Best Scene: Summary. 
4. Michel Simon in Panique - Simon gives a convincing performance as an eccentric but mostly innocent man being played as the fool.
Best Scene: Finale.
3. Franco Interlenghi in Shoeshine - Interlenghi gives a moving and convincing portrayal of a boy's friendship but also his hardened state slowly being worn away by a cruel system.
Best Scene: Interrogation. 
2. Michael Redgrave in The Captive Heart - Redgrave gives a moving portrayal of the quiet tension but also determination of a man living under constant threat yet still trying to maintain his humanity.
Best Scene: Explaining his story.
1. Charles Boyer in Cluny Brown - Good prediction Robert. Boyer is at his most charming here in delivering on the wonderful wit of his character where he manages to be the smartest man in the room so effortlessly and delightfully.
Best Scene: Final talk with Cluny.
Next: A few supporting reviews for 46.
39 comments:
Louis: Ratings and thoughts on the rest of the lead performances.
Your Female Lead and supporting Top 20s with ratings and other 5+ honourable mentions.
*4+
You know what? I actually rescind my original take on Safdie in The Odyssey. I think it works that Agamemnon is so unthreatening beneath the armor. No, the only true weak link is Holland, who I honestly think you’re all being too nice to with even a 3.
Louis: Your #6-#10 for Director in 1946
Just about loved The Odyssey.
Full review: https://letterboxd.com/aoisato/film/the-odyssey-2026/
Is there any reason you put only the top 5 of your rankings in bold when the top 10 are your nominees?
Luke, which categories do you think Louis will give The Odyssey the win.
Anonymous: Sound Editing is probably its best bet right now. The Competition is so stiff this year with Werwulf, Dune Part III, Digger and Godzilla Minus Zero (Visual Effects).
Also, Project Hail Mary and Wild Horse Nine
If it lives up the hype, Wildwood will be a major contender as well.
Louis: your 2010s and 2020s roles for Clive Owen, Eric Bana and Jim Caviezel?
Hello Louis!
Tell me from the year 1946 which are your TOP 10 best:
- Song
- Score
- Poster
- Editing
- Screenplays (adapted and original)
- Cast
Anonymous:
Duryea - 4(If only the script was a like one step better and it had allowed for a bit more with his co-star because Duryea is game. Given he usually had to be the sleazy other guy it is interesting to see him play the part in overtly romantic terms, albeit compromised by jealous alcoholism. Duryea though manages to bring a genuine charm in showing the kind of his pianist composer when he was at his best before life took him down particularly conveying kind of the thrill he gets from performing with the new person who appreciates his work. Unfortunately he only gets to go so far. Then the other place though Duryea doesn’t overplay their alcoholism rather conveying the man just festering in his anxieties in these moments and revealing the man punishing himself at these times. Sadly again the twist aspect I think should’ve been a greater opportunity but the writing is in too much of a hurry to end. A shame because Duryea basically delivers on all the setups; he's just a couple scenes and a few allowances short from getting to really sink his teeth and be amazing here.)
Karloff - 4(Karloff as a cruel doctor, pretty much what you’d expect, and what you want. He’s fun in just playing up the sadism of the character and showing the sheer amount of joys he gets out of his cruelty. I wouldn’t say he gets to do too much beyond that overall, except the ending where his reactions are quite good in showing the man realizing his situation but still Karloff has the right amount of infectious diabolical fun here.)
Howard - 4(I do wonder how many times Howard played these almost supporting secondary lead male characters to his female co-star, as it seems like it was pretty frequent. Howard though is good in a performance built frequently on just reaction shots of taking in the actions of Kerr’s character with a combination of bemusement, concern and attraction. Howard manages to convey the strangeness of the relationship while also making you believe the steps of it. Then later becoming kind of the Hitchcockian English period style hero for a few scenes and delivering on that needing urgency and charisma.)
Jouvet - 4(I mean a diabolical director going about his revenge by cultivating a false attraction seems like it will be great entertainment. Sadly the film is a touch too languid. Jouvet though delivers on his end in just bringing this quiet imperiousness with just the right twinge of a vicious intensity of the man’s greater plans in his eyes.)
Milland - 3.5(Too infrequently focused upon on the whole to ever really get going with this performance. Regardless Milland brings the right sort of combination between pompousness and charm to deliver on his own Henry Higgins, even if the film keeps getting in his way.)
