Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1977: Results

5. Peter Cushing in Star Wars - Cushing gives an effectively evil performance making the most out of his very simple role.

Best Scene: Testing the Death Star.

4. Dirk Bogarde in Providence - Bogarde is good enough in his rather broad scenes as an excessively cold man, but his best scene is in portraying the warm version of the man.

Best Scene: Clive's Birthday.

3. Richard Attenborough in The Chess Players - Attenborough has a limited part but makes a strong impact as usual with his powerful screen presence.

Best Scene: Outram's introduction.

2. James Mason in Cross of Iron - Mason gives a great portrait of the quiet exasperation and sadness of a man who still fulfills his duties while having no real passion for it.

Best Scene:  Colonel Brandt sends Captain Kiesel away.

1. Dennis Hopper in The American Friend - Well this was no contest for me as Hopper just stood easily above the rest. Hopper's version of Tom Ripley is absolutely compelling, chilling and yet surprisingly moving.

Best Scene: The Train Murder.

Overall Rank:

1. Dennis Hopper in The American Friend
2. Maximilian Schell in Cross of Iron
3. Harvey Keitel in The Duellists
4. Harrison Ford in Star Wars
5. James Mason in Cross of Iron
6. David Warner in Cross of Iron
7. Alec Guinness in Star Wars
8. James Caan in A Bridge Too Far
9. Anthony Hopkins in A Bridge Too Far
10. Barry Miller in Saturday Night Fever
11. Richard Attenborough in The Chess Players
12. Anatoly Solonitsyn in The Ascent
13. Jeroen Krabbe in Solider of Orange
14. Robert Redford in A Bridge Too Far
15. John Cassavetes in Opening Night
16. David Gulpilil in The Last Wave
17. Edward Fox in A Bridge Too Far
18. Dirk Bogarde in Providence
19. Gerard Blain in The American Friend
20. Jason Robards in Julia
21. Robert Fortier in 3 Women
22. Tom Conti in The Duellists
23. Sean Connery in A Bridge Too Far 
24. Peter Cushing in Star Wars
25. Maximilian Schell in A Bridge Too Far
26. Fancisco Rabel in Sorcerer
27. James Earl Jones in Star Wars
28. James Whitmore in The Serpent's Egg
29. Oleg Basilashvili in Office Romance
30. Bill Macy in The Late Show
31. Edward Fox in Soldier of Orange
32. Amidou in Sorcerer
33. Laurence Olivier in A Bridge Too Far
34. Martin Shakar in Saturday Night Fever
35. Norman Alden in I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
36. Bob Balaban in Close Encounters of the Third Kind
37. Klaus Lowitsch in Cross of Iron
38. Edward Fox in The Duellists
39. Christopher Walken in Annie Hall
40. Dirk Bogarde in A Bridge Too Far
41. Alun Armstrong in The Duellists
42. Francois Trauffaut in Close Encounters of the Third Kind 
43. Albert Finney in The Duellists 
44. Klaus Kinski in Operation Thunderbolt
45. Gene Hackman in A Bridge Too Far
46. Eugene Roche in The Late Show
47. David Warner in Providence 
48. Michael Caine in A Bridge Too Far
49. Vincenzo Crocitti in An Average Little Man 
50. Hardy Kruger in A Bridge Too Far
51. Bruno Cremer in Sorcerer
52. Vas Bisoglio in Saturday Night Fever
53. Romolo Valli in An Average Little Man
54. Amjad Kahn in The Chess Players
55. Tommy Lee Jones in Rolling Thunder
56. Warren Oates in Sleeping Dogs
57. Tony Roberts in Annie Hall  
58. Vadim Glowna in Cross of Iron
59. Victor Banerjee in The Chess Players 
60. Roberts Blossom in Close Encounters of the Third Kind
61. Maximilian Schell in Julia
62. Tom Skerritt in The Turning Point
63. Curd Jurgens in The Spy Who Loved Me 
64. John Considine in The Late Show
65. Strother Martin in Slap Shot
66. Paul Benedict in The Goodbye Girl 
67. Geoffrey Hearn in The Spy Who Loved Me
68. Anthony Daniels in Star Wars
69. James Earl Jones in The Exorcist II: The Heretic
70. Ed McMahon in Fun With Dick and Jane
71. Dick van Patten in High Anxiety 
72. Desmond Llewelyn in The Spy Who Loved Me
73. Denholm Elliot in A Bridge Too Far
74. Harvey Korman in High Anxiety
75. Lou Gossett Jr. in The Deep
76. James Stewart in Airport '77
77. Bernard Lee in The Spy Who Loved Me 
78. Nicholas Ray in The American Friend
79. Roger Fritz in Cross of Iron 
80. Elliot Gould in A Bridge Too Far
81. Tom Berenger in Looking For Mr. Goodbar
82. Fritz Weaver in Black Sunday
83. Christopher Lee in Airport '77
84. Paul Sorvino in Oh, God!
85. Jim Jordan in The Rescuers
86. Michael V. Gazzo in Black Sunday
87. Ralph Bellamy in Oh, God!
88. Jackie Gleason in Smokey and The Bandit
89. Richard Kiel in The Spy Who Loved Me
90. Max von Sydow in The Exorcist II: The Heretic   
91. Rena Santoni in I Never Promised You A Rose Garden
92. John Vernon in A Special Day
93. Jeff Carlson in Slap Shot
94. Steve Hanson in Slap Shot
95. William Atherton in Looking For Mr. Goodbar
96. Colin Blakely in Equus
97. Harrison Ford in Heroes
98. Donald Pleasence in Oh, God!
99. Mike Henry in Smokey and The Bandit
100. Ryan O'Neal in A Bridge Too Far
101. Mickey Rooney in Pete's Dragon
102. Lionel Stander in New York, New York
103. Ron Carey in High Anxiety
104. Alan Feinstein in Looking For Mr. Goodbar
105. James Mitchell in The Turning Point
106. Lawrason Driscoll in Rolling Thunder
107. Harry Andrews in Equus
108. Lou Salerni in Sasquatch The Legend of Bigfoot
109. Mikhail Baryshnikov in The Turning Point
110. Richard Gere in Looking For Mr. Goodbar

