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 Actor 1967: Results

5. Richard Harris in Camelot - Harris is charming when he needs to be and knows how to bring weight to the dramatics, but can't completely overcome the weaknesses of the film.

Best Scene: Final reprise of Camelot

4. James Garner in Hour of the Gun - Garner is effective in portraying the intensity of this vengeful Wyatt Earp, unfortunately the film doesn't let him explore the role enough.

Best Scene: Earp's final kill

3. Sidney Poitier in In the Heat of the Night - Poitier is a commanding and charismatic portrayal of his determined detective, and especially shines in any scene he shares with Rod Steiger.

Best Scene: At the chief's house.

2. Alain Delon in Le Samourai - Delon gives an excellent minimalistic performance as he does so much in the creation of the physical manner of his character.

Best Scene: The Samourai final assassination attempt.

1. Robert Blake in In Cold Blood - Good prediction Fisti. This came down to Delon doing so much with such a purposefully limited character and Blake making the absolute most out of great as he manages to give such a heartbreaking yet wholly chilling portrayal of Perry Smith.

Best Scene: Perry recounts a part of his life before his execution.

Overall Ranking:

1. Robert Blake in In Cold Blood
2. Alain Delon in Le Samourai
3. Rod Steiger in In The Heat of the Night
4. Sidney Poitier in In The Heat of the Night
5. Toshiro Mifune in Samurai Rebellion
6. Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke
7. Scott Wilson in In Cold Blood
8. James Mason in The Deadly Affair
9. Sidney Poitier in To Sir With Love
10. Gene Wilder in The Producers
11. Michel Simon in The Two of Us
12. Paul Newman in Hombre
13. Charlton Heston in Will Penny
14. Toshiro Mifune in Japan's Longest Day
15. Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate
    
16. Tatsuya Nakadai in The Age of Assassins
17. Joe Shishido in Branded To Kill
18. Dirk Bogarde in Our Mother's House
19. Warren Beatty in Bonnie & Clyde
20. Lee Marvin in Point Blank 
21. Dudley Moore in Bedazzled
22. Yūzō Kayama in Two in the Shadow
23. Richard Burton in The Taming of the Shrew
24. Ugo Tognazzi in L'immorale
25. Ljubiša Samardžić in The Morning
26. James Garner in Hour of the Gun
27. Lee Van Cleef in The Big Gundown
28. Peter O'Toole in The Night of the Generals
29. Peter Cook in Bedazzled
30. Zero Mostel in The Producers
31. Sean Connery in You Only Live Twice
32. Albert Finney in Two For the Road
33. Richard Harris in Camelot
34. Shin Seong-il in Mist
35. Sergei Bondarchuk in War and Peace Part IV
36. Sergei Bondarchuk in War and Peace Part III
37. Uttam Kumar in Chiriyakhana
38. Tomas Milian in The Big Gundown
39. Robert Morse in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying 
40. Lee Marvin in The Dirty Dozen
41. Lee Van Cleef in Death Rides a Horse
42. George C. Scott in The Flim-flam Man  
43. John Wayne in The War Wagon
44. Spencer Tracy in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
45. Milo O'Shea in Ulysses
46. Tetsurō Tamba in Portrait of Chieko
47. Omar Sharif in The Night of the Generals
48. Sidney Poitier in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
49. Michael Sarrazin in The Flim-Flam Man
50. Kirk Douglas in The War Wagon
51. Dirk Bogarde in Accident
52. Jacques Tati in Playtime
53. Dick Van Dyke in Divorce American Style
54. Bekim Fehmiu in I Even Met Happy Gypsies
55. Alain Cohen in The Two of Us
56. Robert Redford in Barefoot in the Park
57. Antonio Gades in El Amor Brujo 
58. Maurice Roëves in Ulysses
59. James Fox in Thoroughly Modern Millie 
60. John Philip Law in Death Rides a Horse
61. Richard Burton in The Comedians
62. Rock Hudson in Tobruk
63. Leonid Kuravlyov in Viy
64. Marlon Brando in A Countess From Hong Kong
65. Rex Harrison in Doctor Dolittle
66. Tadao Takashima in Son of Godzilla
67. Akira Kubo in Son of Godzilla
    
68. Roy Orbison in The Fastest Guitar Alive

Next Year: 1967 Supporting

And yes apparently the Producers is 67 by my rules.