Blanchar - 3.5(I would say delivers on the early scenes of portraying the mostly caring seeming man and brings a sense of warmth. When his character switches to creep I would say the switch just feels less naturalistic and certainly less compelling in the overall execution of his performance.)
Welles - 3.5(Getting a curious combination between briefly a broken man which I felt Welles delivers on effectively enough, then being the distant outsider with a hidden attachment to everything going on. Welles I wouldn’t say completely gets beyond the trappings to become just a little maudlin at times, but he also has some genuinely good moments as well that sells the melodrama a bit. It’s a mix but mostly good.)
Borchert - 3.5(Very much playing the intensity of emotion though I think the writing keeps it all very simplistic and he only goes so far with it.)
Lorre - 3.5(The romantic lead here actually which isn’t exactly the natural fit in such a role overall it also doesn’t help that the writing keeps his character just slightly too vague. Still you do get some nice Lorre presence and seeing him in an out of place type part was kind of interesting and I wonder what more he could’ve done with it if the screenplay was a little more substantial.)
Montand - 3.5(Much has been said negatively about this performance apparently, though I thought he was mostly good. In his most dramatic moments he gets slightly forced, however the rest of the time I found his work pretty effective in portraying the warmth with his old comrade especially and the charm in his more romantic moments.)
Coëdel - 3.5(The idiot is an ever tricky role to actually find exactly how to play and while I probably should re-watch the Kurosawa one at some point I’d say Mori got closer on the whole. Here I think he’s fine in portraying the general emotional intensity of the man while also being withdrawn but I still think there’s an essential choice to really convey what the character is supposed to be that is missing performance wise.)
Radditz & Knuth - 3.5(Not exactly playing totally disparate men when you truly break it down, rather they are each inhabiting similar space. Both are charming enough however I wouldn’t say truly breakout as great romantic leads, though they are wholly fine.)
Andrews - 3.5(Just barely lead due to the ensemble nature of the film. Andrews though is overall good enough as a fairly stoic lead here just facilitating his co-stars for the most part.)
Garfield - 3.5(My typical reaction to so many Garfield performances. Genuine intensity, some good moments in there but he also gets a little stiff but also overwrought in other moments. I think mostly you get Garfield but the less great moments are here too.)
Price - 3.5(Kind of weird performance because the film is written so weirdly. It can’t decide if it wants some sympathy for his character or if it just wants him to be a villain. Price struggles with the uncertainty of the first half just seeming a bit vague at times, when it lets him let loose as frankly later Price, he has at least something to be expected but it is really too little too late.)
Ayres - 3.5(The kind doctor earlier than his Oscar nomination, he’s good with what he has but it isn’t a terribly interesting role. He brings a nice general empathy though with a quiet sense of intelligence.)
Astaire & Crosby - (Both just their general presence but not in a particularly interesting way for either. Astaire is a little more alive at least but still becomes quite dull like the entire film.)
Grant - (Really shows his limits I suppose in the way he does nothing to convey himself as Cole Porter in any way and really just plays himself as Grant even through every different age of the character. Additionally he’s just pretty dull here and very little of his charm can be found in this instance.)
Harrison - 1.5(There are occasional moments where you see some genuine acting, unfortunately most of it is hidden underneath the overt caricature he presents most of the time that is just utterly ridiculous.)
