Alternate Best Actor & Best Supporting Actor 1932: Robert Lynen & Harry Baur in Poil de Carotte

Robert Lynen did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Francois Lepic aka Carrottop in Poil de Carotte. 

Poil de Carotte follows a pastoral family through the perspective of the ignored youngest child.

In the time when most child performances were forgettable or terrible, where really the standard for many adult performances in cinema often was that of stiff of overacting, you have a turn here by Robert Lynen, who from his first scene, where he must explain an essay that spoke of the poor nature of his family, we see a performance far flung from that standard. Lynen does the often seemingly impossible for the time, which is merely natural onscreen. Lynen certainly is that as he evokes the boy who's a bit out of sorts, but still seems likable enough as the concerned teacher inquires about his writing. Lynen's performance goes beyond just being natural, as he's natural with a greater depth, as he presents the anxiety of the young boy who just seems a bit lost. When talking about his family he manages to balance within the simple emotions of a boy, however with the complexity in the nature of the emotion. As he delivers his lines with the immediacy of the boy just trying to get the teacher to understand with the blunt anguish of a boy who just doesn't get his love. Where the complexity lies, it isn't a simple sadness, rather he delivers within this sense of confusion within his performance. A confusion that denotes a boy who can't understand why his father ignores him, and his mother constantly forces him to do work without showing any motherly affection towards him. But all the same, when the teacher encourages to give his parents a chance, there is a painful glint of hope on his expression as he decides to give it a chance. 

Unfortunately Carrottop's claims of his family aren't at all false, as when he goes about embracing his father (Harry Baur) with the utmost earnestness, presented by Lynen as a simple yet pure of desire for affection, the father is merely surprised and pushes him off, being more focused on his hunting trips, his political career and any excuse to get away from his wife. His wife, Carrottop's mother, is said to be horrible, and she is in every way as she instantly picks at the poor boy demanding only work from him without anything in return. The initial moments of this are heartbreaking because of Lynen's performance only conveys again that simple desire for any affection, not any. And what is more painful is seeing that hope the teacher put within him, completely crumble in his reactions that show the boy just going back to his old ways all in such short order. Lynen's performance is so effective because what he does is convey bluntly the situation within the boy, and how unassuming in so many ways he is in his attempt to find some sort of comfort at any point. As what Lynen's performance does is always emphasize the difficulty of the youth, but as a youth specifically. There's many wonderful moments between Carrottop and the family's new maid, who gives the boy much more time than was ever granted to him by anyone in the family. Lynen's terrific in presenting the frustrations because it is with the urge and needs of a child, and has a certain petulance in his manner, however in that there is always a blunt truth in his performance. 

Where the film in general excels altogether is through the child's perspective which even includes visual representation of such, such as ghosts haunting the boy when he has to do a chore at night, but more importantly to Lynen's performance we often see the boy haunted by the worst of his thoughts, which often suggest suicide. Lynen's performance as both of the boy's two patterns of thoughts in these scenes is quite moving because at the same time, literally, he represents both the hope of what the child needs and what the pain of what the child feels. There is a bluntness about it that is particularly heartbreaking because when his "other voice" suggests suicide each time, it is with a kind of clarity, where his own thoughts react in a panic at first. And we see how this connects to even the boy being scared of thoughts of ghosts when going about chores at night. Lynen shows the difficulty of dealing with the complex, which often results in the simple reaction, however that simple reaction always feels completely honest and even more hurtful. When he rebels against his mother's constant demanding of work from him, it is as the child having a tantrum, but there is always in his eyes that desire for some recognition of him as more than just a worker. The sequence near the end of the film where he commits to suicide is heart wrenching because Lynen's performance shows in his face just how lost the boy is, and always searching for affection, so the solution becomes his only one. 

Harry Baur did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Monsieur Lepic in Poil de Carotte.

Harry Baur plays the father of Lynen's character and for much of the film is a man of few words towards the boy. Rather Baur, who has a great presence as a performer, just exudes a man who is kind of fed up with his existence with his family, and just is set on other things, such as hunting and his politics. Baur's performance is careful in that while the character is cruel, he isn't purposefully so in his manner towards Carrottop who he treats just as he does with everything in his family, as something he gives a quick passive attention to, before he moves off towards his chosen activity. We see the cause of this through some key moments of interaction with his wife, where you see just his quiet bitterness in every glance, and where everyone else he just exists with you see the history of hate between the two. Baur's performance is made by really pulling off the difficult task of earning the ending, which is when a family friend informs the father, right after he's won his election, that his son is about to kill himself. Baur's performance earns this sudden snap towards paternal concern as he rushes out to find his son, and Baur is extremely moving in managing this single reaction to show the sense of shame in his ignoring, and the immediate real love for the boy that just reveals itself in the moment. That's only part of the earning though as the other half is when he finds the boy in just the nick of time, and both he and Lynen are great together. Because you see in a moment's notice, now that the father is taking time just to earnestly talk to his son, the sense of warmth between the two is overwhelming yet feels completely genuine despite how we got here. The moment in particular of the father finally referring to the boy by his actual name, is filled with so much real affection for a true dad. And contrasting that is Lynen's performance, where he shows just this sincerest discovery of love, and how that is all the boy needed. He too earns this immediate switch, because throughout it, that's all the boy suggested he needed,  and when he finds it the interaction couldn't be more cathartic. Lynen gives a truly moving depiction of the forgotten child, finally finding love, and Baur offering the able assist, as the dad finally snaps out of his haze to see what has been missing this entire time. 