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Richard Harris in Camelot

Richard Harris did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning a Golden Globe, for portraying King Arthur in Camelot.

Camelot potentially may have worked with a more creative director but instead its directed by Joshua Logan who seemed to be able to suck the life and potential out of any material.

There is one thing I like about this adaptation and that is obviously Richard Harris as King Arthur since I am clearly reviewing him. Harris doesn't exactly give a subtle performance here, which is fine as one should avoid being sucked upon into Logan's dull direction. Harris has two sides to his performance one side is the one, that one would more immediately associate with someone playing King Arthur in a musical version of the story. In this side Harris is quite charming in portraying Arthur as a lover of life. Harris provides a great bit of energy that even makes up for the fact that's he's obviously not the greatest singer in the world. Harris though tries his best to give some life to these scenes even when he is undercut at every turn by Logan who brings absolutely not a hint of momentum with his direction. Harris is fun in the role even though he does not get to say all that much fun for long.

Things don't stay happy for Arthur for long when it becomes quite obvious that the great knight Lancelot (horribly played by Franco Nero) is clearly having an affair with his wife Guinevere (Vanessa Redgrave). This leaves Arthur to become more introverted as he basically watches as his destiny is spelled out for him which is only further aided along by his sinister illegitimate son Mordred (David Hemmings). Harris is quite good in doing the extreme dramatics of these scenes giving that cold stare as he looks at the lovers with a disdain as well as a despair as he sees fate slowly closing in on him. Harris is equally excels whenever he needs to make any fierce statement of a King as Harris carries himself with quite the command while having that brutal edge. Harris is able to do the act of the uncivilized nature in such a gentlemanly figure otherwise rather effectively.

Now a problem does arise in that there isn't much cohesion between the two sides of the King, but that's really not Harris's fault. It isn't that Harris fails to properly transition depending on the scene but Logan's direction has no idea how to make the more lighthearted moments lead to the dramatic ones. The lighthearted scenes and the heavier scenes come seemingly at random making for a rather inconsistent tone which can be seen in Harris's performance since he is forced to jump between the tones so suddenly. There is only any real synergy in his last scene where he tells a young boy to remember Camelot. Harris brings about a real happiness in his remembrance of the past while still keeping a desperation in his voice to convey the severity of the situation. Other than that, which is his best scene to be sure, though Harris just kinda jumps back and forth. I like both sides of his Arthur to be sure but his performance can never fully make up for the weaknesses of the film.

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Alain Delon in Le Samourai

Alain Delon did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Jef Costello in Le Samourai.

Le Samourai is a very effective thriller about a hit man being slowly driven into a corner after being spotted leaving the scene of one of his murders.

Alain Delon plays the titular character of Le Samourai who obviously is not an actual samurai, but technically speaking just a gun for hire. Jef Costello, which is incidentally a far less awesome title than his titular moniker, does not act as some sort of crude hired killer though. This is evidenced from his earliest scene where he lays in bed where he smokes waiting before he goes on his assignment. Delon's performance is almost a silent performance actually. Delon does speak in the film from time to time but it is mostly in one word responses or in the simplest of sentences that are only meant to serve the most basic instructional purposes. There really is very little in terms of dialogue between Costello and anyone, and there is even less in terms of Costello verbalizing whatever it might be that he is going through. Delon's work is mostly all based around what he does physically in the role, and is an interesting example of what an actor can do in a purposely limited part.