Actress:
1. Jennifer Jones - Cluny Brown
2. Ingrid Bergman - Notorious
3. Oliva de Havilland - The Dark Mirror - 5
4. Edwige Feuillère - L’Idiot - 4.5
5. Dolores del Rio - The Other - 4.5
6. Setsuko Hara - No Regrets For Our Youth - 4.5
7. Laraine Day - The Locket - 4.5
8. Deborah Kerr - I See A Dark Stranger - 4.5
9. Paulette Goddard - Diary of a Chambermaid
10. Rosalind Russell - Sister Kenny - 4.5
11. Irene Dunne - Anna And the King of Siam - 4.5
12. Anna Lee - Bedlam - 4.5
13. Geraldine Fitzgerald - Three Strangers - 4.5
14. Michèle Morgan - The Pastoral Symphony - 4.5
15. Bette Davis - A Stolen Life - 4.5
16. Lana Turner - The Postman Always Rings Twice
17. Paulette Goddard - Kitty - 4
18. Viviane Romance - Panique
19. Ava Gardner - The Killers
20. Rita Hayworth - Gilda
Supporting Actress:
1. Donna Reed - It's A Wonderful Life
2. Teresa Wright - The Best Years of Our Lives
3. Anne Baxter - The Razor's Edge
4. Leopoldine Konstantin - Notorious
5. Myrna Loy - The Best Years of Our Lives
6. Joan Lorring - Three Strangers - 4
7. Haruko Sugimura - No Regrets For Our Youth - 4
8. Joan Lorring - The Verdict
9. Beulah Bondi - It’s A Wonderful Life
10. Joan Crawford - Humoresque - 4
11. Gloria Grahame - It’s A Wonderful Life
12. Ludmilla Tcherina - A Lover’s Return - 4
13. Martita Hunt - Great Expectations
14. Line Noro - Pastoral Symphony
15. Constance Bennett - A Centennial Summer - 3.5
16. Natalie Wood - Tomorrow is Forever - 3.5
17. Elsa Lanchester - The Spiral Staircase - 3.5
18. Angela Lansbury - The Harvey Girls - 3.5
19. Ruth Nelson - Humoresque - 3.5
20. Virginia Mayo - The Best Years of Our Lives
Shaggy:
6. Julien Duvivier - Panique
7. Vittorio De Sica - Shoeshine
8. Ernst Lubitsch - Cluny Brown
9. David Lean - Great Expectations
10. Akira Kurosawa - No Regrets For Our Youth
Harris:
It’s just to show who the nominees would be if I applied the academy limit.
Brazinterma:
Song:
6. “On the Boardwalk in Atlantic City” - Three Little Girls In Blue
7. “Blue Bayou” - Make Mine Music
8. “A Gal in Calico” - The Time, The Place and The Girl
9. “I Can’t Begin to Tell You” - The Dolly Sisters
10. “Sooner or Later” - Song of the South
Score:
No other scores really stood out for me.
Poster:
Editing:
1. It’s a Wonderful Life
2. Notorious
3. A Matter of Life and Death
4. The Best Years of Our Lives
5. The Big Sleep
6. The Killers
7. Panique
8. Cluny Brown
9. No Regrets For Our Youth
10. Beauty and the Beast
Adapted Screenplay:
6. The Killers
7. Panique
8. Great Expectations
9. My Darling Clementine
10. The Postman Always Rings Twice
Original Screenplay:
6. Gilda
7. The Stranger
8. No Regrets For Our Youth
9. I See a Dark Stranger
10. The Locket
Ensemble:
1. It’s a Wonderful Life
2. The Best Years of Our Lives
3. The Captive Heart
4. Notorious
5. Cluny Brown
6. A Matter of Life and Death
7. Bedlam
8. Shoeshine
9. A Lover’s Return
10. Panique
Tim:
Owen:
Matt King
Harrison Lee Van Buren
Eric Bana:
Keller Dover
Fletch
Jim Caviezel:
The Journalist (Jackie)
Johnny (C’Mon C’Mon)
Poster:
1. Beauty and the Beast
2. Gilda
3. A Matter of Life and Death (Austrian)
4. I See a Dark Stranger
5. Panique
6. Paisan
7. Gates of the Night
7 is enough.
Louis: Have Donna Reed and Myrna Loy gone up to a 5 and 4.5 respectively.
And what was your rating for Line Noro in Pastoral Symphony.
Louis: thoughts on the trailer for Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol?
Louis: Gérard Philipe is the lead in L'idiot.
Louis: you gave Jean Simmons in Great Expectations a 4. Is she still that rating? If so, where would she rank? And what are your ratings and thoughts on Sydney Greenstreet in Three Strangers and Philip Dorn in I've Always Loved You?
Luke:
Yes, 4.
Anonymous:
...I guess Depp wants to out ham Finney in the role, and yes I do like Finney oddly enough as a very specific acquired taste of a performance, but that's not a compliment in a general sense. Otherwise just looked...odd, I guess it's Scrooge purely as a comedy maybe, which I guess is a different take but I have very little faith in Ti West to make it work.
Lucas:
Yes #8. Although in the future, if everyone wants to post my original rankings/ratings for a given year, I'd appreciate it because I'm going off my memory and just all the films so easily performances can slip through the cracks.