Next Year: 1946 Lead

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1977: Dirk Bogarde in Providence

Dirk Bogarde did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Claude Langham in Providence.

Providence tells the story of an aging writer Clive Langham (John Gielgud) with many personal demons as well as the actually story he's concocting in his head while he fails to sleep one night. The style of the story in the story never quite worked for me, although I did think the "real" scenes were fairly effective.

Dirk Bogarde's performance is a slightly tricky one to examine as the majority of his performance is very much of a particular style. He's not playing a real man but rather the Claude Langham which is created in the mind of his father Clive Langham. The character is obviously never meant to be realistic exactly so it explains Bogarde's performance. The first scene we see him in Claude is prosecuting a man (David Warner) who mercy killed another man with extreme prejudice. Bogarde's certainly good as he brings such a brutally cold intensity in his monologue against the man. Bogarde doesn't really cut back much on this after he gets out of the courtroom though as Claude is in a loveless marriage where his wife (Ellen Burstyn) actively seeks another man, the man being the man he had been persecuting, and Claude does not seem to care all that much.

Bogarde only really internalizes the cold intensity of Claude and makes it a tad less aggressive. He still makes a rather forceful element of any scene he is in as Claude has no hesitations in his ridiculing others and seeming to lack any warmth whatsoever towards his wife. This is turned on its head a bit though when we see Claude mistress who is an older woman who shares the appearance of Clive's wife and Claude's mother. These scenes seem to be purposefully strange which are made even more so by Bogarde's performance. He's technically a little less icy I suppose but still cold. This is obviously the point though as Gielgud's narration jokes about the way Claude let's his affections be known which are in his typical structured fashion. Bogarde's certainly continues to his serve his purpose accordingly though, even if it all a perhaps a little too much.

Bogarde fully exonerates himself though as he let's the purpose of his performance in the majority of the film by relatively brief finale of the film. The finale depicts Clive's birthday in reality where he is visited by Claude and his wife who are not all like the people he depicted in his story. Bogarde takes a far more naturalistic approach in this scenes as he portrays the actual Claude. As the real Claude Bogarde turns in a rather unassuming portrayal of a man who really doesn't have any major problems in his life as he seems to love his wife, and not even mind his problematic father. Bogarde is rather effective though as he quietly suggests some sadness that Claude feels regarding his past with his father but what makes it so effective is that he only allows it to be a glimpse. Bogarde in handling this way shows that Claude really is not haunted or even deeply troubled by it rather it is a sad memory.

