in the way his performance creates that mystery particularly in terms of the emotional impact it has on Mr. Chow. Leung brings such a depth within the emotions of being captured by this new woman but this one is not an equal understanding of romance even as they become lovers. Rather this Su very much has all the power with Mr. Chow followed along in his way. Leung articulates the imperfectness of this relationship, even as the allure of it is always as obvious each time he looks at the unique woman. All the way till their relationship is based on only a gambling bet where Chow has already lost in a way, and Leung’s performance is absolutely pitch perfect in his raise of the losing hand. As there is the awareness even if there is also the hope about the action, something where Leung creates the sense of the man understanding the reason for the failure of this relationship set in a single hand, but also still that dreamers wish to delude himself still. 

For me the most captivating of all the relationships featured however is the one with his neighbor Bai Ling (Zhang Ziyi). Leung has maybe the most sparks here but what’s fascinating is it is a completely different spark than the ones we saw with Cheung. A completely different relationship as the two begin at the point of open flirtation that is more joking than anything else. Real in the sense of attractive but humorous in the approach of each making it a bit of a game. Leung is amazing in the way he shows a different side of Chow here who is going into this relationship with purposefully a fun loving but also blithe attitude of someone just wanting to essentially have some fun. And the two are so much fun together as they just trade each other off in terms of their pseudo insults, and their pseudo lusty overtures. They are magnificent in every sly smile and more open glance. This relationship isn’t about the unsaid, it is about the very openly said and the two are great in playing into romance that very much isn’t about any kind of pure love, where the lust is very much a given. Every one of their scenes together is a little gem that does build, where the complication comes as Bai Ling wants something more from it, and Chow does not. I love the hope of it as Chow’s drunken state he more genuinely reaches out probably thinking of Mrs. Su, but when somber seems to avoid any meaning with Bai beyond sexual desire. Leung’s performance shows that even in this very much consummated relationship a man is still defined by the one that got away from him. As the moments of his rejections of Bai Ling’s want to have more, Leung’s subtle unease beneath the flirty smile presents the honest emotion that the man still wants to reveal to anything other than in his stories or to a tree. Leung delivers a great follow-up performance because he successfully expands the role but also powerfully never loses the strength of his original work, by presenting a man still ever haunted however has to continue to live on.

Alternate Best Actor 2004: Mads Mikkelsen in Pusher II

Mads Mikkelsen did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Tonny in Pusher II. 

Pusher II is a unique sequel that changes protagonists to one of the supporting characters from the first film, while also including other key characters from that film. 

The great Mads Mikkelsen was that supporting character in the first film and honestly the standout, albeit very briefly, in that film as the joyful and manic buddy of the main character, who leaves poor Tonny beaten. We jump into Tonny’s story within prison where he is awaiting release and we see a very different man from the one we saw in the original film. Mikkelsen however did not forget how to play Tonny rather what we sense is the experience of life on his character and his performance here being a natural extension of that. The signs of the more manic Tonny are in and around moments in Mikkelsen’s performance, as when he gets excited in the few moments that he is allowed of that, we see that same zest for life with perhaps foolishness in so firmly buying into the notion for a moment, such as when we see Tonny steal a car thinking it will be an impressive act. Beyond that however we see a man having gotten more than a few lessons from life, someone who most certainly was beaten by his best friend and has spent a few years in prison. Mikkelsen wears this history within him from his opening scene, where there’s the glint of an old smile but even that is something quickly drifting off when faced with the reality of his life. 

We follow Tonny as he leaves prison and attempts to reconnect with his small-time crime boss father the duke. A scene that is all about Mikkelsen’s performance in creating the relationship between Tonny and his dad. As when he comes in Mikkelsen brings a combination between a certain shyness, shame but also an eagerness. Mikkelsen shows Tonny wanting to connect with his father, but you also see the weight of a lack of connection. Something that becomes very clear as his father almost immediately begins to disregard Tonny and only halfheartedly takes on his own son as one of his men to commit crimes. Mikkelsen is fantastic in the way he so easily brings us into the headspace of Tonny in these interactions. Mikkelsen brings so much internalized pain in just every glance of hoping for any kind of approval, the eagerness to try to speak towards him with warmth, but a downturned brow that repeatedly emphasizes a man who has learned only to be a disappointment. Mikkelsen shows us the landscape of the man just eking out not just a living but really the life of a son as his dad allows him to be near him, however even that the dad treats as an inconvenience barely even a duty. 

As the film progresses we see Tonny work the menial jobs, within the criminal organization, which include a robbery where in the getaway Tonny doesn't even get a seat in the car, just the trunk. Mikkelsen in these moments brings such a sadness to it that really amplifies because as much as we see the little smiles outwardly towards his dad these are between the quiet frustrations. Mikkelsen makes it much more heartbreaking because you see that Tonny does understand what is going on yet so much wants to hold onto any idea that his father will be a good man throughout these moments. Mikkelsen’s eyes showing someone looking for those moments only to have them dashed again and again, where Mikkelsen brings such power in showing the glint of hope fading as frustrations mount. Something that is exacerbated as his father not only continues to mistreat Tonny, he also shows constant favor towards Tonny’s younger half brother, as essentially the son that he always wanted in comparison to the obligation of Tonny. 

Speaking of father and sons, the most poignant element of the film is as Tonny is confronted by his old girlfriend that he has a son of his own. Although her presentation of this is with as little warmth as possible as she is very direct in just wanting the child support from him. Mikkelsen is great in portraying the initial reaction as surprise with maybe a small bit of frustration however within it you can see a quiet urge towards someone finding more within looking at his son. Something that expands in each subsequent interaction where Mikkelsen with such modesty yet power reveals the best of Tonny as he spends time with his infant son. There’s a growing warmth in Mikkelsen but also his presence suddenly exudes a greater maturity and even satisfaction in these moments. You see a man who has any kind of real purpose that isn’t just trying to impress his father. Tonny however still lives in a toxic world, which includes his son’s mother who also is a drug addict and at times reveals herself to be as careless as anyone else. The later scenes of the film become the natural revelation to what Mikkelsen has expressed within his work for the rest of the film. His journey with his father leads only his father to make a truly wretched request for Tonny to murder a woman. Tonny initially agrees to which Mikkelsen presents as the most desperate last ditch effort to please his dad, even though in his eyes undercutting any notion that he can go through it. Something we see reflected when he goes to the woman and Mikkelsen’s terrific in playing the immediate anxiety within himself that leads him to egress from the scene leading to a confrontation with his father. A scene where Mikkelsen delivers the rage of Tonny so convincingly of not just the moment of rejecting the heinous act but the years of being put down as a lesser son. We see the same in regards to his son with two different acts. The first being Tonny doing what he knows, and Mikkelsen effectively plays it with the raw visceral energy of a man in a violent world when he lashes out at his son’s mother for doing drugs instead of minding their son. His reaction is the same violence he knows with Mikkelsen emphasizing that lack of thought. His final act though is different, although the good intention is there for both in caring for his son, the second it isn’t violence just taking his son out of the environment. A silence sequence where the emotion is potent just in Mikkelsen’s reactions throughout shows Lonny not only being a father, showing warmth and care, but also in his eyes there is also being a man without violence quietly embracing the potential for something better. What can one say but yes Mads Mikkelsen is terrific once again. Finding all the nuance in the role and naturalizing realizing the humanity of the violent “thug”.  