Greenstreet basically gives the same performance as his other performance other than an explosive emotional scene at the end, where he's fine but not great.
Dorn gives a dull uninteresting performance that I barely remember despite watching the film not very long ago.
Louis: Your thoughts on Musuraca's work in The Locket, The Spiral Staircase and Bedlam.
Louis: Randomly came up with this last night but your thoughts on this 80s version of The Prestige?
Angier: John Lone
Borden: Gary Oldman
John Cutter: John Gielgud
Olivia: Natassja Kinski
Sarah: Cathy Tyson
Mr Alley: Dean Stockwell
Nikola Tesla: James Mason
Calvin: Honestly, Gielgud is a good choice for all of Caine's roles in Nolan films.
Louis: Your thoughts on the female performances.
Louis, has Teresa Wright gone up to a 5 and what is your new rating for Anne Baxter.
Louis: If Sam Neill had played Elrond in LOTR, do you think he would've fared as well as Weaving or greater.
Odyssey Cast:
Hathaway - (Penelope isn’t the most dynamic character in the original story where she really is just there waiting for Odysseus, so what changes Nolan could make within the overall narrative were certainly appreciated and what I felt Hathaway ran with. Hathaway created the needed initial emotional connection with Damon the warmth, but also even more so the directness in the moments of questioning just going along with the decisions of others as the backbone of it. Hathaway then carries a quiet emotional ferocity within her work that becomes frankly increasingly fed up with the nonsense around her until she fully lets loose that rather powerfully in the near ending scenes. Finding even within her scenes with Damon I think the right combination between still wanting to be with him again, but also combining with it all the pain behind what he in some ways put him through.)
Holland - (Honestly could go even lower as the most praise I can give him is that he is believable, pathetic and unthreatening in his early scenes. I think even though he is a lot stiffer and awkward with his lines than was necessary for the character. Where honestly I can make any argument for him is all his later scenes where he really fails to convey any growth in strength or confidence and instead seems to be the most playing dress up of everyone. His “enough” in particular is a major failure from him to convey genuine strength or power in the moment. I will admit Nolan does two things that do not help his cause, one in the choice to have him struggle to fight one guy in the final brawl where the scene even in this version seems to want to suggest he’s king material now, but Holland does nothing to convince of this. I will also say he also really fails to convey the needed emotion in connecting with his father finally rather finding little compelling variation. The other thing Nolan did however is put him in the worst costume in the film in his final shot where he truly looked goofy and Holland couldn’t be less tough looking if he tried. I will say yeah Holland is not good, but I do question some choices of Nolan when it comes to Telemachus in general.)
Nyong’o - (Her moments are all about emotional intensity, one of the quick bits of the immediate intensity which I thought she delivered effectively albeit briefly, and then the other half of the person kind of living in bitterness. Something that I thought she did well enough but didn’t really stand out in terms of conveying even more history than was there.)
Morton - (Makes the most out of every second she has. In the first phase she really finds just the right tone in terms of building up the dread then unleashing her intensity at the right moment and I loved the whole “like making a clay pot” aspect that her physical reactions certainly are a strong part of making it as striking as it is. Her second scene though is as amazing in the quiet menace of her work, but then managing to convey such complexity of emotion as she speaks towards her philosophy and past. You manage to get an immediate sense of her connection with her sister, her hatred towards the evils of the world, but also even the choices behind her decisions towards the state of her sister. Morton finds such variation that only conveys further history of her character and is a standout for a reason.)
Zendaya - (She’s mostly there, but certainly delivers on her final moment.)
Theron - (I will say the use of Calypso does limit her from doing too much as she’s mostly there just to facilitate Damon, I think she’s fine but just doesn’t make too much of an impact.)
Safdie - (Yeah no, I don’t buy that Nolan was trying to make him look pathetic on purpose I think he just let his actor deliver his lines and didn’t direct that enough. On one hand I don’t think it works because in the period of history, even a fantasy tale, you needed to back up the power more than just a “look” to be convincing that everyone fears you. So it doesn’t work in that sense. But for me, it also doesn’t sound like a pathetic guy selling his tale of woe, it sounded like some guy from 2026 who got his pizza eaten on him or something. Safdie I don’t think sells the emotion, or the pseudoperiod, or the situation, regardless of intimidation.)
