Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1971: Results

5. Bruce Dern in Drive, He Said- Dern does not have much of a part but he does make himself the best part of his film through his energetic performance.

Best Scene: The Coach reorganizes his team at half time.

4. Jack Albertson in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory- Albertson gives a nice warm supportive turn even if he is overshadowed by Gene Wilder for a large chunk of the film.

Best Scene: Grandpa Joe surprises Charlie with a Wonka bar.

3. Fernando Rey in The French Connection- Rey's is a minimalistic performance that realizes his French crime lord as an effective villain.

Best Scene: Frog one waves Popeye goodbye.

2. Andy Robinson in Dirty Harry- Robinson is a great villain by being both incredibly pathetic and exceptionally threatening.

Best Scene: Harry tortures Scorpio.

1. John Hurt in 10 Rillington Place- Good Predictions Mark, Moviefilm, and Michael McCarthy. This was a landslide victory for John Hurt as I did not have to think twice to give the win to him for his absolutely devastating performance as man who faces one tragedy after another that perfectly complements the terrifying lead performance by Richard Attenborough. I can sort of understand the academy's oversight of Attenborough because of their timidness for completely despicable characters, but there was no excuse for ignoring Hurt especially with the filler nominations given to Leonard Frey and Richard Jaeckel.

Best Scene: Timothy finds his wife after the murder.

Overall Rank:

1. John Hurt in 10 Rillington Place 
2. Donald Pleasence in Wake in Fright
3. Andy Robinson in Dirty Harry
4. Ben Johnson in The Last Picture Show
5. Alain Delon in Red Sun
6. Eddie Axberg in The Emigrants 
7. Ian McShane in Villain
8. Fernando Rey in The French Connection
9. Jack Albertson in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory 
10. Jeff Bridges in The Last Picture Show
11. Roy Scheider in The French Connection
12. Tom Baker in Nicholas and Alexandra
13. John Huston in Man in the Wilderness
14. Max von Sydow in The Touch
15. Bruce Dern in Drive, He Said
16. Donald Pleasence in THX 1138
17. Roy Kinnear in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory 
18. Jack MacGowran in King Lear
19. Ian Hendry in Get Carter 
20. Edward Fox in The Go-Between
21. Hugh Millais in McCabe & Mrs. Miller
22. Laurence Olivier in Nicholas and Alexandra
23. Cyril Cusack in King Lear
24. Patrick McGoohan in Mary, Queen of Scots
25. Patrick Magee in A Clockwork Orange
26. John Osborne in Get Carter
27. Patrick Magee in King Lear 
28. Percy Herbert in Man in the Wilderness
29. Trevor Howard in Mary, Queen of Scots
30. Michael Gothard in The Devils
31. David Battley in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory 
32. Marcel Bozzuffi in The French Connection
33. David Warner in Straw Dogs   
34. David Gulpilil in Walkabout
35. Ian Holm in Nicholas and Alexandra
36. Nigel Davenport in Mary, Queen of Scots
37. Murray Melvin in The Devils 
38. Nigel Davenport in Villain 
39. Michael Redgrave in The Go-Between
40. David Warbeck in Duck, You Sucker!
41. Reni Santoni in Dirty Harry 
42. Alan Bates in The Go-Between
43. Paul Mann in Fiddler on the Roof 
44. Eddie Egan in The French Connection
45. Chips Rafferty in Wake in Fright
46. Bryan Mosley in Get Carter 
47. Graham Armitage in The Devils
48. Godfrey Quigley in A Clockwork Orange 
49. Pierre Lindstedt in The Emigrants
50. Bill Hickman in The French Connection
51. John Vernon in Dirty Harry
52. Aubrey Woods in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory 
53. John Stride in Macbeth
54. Tony Lo Bianco in The French Connection
55. Jack Thompson in Wake in Fright
56. Charles Cioffi in Shaft
57. Roy Scheider in Klute
58. Peter Vaughan in Straw Dogs 
59. Per Oscarsson in The Last Valley
60. Raul Julia in The Panic in Needle Park
61. John McEnery in Nicholas and Alexandra 
62. Timothy Dalton in Mary, Queen of Scots
63. Frederic de Pasquale in The French Connection 
64. Art Garfunkel in Carnal Knowledge
65. Nigel Davenport in The Last Valley
66. Anthony Sharp in A Clockwork Orange  
67. Jack Hawkins in Nicholas and Alexandra
68. Richard Bright in The Panic in Needle Park 
69. Charles Gray in Diamonds Are Forever
70. John Larch in Dirty Harry 
71. Michael Bates in A Clockwork Orange
72. Charles Cioffi in Klute 
73. Leonard Frey in Fiddler on the Roof
74. Martin Shaw in Macbeth
75. John Mitchum in Play Misty For Me 
76. John Meillon in Wake in Fright
77. Philip Stone in A Clockwork Orange
78. John Mitchum in Dirty Harry
79. Arthur O'Connell in The Last Valley
80. Gunter Meisner in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
81. T.P. McKenna in Straw Dogs
82. Robert Towne in Drive, He Said  
83. Harry Guardino in Dirty Harry
84. Rene Auberjonois in McCabe & Mrs. Miller 
85. Moses Gunn in Shaft
86. Romolo Valli in Duck, You Sucker!
87. Paul Glaser in Fiddler on the Roof
88. Clu Gulager in The Last Picture Show 
89. Dudley Sutton in The Devils 
90. Alan Vint in The Panic in Needle Park 
91. David Prowse in A Clockwork Orange
92. Paris Themmen in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
93. Warren Clarke in A Clockwork Orange
94. Leonard Stone in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
95. Randy Quaid in The Last Picture Show
96. Michael Bollner in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
97. Timothy West in Nicholas and Alexandra
98. Charles Tyner in Harold and Maude
99. Harry Andrews in Nicholas and Alexandra
100. Barnard Hughes in The Hospital 
101. Terence Bayler in Macbeth 
102. Roderic Noble in Nicholas and Alexandra
103. Murray Head in Sunday Bloody Sunday
104. Charles Aidman in Kotch
105. Josef Summer in Dirty Harry
106. Michael Margotta in Drive, He Said
107. Elliot Gould in The Touch