Alternate Best Actor 2004: Shah Rukh Khan in Swades

Shah Rukh Khan did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Mohan Bhargav in Swades.

Swades follows a NASA scientist who returns to India to see his surrogate mother who raised him after his parents’ deaths. 

My third time reviewing a Khan performance comes in the form of a I’d say more classical kind of setup for a star where you have the return home scenario for a character. Although the nature of the situation is a bit different as often the individual should be maybe more troubled outside of the home, which isn’t the case for Khan’s Mohan Bhargav in this film. Rather we see him as part of NASA and a key part of a specialized team making great advances as a scientist. He’s a successful man and Khan’s portrayal of Mohan emphasizes someone who is more or less fine with the circumstances. Khan rather presents a more subtle state of while not in any way being burdened by his existence in the United States, he is instead just quietly not particularly spirited in his manner or demeanor. It’s all “fine” in Khan’s presentation of his life, no more, no less. So when he decides to visit back home, really with just a mission to do right by his nanny/surrogate mother Kaveri (Kishori Ballal), Khan delivers the lines regarding this as essentially a passive duty. Khan suggests he does care but his emphasis makes it mostly just as a general responsibility of someone who considers himself a good man, but it is not a fundamental desire of someone wishing to reunite with his home and the people there. 

Mohan leaves for India initially searching for Kaveri at a retirement home in Delhi only to find that she left a more rural village. Something that he searches for to continue in his duty and where Khan’s performance emphasizes a more low key distance. Khan doesn’t present himself as above the village rather portrays Mohan as just more fixated on doing what he believes is his simple task to take care of Kaveri by bringing him back with her. There is a nuanced emotion Khan naturally brings to discover Indian again after being away for so many years but there’s a modest quality of someone who really isn’t trying to face them at the moment. Naturally things get more complicated when he learns that it is Kaveri’s mission to find a husband for Mohan’s childhood friend, Gita (Gayatri Joshi), naturally, a beautiful school teacher at this point who has no desire to become a subservient wife and is devoted to the idea of bringing an education to this rural area. Khan’s very good in striking the right kind of chemistry with Joshi, where initially it is the warmth of an old pair of friends, though there is a subtle glint in Khan’s eyes of someone who obviously sees a bit more in her than just a friend in this surprising reunion. Particularly when he hears about potential, not particularly impressive suitors, where Khan brings a natural comedy in his fairly dismissive reactions to the idea of her marrying some forgettable guy. 

In these interactions of course Gita is more than willing to herself denounce anyone who wants to place her in a box and we do get some properly attuned reactions from Khan where you see how impressed he is with her multiple ways. Khan has the right ease of being intrigued in moments, while also comedic asides where he gets a bit of her directness or just takes joy in it when he gives it to others. This however still doesn’t change Mohan’s overall approach as he soon calls NASA which Khan still presents as Mohan fixated on still going back, but just in this instance thinking he’ll be able to go back with her as his wife. Gita though is steadfast in wanting to bring education for all despite some in the village protesting the notions. Mohan doesn’t need to be changed to help rather we see the innate goodness of the man come out. Khan is very good in the way he plays the quiet building supportive passion of the man as he stands firm in his beliefs with Gita and goes about helping her. What he does so well is not present it as any kind of patronizing support to lust after her, rather playing it as a straight honest support. Importantly going further in playing the quiet growing joy in the man sharing his own expertise to help the village. Something that comes out in one of the film’s musical sequences, where Mohan entertains the village after a power loss by showing his knowledge of the sky. A sequence that is of course dubbed, but Khan’s portrayal of the sheer infectious energy as he physically motions every bit of it, completely still comes across throughout the sequence. It is a wonderful bit where you absolutely see the full star charisma of Khan and is a standout moment within the film thanks to every bit of work where you see really the fun of his knowledge as he convincingly pulls everyone into it even beyond the song that goes with it. 

The more dramatic edges of the story come as Khan travels further to collect a debt for Gita where he finds continued hardship due to the lack of fundamental resources. The key to these scenes are Khan’s reactions. He builds on each scene of learning about it with such a palatable sense of empathy towards those he is getting to know and learn about. Each scene Khan shows the growth of the concern from just a general interest to a real devotion. Bringing then a building passion that becomes more expressed in his overall performance as he becomes more than just an observer and begins to make plans to build essentially an hydroelectric dam. Khan’s portrayal of his devotion in this works best as the natural expression of the growing concern and love for the land. It is less of a man completely changing rather than a certain strength and passion of the man revealing itself more openly, even to himself. As something we keep coming back to is his check ins with NASA. At first Khan brings a casual interest to his delay, then we see the split burdens as he speaks trust that he will return but there is the conflict in his eyes, until then it becomes NASA is his burden and the village is truly what he cares about. Khan having the moment of acceptance brings the right exuberance to the man essentially finding his calling by bringing his knowledge home essentially. It is a performance that isn’t about this raw transformation, rather a leading man’s charisma, with just the right Capraish determination, though with maybe a bit less dramatic hardship to overcome. Regardless, I wholly enjoyed Khan’s work here, from his quiet romantic moments, to his more comedic reactions, and his energy within the musical moments. 

Alternate Best Actor 2004: Gael García Bernal in The Motorcycle Diaries

Gael García Bernal did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite receiving a BAFTA nomination, for portraying Ernesto “Che” Guevara in The Motorcycle Diaries. 

The Motorcycle Diaries follows a younger Che Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado as they take a purposeful trek across South America. 

The notion of the film exists within “and now you know the rest of the story” as the main character of Che Guevara would obviously become important to world politics latter in life, where here he is just a younger man wishing to explore his continent to gain a better understanding of it, while also very much still existing as just a man in a sort of flight of fancy in its own way. The film is purposefully playing with both notions of Che as just a young man and the inklings of where Che will end up later on. As Che we have Gael García Bernal, who is an actor who fits into a specific frame for me. An actor who I rarely ever dislike his performances but at the same time his performances never quite stand out for me beyond being essentially good. A strange consistency that one could argue is both criticism and praise in a way. Which leads me to his performance in this film, where I have to be honest, I wouldn’t say I feel massively different about much of the work of García Bernal here. Which largely isn’t a truly detrimental thing. As García Bernal’s mostly low key performance works in favor of playing Che just as a man most of the time without crafting some symbol of a person first. The film itself takes an often naturalistic approach to the journey where we just witness the man go from person to person, place to place and have an experience with those people there. Sometimes it is theoretically a bit more dramatic, but it is all presented as a calm type of discovery.

