Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1983: Results

5. Burt Lancaster in Local Hero- Lancaster gives a fairly delightful portrayal of his eccentric millionaire.

Best Scene: Happer arrives on the scene.

4. Don Ameche in Trading Places- Ameche is far less delightful than Lancaster, but instead gives a very funny portrayal of a particularly devious millionaire.

Best Scene: "TURN THOSE MACHINES BACK ON!"

3. Ed Harris in The Right Stuff - Harris rather brilliantly is able to create both the facade and the reality of an All-American Hero.

Best Scene: Glenn talks about his image with his wife.

2. Mickey Rourke in Rumble Fish- Rourke gives a striking stylistic performance that matches the style of his film and the nature of his character incredibly well.

Best Scene: The Motorcycle Boy appears.

1. Darren McGavin in A Christmas Story- Good Predictions GetDonaldSutherlandAnOscar, Michael Patison, and Michael McCarthy. McGavin easily stands as my win for his absolutely hilarious yet still rather heartwarming performance.

Best Scene: The Old Man receives his major award.

Overall Rank:

1. Darren McGavin in A Christmas Story
2. Takeshi Kitano in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
3. Sam Shepard in The Right Stuff
4. Jason Robards in Something Wicked This Way Comes
5. Mickey Rourke in Rumble Fish
6. Ed Harris in The Right Stuff
7. Don Ameche in Trading Places
8. Jonathan Pryce in Something Wicked This Way Comes
9. David Bowie in The Hunger
10. William Hurt in The Big Chill
11. Edward Fox in The Dresser 
12. Ralph Bellamy in Trading Places
13. Ed Harris in Under Fire
14. Jeff Goldblum in The Big Chill
15. Burt Lancaster in Local Hero
16. Ian McDiarmid in The Return of the Jedi 
17. Michael Palin in The Meaning of Life
18. Dennis Quaid in The Right Stuff 
19. Matt Dillon in The Outsiders
20. Rip Torn in Cross Creek
21. Erland Josephson in Nostalgia
22. Brian Dennehy in Gorky Park 
23. Christopher Lee in The Return of Captain Invincible
24. Klaus Maria Brandauer in Never Say Never Again
25. Denholm Elliot in Trading Places
26. Tom Berenger in The Big Chill
27. Gene Hackman in Under Fire
28. Jeff Daniels in Terms of Endearment 
29. Sebastian Shaw in The Return of the Jedi 
30. Patric Chereau in Danton 
31. Lee Marvin in Gorky Park
32. Ralph Macchio in The Outsiders  
33. David Alan Grier in Streamers
34. Herbert Lom in The Dead Zone 
35. Ian Holm in The Return of the Soldier 
36. John Hargreaves in Careful, He Might Hear You
37. Roberts Blossom in Christine 
38. George Dzundza in Streamers
39. Charles Durning in To Be Or Not To Be
40. Christopher Lloyd in To Be Or Not To Be 
41. Christopher Lee in House of Long Shadows
42. Harry Dean Stanton in Chrsitine 
43. Graham Chapman in The Meaning of Life
44. Sadashiv Amrapurkar in Ardh Satya
45. Peter Dvorsky in Videodrome
46. Fred Ward in The Right Stuff
47. Martin Sheen in The Dead Zone 
48. Frank Finlay in The Return of the Soldier 
49. Vincent Price in House of Long Shadows
50. Fulton Mackay in Local Hero
51. George Rose in The Pirates of Penzance
52. Jean Shepherd in A Christmas Story 
53. Reiner Schwarz in Videodrome
54. Jose Ferrer in To Be Or Not To Be
55. Scott Glenn in The Right Stuff
56. Jack Nicholson in Terms of Endearment
57. Cliff Robertson in Star 80  
58. Brian Dennehy in Never Cry Wolf
59. Dennis Hopper in Rumble Fish
60. Jean Louis Trintignant in Under Fire
61. Wilford Brimley in Tender Mercies
62. Steven Bauer in Scarface
63. John Lithgow in Terms of Endearment
64. R.D. Robb in A Christmas Story
65. Michael Caine in Honorary Consul 
66. Joe Pesci in Easy Money
67. Jeff Goldblum in The Right Stuff
68. Harry Shearer in The Right Stuff
69. Ed Asner in Daniel 
70. Peter Cushing in House of Long Shadows
71. Billy Dee Williams in The Return of the Jedi
72. Pat Hingle in Sudden Impact
73. Kurt Russell in Silkwood 
74. Joe Pesci in Eureka
75. Joe Pantoliano in Risky Business
76. Bob Hoskins in Honorary Consul 
77. Giovanni Mauriello in Another Time Another Place
78. Scott Schwartz in A Christmas Story
79. Emilio Estevez in The Outsiders
80. Curtis Armstrong in Risky Business
81. Max von Sydow in Never Say Never Again 
82. Eric Idle in The Meaning of Life
83. George Wyner in To Be Or Not To Be 
84. Paul Gleason in Trading Places  
85. David Warner in The Man With Two Brains 
86. John Carradine in House of Long Shadows
87. Fred Ward in Uncommon Valor 
88. John Cleese in The Meaning of Life
89. Ian McDiarmid in Gorky Park
90. Jack Thompson in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
91. Clancy Brown in Bad Boys 
92. Mickey Rourke in Eureka
93. Harrison Ford in The Return of the Jedi 
94. Amrish Puri in Ardh Satya 
95. Ian Bannen in Gorky Park
96. Robert Prosky in Christine
97. Desmond Llewelyn in Octopussy 
98. Kevin Kline in The Big Chill 
99. F. Murray Abraham in Scarface 
100. Beau Bridges in Heart Like a Wheel
101. Michael Gough in The Dresser 
102. Jeffrey Tambor in Mr. Mom
103. Craig T. Nelson in Silkwood
104. Reni Santoni in Bad Boys 
105. Roberts Blossom in Reuben, Reuben 
106. Tim Curry in The Ploughman's Lunch
107. Martin Mull in Mr. Mom
108. Tim Matheson in To Be Or Not To Be
109. Patrick Swayze in The Outsiders
110. Ron Silver in Silkwood
111. Peter Capaldi in Local Hero
112. Fred Ward in Silkwood 
113. Robert Loggia in Psycho II
114. Rowan Atkinson in Never Say Never Again
115. Patrick Swayze in Uncommon Valor
116. Simon MacCorkindale in Jaws 3-D
117. Laurence Fishburne in Rumble Fish
118. Louis Gossett Jr. in Jaws 3-D
119. Peter Coyote in Cross Creek 
120. William Devane in Testament
121. Randy Quaid in National Lampoon's Vacation
122. Danny DeVito in Terms of Endearment
123. Terry Jones in The Meaning of Life
124. Ryuichi Sakamoto in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
125. Malcolm McDowell in Cross Creek
126. Roger Rees in Star 80
127. Anthony Michael Hall in National Lampoon's Vacation 
128. Terry Gilliam in The Meaning of Life
129. Nicolas Cage in Rumble Fish
130. Reb Brown in Uncommon Valor
131. Robert Loggia in Scarface
132. Edward Fox in Never Say Never Again
133. Paul Drake in Sudden Impact
134. Robert Vaughn in Superman III 
135. Mitchell Lichtenstein in Streamers
136. Louis Jourdan in Octopussy
137. Mandy Patinkin in Daniel
138. Matthew Modine in Streamers
139. Leo Rossi in Heart Like a Wheel