Well Delon is rather brilliant in the way he carries himself in the film. Even the way he just smokes in the bed Delon makes less an act of inhaling smoke to rather some sort of preparatory ritual that the samurai must do before he kills. After stopping smoking though the samurai prepares himself by getting dressed in his trench coat and putting on his hat. Although kudos to the costuming, but Delon certainly wears it his own way. There is something so remarkable even just about that way that Delon always puts on Costello's hat. There is just something so, for a lack of a better word, cool about the way Delon removes and wears that hat. It isn't just some guy wearing a hat, even though technically that's all that it is, Delon somehow makes it more than that. The way he does it has this certain emphasis of a warrior preparing himself for his task rather than of a thug with a gun which again that really is all that Jef Costello really is. 

Delon even in the way he walks there is something special about it. The concise steps he takes at all times show a man absolutely driven for this precision of a master swordsman more than a master with the gun. Everything that Delon does adds to this characterization of Costello as slightly otherworldly in his qualities as a samurai. What is so wonderful about what Delon does though is this never seems something forced in his performance but rather wholly natural to the character. It also makes watching him a compelling experience as he is spellbinding in his creation of the manner of the samurai. Now this is especially important for the success of the film firstly because he doesn't have much to say at all, but secondly Costello is not necessarily a particularly sympathetic figure therefore it could have been easy to make this silent killer uninteresting. Delon though is absolutely fascinating as he makes every movement as the samurai something to witness.

Delon manages to be especially effective in the scenes where Costello does kill as again his movements accentuate the incisive approach he takes to killing. There is no aggression or pleasure from Delon when Costello kills but rather just a very chilling steely gaze as takes their lives away. It's rather interesting though that this is not quite like say Edward Fox in The Day of the Jackal who also played a professional assassin. Fox played the part of the jackal as a hollow shell of figure who would take on any disguise to make his target, and most of all there was a soulless quality at all times. This is not the case for Delon even though he certainly plays the part of the samurai in a rather cold fashion. Delon though does something else in the role instead and this leads to some of the most remarkable moments during the film. Delon goes about revealing more about Costello than we see, but not for a moment does he change from his intensely subtle performance.

One scene that I particularly liked is after Costello has been injured with a meeting with one of the men who hired him. Costello has to tend to his wounds and Delon somewhat drops the manner of the samurai, almost showing that for the moment the injury has almost snapped him out of his peculiar state forcing him to address something directly that does not require any meditation. It's a striking scene as Delon doesn't show the samurai behavior to be fake, but rather that it is indeed a ritual of sorts for the man. Delon creates particularly powerful scenes though by also revealing that there is a heart in the samurai, and although he kills people for money there is a conscious in him somewhere. It might be rather hard to see but there is evidence of it somewhere.

Delon is extremely reserved in this regard though but surprisingly poignant at the same time. Delon earns these revelations and it seems honest to the character in the way that Delon handles it. He has one amazing scene at the end of the film when it seems Costello is sending another person to their fate. Delon mostly does have that steely gaze again but there is this ever so slight sadness he still conveys so beautifully. It turns out not a sadness for his potential victim but for himself as he surrenders to his fate. It is a perfect moment by Delon and especially notable by just how delicately he handles the scene. The whole performance is a completely fantastic example of truly minimalistic portrayal by an actor. I have to admit to merely loving every second of this performance as he creates such a unique and even oddly heartbreaking character out of the samurai.

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Sidney Poitier in In the Heat of the Night

Sidney Poitier did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite being nominated for a Golden Globe and a BAFTA, for portraying Detective Virgil Tibbs in In The Heat of the Night.