García Bernal gives a good performance in playing the moment more so than the man as we see him early on with his journey where we see him interact with girlfriend, where García Bernal plays with genuine tenderness but with just a bit of extra lust of a young man trying to get a bit further with her in terms of pace. García Bernal has the right casual ease that it isn’t necessarily the most important thing to him in his life at this moment yet there is still a quiet devotion in his way regardless. We have his friendship with Alberto where they too are just friendly, represented in the ease they have with each other where the chemistry the two actors share have that innate sense of history. While this is a fundamental and important journey for both men, there is also the proper sense that this is an ongoing story between the men as a pair. García Bernal’s effective as well in specifically having the sense of taking in what they are witnessing as they go through their journey. A journey that at times has a sight seeing quality of just paying witness to the land, where Bernal exudes the right love of the land, but it ends up becoming more complex of a journey when they also spend time with persecuted communists and even an isolated leper colony. 

García Bernal’s performance within experiencing the tougher elements is where he does bring shades of the revolutionary that would come from this journey in part. García Bernal brings again largely in quiet moments of reaction though a bit more pointed and an instance of García Bernal really taking hold of the screen. These moments are remarkable because García Bernal does a few things in crafting the later Che, without just becoming him. The first is where you see the dogged conviction of moments of dealing with his asthma, even making a  very long swim with his condition, where García Bernal brings within his eyes the eyes of a man who will be willing to wage war in multiple countries. While the tasks in this instance are not war, García Bernal brings that kind of incisiveness. Combining that are the moments of reacting to the poverty he sees which García Bernal brings the right nuance and variety to. There is sadness and empathy as he sees the pain of others but there is more than that, as García García Bernal’s performance internalizes and cultivates a certain intensity. An intensity that is more than just caring about the people, but rather a vengeful anger for the people where García Bernal creates this sense of a building fire in the man. Leading to his one major monologue within the film where Che speaks to his dream of uniting the people of the Americas to a common cause. A scene where García García Bernal is great because suddenly he speaks with this determination, but combined with a passionate drive. There’s a man not just angry, rather it is with a pointed vision in mind with a method beyond every word that García Bernal speaks that articulates the revolutionary from just the younger man we knew the rest of the time. It’s a great scene for García Bernal and one very obvious moment where García Bernal, for me, stepped beyond my usual expectation of consistency for something more. And while leading up to that, García Bernal maybe supported that idea a bit more, even then it still worked well for the character and helped to contribute to the impact of the change in Che throughout the film. A striking portrait of a man who is just a man and finding the path of someone willing and wishing to change history. 

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.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1967: Donald Pleasence in Will Penny, Kenneth Mars & Dick Shawn in The Producers & Results

Donald Pleasence did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Preacher Quint in Will Penny. 

Will Penny is an off-beat and effective western about an aging trail hand (Charlton Heston).

Donald Pleasence takes up the role of the heel required for the western and a very peculiar one. Pleasence after all isn’t necessarily an actor you’d instantly envision as a western actor given his Englishness is readily evident. The atypical nature of the casting plays effectively into the weirdness of his character. A character who suddenly appears as the ranch hands try to claim an elk only to be suddenly advanced upon by Pleasence’s Preacher Quint and his family. Pleasence as per usual, and not too surprisingly given that he is playing in a western setting, fashions a new accent for himself, something that isn’t quite American or English but completely works for the character. It is a strange ramshackle quality that denotes a man who has lived much of his life in very low circumstances but strives yet fails to present himself as some strange learned man of God. It is instantly ear catching as is his whole physical performance, where there is a scavenger like energy that Pleasence exudes as he peers upon the men whose only crime was to come across the same elk. Pleasence delivers a raw intensity and insanity though tempered with a particularly devious edge. Pleasence plays into the whole idea of the “Preacher” as very much a fire brimstone center of town square type preacher, although Quint is just in some random places trying to harass people who aren’t part of his family. Pleasence’s sermons are magnificent bits of performance from him as they are full bodied in just announcing himself as though he is about to leap out of his body as he implores some kind of divine intervention for his hideous actions. 

Every time Pleasence speaks it. It is as though he is trying to call upon the forces beyond nature to destroy his enemies with the mania in his piercing eyes. There’s a bit of subversion by Pleasence though, just a bit that is a brilliant little touch where kind of between the overtures there’s like a glint in his eyes of a knowing or just a moment where his voice falls a little where he suggests that even the preacher bit is nothing more than a game that Quint plays around with as part of a madcap act to lead his family. Pleasence has a great hideousness within his character as initially Will saves his friends by killing one of Quint’s family, where we get a standout moment of Pleasence praying to God to wreak vengeance on them where he makes the words sing as this blinded madness. Pleasence comes in and out of the film after this confrontation as this unwanted parasitic force of evil. Pleasence creates a vicious terror in his menace that isn’t so much defined by confidence but rather the rabid madness of the character. Pleasence creating almost a darkly comic quality to the character by playing into the grotesquery with such glee. Something that is particularly unnerving after a long loving sequence of Will helping and falling in love with a fatherless family, where Pleasence storms in with his delivery of “Merry Christmas” being as though the devil has come to call. Followed by one of his most disturbing acts as forces the widow to choose between his sons, while also disparaging his sons, the energy Pleasence brings creates such incredible distress by how much he seems within this moment to the point of a true demented hysteria. My only complaint about the character would be he doesn’t really have a great final moment to really let Pleasence sink his teeth into one more time, as the confrontation is relatively quick. But that is a case of only wanting more of a good thing, and really this is an amazing turn by Pleasence through the impact he makes. As he takes a germ of the false preacher and runs with it for his relatively limited screentime, making a tremendous impact, and in a role that I think many lesser actors would’ve made some forgettable rote heavy, Pleasence turns him into something more unique and impressive. 

Kenneth Mars did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Franz Liebkind nor did Dick Shawn receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Lorenzo St. DuBois but his friends call him L.S.D. in The Producers. 

Maybe The Producers as a film is a bit like the old Beatles or Elvis or Beatles or Rolling Stones debate where either you’re a Max (Zero Mostel) or a Leo (Gene Wilder) person, or you’re a Franz Liebkind or an LSD person. Not that you don’t like them all, but there is some degree of preference, although I think this largely speaks to the treasure trove of comedy evident within the film regardless. In terms of the supporting competition each play the broadest of the characters perhaps with Mars first to appear as the author of the play, “Springtime for Hitler” chosen by the titular producers as a surefire flop. A character who is patently absurd from the get go as we meet him pretending to be a proper “good American” going so far as two terribly sing Yankee Doodle Dandy, while of course also donning a German war helmet that might confuse the issue just a bit. Mars’s performance very much plays into this ridiculousness in many ways playing his role as an over the top German soldier in a war auctioneer just with different ends. As his German accent is just as over the top thick with the emphasis on that particular harshness used for more villainous characters, however something he instantly subverts with his silliness from the outset. An idea that expands when the producers surprise him with wanting to actually put on his play where Mars begins to espouse his views more openly though his exact perspective on Hitler and the whole Nazi regime seems a bit tilted even as ridiculous Nazis go. Mars's performance as the drunken Liebkind brings to it this combination between a lost love’s adoration towards Hitler against his unbridled, though wholly hilarious, rage against Winston Churchill as a comparison. Going off on all the ways Hitler was better based mostly on their paintings (though maybe a little mixed up on what type of painting Hitler did exactly), their dancing of course and Chruchill’s way of pronouncing Nazi. Mars’s performance of playing between basically what is best described as lovey dovey towards Hitler, then a sourpuss to Churchill is a magnificent silly dance of switching expressions and physical manner as he goes from wistfully dancing for Hitler to become ogre-like as he looks down upon Churchill. It’s a grand bit of ridiculousness.

