Alternate Best Actor 1999: Results

5. Tom Cruise in Eyes Wide Shut - Cruise fulfills the general needs of his performance however never seems ideal for the general needs of his character. 

Best Scene: His confession.

4. Nicolas Cage in Bringing Out the Dead - Cage delivers the more expected extremes of his insomniac paramedic, however it his more subdued moments that perhaps leave the strongest impression.

Best Scene: Saving the dealer.

3. Anthony Hopkins in Titus - Hopkins delivers both the needed gravity for any Shakespearean performance, but with a sense of fun needed for the work that is Titus Andronicus.

Best Scene: Some nice pies.

2. Heath Ledger in Two Hands - Ledger delivers a terrific early star turn that manages to effortlessly balance the romantic, dramatic and comedic elements of his film.

Best Scene: Confronting Pando.

1. Jim Broadbent in Topsy-Turvy - Broadbent gives an absolutely winning turn in his approach as a humorous man who takes himself very seriously.

Best Scene: His inspiration.

Updated Overall

Next Year: 1999 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1999: Jim Broadbent in Topsy-Turvy

Jim Broadbent did not receive an Oscar nomination, despite being nominated for a BAFTA, for portraying W.S. Gilbert in Topsy-Turvy.

I rather loved Topsy-Turvy, which tells the story of Gilbert and Sullivan attempting to stage a comeback of sorts through the Mikado.

The film borders on an ensemble piece as it does take time with just about every element of the eventual production, focusing on the various characters in and around the Savoy theatre. The man who gets the greatest focus fittingly is the man who without would've made the creation of the Mikado simply impossible, that being librettist W.S. Gilbert played by the always reliable Jim Broadbent. Broadbent having rather a challenge in the character of Gilbert, given that the man is essentially a living contradiction. A contradiction that serves Broadbent's approach to the part which is as a humorous man who takes himself very seriously. This as his most essential professional output involves being a mostly comic wordsmith, who is partial to, as his creative partner Sullivan says, Topsy-Turvy ridiculousness. Broadbent's performance then has two main objectives, one to make sense of this man, and the second to make this man work within the film which takes a lightly comic approach. The sense of the man is within his life that while he has a caring wife (Lesley Manville), he has a troublesome relationship with his father and distant, and all importantly humorless, mother. Broadbent's performance then creates this sense of logic within the character's repression as spurned by such a childhood.

This is as Broadbent presents very much one side a man you would expect from such a life on the surface, which is always interesting for Broadbent for a reason I'll get to on the second part of his challenge. Broadbent though delivers a hardness in manner within the man. This physically stature as a proper businessman despite being an artist first and foremost. When the man discusses his idea with his wife or Sullivan, Broadbent speaks in hard delivery of a man as though he was simply discussing any old financial plan or legal action. This seeming without an obvious passion on the immediate surface. Broadbent carefully though doesn't specifically make Gilbert seem bored however, but this is a hardness seemingly ill-fitting to what it is that he writes. Of course we are party to more than just Gilbert as others see him, as we are given the moments of inspiration that he finds through a Japanese exhibition in England. Although even as this Broadbent portrays only the most careful breaks in the moments of interacting with his wife, which is quite different from when we see him admiring a sword from the exhibition alone in his room. We see him first goofing off alone, where Broadbent suddenly reveals a cheerfulness befitting to a truly topsy turvy sort, as not of that stiffness is evident in the man. Broadbent in this moment is not breaking the character, but rather revealing the humorous man that is at Gilbert's heart that was mostly repressed thoroughly by his childhood. This is further reinforced where we see him admiring the sword and Broadbent has a beautiful moment where his face expresses the true creative spirit in the sincere emotional intensity in his eyes.