Next Year: 1953 Lead

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1983: Don Ameche in Trading Places

Don Ameche did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Mortimer Duke in Trading Places.

Trading Places is a very enjoyable film about a wealthy investor (Dan Aykroyd) being forced to switch lives with a poor con man (Eddie Murphy) by two rich brothers.

One of the reasons I chose to review Don Ameche in this film was that the only time I have reviewed him so far was for his Oscar winning performance which I was not particularly favorable to. Of course that was a case of the recognition being more of the problem than his performance as it is very unlikely any actor could have been able to do much with the thin role he had in Cocoon. Any I felt I kinda owed him a review of a performance that would have been a much more interesting Oscar win. After all it was his first theatrically released film after a very long hiatus from the cinema. Although that is easy enough to answer why he was not nominated through the nature of his part and the nature of film. Actually Denholm Elliot was recognized for the film even winning the BAFTA for it. Elliot is good in the film, but knowing the BAFTAs and their love of Elliot there was no way they would have recognized anyone else before him.

Ameche plays one of the Duke brothers who decide to manipulate a few lives for their own personal enjoyment. The other elder brother Randolph is played by another golden age of Hollywood alum Ralph Bellamy. Both Bellamy and Ameche are decidedly against the types that played in the old days this time playing the villains. Bellamy plays Randolph as a sorta of a kindly old man although this only hides the fact that he is quite sinister still. Ameche is more to the point playing Mortimer as very directly dismissive of people who he views lower than him, and that happens to be pretty much everyone even seemingly his brother at times. Ameche attunes his performance rather brilliantly here as it would have been easy enough to be just the angry the rich man who gets his comeuppance by our comedic heroes, which often the case in many comedies. No, instead Ameche tries hard to be just as funny but in his own way.