Unfortunately for the Producers, they perhaps go too all in with their scheme and instead of just choosing the worst play they seem intent on choosing the worst of everything including the worst possible Hitler. Leading us to the introduction of Dick Shawn as Lorenzo St. DuBois aka LSD played by Dick Shawn where I’ll actually start with the later scenes of his performance, where his star turn as Hitler turns Liebkind’s straightforward adoration to that of a satire. Shawn is absolutely hilarious in pulling off basically proving the concept that this swerve would make the play a success as he brings his specific beatnik energy to the dictator. Where Shawn is outrageous through every swing of his performance as he opens with his anxiety over losing the war by serenading himself by piano, and using the word “baby” far more than Liebkind or history would support. Shawn’s portrayal of that specific distress is particularly funny by just how weirdly distressed he is in such a bizarre yet perfectly funny way. But his Hitler expands on that as we also get him with his troops, where Shawn once again is great in just playing up the stupidity as he so earnestly delivers the line that “we can’t attack Germany, we’re Germany”. But we also get the marvelous scene of his whole sequence of dealing with his “Little Joey” to cheer him up, Joey being Joseph Goebbels, we’re they’re best buds, proper beatnik best buds however in every overly chummy interaction, with even an all important high five, that is pure comedy gold as they “man” and “baby” each other in such joy as Joey lays out his new track, that being a propaganda piece where they beat England. 

Something that gets interrupted by Liebkind, whose distress at seeing the play matches the comedy on stage wonderfully well, playing it with this sincerity of his distress close to crying baby in every bit of being distraught at seeing “his Fuhrer” saying “Baby”. Leading to two great bits as Franz first dresses down an audience member for interrupting his bemoaning by noting that he’s the author and “outranks her” with all the same billowing as his Churchill rant, followed though by his knocking out of stage hand where Mars is hilarious by being frankly so silly in his “you please be unconscious” so gently before physically assaulting a man. And honestly where Franz goes through the last bits of the film are more looney tunes than anything, not a criticism mind you as Mars delivers it with aplomb from coming in to shoot the producers like Yosemite Sam as sneers his way through trying to kill them to a more Elmer Fudd pathos as he admits his failures and attempts suicide, which while about suicide still wholly funny through the silliness of Mar’s over the top somberness as he decides his own fate…only to be thwarted by his own lack of bullets. Even that continues though as we get him to try to blow up the theater to stop the show, where we get Mars’s portrayal of attempted intelligence, which is Franz being particularly stupid, as he analyzes his fuses. The sudden insightful manner in his eyes and the way he stares so intently as he discovers his short fuse for dynamite, by naturally lighting, before the great reaction of realizing his error, is a most pleasant cherry on the top of the performance. 

Now I held off on LSD’s audition because for me it just might be my favorite scene in a hilarious film. Although I think this brings up something about “dated” and whatever it really means because the character of Lorenzo St. DuBois is specifically a sendup of Beatnik/Hippie types, yet despite being so specific it doesn’t really matter because what he is doing is funny regardless if you connect to specificity or just enjoy the insanity of it. Well I enjoy the insanity of thanks in large part due to everything that Shawn does in the part, particularly the swings of the part in the audition scene. From as he strolls in with such casual ease asking if the Hitler auditions were the auditions for Boomerang, only to be told of his error leading to Shawn’s immediate and strangely natural switch to such anxiety as he seems to ridicule his own, one would assume, drug addled brain. Combined with his perfect hat in hand demeanor when admitting to his six months in prison and his insistence that he’s clean. But he gets the audition where somehow LSD summons a band to play his performance of “Love Flower”. A performance that is amazing every second of it. From his initial intensely hippie loving everyone manner as he opens the song about giving people his love flower, before switching to a more hostile love flower to cops and landlords, where Shawn’s switch to such raging intensity of a man hating the “man” of society to such a degree and in such a contrast to his “loving” side it is absolutely beautiful comedy. Only perhaps topped as he continues that intensity to such comedy genius to one of my all time favorite bits of physical comedy as he announces that he will dance in song, leading to Shawn’s somehow frozen yet free bodied movement of everything but his legs in this singular form that is utterly ludicrous yet utterly amazing. Followed again by his switch to suddenly some existential fear around the love flower, where Shawn is intense now through that terror rather than anger before collapsing to the floor, where he peels a banana peel like it is a life line before dismissing it to instead suckle his mini cymbals instead with a face of best described as wacky contentment. After such a display one can only say “THAT's OUR HITLER!”. Or really this is just an incredibly funny performance that never ceases to make me laugh despite how many times I've seen his bit. 

(Mars)

(Shawn)

UPDATED OVERALL

Next: 2004 Lead

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Results

 5. Sergei Bondarchuk in War and Peace Part IV - I elected not to review Bondarchuk for his self-directed performance. While a good performance in terms of his reactions to the various horrors of war and the eventual respite in the end, as a director he chooses not to focus on his performance as much as you'd think, particularly when the subtitle of the film is his character's name. Pierre's story while not lost in the shuffle wholly, is not focused upon performance wise heavily, instead choosing more visual choices to convey certain moments including the final romantic overture where we get a brief reaction by Bondarchuk, which while good, is quickly moved on from. He gives a good performance but it does feel like less of an impactful one thanks his choices as a director than say what he gave himself as an actor in the first part of the film series especially. 

Best Scene: Arriving Home. 

4. Ljubiša Samardžić in The Morning - Within very much a director's film as well, giving a interesting charismatic performance that unfortunately is very much limited by the confines of the writing. 

Best Scene: Fantasy

3. Michel Simon in The Two of Us - Simon gives a striking and extremely naturalistic portrayal of seemingly warm loving old man, who also holds some casual cruel prejudices. 

Best Scene: Ending.

2. Scott Wilson in In Cold Blood - Wilson gives a brilliant counter performance to Blake, bringing to life as tangibly a career criminal who may be less personally violent but is just as deadly. 

Best Scene: Conning the store. 

1. Toshiro Mifune in Samurai Rebellion - Good predictions Razor and Shaggy. Mifune delivers one of his best performances giving such a moving portrayal of the love of a father that also realizes intense rage when that love is endangered. 

Best Scene: The violence begins. 