Well with that Broadbent brilliantly explains Gilbert, however that still leaves a potentially stiff character in this comedy who needs to exist beyond the emotional revelations of the man, as strikingly performed as those are. Well thankfully Broadbent is the perfect man to deliver this in a way, as he is particularly well attuned actor for both comedy and drama, particularly in his voice that is marvelous in how it manages to both have a comedic light pitch, while still having a dominating depth. Broadbent knows exactly how to use this as he manages to be quite impeccably hilarious as Gilbert. This as even in those scenes of describing his silly ideas, Broadbent is absolutely comic gold in just how directly dry he is about every word, with this underlying conviction of sorts, that is properly, though naturally, ridiculous as Gilbert describes a contrived idea about a transformative potion. Broadbent's delivery of Gilbert's ideas becomes a consistent point of hilarity as he brings such refinement with even the most absurd words in Gilbert's rhythmic expressions. Broadbent's approach is wonderfully entertaining in the earliest scenes of the film, but only broadens as we see the man in action in terms of attempting to realize his project to his vision. Broadbent is fantastic as the seemingly tyrannical man dictating such specific changes along with way with few willing to stand up to his whims. Broadbent carries is this and is incredible in every single scene, particularly an extended one of directing the actors through a scene. Broadbent commands magnificently, and still quite humorously, as he delivers this intensity, without ever raising his voice, in each comment that alludes to a tremendous will to see his achievement to come to life properly. Broadbent so effortlessly delivers the comedy in each scene, while still maintaining the needs of Gilbert as almost a man to be feared by those helping to create his vision. Broadbent makes us see each part of the creative process through his portrayal of Gilbert, whose all his actions are of that of one sort, yet within the frame of existence another This is as Broadbent makes it just a natural part of the contrasting whole of a man who internally is funny truly passionate man, encased within the body of a proper Victorian gentlemen in every respect. In very much the same way Broadbent himself delivers an honest and striking portrait of an artist, encased in a most hilarious nearly deadpan comic turn. I loved this performance.

Alternate Best Actor 1999

 And the Nominees Were Not:

Anthony Hopkins in Titus

Heath Ledger in Two Hands

Nicolas Cage in Bringing Out the Dead

Tom Cruise in Eyes Wide Shut

Jim Broadbent in Topsy-Turvy

And a review Of:

Ralph Fiennes in Sunshine 

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2012: Tom Hanks, Jim Broadbent, Ben Whishaw and Hugo Weaving in Cloud Atlas

Tom Hanks did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Dr. Henry Goose, Hotel Manger, Isaac Sachs, Dermot Hoggins, Timothy Cavendish look-a-like actor, and Zachary in Cloud Atlas.

Cloud Atlas is another film this year like Les Miserables, or The Master where you tap into its wavelength, or you do not, and if you do not you are in for a long watch. For me personally Cloud Atlas really works and I was thoroughly entertained and intrigued by it.

Cloud Atlas is not a perfect film, and there are questionable choices in it. One being the few actors cast who are decidedly not chameleon. Tom Hanks is one of them and looking at this performance can easily be done by thinking what would Gary Oldman do. Hanks plays six roles and it is really best to look at each of the roles separately and see Hanks's attempts in each role. The first chronologically is that of Dr. Henry Goose who pretends to help an American Lawyer Adam Ewing (Jim Sturgess) recover from a parasitic worm, where in fact Goose is slowly poisoning the man and intends to kill him to rob him of his gold. This is a unique role for Hanks doing an accent as well as playing a villain.

It would seem this sort of role is not for Hanks as he is not very menacing nor as enjoyable as the greedy Goose probably could have been in say the hands of Gary Oldman. Hanks seems a little silly in the role actually, and the makeup never seems to fit him. It does not help that Hanks never seems all that comfortable with the accent either leaving him rather uninteresting to say the least. Honestly there was a great deal of potential for Goose to really be a great turn, but Hanks just really does not have the command of the role that is really required for an excellent villianous turn.