Next Year: 1999 lead

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1971: Andy Robinson in Dirty Harry

Andy Robinson did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying the Scorpio killer in Dirty Harry.

Dirty Harry went on to have four sequels none which came close to the strength of the original film. Although all of the films, besides The Dead Pool, had a devoted Clint Eastwood they always lacked a personal arc for Harry and something even more important which was a good villain. The only film that even came close to a good villain was the first sequel Magnum Force although that was not in the main villains who were rather silly looking traffic patrol death squad but rather the last minute reveal villain played by Hal Holbrook. The only film which has a great main villain is the very first film and a great deal of the credit for this needs to go to Andy Robinson's performance as the serial killer who calls himself Scorpio.

For the first third of the film or so we mostly see the actions of Scorpio as he murders people and leaves ransom notes demanding money to be paid or else he will commit more murders. The first murder we barely see him but the second attempted murder we see Scorpio make his preparations. Robinson is exceptional in the scene as we see Scorpio mark his target. Robinson is quite chilling in the scene as he loses his mark then he finds his potential victim again. Robinson is great as he brings the most eerie smile over his face as Scorpio sees his chance to murder has returned, in his expression he shows the sick sadism of Scorpio very effectively. We don't learn why he does this, but from here we can see he certainly enjoys it.

Once we see more of Scorpio Robinson makes a most unusual but remarkable dynamic for his character. Robinson makes Scorpio a very pathetic and very threatening character all at the same time. Through his meek posture and his squeal Robinson makes Scorpio clearly a weak and very lowly individual. In this though Robinson brings an unpredictability of the man through the viciousness of his psychotic behavior. He mixes in the violence with his overall lowly state to make this a very visceral performance. Due to his more pathetic qualities when Robinson brings out the violence it is all the more jarring and Robinson makes every scene with Scorpio have an underlying intensity as you don't know what he is going to do.

Scorpio is a most interesting adversary for Dirty Harry as the only quality they share is their ability they share is their ability to kill fairly efficiently. Where Eastwood stands tall, Robinson well stands short, Eastwood's voice is firm and forceful, Robinson is fluttery and whiny, where Eastwood makes Harry emotions rather self contained that although can be intense are always in control, Robinson shows Scorpio become an emotional mess very easily. This juxtaposition absolutely works as Eastwood and Robinson complement each other's performance marvelously. Their scenes together have a raw power as both go all their way in their differing characters making for some very memorable moments particularly the torture scenes with Eastwood being so controlled and Robinson being such a wreck.

Robinson's turn as Scorpio is a bit underrated as villain turn goes and his influence is rarely mentioned as I think you can see some of Scorpio in Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker. The crazed psychopath is easily a part that an actor can go too far with, but Robinson handles it incredibly well by showing the way the extreme craziness comes out at certain times. Robinson builds to it as it becomes time for violence that is when Scorpio begins to well lose his composure a bit. Robinson handles the progression in natural fashion even though this is not a case of the evil coming out, and even when Scorpio seems come Robinson plays him in a particularly slimy way. This might not seem like a large leap but Robinson makes an art of going from slime to psycho.

Robinson makes Scorpio a most despicable and completely unsympathetic villain, and that is completely the right approach. He never takes a step back showing Scorpio revel in everyone of heinous acts, Harry says Scorpio likes to kill and Robinson supports this point. This is the best approach in the film as we want Harry to torture Scorpio, and we want him to kill him at the end with that build up to the 6 shots or only 5 scene at the end of the film. Robinson is great in making Scorpio the lowest of the low. He is creepy, one scene where he walks through a park is especially off putting as he looks so happy around children, he is threatening, he is  just all together deplorable. Robinson makes a great villain you hate, and takes an interesting approach that absolutely works where he is not the equal to Harry but rather a brilliant subversion.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1971

And the Nominees Were Not:

John Hurt in 10 Rillington Place

Andy Robinson in Dirty Harry

Fernando Rey in The French Connection

Jack Albertson in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Bruce Dern in Drive, He Said