Updated Overall

Next: 1967 Supporting (Probably not a lineup)

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Toshiro Mifune in Samurai Rebellion

Toshiro Mifune did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Isaburo Sasahara in Samurai Rebellion. 

Samurai Rebellion tells the story of a highly skilled but unambitious samurai who runs afoul his clan after his son is asked to take the former concubine of their lord. 

Samurai Rebellion suffers slightly in comparison to the great Masaki Kobayashi’s previous films about a man against a system of injustice, particularly Harakiri which it closely resembles in the overall plot and the idea of a family being torn about by cruel lords. It isn’t as great as that film, but Harakiri is one of the greatest films ever so being less than that isn’t bad. As it is still well worth watching, even if it isn’t as tight or quite as powerful as that film, in large part we get a very special collaboration by having the great Mifune as Kobayashi’s lead this time around and proof that neither his career, nor his talent ended after this legendary collaboration with Kurosawa. And Kobayashi thankfully challenges Mifune in a different role, despite being yet another samurai, this is a different samurai for Mifune. As this character is neither the great rebel samurai of Yojimbo nor is he a chaotic fake samurai from Seven Samurai, nor the great general from Hidden Fortress, Isaburo Sasahara is kind of just a guy even though he’s in this system. There’s a different vibe Mifune brings here that is just wonderful and shows once again great acting isn’t always playing extremely different parts rather it is finding the differences in similar parts and expressing those differences to make new characters that leave lasting impressions. 

Mifune does so here by in no way making Sasahara any sort of larger than life guy in fact accentuating more so the fact that there isn’t anything too notable about him despite his alluded to skills at fighting something we get the sense of as he has casual conversations with his also extremely skilled friend and fellow vassal Tatewaki Asano (Tatsuya Nakadai). Nakadai and Mifune have great chemistry here that is unique to this film given, while there will be a duel between them, this is the only film I’ve seen between them where the pair get to be friends. With Mifune and Nakadai having just work buddy chemistry. It is very easy going with Mifune’s delivery of taking his life as casually as he does, even if in a defeated way at times given he is brow beaten by his wife, isn’t of someone bemoaning his whole existence rather it is just a guy who has accepted his plight having the bit of fun he does get in getting to to express that belief with his friend. The two have a great ease where the sense of respect between the men is just a given and the way Asano describes Sasahara, you see the younger man see the older man for more than what the older man even believes. As whenever Asano builds him up too much, Mifune plays in his eyes almost an embarrassment at the idea that he could be anything truly great and not just a husband and a dad. 

Speaking of those two elements we get two very distinct sides from Mifune, and again sides that are unique to this performance from the great actor. The first is that of the husband where the moments we do get of him with his domineering wife, Mifune is remarkable in the years of just accepting whatever his wife says as his eyes have a resignation and his voice has an innate sigh of a man who seems to be constantly saying to himself “it’s just not worth fighting with her”. We also get the latter part as the dad where Mifune certainly played paternalistic father figures in previous films, notably Red Beard as one of his most mature characters, but this is very different as emphasis on the dad dad so to speak. As Mifune is wonderful at being a bit of a fuddyduddy for the lack of a better term. He’s not cool or hip around his son, rather you just get this simple bright smile of appreciation towards his son and just as someone who loves him simple as that. Mifune’s portrayal of not complicating this in any way is so distinct because complication is usually the name of the game, and even in Red Beard Mifune gave his wisdom out in sometimes cold blunt ways. But here Mifune just accentuates a sincere open warmth where every interaction with his son is just as a loving guy who wants nothing more than the best for his son. Mifune makes this pure in every bit we get and consistently expresses leaving a strong impression that is key to the progression of the plot. 

The plot appears as Sasahara’s son is asked to take on the single mother concubine of the lord as his wife, something they reject based on rumors of her manner but something that changes when they find that she is a lovely loving woman. I’ll be honest while the relationship isn’t bad in any way I would say it is more of just fine and the film could’ve had something just a bit more potent in showing these two as the perfect couple sort of thing, instead they do what they need to, the actors I think just don’t have that burning chemistry though I think both are more than decent in their roles. Mifune picks up the slack for that however in his reactions to the love he sees between his son and his wife, as his smiles become so much brighter and his speech about the new wife, Mifune gives a glowing delivery of every word where he shows not how much Sasahara is getting out of the new women in a direct way but rather how much he’s getting out of her by seeing how much joy it brings to his son. When he encourages his son about the relationship, Mifune’s speech is tremendous because it contains love, but also the sense of years of burdened somehow relieved as Mifune’s eyes are that of a man who couldn’t have true love himself however that wound is softened by seeing his son find it in the end. 

Sadly the plot becomes more complicated when the wife is recalled by the lord at a cruel moment, something the family eventually rejects as a cruelty, particularly after the couple had conceived a child. And when we see the son take the stand Mifune’s laying of the groundwork of the man defined by this love for his son pays off, when we see his son’s happiness threatened Mifune’s work shows this love fueling his conviction to do whatever it takes to defend his son. Mifune’s calm in these scenes shows essentially the great man who always could’ve been in the way we see a man standing firm by his strongest belief that being the belief in supporting his son. Even surprising his son in his steadfast approach Mifune is great in suddenly his presence being the full Mifune of the man who is larger than life, but still different as we see that put upon dad now finding his strength as in every moment of this there is this glint in the eye of Mifune of a man who is doing it all for tender care. Eventually it all falls apart when the Lord refuses to relent leading to both the tragic death of Sasahara’s son and his daughter in law. Then we get Mifune unleashed in one of his all time great just full Mifune intensity here representing not just rage but also such rabid grief as Sasahara kills a substantial number of men from the Lord. Mifune uses all of his physical power and every bit of what his eyes can do like few actors to show the tremendous pain of a father fueled into every moment of the one sided massacre. That moment is followed by such a poignant moment of performance by Mifune as he shifts to such a gentle heartbreaking calm as he buries his family, where Mifune’s quiet in contrast to the earlier explosion is so powerful in showing the same love now just in his promise to try to spread the word of the injustice by escaping the lord’s realm. Leading Sasahara to have to duel Asano as the latter must fulfill his duty as the guard of the border, where Mifune finds such a remarkable quality as he prepares to fight his friend. There is just this quiet calm conviction as he notes what he will do no matter what, you see a man with his eyes set on only doing the justice and promise to his family. It isn’t the eyes of a killer but the eyes of a father that Mifune expresses in this quest. Throughout the incredible duel Mifune’s performance is captivating in the consistency of that conviction until he fatally wounds his best friend. When Asano stops, I love the shift of Mifune as we see that conviction vanish, not because he no longer cares, but now sees his friend as no longer an enemy but just his dying friend. Mifune is so moving by making this shift feel natural as Sasahara still loved his friend even though he had to kill him for his quest. Something we see continue in a final attempt to escape where Mifune again brings such intensity to every moment of the final fight, being this fierce powerful onslaught of that emotional power of a man putting every ounce into himself to try to find justice for his family. Mifune is incredible as he conveys that even as he is physically falling apart from wounds, the eyes never waver as the man is looking to that conviction still. Mifune delivers yet another tremendous performance here, finding a new way to the rebel samurai, this time not as a man who rebels through chaos, but rather just a reflection of love for a father. 