Sidney Poitier's lack of Oscar recognition in this film seems a bit of strange thing. The film of course won best picture as well as best actor for his co-star Rod Steiger, and Poitier had a banner year with this film, the also best picture nominated Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? and the popular To Sir With Love. Now there were things against him first apparently every awards body agreed it was Steiger's time to win therefore probably deflecting some of Poitier's impact, he also was lead in all three of his films which can be problematic. Also there is not obvious person who upset him since the nominees were made up of Steiger who won, Spencer Tracy giving his final performance, Dustin Hoffman with his very popular breakout performance, Warren Beatty giving his best performance, and Paul Newman who perhaps got in over Poitier due to maybe late surge love for Cool Hand Luke as evidenced by George Kennedy's supporting actor win.

Despite his lack of recognition In The Heat of the Night is perhaps one of Poitier, if not most, iconic roles as Mr. Tibbs a black detective from Philadelphia who finds himself forced into solving a homicide in a racist town. Everything seems set out to make this a memorable role from the outset with the compelling situation he's in, that unique name of his, and even the rather snappy way in which he is dressed. Although it is in the case of most of his roles, starting all the way back with No Way Out as doctor dealing with a prejudiced Richard Widmark, Poitier's character doesn't take any flack from any racist this probably the time where his character was perhaps the most fervent about it. It was most often the case that Poitier would ease into this discontent by first being his usual extremely charming self, this time though Poitier actually begins with a harder edge which makes is fitting since the first thing that happens to Tibbs is that he is charged with the murder himself.

Poitier despite being somewhat more outwardly defiant in this one Poitier still carries himself in his usual classy dignified fashion. Poitier here is the master of frankly the refined anger as he manages to bring such an intensity in Tibbs's objection to his treatment by the police chief Gillespie (Steiger) and his men. Poitier barely even has to raise his voice to still be a palatable force of passion, and when he does raise his voice such as with his famous "They call me Mr. Tibbs!" it is quite powerful. Poitier interestingly doesn't fall upon his substantial charm all that often with this performance, almost holding it as a secret weapon in the reserved persona of Tibbs. Poitier only brings it out in very particular situations when Tibbs needs to derive information out of someone. Poitier very effectively uses his charm in these moments showing it as almost a strategy to make Tibbs instantly likable to the person he's trying to get the information from.

It is no surprise that Poitier went to reprise Tibbs two more times in sequels, although apparently far less successful films in every regard. Poitier has such a commanding presence with Tibbs and he makes for a consistently compelling lead here. Poitier is terrific by realizing Tibbs's method in such an eloquent and precise manner that is always interesting to watch. Poitier is quite good at carrying the film so well, as he's always so good at carrying film yet at the same time he manages to convey Tibbs's particular method of solving the crime. Poitier conveys the methodical nature of Tibbs deductions and makes every revelation he discovers well earned. There is only one moment where Poitier drops this and that is when confronting a known racist who has a motive for the murder. Poitier earns this especially emotional moment, and far from his most calculating, by portraying it as very much the gut reaction of man being forced to deal with an extremely racist individual with a smug sense of entitlement.

As great as Poitier is alone what really makes this performance standout is the way he works with Steiger throughout the film. Both are in top form here as they both are equally brilliant in realizing their characters. They are especially good because In the Heat of the Night is plot driven yet neither Tibbs nor Gillespie ever feel like characters just there to move through the plot. They realize them as fascinating men all on their own and they even come even more to life in their various conflicts during the film. The way the two go from outwardly aggressive to one another to an eventual mutual respect is one of the best elements of the film and it only really works because of Poitier and Steiger. There is not a single moment where the two agree to be friends or to even stop hating each other. There is just a rather slow understanding the two actors build so naturally from scene to scene that they make the transformation in both men not only believable but quite poignant in the end.

Alternate Best Actor 1967: Robert Blake in In Cold Blood

Robert Blake did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Perry Smith in In Cold Blood.

In Cold Blood is a very effective film about the true story of two men who go on the run after murdering a family.