Bernthal - (Definitely putting in the Bernthal into it, which I think for me sold the specific style of the film most effectively and more convincingly sold the idea of the warrior king in the film’s pseudoperiod. One being just the blunt directness of someone who owns the brutal nature of the world and has an almost comical view on life in his asking for the whereabouts of Odyssey. Adding though his own ptsd albeit covered up in a kind of rage both from the death of his brother where he sells the actual sense of their relationship quite well, but also in the desperate act that was the Trojan horse.)
Patel - (His performance I think shows the negative progression of his character’s relationship with Damon’s throughout. Bringing initially very much that right hand man’s energy initially. Then the next step being the concerned friend trying to caution him, to then becoming nearly actively hostile himself in making his advice a bit more aggressive, to finally just totally lost himself in a bit of insanity in losing any connection with Odysseus as a leader.)
Hawkins - (Though he most effectively played up the “shitheel” angle building up quite nicely to his very cathartic final moment that Hawkins sold quite well.)
Goth - (In the end a throwaway role to the point I’m not sure why Nolan bothered to have that moment with Hathaway at the end if then nothing really happened to her…or at least from what I could see. Though she was fine in her sort impish glances of the disloyal.)
Marshall-Green - (Forgettable even within his limitations.)
Page - (Though I thought Page’s performance in the opening scene was a little stiff, however the big money scene thought Page did manage to deliver a sort of the haunting expression of the ghost in pain over the plight of life.)
Remar - (Though he delivered his lines well enough but again suffers in comparison to Christopher Lee when it comes to selling the dread of Odysseus’s options.)
Hurst - (Delivered a nice toughness and a bit of warmth to the point I wouldn’t have minded if got a little more to do.)
Louis: Who would you have cast instead of Holland because I felt that he couldn't escape his Peter Parker persona.
Louis: And what do you think of Josh Brolin as Agamemnon as a casting choice.
Luke:
Well Chalamet in Dune Part II did convince he could actually be tough in a film, and would be able to sell the initial immaturity, plus he previously worked with Nolan. Lucas Hedges if you want someone who looks vaguely like Damon, and I think he could've worked...though he hasn't done all that much substantially recently his 2018 run remains impressive. If you want more of a guarantee you could get someone from the George MacKay/Tom Blyth/Harris Dickinson trio, though it might've been harder to believe that Pattinson could push them around so easily. I will say though even without Holland, I'd still question Nolan's choices around Telemachus in the final fight.
He would've been a better choice and certainly would've been believable as Bernthal's brother.
RIP Chuck Russell
Luke:
De Havilland - (Honestly whenever she gets a role that she can sink her teeth into she is great. In this instance two different roles where she is so much fun here in playing each twin. One where actually is isn’t about extreme contrast initially but rather something that de Havilland cultivates over time. Essentially building up this natural switch from each seeming charming enough albeit slightly off to being increasingly questionable. Where one becomes more withdrawn the other more direct and maybe too direct. De Havilland manages to be just a hoot to watch with the sinister twin and has the right amount of fun in the one who just immediately takes delicious ownership of her villainy. Contrasting that she offers a nice sincerity of the character just trying to earnestly be as innocent as she can be. Even while probably having the least of the twin scripts de Havilland makes the biggest meal out of anyone.)
Feuillère - (Brings a powerful brazenness to her character where she manages to really own the scene of every given scene where she presents someone who never apologizes for herself and finds a natural power in that. Her performance goes beyond that though creating a real nuance in her reactions to the man who doesn’t react to her like most do. Finding a complication between the moments of that cutting directness that doesn’t undercut that but rather reveals a degree of vulnerability most naturally. She is able to so effectively balance the sides that one does wish everything else in the film was working a bit better because she aces the material with ease.)
Del Rio - (Her first twin performance is pretty short as just basically the confident one without too much concern with her sister before the switch. Then in the switch Del Rio is wonderful in managing to convey the challenges very much in an often comedic way in showing the moments of needing to do quick thinking and also struggle with simple things like not wearing glasses when needing them. Del Rio is able to find the humor while creating the sense of the dogged attempted conviction to “enjoy” what the twin has while also showing the increasing frustration of finding it all to be far trickier than she expected it to be.)