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Scott Wilson in In Cold Blood

Scott Wilson did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Dick Hickock in In Cold Blood. 

Scott Wilson had a notable year in 1967, playing a supporting role as a wrong suspect who happens to also know some very important information in In Heat of the Night, a performance that ended up being a mini showcase for Wilson, bringing a lot of naturalism and color to a what could’ve been a forgettable role in lesser hands. That role, which apparently got him this role via recommendation by the great Sidney Poitier, was in many ways a warm up to this role. Wilson plays the secondary lead here, the one of two men responsible for the death of a family in a small town, the other being Perry Smith played by Robert Blake. Smith being the killer typically more focused upon due to his more idiosyncratic life, his more pathos driven existence and possibly because Smith was the one who literally committed the murders. Hickock however was as responsible, despite not pulling the trigger, a dynamic realized within Wilson’s performance. Wilson’s performance that naturally elevates the film to very much emphasizing the “true” within the true crime, as the moment we see Hickock join Smith on their deadly trip, Wilson doesn’t seem like an actor presenting himself as a part, rather just this small-time criminal coming onscreen. There’s a history about Wilson’s performance that is innate, and his history isn’t so distinct, Hickock is a “run of the mill” compared to Smith, but yet the man’s history is still important. The moment he says goodbye to his dad, Wilson’s suddenly this working class son being supportive to his dad, acting as though he’s going to make it big with this new idea of his. 

Wilson is completely natural in the immediate switch we get when he joins Perry in the car, and Wilson suddenly dominates, sorta, as one of the fascinating elements here is the way the relationship between the two men is never a singular note. Rather a switch between them, however the basic setting is that Hickock is dominant as he is the one with the plan, which is to rob and murder a farmer he “knows” has a safe filled with money. Wilson’s performance is fantastic in the bravado he brings that is of a certain very specific career criminal quality, where in his mind this “score” just is exactly what he needs to get everything set for himself. Importantly Wilson paints no doubt within the notions and even goes further than that he sells the notion believably to Smith. This includes even noting that they’re not going to need anything to cover their faces because they aren’t going to leave any witnesses. Hickock has the murder plan already as part of the deal, but presented Wilson delivers it as the means to any end for a man who exists within the mindset that being a crook is just his innate nature. Importantly, the idea of the murdering is presented by Hickock but Smith is part of the plan with the knowledge that Smith has already killed someone. A moment where Wilson is brilliant and creates an essential dynamic at times in their relationship. Wilson has this pestering quality, such as when he purposefully briefly sets off Smith knowing he’s brought out the killer instinct. Something Wilson doesn’t deliver with fear, but rather an easy going smile, the smile of the man who doesn’t see that killer’s quality as a danger to himself but rather a tool for his horrible plan. 

Much of the film skips over the actual murders, something we don’t return to until near the end of the film, the rest of the time spent with Hickock and Smith attempting some kind of getaway despite stealing very little from the farmer, who in fact paid almost everything with a check. Where Wilson is great by portraying the burden of the murders so differently within his own work, yet is wholly convincing in playing this alternative note than the pathos driven one portrayed by Blake. Wilson captures the amorality of Hickock with such a disturbing believability in his ease about living with his murders, even encouraging more potential murders along the way. Wilson’s presentation has an eerie convincing quality in just being fed up with any talk of any mistakes they’ve made with an insistence that the two are distanced from it. Wilson makes this practicality disturbing because in his performance, it isn’t that he doesn’t care, but rather his reactions of frustrations around it are more so man just being thrown off from what he believes to be his job than having taken part in the brutal murders of four people. The ease about the criminal nature is what is so chilling in Wilson because every second of this you just believe this guy who takes in the killings as a calculation like any other. His downplaying moments of it to Smith, even Wilson accentuation on it as like a forgettable mistake, is brilliantly performed, because he shows that in this man’s mind that’s all it was to him. 

In their on the run period Wilson has some stand out moments where he illustrates further the career criminal nature of Hickock where it is just second nature, something that Wilson also makes second nature. A standout scene is when we see Hickock approach a clothing store manager to fashion himself and Smith for a “wedding”, something that is all a lie of course, but Wilson’s presentation of this is amazing. He’s beaming with confidence in every step of the process bringing so much warmth in his language as he’s building trust with the manager, by having such an affable charm as he “sells” the lie so convincingly. Particularly as we get to the payment, you never doubt his ability to not only to get to pay by check, through the ease Wilson brings such commitment to friendliness, that he even convinces you that he’d get the manager to give them some spending money by increasing the check. Wilson’s smiles, his physical “good ole boy” manner, every bit of it is a magnificent dance of a con that he takes through and pretty much convinces you to “sell” him something with your own money. A quality consistent in their other schemes, including trying and failing to kill a motorist for their cash using Smith of course as the actual hands of the operation, but Wilson again accentuates the needed “team” in their potentially horrible crimes. As we see when Smith is preparing to kill a man, Wilson is that charming smile of a distraction that would make it all so easy and just “part of the job”. 

Eventually their luck runs out as they are arrested for a stolen car, but I love the moment just before this where Hickock suggests they just try to make their cash ride at a casino. There is no hesitation in his delivery, Wilson presents a man who absolutely believes he could make this plan work, even as the odds are so obviously against him. Under interrogation the dynamic shifts substantially, as Wilson tries to play the note of the cool operator, however when pressed the facade breaks down. Wilson is excellent because you see the attempts at playing the cards he thinks he has, from first the attempted confidence, then attempting to play the scared innocent as he reacts finally with emotional distress to the murders, not because of guilt but rather having been caught, which is a striking contrast to Blake’s far more controlled portrayal of Smith in this instance. A dynamic we see as he flashbacks to the murders, an all time great, and all time great disturbing scene, where both actors are essential in the realization. As with Wilson we saw the “fun” of playing the conman, now we see the man who has planned out the murders, and Wilson’s great by honestly presenting a caustic stupidity in every step. Playing up the fiendishness and even giving into it with such slimy disregard, including considering raping one of the victims, only stopping due to Smith’s interference. Wilson shows a combination though that is chilling between the power of his threat in the scene, and the lack of power in his growing anxiety as it is obvious there is no money safe whatsoever. Smith shows us the fool, and in that fool we see such danger of a man as his mistake leads to the death of innocents. The final segment of the film is more so Blake’s showcase but Wilson is still great even in the bits he has as the men wait for their execution. Wilson’s fascinating because he presents himself as though Hickock is almost living in the “retirement” plan or “all star” setup for criminals. As the career criminal there is a glee almost in Wilson at times, and a practical manner who accepts his situation as it is at this point. Wilson brings depth to a lack of depth, as Hickock basically espouses his support of capital punishment, as he’s about to be the victim of it, showing the reasoning not a great thinker, rather a man who accepts it all in his limited view of life. Although a shorter moment for him, Wilson is outstanding in depicting the execution scene because come off that same idea as before, the whole time Wilson presents so powerful this dawning realization of the reality in every second. The man's eyes are that of someone emotionally despondent but more than that someone seeing his whole semblance of his reality cracking finally just before he is about to be killed. Although in many ways the less showy part, Wilson delivers also a great performance by creating a different portrait of a criminal, not as a one of the kind, but rather the run of the mill man who could enable and exacerbate the nature of both men to the most heinous deeds. 