Alternate Best Actor 1934: Harry Baur in Les Miserables and updates

First to note the backlog is ongoing but thought I'd jump ahead to open for another series of recommendations for a year that it is unlikely I'll be doing an official lineup for but first...

Harry Baur did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Jean Valjean and Champmathieu in Les Miserables.

This nearly five hour version, while one of the better adaptations of the story I've seen I cannot say is definitive as it is often heralded as. This as the length in itself, where the film is essentially paced like a miniseries, is a double edged sword. There are elements where it takes its time that do leave a memorable impression, the barricade sequence and the Thernardier robbery attempt in particular, however it also spends a strange amount of time with some more meaningless moments in terms of the overall narrative, and yet still excises major elements of the story. The most unforgivable, that keeps it from being definitive in my mind, is its simplification of Javert. While Charles Vanel does what he can with the role as written here, he is just a general policeman for much of the film, and much of the greatness of the character is sadly lost in this adaptation.

As many times one can argue that Javert is the secondary lead in many versions, that is not the case here, again a mistake I think as I find him the most compelling figure as written, however this seems to be in service in focusing even more so on Jean Valjean's personal journey. Typically Valjean begins as a rough, hardened convict in appearance, then later is "cleaned up" more towards a dashing hero type in terms of the casting of the likes of a Hugh Jackman, Liam Neeson or Frederic March. Well Baur is quite different as his physical presence is that of a peasant convict, accustom to harsh life who we discover as he is leaving his physically straining time in prison. Baur's work delivers a rougher portrait of Valjean, who isn't just bitter, yet the whole state of the man is filled with a sense of bitterness. His eyes don't reflect of a sorrow of injustice, but rather an anger towards all that he has suffered. An anger that is not of a righteous attitude but one hateful towards the world he believes has abandoned him. This as when he initially comes across the kind Bishop in this version, it is with an innate hostility, and a disbelief in his eyes as the Bishop notes his humanitarianism. Baur portraying this as a fundamental quality within his manner, as someone viewing the man as completely foreign and suspicion in these ideals, something that is not to be trusted. Baur establishing this state so purely, makes then the Bishop's action all the more powerful in this version. This as after Valjean robs the Bishop, and is immediately, caught, the Bishop not only ensures that he is let go, he gives him valuable candlesticks to have him change his life.

Baur's reaction in the moment of the Bishop's charity is a particularly powerful one in this version. This as Baur expresses in his eyes both the shame in his action compared to the Bishop's reaction, but more so this sense of the man being shattered by these words. This as his old world view founded by bitterness and distrust is lost, as his expression creates the sense of confusion, but also this moment of revelation that carries with it a real poignancy. We then of course jump to Valjean as the mayor of a town and a factory owner. This where Baur successfully fashions seemingly just a reserved but dignified older businessman. This man who exudes a certain grace of charity even if in this Baur still portraying a more subdued hardship effectively. When it comes to his knowledge that there is a man who has been arrested as Valjean, Baur is excellent in his scene of questioning his decision and what he should do. This as it is not a simple righteous action again, as we again see a hesitation in his manner as man seriously considering taking the selfish way out. As he continues to examine though we again see that connection to the priests words, and there is a terrific moment where Baur manages to convey Valjean's conclusion through a struggle expressed through almost entirely his eyes. This leading him to go to make sure the man does not take the fall for him, and leading the film to one of those sequences that seems an odd place to spend a lot of time in. This being the trial of Valjean's doppelganger Champmathieu, I suppose the easiest explanation is the filmmaker wanted to grant a greater showcase for Baur, which we do get.

This as we get a drawn out scene of Champmathieu on trial, even before Valjean gets there. This seems to be here mainly for Baur to work out his comic chops a bit, as he is amusing in portraying the simple and somewhat daffy manner of the man. This that is completely innocent and completely alien to his work as Valjean. This as an effective comic turn, though I'm not sure we needed so much time devoted to it. Nonetheless we then get the scene of Valjean taking charge of the courtroom to exonerate the man. Again the scene seems oddly drawn out, however Baur uses it well in terms of portraying a self-actualized Valjean. This in that he carries that grace of the good man, but with this sense of understanding of his harder life. This as he portrays it as the man wields it as a strength in a way as he speaks only in truths as he technically condemns himself to save another. This though with a greater conviction than ever before, and Baur carries himself with a strict confidence. As with most versions, after this point Valjean's role becomes more reduced as the observer of the more substantial actions of others. This though with the pivotal moment in his actions that change the course of the lives for others. Baur delivers on this by carrying the man who in a way becomes this force for good. This whether fighting off criminals, protecting his now adopted daughter Cosette, or trying to help her eventual love in Marius. Baur's performance captures the sense of duty within the character as he carries this purity of belief and intensity within that conviction to honoring what the Bishop had done for him. Baur's physical work is notable here in that he brings such striking emotional quality within every scene by virtue of his presence, as nothing merely happens around Valjean, rather you really get the sense of how the man takes it all in. His best moment though comes though in his one major scene of talking to Javert, after he has spared his longtime pursuer, and now Javert is left with whether to do the same for Valjean. The strength of this moment really makes me wish they hadn't largely wasted Javert as Vanel and Baur are great in realizing the dynamic of the character's that is largely missing. This being in the man of justice being so suspicious in the goodness of the criminal, while Baur brings this fundamental honest in his brilliantly blunt delivery of the man explaining his actions are without lies or trickery, just blunt charity. Baur gives a strong rendition of Valjean as his work naturally realizes the true transformation of the criminal to the hero, not making a simple step, but a real journey for the man.

Updated Overall

Next: Continuing with the backlog, but please offer your recommendations for 43 lead/supporting.