Alternate Best Actor 1959: Anthony Franciosa in Career

Anthony Franciosa did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning a Golden Globe, for portraying Sam Lawson in Career.

Career is a decent enough film about an aspiring actors continued attempts to break out on the New York stage.

Anthony Franciosa is not an actor I have been fond of, in fact I found every other performance of his that I have seen pretty atrocious including his Oscar nominated performance. Well this perhaps brought him close to another nomination since he did indeed win the Golden Globe for best actor in a drama, which usually translates to an Oscar nomination. That was not the case for Franciosa. Well this seems like a good thing right? After all this part seems ready to come off poorly since one thing they keep mentioning is that above all else is that his character Sam Lawson is a talented actor. Well I have to admit Franciosa's not bad at all here. I don't know what happened maybe Dean Martin playing it so low-key made him relax a bit, or perhaps Shirley MacLaine chomping down the scenery whole sale made him decide to play it down, because Franciosa plays the part in a pretty calm fashion here. He almost comes across as a different actor as he does not just fall down upon his old tricks as he usually did.

Franciosa is actually likable, that's right likable, as he portrays the early scenes of Sam trying to make it in New York with his wife, despite success seeming so difficult to obtain. Franciosa manages to convey his particular passion quiet effectively actually and is able to realize his dream of the stage in a way that does not at all problematic. It would be very easy for such a character to seem far too self-indulgent but Franciosa manages to bring an honesty in this passion that makes you understand why Sam has this dream. Things do not get better though as he is unable to find steady work and his wife Barbara (Joan Blackman) begins to have some particular strong second thoughts about the venture. Now in these scenes something so bizarre happens, it's almost impossible to comprehend the strangeness of it all, in the scenes where Blackman gets kinda melodramatic and over the top Franciosa stay understated in his performance. Inconceivable. Franciosa goes past that though and is even quite good in portraying just that powerful yet desperate desire in Sam to achieve his dream no matter what, that you do feel sorry for Sam when she leaves him.

The oddity continues in his scenes with his agent Shirley (Carolyn Jones) who is trying her best to find him parts, but nothing ever seems to quite work out. Franciosa and Jones are just really charming together actually, and it enjoyable to see their little reactions with each other as they stay casual as Sam faces one defeat after another. There is such a nice warmth about the two's interactions that is not a traditional sort of romantic chemistry but Franciosa and Jones really make you see the unsaid love the two have for each other. Their relationship being the always the bright spot within the film and both actors earn this wonderfully well. The other main relationship is with another wannabe Maury (Martin), who Sam always comes across throughout his career. Although that start out together in a chummy enough fashion, when Maury finds any success he quickly forgets about Sam. Franciosa does a lot in his moments with Martin by portraying so well the intensity that grows in Sam through the frustrations he faces while dealing with the amoral Maury.

When later on Sam becomes somewhat amoral himself for a brief period, by stealing Maury's girl (MacLaine), Franciosa earns the darker side of Sam as he seems to hate everything, by building it up in the previous scenes. At the same time Franciosa effectively conveys the discomfort in Sam in being such a cruel man, and falling back into a better man feels just as natural. Before that happens though there is one last challenge to be performed. That's when Maury does one betrayal too many, and at a particular painful time leaving Sam to attack Maury while threatening to kill him. Time for good old Franciosa right? Wrong. First of all its though only scene this extreme in the performance, and deserved of the situation. Secondly though Franciosa delivers in making feel like the genuine hate from Sam towards a man who has pushed him too far. This performance is quite frightening to tell you the truth its breaking my whole reality, where things seemed so simple and Franciosa was only capable of a terrible performance. Saying this is the best I've seen from him is not good enough. He's actually good here, and not only that I found him endearing. That's right the film had classic feel good moment at the end thanks to how much I found myself caring for Sam as a character thanks to Franciosa.

Alternate Best Actor 1959

And the Nominees Were Not:

Tatsuya Nakadai in The Human Condition I: No Greater Love

Jean-Pierre Léaud in The 400 Blows

Cary Grant in North By Northwest

Alec Guinness in The Scapegoat

Dean Stockwell in Compulsion

And for Some Reason:

Anthony Franciosa in Career

Best Actor 1957: Results

5. Anthony Franciosa in A Hatful of Rain- Franciosa is downright terrible, in a role that could have been good. He overacts everything that he does in this film.

4. Marlon Brando in Sayonara- Brando gives either one of or his worst performance from his earlier period. He portrays the part inconsistently, and never is able to make him into an interesting character.

3. Anthony Quinn in Wild is the Wind- Quinn's performance is hindered it by the film that unfortuantely uses his character as more of a plot device than it should have, but still Quinn is spot on with his performance anyways, and remains strong even when the material underwrites his character. Also when it does not underwrite his character he is amazing.

2. Charles Laughton in A Witness for the Prosecution- Laughton gives a delightful performance, that is filled with wit throughout. He gives an effective intelligent performance, that is always entertaining to watch whether he is tearing into a witness in the courtroom or bickering with his nurse.

1. Alec Guinness in The Bridge on the River Kwai- This is one year that was not at all close for me. Guinness stands out far and above for me in his fascinating performance. He creates a unique character out of what could have been entirely stock in the wrong hands. He portrays the character's devotion to the letter of thee law, as a madness, and his further descent into this madness is amazing to watch.

Deserving Performances:
William Holden in The Bridge on the River Kwai
Kirk Douglas in Paths of Glory

Best Actor 1957: Anthony Franciosa in A Hatful of Rain

Anthony Franciosa received his only Oscar nomination for portraying Polo Pope in A Hatful of Rain.

A Hatful of Rain is about a Korean war veteran who is having troubles with his life, and his pregnant wife because he is secretly addicted to morphine.

Anthony Franciosa actually portrays the brother of the morphine addict, and is actually tries to help his brother deal with his addiction, as well he has to try to deal with his angry father who he promised money to, as well as his own attraction to his brother's wife. None of these aspects of the character really matter though because Franciosa is a terrible actor, that is all there is to it.

He fails to make anything that is at all an interesting or effective characterization because he is such a bad actor by nature. He fails to really have a believable moment in this film, he never has authentic moment, he just cannot get over his own obvious inability as an actor. This same inability can be found in other this films this year too such as in Wild is the Wind, and to a lesser extent A Face in the Crowd.

What makes him such a bad actor, well not just his failure to really connect to his character of Polo, and make any of the situations really resonate in any sort of way, but really becuase he constantly, and I mean constantly overacts. There is not a single moment of this performance where he does not overact, it just seems to be his nature as an actor to overact.

His overacting though is especially bad, so bad that he is really hard to watch at times. It is literally embarrassing to watch as he overemphasizes every single facial movement, physical movement, and line reading. He overdoes every single moment he has, and to make it all worse he has a drunk scene in this film, a drunk scene, which not a good thing for a chronic overactor like Franciosa.

His drunk scene actually made me squirm because he is so bad it is hard to believe. He never gets an emotion right, whenever he is suppose to show one he always goes for some odd over the top yell, than an actual emotion. He never brings out anything genuine, or interesting with what frankly could have been a good character in another, better actor's hands. I have no idea why this was nominated for an Oscar because this is one performance I can easily say is downright awful.

Best Actor 1957

And the Nominees Were:

Anthony Franciosa in A Hatful of Rain

Anthony Quinn in Wild is the Wind

Alec Guinness in The Bridge on the River Kwai 

Marlon Brando in Sayonara

Charles Laughton in Witness for the Prosecution