Well we can skip the Hotel Manager as he is basically just Goose again just with less screen time. Next he comes as Isaac Sachs a Nuclear scientist who attempts to help journalist Luisa Rey (Halle Berry). Hanks is far more comfortable in this role brings out his best qualities as just an average role. He is good at showing the decency of his character, and naturally brings about the connection Sacs feels with Rey. It is a very short role though, and he really is only in one scene as Sacs leaving the good qualities of this performance fairly easy to forget.

Next is a double display of lacking as he plays Dermot Hoggins as the actor playing Timothy Cavendish. Hoggins is quick scene of a deranged gangster who kills a critic for dissing his book. Again a sort like Gary Oldman could have knocked this scene out of the park and turned the rage of Hoggins into a hilarious overstatement. Hanks though lacks the punch in his performance and just seems silly in the get up as well as with his heavy accent. The same is true as the actor reenacting Jim Broadbent's story. Another actors could had a lot of fun in the brief scenes, but Hanks plays it oddly straight and does not make much of an impact. 

The last segment as Zachary in a post apocalyptic land as a tribesman Zachary plagued by guilt due to not acting when his brother and nephew were killed by roaming cannibals. Now even this segment has problems with the future speak used which almost none of the actors are comfortable with. All filmmakers who decide to do something like this should always remember there are things called Shakespearean actors for a reason, even if you make up a derivative of English actors still need to be comfortable with it, but when the actors speak here they always seem somewhat rehearsed.

Hanks though does have good moments in his silent reactions in these scenes as Zachary, and he has powerful moments showing the painful struggle he is facing due to his loss as well as his feelings of guilt. For the most part this is a fairly effective piece of work by Tom Hanks in these scenes even if he never makes the words entirely natural. He has quite a bit power in his scenes particularly when Zachary see his entire village destroyed, and brings the weight to these scenes as he should. So the final tally goes like this Goose -2, Manager-2, Sachs-2.5, Hoggins-1.5, Cavendish-1.5, Zachary-3.5 leaving him as a:

Jim Broadbent  did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Captain Molyneux, Vyvyan Ayrs, Timothy Cavendish, Korean Musician, Prescient 2 in Cloud Atlas.

Jim Broadbent is certainly an actor more capable of various characterization than the fairly limited Hanks, but he honestly only plays three roles the first three. The last two are null as you'd be hard pressed to notice him in those roles. So really I only need to examine his performances in the other three. The first two which are Captain Molyneux and Vyvyan Ayrs are can really be spoken together as they are similar with Ayrs basically being a more complex version of Molyneux. As both Broadbent plays arrogant men who are filled with their own sense of skill and power. 

Broadbent does well in both roles and gets the cruel pompousness of these characters out. As Molyneux he is particularly good and Broadbent shows the brutal nature of the composer who makes Molyneux as the societal injustice he should be. Importantly though Broadbent does show a quieter nature to the man in a few scenes that helps establish the idea that this man does have some brilliance behind his less positive features. He makes this role completely suiting its needs which is to put the lead of this story, ambitious young composer Robert Frobisher, through hell and set the man on the course of dread and despair.

Now the most important role of Jim Broadbent in the film is that of Timothy Cavendish the only story in the film that is a straight out comedy. It details a book publisher who must go into hiding when one of his writers demands payment that he does not have. He is in fact the lead of this story he is still supporting though of the film, as everyone is supporting the film here and not one actor leads the film. Broadbent fills a very important role in the story of Timothy Cavendish as he must bring a lighter touch to the film that alleviates some of the heavier elements of the film expressed in all of the other stories.

Broadbent makes the story of Timothy Cavendish enjoyable one through his various reactions as Cavendish faces various bouts of bad luck. Broadbent is an effective comedic actor in that he is able to express the emotions honestly in each scene well making them amusing at the same time. Broadbent makes the ride of Cavendish an enjoyable one as he goes from running from the gangster to trying to escape from a jail like retirement home. Broadbent has a lot of fun in the role a he makes every comedic scene as entertaining as they should be. Broadbent is charming and likable as Cavendish, and makes The Ghastly Tale of Timothy Cavendish an easy story to watch play out.