Well this is certainly an interesting display of Bogarde's talents as he gets to go quite broad than rather subtle in portraying the fake and the real Claude. He's certainly good in both sections, but a problem arises which is my problem with the film as a whole. I never found the story section of the film to be all that compelling, funny or even very moving, after awhile they became a little repetitive. I felt the best moments of the film were any scene involving Gielgud which were basically any moment that wasn't truly part of the story section.  I will give Bogarde credit in that I do think he makes a go of the story sequences better than any of the other actors, and I did feel he the best part of those scenes besides Gielgud's narration. Bogarde's performance does not fully break free from the shortcomings of these scenes though and I still feel his most effective scene is as the real Claude.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1977

And the Nominees Were Not:

James Mason in Cross of Iron

David Warner in Cross of Iron

Peter Cushing in Star Wars

Dennis Hopper in The American Friend

Dirk Bogarde in Providence

Richard Attenborough in The Chess Players

For the Prediction Contest:

Mason

Alternate Best Actor 1961: Results

5. Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in the Sun- Poitier tends go a little more theatrical at times than he needs to but for the most part Poitier gives an effective performance as a character that is far from the heroic roles he usually played.

Best Scene: The opening scene.

4. Clark Gable in The Misfits- Gable gives a moving portrayal of a individualistic cowboy past his prime that is worthy of being his swan song.

Best Scene: Gay goes to recapture the horses.

3. Dirk Bogarde in Victim- Although I do wish the film let Borgarde explore his character a little more, Bogarde still gives a powerful portrayal of a repressed homosexual.

Best Scene: Melville Farr reveals the truth to his wife.

2. James Cagney in One, Two, Three- James Cagney gives a very entertaining and incredibly energetic performance that could not be a better fit for the screwball comedy he leads.

Best Scene: MacNamara tries to solve all his problems in a few hours.

1. Toshiro Mifune in Yojimbo - Well I did not even need to have a second to think of my favorite performance by a leading actor from 1961. This is one of the very best performances from Toshiro Mifune creating one of the most memorable heroes in cinema.

Best Scene: The Final Duel.

Overall Rank:

1. Tatsuya Nakadai - The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer
2. Toshiro Mifune in Yojimbo
3. Stuart Whitman in The Mark
4. Paul Newman in The Hustler
5. Marcello Mastroianni in Divorce, Italian Style 
6. James Cagney in One, Two, Three
7. Dirk Bogarde in Victim
8. Clark Gable in The Misfits
9. Peter Cushing in Cash on Demand
10. Alberto Sordi in A Difficult Life
11. Vincent Price in The Pit and Pendulum
12. Jean-Paul Belmondo in Leon Morin, Priest
13. Anthony Quinn in Barabbas
14. Marcello Mastroianni in La Notte
15. Andre Morell in Cash on Demand
16. Keiju Kobayashi Happiness of Us Alone
17. Kirk Douglas in Town Without Pity
18. Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in the Sun
19. Spencer Tracy in Judgment At Nuremberg
20. Alberto Sordi in The Best of Enemies
21. David Niven in The Best of Enemies
22. Masayuki Mori in The Other Woman
23. Rock Hudson in Lover Come Back
24. Tatsuya Nakadai in Immortal Love
25. Peter Finch in No Love For Johnnie
26. Franco Citti in Accattone
27. Gregory Peck in The Guns of Navarone
28. Anthony Perkins in Goodbye Again
29. Toshiro Mifune in The Important Man
30. Ebbe Rode in Harry and the Butler
31. Marc Michel in Lola
32. Loredana Detto in Il Posto
33. Osvald Helmuth in Harry and the Butler
34. Edward Judd in The Day the Earth Caught Fire
35. Giorgio Albertazzi in Last Year in Marienbad
36. Warren Beatty in Splendor in the Grass
37. Yves Montand in Goodbye Again
38. Marlon Brando in One Eyed Jacks
39. Rod Taylor in 101 Dalmatians
40. Burt Lancaster in The Young Savages
41. Richard Widmark in Two Rode Together
42. Alec Guinness in A Majority of One
43. Cliff Robertson in Underworld USA
44. Fred MacMurray in The Absent Minded Professor
45. Charlton Heston in El Cid
46. James Stewart in Two Rode Together
47. Jerry Lewis in The Ladies Man
48. Jeffrey Hunter in King of Kings
49. George Peppard in Breakfast At Tiffany's
50. Richard Beymer in West Side Story
51. John Kerr in The Pit and Pendulum
52. Hiroyuki Nagato in Pigs & Battleships
53. Glenn Ford in Pocketful of Miracles
54. Horst Buchholz in Fanny
    