Hara - (Interesting always to see her working outside of Ozu as her style too is different from her manner in many of her Ozu performances. Her giving a more overt emotional performance where early on we bring kind of the youthful convictions and frustrations then which switch to this essentially living for a passionate cause for another. Hara in the scenes of being the farmer, she is truly great in bringing a real sense in her mostly silent work, the physical exhaustion combined with conviction but also the emotional complications of being the outsider while also wanting to live up to the standard she sees in what her man represented.)
Day - (Diabolical though mostly in the implied. As often she is the fetching and charming lady more often than not, then we see suddenly her presenting her gosling with such sincere, really terrible conviction where she makes it look all so easy particularly in the way she switches up her song depending who she is lying to. Day finding variation in the master manipulator consistently. Then while the final moments of her performance are probably the least interesting in selling the motivation breakdown that seems forced, though I think she manages to get through it without it really doing any damage to her overall performance.)
Kerr - (Manages to be just extremely charming and even convincing in selling the character’s very specific naivety that gets her into all kinds of trouble. Something that should seem either evil or stupid but Kerr manages to find it in this misplaced passion with such earnest conviction that somehow you can’t quite hate her character despite what she is doing. Then though it does help that Kerr finds the natural nuance in creating the eventual moral complexity within the realizations that the world is a little more complicated, while also developing a winning chemistry with Howard.)
Goddard - (She has such a modern quality about her that really is ideal for the maid who refuses to be pigeonholed into any role. Although she has a little bit of a trying too hard moment early on, later she brings such a naturally endearing quality but combining with this natural effusive energy of someone who will not be forced into anything too easily. Balancing that charge though with real nuance in her reactions between moments of reflecting on the people she is with, finding a nice balance in creating genuine charm in moments of empathy, but also mixing that with genuine vexation and even fear as naturally.)
Russell - (Very much your classic crusader performance. But I will say Russell brings genuine passion that does work and manages to avoid overselling into just becoming the crusader caricature. She makes you believe the passion as real particularly in her calm explanations while also conveying the underlying frustrations of the constant doubt and really patronizing manners of her doubters. Also gives quite a convincing portrayal of the aging of her character throughout the film and I’m always impressed when an actor seemingly predicts their own older manner as Russell manages to do so here quite effectively.)
Dunne - (Manages to sell the material with a real earnestness that sells it better than anyone, though it also helps that she’s not wearing any terrible makeup. Dunne, though even beyond that, gives a good portrayal of that measured manner of both pushing but also trying to be cordial in her conflicts with the King. Finding the right direct passion within her specific beliefs where she manages to be both gracious and combative in equal measure. Finding even a way to sell the ridiculousness of the dramatic swings later by always being convincing in her own performance at the very least.)
Lee - (Quite the interesting performance and character honestly as the good person in such films usually means dulls. Rather though we meet her as a callous sidekick of lord where she delivers that initially quite bluntly but with a specific distaste towards someone truly hateful. Her performance then segues quite effectively towards tempering that enough in her attempt to defend herself where it becomes a sad state of trying to explain her manner as all jokes. Then in the final act earning the goodness of the care she presents of someone genuinely trying to connect with the patients and giving a moving portrayal of someone finding their humanity in rather terrible circumstances.)
Morgan - (Manages to find a way about the tricky nature of her early work where she conveys this slow progression towards greater connection if also combined with a certain retiring and strange quality of the person pushed as an outsider due to her disability. Managing to be equally convincing though in the sudden shift of the second half in portraying well a different kind of anxiety in becoming the center of too many’s attention and creating a swing in the confidence but also conflict. Finding a way to basically go from one type of pain to another, but finding nuance in showing a different maturity and manner in each is essentially the sad reflection of someone who goes from being wanted by no one to being wanted by too many in a toxic way. Morgan grafts enough honesty to keep her own work from falling into the certain flaws of the film.)
Davis - (The least extreme of the twins in a way as basically you get the nicer more humble one and the slightly more outgoing one. She’s good at both even though it does seem like conflict between her characters would’ve made this one more interesting. Instead we basically get the one being overly amorous and direct and the other just retiring within herself which Davis conveys both emotions quite effectively. The switch sequence I actually found kind of too little too late dramatically, though I think Davis’s reactions throughout color the nice sense of complication in the ruse, though again I don’t think there’s quite enough there overall, though she’s always good here.)