The film follows the two men who are both ex-cons although rather different in terms of personality. Dick Hickock (Scott Wilson), who is treated as basically a non-entity in Capote, is the more traditional stick up artist who is part brute part slick con man. Where Dick is quite extroverted as portrayed by Wilson, Blake portrays Perry as a particularly introverted sort. In his earliest scene we see Perry as he makes a phone call to the Reverend from his old prison and attempts to contact someone while indicating that he likely will be breaking his parole. Blake is extremely effective in portraying Perry's particular manner that is somewhat troubling from the beginning although not immediately as something one would think would lead to murder. Blake conveys the emotional vulnerability of Perry incredibly well in the scene as he speaks to reverend showing him as almost begging for some sort of help before he is about to embark on something he definitely will never be able to return from.

After failing to make contact we are given a brief moment with Perry alone before he meets with Dick. Perry looks into the mirror imaging himself performing in Vegas. There are several scenes of Perry either daydreaming or imaging some event in his past or something created in his imagination. This may have seemed tacky if it were not for Blake's performance which makes every one of them work. Blake plays Perry as a man who at times seems partly not of the present as he seems to dream often and constantly. Blake doesn't show this to be that of a romantic dreamer though, but rather there is something unpleasant about this dreaming. Blake infuses in these moments such a palatable pain as Perry is not really dreaming about something or someplace that is better than his current predicament exactly to escape. Perry instead is either thinking about the past events that have permanently changed him or seeing a life he knows he will most certainly never have. 

Blake conveys so much in a single expression in these moments and each one is a memorable moment because of this. In Blake's eyes one can see the past of Perry whether it is remembering his abusive father or the heartache of remembering his dead mother whom he admired deeply. Blake is absolutely haunting in these scenes by realizing the emotional complexity they mean to Perry and how they turned him into the man he is. Although perhaps there is a hint of happiness connected to his mother, Blake suggests mostly Perry is a man who is unable to think without remembering these thing that only cause him distress. This leaves Blake to be especially good in just the way he is in every scene to have a certain morose manner about himself. Blake's performance though is most striking because the state he leaves Perry in isn't just as some sort of sad sack, but rather Blake shows that there is something most unnerving about this sadness.

One thing that stands out about the film are the interactions between Perry and Dick which are most unusual. Although they are partners throughout the film they are hardly friends and Blake and Wilson strikes about a very peculiar chemistry with one another.  There is a certain bit of warmth the two create quite naturally in the moments where they have slight prosperity and they carry the right casual manner with another to show their history together. Their relationship goes beyond that though as it was together that they perpetuated their evil. The two are very effective in portraying a certain aggressive quality and tension in almost every scene between the two that is particularly notable by their personality differences. When they speak about killing comes off as particularly disturbing from both of them since Blake and Wilson show it to have such nonchalance about the subject, and that they seem intent on doing something like it is merely something they feel they ought to do, nothing more than that.

The actual scene of the home invasion that leads to the murders is brilliantly directed by Richard Brooks and portrayed by Blake. This scene plays out in such a low-key fashion that is is becomes especially chilling. Blake does not accentuate any sort of menace in the scene in fact he even has a certain tenderness when Perry prevents Dick from raping one of the women in the house. There is a constant unease in Blake's performance though as if something odd is going on in Perry's mind the whole time as the two men come to realize that there is no substantial payoff to be find in the home. When Perry suddenly decides to brutally murder all the people Blake is especially disconcerting as he shows it as just something that Perry must do. There is no great anger or even that much of great emotion in him, but rather he seems compelled by just a simple mental urge to kill the family. It's a brutally effective scene as both Blake and Wilson are so believable in the matter of fact way the murders play out.

Due to the fact that both men quickly confess they are sentenced to hanging and are forced to spend the rest of their days waiting out for their fate inside the walls of the prison. Where Dick basically stays to his usual self, although Wilson is quite in showing the slowly growing dread that eats away at his confidence, Blake portrays Perry as become even more introverted as he reflects only more on what has happened to him and what he has done. Blake's performance of Perry's monologue, as he awaits, execution is flawless. Blake manages to make the moment so poignant as Perry awaits his own death and reflects on the time when his father almost killed him. There is such a palatable despair that Blake creates as a man revisits one last, unhappy, memory before meeting his own fate. Blake is equally unforgettable in his portrayal of Perry's physical deterioration as Blake shows Perry trying hard to maintain his composure. In his face and in his nervous walk though Blake creates the fear of a man who is about to lose his life.