55. Warren Beatty in The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone

Next Year: 1961 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1961: Dirk Bogarde in Victim

Dirk Bogarde did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite being nominated for a Bafta, for portraying Melville Farr in Victim.

Victim is a decent enough film about a English barrister who attempts to find someone who has been blackmailing homosexuals by threatening to out them at a time when it was illegal.

Victim is a notable film from this time as it deals with the issue of homosexuality going so far as to even saying the word and even has some homosexual characters who, although do not want to be outed due to the law against them, are obviously very comfortable with their lifestyle. Dirk Bogarde plays the lead role of the barrister Melville who follows the case after an acquaintance of his commits suicide after stealing money to pay for the blackmailing. Although Melville Farr is a lawyer this is not a simple case of him just wanting to find justice for a friend, and as the film proceeds it becomes fairly obvious that Farr and the man were not merely acquaintances. Farr tries to go about the case as some sort of outside observer but it soon becomes clear that, despite that he is married, Farr himself is a closeted homosexual as well.

It is interesting that Dirk Bogarde took on such a role since he himself was apparently a closeted homosexual in real life. There are many gay characters in the film but you won't find a single one of them playing the character with any obvious mannerisms to suggest this, Bogarde included. Instead most of the performances, Bogarde's included, are very withdrawn performances emotionally speaking. Melville Farr is a repressed man and that can be seen through Bogarde's performance. There is always a certain intensity that Bogarde carries himself with and suggests the secret of Farr in subtle and effective fashion before we even learn the truth from the story. Bogarde creates the right tension within Melville Farr that simply is a part of him due to his life where he is constantly hiding a part of himself, a part that is being prodded by these blackmailers.

The film is much more of a procedural than I really expected it to be as Farr goes from one closeted man to the next in an attempt to try and find who caused the death of his old lover. Bogarde is completely fine in the more standard moments as Farr investigates because even this Bogarde brings a certain subtext. In these scenes Bogarde suggests a visible efforts from Farr to try to act as though the case is a distant thought for him, while still suggesting that underlying tension in the man over his very direct connection with this problem. As it proceeds though Farr is not able to stay distant forever as some of the men he interviews seem to notice his interest is far more than that of the observer and his wife as well seems notice that perhaps his old tendencies never truly went away.

Bogarde shows Melville Farr as a man who is not happy to be gay as found in his violent outbursts at the other closeted men when they confront him. Bogarde does not make this simplistic though as shown in the scene where Farr's wife confronts him. Bogarde portrays incredibly well the extreme conflict in the man as when Farr reveals the truth about himself Bogarde suggests the desire in the man quite strong yet all covered with a self-hate. This could be seen as the film trying to get off easy, for the time, by making the man not want to be a homosexual. Bogarde thankfully does not play the part that way. He gives a greater depth by creating a fuller portrait of this sort of repression found in the man. Bogarde shows the want but also the hesitation making the confusion in the man fully realized.

This is a strong performance by Dirk Bogarde although I do wish the film had been structured differently. The whole blackmail procedural just never becomes that interesting, and is a pretty simple bad guys need to be stopped type of plot. The most fascinating aspect of the film is the exploration of the central character and Bogarde certainly does his best to bring the complexity needed for such a character. It is obvious though that there was far more to explore with the character than the film takes him simply since it pretty much gives favor to the plot over the character study. The film could have still kept the plot but it needed to work more closely with delving into Melville Farr's personal connection than it ends up doing. Nevertheless Bogarde still gives a rather remarkable performance that only seems to be held back by the limitations set upon him by the film itself.

Alternate Best Actor 1961

And the Nominees Were Not:

Clark Gable in The Misfits

Dirk Bogarde in Victim

Sidney Poitier in A Raisin in The Sun

Toshiro Mifune in Yojimbo

James Cagney in One, Two, Three

Alternate Best Actor 1964: Results

5. Michael Caine in Zulu- Caine makes a misstep with his characterization at the beginning of the film, but makes up for it through his more assured performance later in the film.