Goddard - (Due to the limits of the scripts she doesn’t get to quite run with this though she’s convincing as the brash cockney part of her performance with a nice rugged intensity, then becoming the refined lady with a relaxed grace and ease. I wish she really got more to do overall with the concept rather than the repetitive scenes she gets here but she’s good with what she has.)
Fitzgerald - (Probably could’ve been a five performance if the film wasn’t so needlessly disjointed in his convoluted plotting. Fitzgerald though is dynamic whenever she gets more than a few seconds to chew into even selling the very strange setup piece with this weird devious sincerity about the whole thing. She manages to sell the idea in itself which in itself is a remarkable performance achievement. Fitzgerald though beyond that is quite an effective manipulator in portraying very much this mischievous urge to push the buttons in so many moments, but also portraying the intensity of the sudden desperation when she sees her choices quickly getting herself into trouble.)
Lorring - (The film would’ve probably benefited from devoting more time to her as she gives a moving portrayal of her character’s conviction towards Lorre’s and her impassioned choices to do whatever it takes to help her. She conveys honestly within a relationship, a relationship that overall seems there just to fulfill a plot line but Lorring gives reality towards that relationship regardless.)
Sugimura - (Seems to always offer such a strong sense of character to whatever film she appears in. In this instance being quite interesting as the technically material figure towards Hara, yet is convincing just as she was in Tokyo Story, with a more measured emotional maturity within the character. Conveying particularly effectively her slow sense of greater connection with Hara’s character and the matching passion at a certain point that Sugimura makes so very natural.)
Crawford - (Although the character ends up kind of sinking the film into repetition, Crawford manages to find an effective combination between this sort of precise dominance of someone who knows what she wants and has an intense desire to get it. Crawford found the strength within that presence with a decided ease. Crawford though is as convincing in portraying the festering unease and anxieties beneath it all as we see the woman just lost in those insecurities. While I wish the film explored all of this in a more interesting direction, Crawford is good with what she has.)
Tcherina - (Manages to be quite effective as the very energetic manipulator where she brings the same colorful energy to both pulling her victim in then cutting him off with pure callousness. She makes it all a little more interesting by just how easy she makes the process.)
Noro - (Gives a convincing portrayal of the difficult emotions almost entirely in her reactions towards the difficult situation her husband creates. Noro manages to find the balance towards someone trying to keep a certain grace about herself while also being completely still heartbroken over it, but keeping it almost entirely within herself.)
Bennett - (Basically there to be suddenly the lusty power player and has a quick bit of quick fun with it.)
Wood - (Just notable for the ease and confidence she has as a performer once again. Has a nice warm chemistry with Welles that I wish the film did more with.)
Lanchester - (Mainly adds a nice bit through her general presence which is always most welcome.)
Lansbury - (Her arc and character is run through quite quickly, however her combination of brazenness though with a certain vulnerability I thought was most effective albeit so briefly.)
Nelson - (Thought managed to find at least honesty as the “other woman” who is mostly there to be ignored, but within just that managed to at least be the contrast to Crawford effectively with the sense of genuine sense of empathy rather than self-absorption.)
Calvin:
Lone getting to go all the way as the magician would be fun, after just the snippet from The Moderns. Oldman obviously is a great match for the driven chameleon. Gielgud would be an ideal fit indeed for all Caine Nolan roles but especially this one. Mason would bring the imperious presence, 80’s Stockwell would be an ideal contrast. Kinski would be a considerable upgrade and Tyson of course would be remarkable.
Anonymous:
5, Baxter is a 4.5
8000’s:
The Locket has some nice moody shots particularly the moments that accentuate the deep focus of the art studio that shows the environmental conditions that are all very striking or the moments where it really makes the artwork of Mitchum’s character striking. Beyond largely good noir work in very much emphasizing the contrasts and within that sort of the different natures of Day’s character.
The Spiral Staircase is all about mood and shadows and does not fail in this regard. Crafting very much the dramatic horror elements within the intense and extreme lighting and camera choices that help to consistently amplify the atmosphere. It’s beautifully shot with the use of so much darkness to the bits of light and particularly excellent use of the setting of the titular staircase which it finds so many dynamic ways to emphasize.
Bedlam’s the one I’d say is mostly functional work, does its job but doesn’t really standout too much beyond that competency. Occasionally brings out a slightly more dramatic shot particularly to show a particular character’s mental state which utilizes effectively.
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