Broadbent adds well to the film in a way that Tom Hanks does not. Although he is certianly recognizable as Jim Broadbent in all of his important roles he differentiate them properly, and they work well in the nature of the film rather than seem distracting as it did for Hanks. Broadbent is particularly effective in giving entirely opposing performances as a fiendish composer, and a likable publisher. Frankly Broadbent's performance only helps in showing exactly what is wrong with Hanks's characterizations.

Ben Whishaw did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Robert Frobisher in Cloud Atlas.

Ben Whishaw actually plays five roles but they do not really matter in that they are very short and unnoticeable. To his credit though he is not distracting in the moments, and fulfills these roles as he should. They just do not amount to much which is fine though because he plays the meatier role of Robert Frobisher who is the main character of his story. His story being that of a young bi-sexual musician who goes to work with a forgotten but talented composer Vyvyan Ayrs (Jim Broadbent). Whishaw leads which is probably the weightiest story of the film, and the one that depends probably the most on the lead performance.

Whishaw at the beginning of Frobisher's story shows him to be a young man with a great deal of energy who is enthusiastic at the prospect of composing a masterwork with Ayrs's help. Whishaw is quite good in emphasizes the ambitious qualities within Forbisher and makes his urge to create something remarkable something worthwhile. Frobisher's story easily could have been excessively uninteresting, or seem the story of just a selfish man. Whishaw though succeeds incredibly well by being very genuine with the feelings that Forbisher's feels that compels him to such a task.

There are several narrations competing throughout the film each which make varying impacts. Whishaw's honestly adds the most to the film and there is something particularly compelling about his delivery. He infuses a tremendous amount of life to each and poignancy. every moment that Frobisher's the one we here on screen. There are a great deal of lines in the film about the interconnected nature of everyone and everything. Perhaps they don't leave these sort of lines for Tom Hanks for a reason as they really require a great deal of conviction to make them seem more than pretentious babble, Whishaw manages to bring this conviction.

Whishaw adds a power to all of his scene through his turn as Frobisher. He is very effective later on as it seems less and less likely that he will achieve his dreams he falls into despair only holding on to finish his masterpiece. It is a moving performance by Whishaw because he never does overwhelm with the depression of the character. Instead there is something particularly special about his portrayal of this man's suicide because of the final moments of happiness before regulating himself to his fate. They are short subtle reactions by Whishaw but they beautifully show the complexity of the man as well as what Frobisher really has lost by committing suicide. Ben Whishaw gives a very strong performance here and despite only having one role of note actually is one of the most memorable portrayals in the film. The nature of the film that weaves in and out of each story and Whishaw always holds the proper amount of attention, and brings to life the story Robert Frobisher in a powerful fashion.

Hugo Weaving did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Haskell Moore, Tadeusz Kesselring, Bill Smoke, Nurse Noakes, Boardman Mephi, and Old Georgie in Cloud Atlas.

Hugo Weaving is best known for playing villains so they took this as reason to cast him as villianous character in five of his six characters. His only character who is not a villain can be quickly forgotten as he is only seen briefly and makes almost no impact on the film. Weaving basically takes a similar approach for three of the five villains so I might as well just look at the two most prevalent. Bill Smoke a hit man who is the purest of his villains here and the other three similar ones are only slight deviations from him. His other villain that is the most dissimilar is that of Nurse Noakes as Weaving in that role plays a female character. 

As Bill Smoke shows signs of his role as Agent Smith in The Matrix, which is a good thing. Weaving is quite good at the evil maniacal stare, as well as the imposing delivery that brings to life the fierce some nature of his character well. Weaving knows how to deliver with a character like this as well as the other similar ones. He oozes menace with an ease and oddly enough a certain grace. He makes looking evil seem easy, and even though Bill Smoke is not given much time he makes him the proper threat from his very first scene. Weaving is perfectly cast in these roles because he knows exactly how to play them and brings out the evil of these characters quickly without effort even seeming required.