Best Scene: The volley.

4. Dirk Bogarde in King & Country- Bogarde gives a very solid and rather unique performance as a soldier who slowly grows more invested into his case even if that growing investment means a growing personal shame.

Best Scene: Captain Hargreaves questions his superior after the trial.

3. Clint Eastwood in A Fistful of Dollars- Eastwood is terrific in his creation of the Man with No Name who can be enjoyably deadpan but is as well can bring emotional poignancy when necessary.

Best Scene: The final duel.

2. Tom Courtenay in King & Country- Courtenay gives a heartbreaking portrait of the end result of an endless time in the trenches of World War I.

Best Scene: Private Hamp tells why he deserted.

1. Richard Attenborough in Guns at Batasi- Good Prediction RatedRStar. Attenborough gives two great performances this year with his moving portrayal of a weak man in Seance on a Wet Afternoon and his absurdly entertaining performance as Major Lauderdale a man with unshakable resolve.

Best Scene: The Major refuses to give up his arms.

Overall Rank:

1. Richard Attenborough in Guns at Batasi
2. Anthony Quinn in Zorba the Greek
3. Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove
4. Donald Pleasence in The Caretaker
5. Innokenty Smoktunovsky in Hamlet
6. Peter Ustinov in Topkapi 
7. Tom Courtenay in King & Country
8. Peter O'Toole in Becket
   
9. Richard Attenborough in Seance on a Wet Afternoon
10. Robert Shaw in The Caretaker
11. Saro Urzì in Seduced and Abandoned
12. Richard Burton in Becket
13. Eiji Okada in Woman in the Dunes
14. Clint Eastwood in A Fistful of Dollars
    
15. Dirk Bogarde in King & Country
16. Ivan Dixon in Nothing But a Man
17. Ryō Ikebe in Pale Flower
    
18. Burt Lancaster in The Train
19. Sean Connery in Goldfinger 
20. Peter Sellers in A Shot in the Dark
21. Stanley Baker in Zulu
22. Richard Burton in Night of the Iguana 
23. Vincent Price in The Masque of the Red Death
24. Yūzō Kayama in Yearning
25. Jean Desailly in The Soft Skin
    
26. Cary Grant in Father Goose
    
27. Henry Fonda in Fail-Safe
28. Alan Bates in Zorba the Greek 
29. Soumitra Chatterjee in Charulata
    
30. Cliff Robertson in The Best Man
31. Kirk Douglas in Seven Days in May
32. Sean Connery in Marnie
33. Marcello Mastroianni in Marriage, Italian Style
34. James Garner in The Americanization of Emily
35. Stephen Boyd in The Third Secret
    
36. Michael Caine in Zulu
37. Vincent Price in The Last Man on Earth
38. Maximilian Schell in Topkapi
39. Henry Fonda in The Best Man
40. Peter Finch in The Pumpkin Eater
41. Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady
    
42. Bernie Hamilton in One Potato, Two Potato
    
43. Jean-Paul Belmondo in That Man From Rio
44. Glenn Ford in Dear Heart 
45. Stephen Boyd in The Fall of the Roman Empire
    
46. Bendt Rothe in Gertrud
    
47. Richard Widmark in Cheyenne Autumn
48. Richard Boone in Rio Conchos
    
49. Nino Castelnuovo in The Umbrellas of Cherbourg
    
50. Richard Harris in Red Desert 
    
51. Harve Presnell in The Unsinkable Molly Brown
52. Tony Randall in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao
    
53. Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins
54. Fred MacMurray in Kisses for My President 
55. Cameron Mitchell in Blood and Black Lace
    
56. Don Knotts in The Incredible Mr. Limpet
57. Tommy Kirk in The Misadventures of Merlin Jones
58. Ringo Starr in A Hard Day's Night
59. Paul McCartney in A Hard Day's Night
60. John Lennon in A Hard Day's Night
61. George Harrison in A Hard Day's Night
62. John Call in Santa Clause Conquers the Martians
63. Victor Stiles in Santa Clause Conquers the Martians
64. Leonard Hicks in Santa Clause Conquers the Martians

Next Year: 1964 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1964: Dirk Bogarde in King & Country

Dirk Bogarde did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Captain Hargreaves in King & Country.