Ameche goes about being a straight man of sorts in his portrayal of Mortimer Duke and is quite adept at being funny while still fulfilling his role as one of the film's villains. Ameche is great in his constantly disgusted reactions at those who he views lower than him, which since that's most everyone these are never in short supply. Ameche plays it with a hilarious yet silent intensity as their is such a venomous disgust in his eyes in his glances. Ameche establishes himself as a humorous factor in every scene he is in merely for his pitch perfect reactions he gives to Mortimer in any situation. It could have been simple enough just to let Eddie Murphy show off with his ad-libs, but Ameche never lets Murphy steal the show. Ameche never allows himself to be overshadowed though staying with Murphy all the way, and perhaps even stealing some of the limelight from him with his commanding yet comedic way as Mortimer.

One of Ameche's best moments was an unintentional one apparently where he's thrown back a money clip and clumsily pops it up several times until he finally catches it. One has to give credit to Ameche and Bellamy for staying in character, and Ameche, although technically messed up, plays it off like a total boss creating quite the funny scene. My absolute favorite scene of Ameche's is at the end of the film when the two men they played with get back at them causing the Duke brothers to lose all of their money. Ameche makes the most of the moment as he finally shows Mortimer completely lose his reserve, and basically finally spewing the sort of sentiment that was in his mind in most of the other scenes in the film. Ameche loses his "four letter word for excrement" is absolutely hilarious to witness, and only wish that it had gone on for a little longer. This is all together a very entertaining performance by Don Ameche, and hey if the Academy had wanted to throw him a win, like they apparently did, I certainly could have stood behind it if it was for this turn.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1983

And the Nominees Were Not:

Darren McGavin in A Christmas Story

Burt Lancaster in Local Hero

Ed Harris in The Right Stuff

Mickey Rourke in Rumble Fish

Don Ameche in Trading Places

Best Supporting Actor 1985: Results

5. Eric Roberts in Runaway Train- Roberts does basically everything wrong in his incredibly odd performance.

4. Don Ameche in Cocoon- Ameche is not exactly bad in the film, it is just that absolutely nothing is ever required of him.

3. William Hickey in Prizzi's Honor- Hickey plays his part as oddly as possible which goes in line with what the film is trying for, but his attempts fail because the film is a failure.

2. Robert Loggia in Jagged Edge- I liked whenever Loggia was in the film, and he certainly was a nice presence throughout, but his part is too small and too simple for Loggia to do anything great with it.

1. Klaus Maria Brandauer in Out of Africa- Is always very interesting in his performance, and I felt he was the best part of the film actually. I wish he had actually had a bigger part in the film. He is the only nominee I feel who should have been nominated even in this incredibly weak year.

Deserving Performances:
Wilford Brimley in Cocoon
M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple
Crispin Glover  in Back to the Future
Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future

Best Supporting Actor 1985: Don Ameche in Cocoon

Don Ameche won an Oscar from his only nomination for playing Arthur Selwyn one of the many old people to get a knew lease on life due to Alien help.

Cocoon is a sort of interesting film that has some nice moments to it, its not great, but it is okay.

Don Ameche's win is one of the strangest wins ever I must say. It seems the academy merely decided that they all wanted to give him an Oscar. I do not think he won any single prior awards in fact I do not think he was even nominated for any awards besides it. Maybe they just gave it to him because they knew he was going to make a good speech, which he did. I mean, you know there is a problem with a performance when the clip at the Oscars was that of his stunt double doing a break dance, I guess they could not find any moments of him really acting. 

Now it might seem odd that I have not spoken about his performance really yet but what is there really to say about it. He is not bad, but he does not do anything either. He is always the third banana, he is always just in the background looking as the other actors do a lot more than he does.  He really lacks a portion of the story, all he does is romance one of the elderly women and then marries her. There is nothing special about his scenes involving this though, or anything else that he does. He does what he needs to but that is really little. Almost every other male performer deserved a nomination more than Ameche in this film, basically everyone besides the real bit part players and Steve Guttenberg. This was just a life time achievement award, and his performance really has nothing to it.

Best Supporting Actor 1985

And the Nominees Were:

Don Ameche in Cocoon 

Robert Loggia in Jagged Edge

Klaus Maria Brandauer in Out of Africa

Eric Roberts in Runaway Train

William Hickey in Prizzi's Honor

Who do you pick? What do you predict my ranking will be?