Robert Blake gives a great performance as Perry Smith because there never seems to be a performance in there. There is not a single moment of his interactions with Wilson as Dick Hickock that seems forced or inauthentic. The idea that is put forth at the end of the film that the only way the two could have did what they did was together is made convincing by both actors. Each of them separately seem as though there is humanity in them yet when they speak and act together they show such a blunt heartless nature in them. Blake's performance works especially well in creating sympathy for the man yet never seeming to create an apology for him either. He is indeed rather terrifying in his moments of presenting a man capable of such deeds by having seeming to be hollow in his view of life. He manages to be quite heartbreaking though by making this part of a man who has suffered, and most of all was indeed still a man not a monster, though a man capable of monstrous acts.

Alternate Best Actor 1967: James Garner in Hour of the Gun

James Garner did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Wyatt Earp in Hour of the Gun.

Hour of the Gun is a decent enough telling of the Tombstone story even if the whole thing seems oddly rushed. 

Wyatt Earp is a historical figure who has been played many times by several different actors usually depicting the events of Earp against the Cowboys lead by Ike Clayton. The role of Wyatt Earp is often portrayed as the hero who wages war against the outlaws along with his more flamboyant friend Doc Holliday (Jason Robards in this version). Earp is technically a slightly thankless role since he is somewhat pigeonholed and even set up in a way to be overshadowed by whoever is playing Holliday. Earp is usually played by the actor known for more steadfast roles which is the case here with James Garner in the lead. Garner is probably best known for the often likable romantic or heroic lead. Garner has just a natural likability in his performances to begin with but Garner actually kinda rejects his usually screen persona here as Wyatt Earp. It would be easy enough to see Garner play Earp with a wink and a welcoming smile but he actually chooses to take a very different approach with the gunfighter.

Garner surprisingly gives a rather cold portrayal of Earp actually and seems to purposefully accentuate the fact that Earp's a killer. This makes sense though for this version of Earp which the film presents as revenge seeking, although still justice seeking as well, since it is pretty earlier on in the film when Virgil Earp is wounded and Morgan Earp is killed. This leaves Wyatt for the rest of the film to avenge his brothers by any means necessary with the help by the seemingly self-hating Doc Holliday. Garner carries himself here with a real intensity here as there is such a lack of warmth in his eyes here which is quite different from the way Garner usually is. It's an effective approach by Garner though as he portrays Wyatt Earp as a man truly hard bitten and changed by what happened to his brothers. He does not have any time to be funny or charming he's on a mission to kill men who wronged him, and Garner bluntly shows this through his performance.

Now the way the story is told in this version isn't really in a way to give a character study while portraying the events. It instead takes a pretty strict stance of meeting each plot point even bothering to go over the courtroom problems faced by Earp and company. The film also spends plenty of time with the other supporting characters although never enough really to realize them all that well leaving the impact Garner can have some what reduced. It's a bit of a shame as what Garner does do in the role is rather striking as he successfully plays this extremely hard bitten version of the character. He also has some nice enough chemistry with Robards, but the film fails to explore the particularly interesting friendship between the two men, something Tombstone handled particularly well. Garner is consistently good here and has one particularly stand out moment where he coldly kills his last man. Garner gives a strong performance and I only wish the film had allowed him to explore Wyatt Earp a little more than it did.

Alternate Best Actor 1967

And the Nominees Were Not:

James Garner in Hour of the Gun

Alain Delon in Le Samourai

Sidney Poitier in In The Heat of the Night

Robert Blake in In Cold Blood

Richard Harris in Camelot