It is a real shame though that Weaving's strengths shown with the other villains is rather wasted in the role of Nurse Noakes. Noakes is basically the Nurse Ratched of the retirement home that imprisons Timothy Cavendish. Weaving is not very good here basically doing the stereotypical voice that any man does to imitate a woman when they are not trying at all to believable. Noakes is indeed in the comedic section of the film so really he would not exactly have to be the most believable woman of all time, but Weaving performance is rather embarrassing instead. Frankly someone, like maybe Gary Oldman for example, could have brought out more menace in these scenes well being funny at the same time. Weaving is neither menacing or funny as Noakes.

The last villianous performance by Weaving here is as Old Georgie, the representation of the devil, who haunts Tom Hanks's Zachary. Weaving here seems to be doing his best Tom Waits impression. To be perfectly honest this works out just fine, and Weaving is fine at being this existential evil. Old Georgie is pretty limited but Weaving is just as he should be. Hugo Weaving for the most part works as the go to evil doer for the film. Nurse Noakes weighs down his performance which unfortunate as that part could have easily been the highlight if he had delivered a better performance. This rest of his roles though Weaving fulfills them quite well particularly Bill Smoke.

Best Supporting Actor 2001: Results

5. Jon Voight in Ali- This performance simply should never have been nominated. He gives a lackluster impersonation that's it.

4. Jim Broadbent in Iris- Broadbent's performance is a good and quiet performance that fully realizes the struggle of his character to come to grips with the illness of his wife.

3. Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast- Kingsley gives a fairly entertaining villainous turn.

2. Ethan Hawke in Training Day- Hawke gives a consistently effective reactionary performance. It is an easy performance to empathize with, and creates an interesting character development.

1. Ian Mckellen in The Fellowship of the Ring- Mckellen gives a strong performance that fully brings his character life. Mckellen manages to bring the wisdom, the heart, and the power all fully to life in his performance.

Best Supporting Actor 2001: Jim Broadbent in Iris

Jim Broadbent won his Oscar from his first nomination for portraying John Bayley in Iris.

Iris depicts the relationship between writer Iris Murdoch and her husband John Bayley both in its early stages and at the end of it when Iris suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

Jim Broadbent is not a supporting performance in this film as he is the male lead in late half of the relationship between John and Iris. Broadbent portrays the older John Bayley. Bayley as written is mostly a kindly old man, who loves his wife, and is almost complacent with his status as the husband of the more famous wife. This whole characterization Broadbent handles with a great deal of ease, and really it could have been quite easy to have messed up entirely.

Broadbent though is quite effective in his creation of Bayley. The various mannerisms such as his stutter, and his whole quiet shy demeanor are all very naturally portrayed by Broadbent despite the fact they all could have easily seem forced. Broadbent stays quietly honest throughout his performance which works for in his quiet supportive husband character. There is never hint of falseness to hid portrayal which is why his performance is effective.

Broadbent mostly stays loving and supportive of his wife. There is also a great deal of sadness over his wife Broadbent portrays quietly but truthfully. Also though there is some anger as well that he shows toward her due to the way he treated by her when they were younger. Broadbent realizes this as well showing it as rather deep rooted pain he feels from their history, not as just some sudden outburst.

The best part of his performance really is showing the way in which he slowly sees his position change in the relationship in life, and he begins to slowly gain a greater confidence. Broadbent carefully realizes this change in a slow but deliberate fashion. His best moment in this regard is probably his eulogy for one of Iris' friend, where although not a perfectly confidant man Broadbent shows Bayley having a greater grasp on his life. This is Broadbent strongest aspect of what I would say is a good performance, but for me it is the type performance I like, but do not love.

Best Supporting Actor 2001

And the Nominees Were:

Jon Voight in Ali

Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast

Jim Broadbent in Iris

Ian Mckellen in The Fellowship of the Ring

Ethan Hawke in Training Day