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Michel Simon in The Two of Us

Michel Simon did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning the Silver Bear, for portraying Pépé in The Two of Us. 

The Two of Us follows a young Jewish boy Claude sent to live with an elderly couple in the country. 

Michel Simon was simply one of the first actors to “get it” when it came to film acting, becoming one of the early consistent performers on film who not only seemed to understand the medium but had the ability to take risks with dynamic characterizations. A career that lasted from the silent era to the 70’s. One of the few major awards received by Simon was for Berlin top acting prize for this film. Simon plays the grandfather of the elderly couple who take in the boy and Simon’s ability on screen is readily apparent as it always is. There’s a natural ease to his performances and this one is no different. Simon brings instantly a sense of this man of the country who has long lived there and pretty much is an innate product of this existence, something we will find is both a good thing and a bad thing. But let’s begin with the lacking complication of the good, where Simon is truly wonderful in portraying the overabundance of warmth in his performance towards the boy Claude. Simon is just beaming in the way he presents that the grandfather couldn’t be more fulfilled than when he is playing with this boy. He is loving every second of it, and is something you feel come across the screen to create such a warm loving dynamic. Simon has so many great moments that aren’t defined by any great drama just of great fun. Such as rough housing with the boy, or a moment of the two swinging each other on a swing. There is such a zest to it all and Simon succeeds in making that sense of fun come to the viewer, while also seemingly getting the best out of the child actor who too seems to be just having fun at least from what comes onscreen. It feels wholly natural and just wholly honest in every moment of it. 

But of course it isn’t all good, and even then Simon is great such as a moment where Claude is sent away to school where he is immediately bullied, ridiculed and has his head cruelly shaved. Simon’s reaction is heartbreaking because you do so how much he loves the boy in his eyes and his delivery of saying that he’ll teach him instead couldn’t be more reassuring or supportive to the struggling boy. With that though we have the most challenging aspect of the film and something that I think is its greatest ambition but also its greatest deficiency. Because as much as the film devotes so many lovely moments to Simon’s Pépé, it as often gives him moments of his views on the world which are openly antisemetic, prejudicial to outsiders in general and fully supports the Nazi puppet French leader Philippe Pétain. There’s a struggle here as the film is directed by Claude Berri, that depicts a boy named Claude in a situation that apparently mirrors his own life where he too was sent to the countryside to an antismetic couple, so theoretically he is just delivering his life story, and so maybe why the reckoning of this element is light, and the commentary on it beyond the depiction is somewhat limited. Berri himself seems to want to focus on the good times more but wishes to depict that nagging element. Something that should be potentially fascinating but maybe his closeness to the subject matter limited his commentary. So creates a curious situation because so much of it, and so much of what Simon does in the role, wants you to love Pépé yet he has these horrible beliefs behind him. 

Well as much as the film limits the resolution of this, Simon I think does what he can in terms of trying to kind of make you understand this man, and show that someone can be largely likable as long as you don’t bring up certain subjects, which to be fair holds true for some. Simon very much emphasizes the limitations of the man’s perspective for his politics. When he goes off on Jewish people, foreigners, communists or anything else, there’s a routine in his delivery, it is the standard statements of expectation and something he doesn’t even really reflect on. It is an old man’s rambling, sadly given the situation such mentality leading to horrible events so it is difficult to ignore. Something that the boy slightly challenges by questioning if he’s actually met Jewish people, which Simon’s reaction in these moments is perfect as it is of someone who never even furnished such deep connections to the topic as he presents confusion and naivety. An element Berri seems to be partially commenting on such as when Pépé happens upon a brutal Nazi regulation, where Simon’s reaction is terrific in showing the suddenly the old man being completely lost at such a horrible notion before being hurried along. Or another moment where with the war ending Pépé is still holding onto Pétain as this great man, to the point even part of Pépé’s family threaten to leave forever if the old man doesn’t take the picture of the disgraced false leader. We get the moment after he’s caved in, where Simon would be deeply affecting with the emotion he brings out in his performance by showing so convincingly this man who is just lost and confused by the revelations of the world around him…if one can’t be so easily detached given what he’s sad about is a man who was an active tool of the Nazi regime. So it’s a strange situation, but in all of this Simon is effective in playing every emotional beat, and creating a cohesiveness in presenting the more savory and less savory elements of this character. As he is genuinely unquestionably affecting by comparison when Simon shows with such empathetic heartbreak the old man's reaction to the death of his faithful dog. There isn't a second where the emotion doesn't feel absolutely real and tangible. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention his scene of presenting himself as he was as a soldier in World War I, which is a terrific vaudevillian bit of over the top physical performance, where Simon is having a blast but is also very entertaining in the grandfather making fun of himself by lampooning old serious soldier self. But that scene is just another example of so much of what Simon does well with this part, challenging you to like this old man, even as his stated beliefs are that of a terrible person. 

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Ljubiša Samardžić in The Morning

Ljubiša Samardžić did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning the Volpi Cup, for portraying Mali in The Morning.

The Morning follows the period of time of victory immediately after WWII in Yugoslavia, which results in an odd combination of celebration and killings. 

I’ll admit going with a festival winner might not always be a guaranteed choice for analysis as there have been the examples where the winner seemed like the juries pulled a name out of the hat and said “sure” rather than really accrediting a great performance. And I’ll say while Ljubiša Samardžić’s performance isn’t entirely that but I wouldn’t call it a great performance either. His actual appearances in this already fairly short film are limited as it takes a wavering perspective and he only becomes lead by virtue that the film keeps coming back to him as it frequently diverges to other people dealing with their new found “freedom”. We to Samardžić depiction of Mali as a man who basically is killing people still even after the war even having this strange urge to do so, where it appears the people may be guilty in some way, but still the jump cuts we get to depict the executions leaves some questions in mind about that guilt. Samardžić’s performance is interesting in the exuberance he brings to it, that is a kind of madness he creates in the man. He doesn’t play it as fully insane as though he’s a psychopath, despite his killings, but rather someone who has become detached from his existence to have this sort of dreamy enjoyment of the madness. This state of his is captivating when the film chooses to depict him as his physicality even maneuvering around almost like a ghost himself, but the way he seems so carefree about everything. He’s captivating as far as he can go in depicting this, as we see him talk to a few women about either the present or the past, but even that Samardžić depicts with the same sort of casual ease that seems eerily disjointed. It all works in his performance in crafting this very specific state of being that does successfully realize this man is sort of ripped from reality, but still playing with it in his own way. BUT, the film’s choices to constantly divert attention to someone else or to some extreme stylistic swing does limit how much Samardžić actually gets to explore, even as the technical lead of this film. He’s good with what he has but we don’t really get to play with it in more directions. We get a stylized scene of getting into fineries but even that is far more visual than something the performers really get to sink their teeth into. Regardless, Samardžić gives a good performance, but it was one where I felt we got a great starting point that sadly the film didn’t allow him to explore beyond a certain point. 