Dirk Bogarde plays a very similar role to Kirk Douglas's character Colonel Dax in Paths of Glory. Bogarde plays Captain Hargreaves who has been appointed to defend the deserter Private Hamp (Tom Courtenay) in front of the court marshal. Like Douglas's character in the earlier film, Hargreaves is basically fighting an already lost cause as the military brass seems to have had their mind made up already. Although they are similar in job they are very different in that Douglas's character is a much more steadfast individual as well as is 100 percent behind his men completely from the beginning where the path of Hargreaves is a bit different particularly due to the way in which Bogarde portrays the character.

Technically speaking, for much of the film, Hargreaves is a character who is going through the proper motions of defending Hamp. He first finds exactly what Hamp did, and then tries to tell Hamp what the Private will have to do to be able to live. At first Bogarde portrays Hargreaves as very much a man going through the motions of his job, and even in that there is a slight derisiveness in his performance and suggests at the moment that Hargreaves really does not care about Hamp's all that much. This changes though as he learns the story of Hamp's desertion and Bogarde is very effective in showing the change in Hagreaves in a subtle and rather believable fashion. It is not a major change of nature for Hargreaves, but Bogarde rather portrays it as Hargreaves recognizing that Hamp speaks the truth.

Bogarde of course gets the courtroom scenes, although this courtroom is little more than a tent above their very muddy and dingy surroundings. Bogarde excels in these scenes as he shows Hargreaves doing his very best to try to save Hamp life by pressing the issue of Hamp's condition before the desertion as well as Hamp's years of service. Bogarde approach is a bit different than say Kirk Douglas's performance in Paths of Glory, or Jack Thompson's in Breaker Morant. There is a different in Bogarde as there is less of strong moral indignation in his portrayal of Hargreaves's defense. Bogarde instead suggests more of an internal shame in Hargreaves, in that even as he gives a strong passion to Hargreaves arguments there is always a suggestion of the own guilt Hargreaves feels in the situation.

Bogarde's portrayal of the court defense is essential to where his character foes for the end of the film after it seems that Hamp will be executed. Captain Hargreaves, rather then bitterly chewing out his superior did as Colonel Dax did in Paths of Glory, is far more somber in his reaction especially because of Bogarde's approach to the part. In his scene where he confronts his superior Bogarde stays very meek and rather than stressing any hatred for the decision shows rather a feeling of guilt toward his own complicity in the fate of the doomed Hamp. It is a different take that might not have the fierce power found in Douglas's work, but Bogarde is moving in his own right by making Hargreaves part of the process rather than a hero within the film.

In terms of the two lead performances of the film Tom Courtenay does leave the strongest impression among the two with his exceptional performance, but that is not really anything against Bogarde's work. Dirk Bogarde gives a strong performance on his own even if his presence is sometimes secondary to Courtenay, but Borgarde works very well with him and their scenes together are remarkable. Bogarde's might not even be the very best performance of this type but it is a unique example of it. This film is bleak, even bleaker than similar films like Breaker Morant or Paths of Glory which both have a little hope in them somewhere, and Bogarde's take with his character adds to this bleakness by not even allow hope to glimmer from the one source it would be possible from. Bogarde's approach does not make this film an easy one to sit through but his unorthodox method is certainly an interesting one.

Alternate Best Actor 1964

And the Nominees Were Not:

Clint Eastwood in A Fistful of Dollars

Michael Caine in Zulu

Richard Attenborough in Guns At Batasi

Dirk Bogarde in King & Country

Tom Courtenay in King & Country

Alternate Best Actor 1963: Results

5. Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2-  Mastroianni gives a good performance but he is always overshadowed by the man he is suppose to be portraying. 

Best Scene: Guido speaks with his wife.

4. Steve McQueen in The Great Escape- McQueen as the Cooler King is all about the cool which he brings in his trademark fashion.

Best Scene: Hilts goes to retrieve his ball.

3. Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar- Courtenay gives a complex and entertaining performance as a man who lies to hide his insecurities.

Best Scene: Billy tries to speak with his mother after his grandmother's death.