Alternate Best Actor 1967

 And the Nominees Were Not:

Michel Simon in The Two of Us

Ljubiša Samardžić in The Morning

Sergei Bondarchuk in War and Peace Part IV

Toshiro Mifune in Samurai Rebellion

Scott Wilson in In Cold Blood

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2017: Kōji Yakusho in The Third Murder & Results

Kōji Yakusho did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Misumi Takashi in The Third Murder. 

The Third Murder follows a defense attorney Tomoaki Shigemori (Masaharu Fukuyama) for a man who murdered his boss. Sounds like a straightforward mystery or courtroom drama but given it is Kore-eda, if only it twere so simple. 

Kōji Yakusho this time around is decidedly not playing the kindly bathroom cleaner in Perfect Days, the last film I reviewed him for, something that is abundantly obvious in the opening of this film that is perhaps the clearest picture of the intention of Yakusho’s character Misumi, but then again maybe not. What we do see is a double act of brutality as Misumi not only bludgeons the man, his boss, to death he then sets the corpse on fire. This seemingly is the undisputed act of the piece and perhaps our best method to understanding the enigma of this character…maybe. Yakusho’s performance in the scene, which we assume is real at the very least and the facts as presented. There is a hostile extreme in the act and Yakusho presents us with a violent man. Something that seems to fit when Misumi was formerly imprisoned for murder avoiding the death penalty only by the act of Shigemori’s father who was Misumi’s judge. Leaving Shigemori to essentially try to figure out why this man was deserving of such mercy, something that will not be easy for him or the viewer in uncovering the enigma that is Misumi. Yakusho’s performance here is brilliant right off the bat because of how much he frustrates you in a way by his ability to answer questions while not saying a damn thing about anything. When his defense team first meets him, inquiring about the crime and essentially trying to reduce the sentence by making it more of a side effect of a robbery, Yakusho’s performance seems almost disinterested by the questions. Yakusho has the vibe of a career criminal in a way looking for the “cheapest” way out of a situation he’s been in before. He’s captivating though because he’s not precisely that, he’s sort of that, as that sort of disinterest is only can be a criminal to treat his obviously severe crime as just something for him to throw away. He makes you sorta believe this but the problem is there’s the edge of every word where Yakusho is presenting at least a slight or severe lie in his eyes in each delivery. 

You can’t believe the man so clearly particularly when it becomes clear the robbery came after the murder therefore requiring a new defense if there is any chance at avoiding the death penalty. So the next try is to suggest he was motivated by the murdered man’s wife to kill her husband as some sort of illicit lover’s pact. Something that when Misumi’s asked about it he doesn’t deny, but doesn’t confirm either. Again Yakusho’s performance is key to all of this because he too doesn’t confirm or deny it either. Which could be an excuse just to be nothing but it is the something that Yakusho plays around with that makes him so transfixing in his vexing qualities. When asked point blank about an affair, Yakusho’s shrug is a masterclass of alluding to something but not quite alluding to enough. There’s some kind of embarrassment, and suddenly you can perceive him as a different kind of crook. There’s something he sort of cares about, but at the same time there is a callousness about him that makes it seem like it is a standard issue sleazy murderer…maybe. The only truth you can truly accept is that Yakusho captivates in his peculiar way of dodging the questions, without saying no or saying yes. But kind of saying both at the same time. Shigemori, still struggling to find some way to prevent the death penalty, seems to find some other motive where the murdered man may have been molesting his daughter and Misumi acted in judgement of that heinous act. Naturally when Shigemori asks him about it, Yakusho doesn’t make things easy for us. Rather Yakusho shifts again this time most powerfully to portray a different kind of killer, and here is curiously just as he’s given the potentially most sympathetic motivation that Yakusho actually doesn’t make it the simple way of showing the man burdened by performing this kind of vengeance. Rather Yakusho goes to a darker place, particularly as he speaks of tragedies of his family where Yakusho doesn’t give motivation still, but what he shows is suddenly this more chilling intensity in the man. Suddenly he speaks with the type of viciousness of a killer, even a serial killer which Misumi technically is, but you can take it as hate towards the world, due to injustice or just hate towards the world. Yakusho makes it a most striking declaration by keeping the ambiguity alive as the man is speaking an emotional truth but he still is not speaking the truth. Even when he demands that Shigemori answer with his own belief, where Yakusho is genuinely scary in the intensity of the moment, how can one be sure with this man?

Shigemori’s path isn’t easy as Misumi seems ostracized by his own family, however the daughter’s story gives credence to this motivation though no one speaks an exact command or choice at any point. But as the best possible approach Shigemori attempts to get Misumi to pursue this course, until in court he does the exact opposite and insists that he’s innocent saying that he was pressured to make a deal. Suddenly as he is pleading his innocence Yakusho’s performance manages to be his most obviously false and guilty, where everything else he says you can’t be sure of, Yakusho brilliantly overplays this moment of creating a man playing the part now of just the criminal making up stories for the sake of it. Yakusho brings a different kind of blithe quality now where there’s more of an act than in his early scenes where you just can’t be sure of it, here you know this is the one place that Misumi is unquestionably lying. Leading to his death sentence, Shigemori visits Misumi with that sentence placed to try to figure out the mystery one more time. Of course Yakusho/Misumi still remain extremely cagey in his exact intentions, but captivating in his enigmatic state. Yakusho delivery of Misumi stating it would’ve been better if he had not been born seems real and creates the penetrating nature of a deep pathos…but this doesn’t exactly tell you why either which is the brilliance again. Something that Shigemori attempts to challenge by stating that Misumi’s actions must’ve been to protect the young woman, even his plea change protecting her from testifying makes it so he does have a good deed out of his existence. Yakusho is outstanding in his reaction to this because in the first moment you do believe this along with Shigemori as his face brightens a bit and the man seems to accept his good deed within what appears to be a rotten life. BUT when Misumi shrugs off that this may all be the lies of an old murderer, Yakusho doesn’t make it easy once again, as even his grin in this shrugging suggests you can’t believe any exact intention of the man at any point. And that’s the greatness of this performance, because while you can choose to take an interpretation as Shigemori does, Yakusho doesn’t enforce it, nor does he prevent it. He manages to instead brilliantly tiptoe around the lines to create a cohesive whole yet remain an enigma, which we know he’s a murderer, but why, well Yakusho gives you riddles but he never gives you answers in the best possible way. 

Updated Overall

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