2. Dirk Bogarde in The Servant- Bogarde gives a brilliant performance showing the layers come off of what seems to be just a normal unassuming butler.

Best Scene: The Sevant reveals his true nature to his employer.

1. Toshiro Mifune in High and Low- This year came down between Bogarde and Mifune for me. It comes very close for me as I do love Bogarde performance, but I will go with Mifune's work which I found the most moving of all the performances this year. Mifune gives a poignant performance as a man who chooses to do good no matter how much harm it will cause. His portrayal of the moral decision moral on fuels the entire film and Mifune made it so I remembered even during the second half of the film in which he only occasionally appears.

Best Scene: King Gondo makes his final decision on the ransom.

Overall Rank:

1. Paul Newman in Hud
2. Toshiro Mifune in High and Low
3. Richard Harris in This Sporting Life
4. Burt Lancaster in The Leopard
5. Dirk Bogarde in The Servant
6. Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar
   
7. Patrick McGoohan in Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow
   
8. Sean Connery in From Russia With Love
9. Gunnar Björnstrand in Winter Light
10. Steve McQueen in The Great Escape
11. Richard Attenborough in The Great Escape 
12. Sidney Poitier in Lilies of the Field
13. Albert Finney in Tom Jones
14. Cary Grant in Charade 
15. Kazuo Hasegawa in An Actor’s Revenge
16. Laurence Olivier in Uncle Vanya
17. Marcello Mastroianni in The Organizer 
18. Michael Redgrave in Uncle Vanya
19. Maurice Ronet in The Fire Within
20. Patrick McGoohan in The Three Lives of Thomasina
21. Marcello Mastroianni in Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
22. Alberto Sordi in Il Diavolo
23. Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2 
24. Raizo Ichikawa in The Third Shadow Warrior
25. James Fox in The Servant 
26. Charlton Heston in 55 Days At Peking
27. Gregory Peck in Captain Newman M.D. 
28. Steve McQueen in Love With a Proper Stranger
29. John Wayne in Donovan's Reef 
30. Rod Taylor in The Birds
31. Jean-Paul Belmondo in Magnet of Doom
32. Jackie Gleason in Soldier in the Rain
33. Nino Manfredi in The Executioner
34. Jerry Lewis in The Nutty Professor
35. Burt Lancaster in A Child is Waiting
36. Oliver Reed in Paranoiac 
37. Dick Van Dyke in Bye Bye Birdie
38. Jack Lemmon in Irma La Douce 
39. Jean-Pierrie Kerien in Muriel
40. John Wayne in McLintock!
41. Alexander Davion in Paranoiac
42. Jackie Gleason in Papa's Delicate Condition
43. James Garner in Move Over Darling
44. Michel Piccoli in Contempt
45. Steve McQueen in Soldier in the Rain
46. Stathis Giallelis in America America  
47. James Aubrey in Lord of the Flies
48. Fred MacMurray in Son of Flubber
49. Todd Armstrong in Jason and the Argonauts
50. Peter Breck in Shock Corridor
51. Tom Tryon in The Cardinal 
52. Richard Chamberlain in Twilight of Honor 
53. Richard Burton in The V.I.P.s 
54. Claude Mann in Bay of Angels
55. David Niven in The Pink Panther 
56. Channing Pollock in Judex
57. Richard Burton in Cleopatra
58. Rex Harrison in Cleopatra

Next Year: 1963 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1963: Dirk Bogarde in The Servant

Dirk Bogarde did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite winning a Bafta and placing second for NYFCC, for portraying Barrett in The Servant.

The Servant is an intriguing film about the relationship between a young rich man Tony (James Fox) and his butler although I do not think the ending is the weakest part of the film.

Dirk Bogarde plays the butler and his performance is what makes the film. This is not a simple butler in any respect as we from the first scene where he walks in on his new prospective employer. As he walks in his face is that of a harder man with a bitterness and a definite attitude toward the man and his surroundings. When Tony though notices Barrett there is an immediate change in Barrett as Bogarde portrays Barrett the butler. In just this subtle change in manner we see almost tow different men in this one man. Bogarde sets up this dynamic instantly and with just the way he walks in the room sets the stage for his character's path which is a fascinating one to watch.

As the butler Bogarde turns Barrett into a gentleman's gentleman. His face is that of kindness and consideration. When asked if he enjoys the work he says with a nice smile that he does and Bogarde portrays Barrett's manner is being something that Tony would entirely believe. His posture and his face is that of the servant who loves to do his job in his own meek way. He will come in and out of rooms with his eyes in a most pleasant stare as he observes and takes care of his employer. Everything about Bogarde's performance is that of the type of man who seems perfect for his job, he is always modest and humble.

Bogarde's Barrett is not only that of the butler though and although in his performance he makes it entirely believable that Tony would accept him there is that underlying feeling that there is more to Barrett that it might seem there should be. When he is not in the eyes of Tony or when he is out Bogarde portrays a very different Barrett. This Barrett is almost the opposite of the other man. Bogarde makes him a harsh fellow with unsavory eyes and expression. He is even quite vulgar in his harsh manner that does not mind telling someone exactly what he thinks. He is forceful and rather frank and this Barrett shares almost nothing in common with the other.

The genius of Bogarde's performance is that he does make this all in one man. It does not seem unnatural or unbelievable at any point. He creation of the facade is something special that Bogarde uses as something that shows the nature of Barrett. He is a man putting on just a show when he is the butler who puts it on with his kind face, but the real man is nothing like the kind butler. This dynamic that Bogarde is rather disconcerting if only because he does it so well. It would be one thing if there was not the connection, but Bogarde makes the connection. The unnatural change in the man is made completely natural in Bogarde's portrayal which is what makes it so striking.

As the film proceeds though the true nature of Barrett is revealed to Tony and Bogarde is quite powerful in the way he adjusts his performance when this occurs. There is no holding back in any way when it comes to the less savory qualities of Barrett and any notion of the kind servant is lost. Borgarde is fierce and uncompromising in his portrayal of Barrett finally unleashes his discontent with his employer that he has only bottled up until now. The moment is given the punch it needs due to the extreme nature of the change that Bogarde portrays in Barrett, but as well due to that Bogarde does entirely succeed in showing this as the truth revealed more than anything else.

Interesting enough after he is fired Barrett quickly asks for his job again and this is a short but pivotal scene for Bogarde. Bogarde places the facade again of sorts as that kind face returns as he grovels for his return, but it is not exactly the same man. He is not nearly as well put together in his butler style, and shows it as a mix of trying to put it on through desperation but within that desperation is an inability to really be the butler we saw the beginning. It is an effective scene due to Bogarde as he portrays both Barrett's inability to really maintain his original act that he had created, but as well he shows the movement toward a Barrett who is more truthful pulling back from the extremes he forced himself in at the beginning.

Anything left of the facade is gone by the next scenes which are a strange set of scenes where the relationship between Tony and Barrett quite dramatically. They become more like two bickering buddies rather than master and servant, but more importantly than that Barrett is the dominate buddy. Bogarde's work here is remarkable as he shows the true Barrett who is much more casual than before. He is no longer the nice faced servant or the bitter man filled with repression. He refutes both into just a far more normalized man that absolutely works and makes sense to be the result for Barrett. Bogarde's performance is that of man who just pretty much does not care any more and just might as well get along in his own way.

The whole set up of the servant and the master changing roles could easily have seemed rather forced, but it does not feel this way at all due to Bogarde's performance. What Bogarde shows to be the main reason for this change in relationship is merely his greater force in personality. They both appear as very different versions of their earlier selves both being far more emotionally charged. Bogarde shows this as the strength of Barrett's personality is able to win out but importantly also portrays this personality as something else from the original embittered man. He is able to say anything he wants therefore he can do anything he wants and Barrett makes him in the end have the emotions as before but it a way both much more muted since he can express them whenever he wishes.

This is a great performance by Dirk Bogarde that creates a fascinating character out of the servant. The transition of his character in both his relationship to the master but as well his own personal transition is intriguing in the unique fashion that Borgarde portrays it. This is an amazing characterization by Bogarde, the way Bogarde's reveals the layers of his character as well as rids himself of them is outstanding. He always remains believable in the role despite the long leap his character takes from his entrance to the end. There is not a skipping point but rather a full realization of not only what the servant becomes but as well why he was the way he was from the beginning.

Alternate Best Actor 1963

And the Nominees Were Not:

Toshiro Mifune in High and Low

Dirk Bogarde in The Servant

Steve McQueen in The Great Escape

Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar

Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2