Alternate Best Actor 1995: Results

10. Johan Widerberg in All Things Fair - Widerberg gives a fine performance that certainly realizes his character's personal journey even if it left me cold.

Best Scene: Watching the newsreel.

9. James Earl Jones in Cry, The Beloved Country - Jones gives an appropriate grace and certain emotional poignancy to his character.

Best Scene: Kumalo meets Jarvis.

8. Jonathan Pryce in Carrington - Although the film oddly keeps a distance from him Pryce gives a compelling realization of Lytton Strachey even in the film's somewhat narrow focus on him.

Best Scene: Carrington reveals her feelings to Strachey.

7. Ethan Hawke in Before Sunrise -Hawke gives a very good performance that fits right into the wavelength of both the film's style as well as with his co-star's performance.

Best Scene: Celine and Jesse decide on what to do.

6. Kenneth Branagh in Othello - Branagh gives an intriguing depiction of Iago by presenting of a man of many masks that hide his evil intentions.

Best Scene: Iago reveals his true self.

5. Mel Gibson in Braveheart - Gibson gives a passionate and powerful portrayal that is fitting to the film's presentation of William Wallace as a romantic hero.

Best Scene: Killing the Sheriff.

4. Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys - Willis gives a captivating portrayal of a man on the constant brink of insanity, while being gripped by his time bending mission.

Best Scene: Cole attempts to explain himself.

3. Richard Harris in Cry, The Beloved Country - Harris gives a heartbreaking and convincing depiction of a man being changed for the better despite suffering a horrible tragedy.

Best Scene: Jarvis meets Kumalo.

2. Ian McKellen in Richard III - McKellen gives a brilliant Shakespearean performance as he finds new ground with the character by merely taking his villainy to almost an absurd extent.

Best Scene: Richard's final meeting with the Queen.

1. Morgan Freeman in Seven - Good Predictions Luke, Anonymous, Jackiboyz, and Michael McCarthy. I'll admit this is another year where I am torn by my top two as I really do love McKellen and Freeman's work equally. Freeman though also gives a great performance as he realizes the style of his character so well without falling into an obvious cliche, while realizing the pessimism of the man in such a compelling fashion by finding the humanity within the man that creates it.

Best Scene: The finale.

Overall Rank:

1. Morgan Freeman in Seven
2. Ian McKellen in Richard III 
3. Nicolas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas
4. Richard Harris in Cry, The Beloved Country
5. Kevin Spacey in The Usual Suspects
6. Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys
7. Mel Gibson in Braveheart
8. Brad Pitt in Seven
9. Kenneth Branagh in Othello
10. Ethan Hawke in Before Sunrise
11. Sean Penn in Dead Man Walking
12. Jonathan Pryce in Carrington
13. Liam Neeson in Rob Roy
14. James Early Jones in Cry, The Beloved Country
15. Tom Hanks in Apollo 13 
16. John Travolta in Get Shorty
17. Laurence Fishburne in Othello
18. Clint Eastwood in The Bridges of Madison County
19. Joe Pesci in Casino
20. Pierce Brosnan in GoldenEye 
21. Bruce Willis in Die Hard With a Vengeance
22. Denzel Washington in Devil in a Blue Dress
23. Al Pacino in Heat 
24. Samuel L. Jackson in Die Hard With a Vengeance
25. Robert Downey Jr. in Restoration
26. Michael Douglas in The American President
27. Gabriel Byrne in The Usual Suspects 
28. Robert De Niro in Heat
29. Denzel Washington in Crimson Tide
30. Tom Hanks in Toy Story
31. Tim Allen in Toy Story
32. Johan Widerberg in All Things Fair
33. Robert De Niro in Casino 
34. Dustin Hoffman in Outbreak
35. Chris Farley in Tommy Boy
36. Richard Dreyfuss in Mr. Holland's Opus 
37. Hugh Grant in The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
38. Bill Farmer in A Goofy Movie
39. Antonio Banderas in Desperado 
40. Bill Pullman in While You Were Sleeping
41. Damon Wayans in Major Payne 
42. Steve Martin in Father of the Bride Part II 
43. Daniel Stern in Bushwhacked
44. Will Smith in Bad Boys
45. Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys 
46. Mel Gibson in Pocahontas
47. Jason Marsden in A Goofy Movie
48. John Candy in Canadian Bacon
49. Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
50. Anthony Hopkins in Nixon
51. Robin Shou in Mortal Kombat
52. Robin Williams in Jumanji
53. Val Kilmer in Batman Forever 
54. Jonny Lee Miller in Hackers
55. Bill Pullman in Casper
56. Kevin Costner in Waterworld
57. Malachi Pearson in Casper 
58. Tom McGowan in Heavy Weights
59. Sylvester Stallone in Judge Dredd 
60. Woody Allen in Mighty Aphrodite
61. Adam Sander in Billy Madison
62. Woody Harrelson in Money Train
63. Wesley Snipes in Money Trains 
64. Chevy Chase in Man of the House
65. Johnny Depp in Nick of Time
66. Richard Gere in First Knight
67. David Spade in Tommy Boy
68. Jason David Frank in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
69. Jonathan Taylor Thomas in Man of the House
70. Dylan Walsh in Congo 
71. Ryan Slater in The Amazing Panda Adventure
72. Hal Scardino The Indian in the Cupboard 
73. Steven Seagal in Under Siege 2: The Dark Territory
74. Ron Melendez in Children of the Corn III 
75. Daniel Cerny in Children of the Corn III

Next Year: 1995 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1995: Johan Widerberg in All Things Fair

Johan Widerberg did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Stig Santesson in All Things Fair.

All Things Fair tells the story of a illicit relationship between an older teacher and student set during World War II. The film has interesting moment though it is a bit too slow going in finding its climax, and the impact of the story ends up being fairly muted.

The film itself begins with Stig played by Widerberg, who is also the son of the film's director, as he is beginning school though he's mostly only interested in sex. Widerberg plays these early scenes without complication just presenting Stig as basically a lusty teenager though with just the slightest hint of a smooth unassuming charm, although really not much of it. This soon leads to the affair with his teacher Viola (Marika Lagercrantz) which happens very quickly. This is not a criticism of the film even though it might seem like a bit of a fantasy though only from Stig's perspective, the ease of the affair does not come from any actual seductive ability of Stig's rather it comes from Viola's personal desperation that we learn more about as the film proceeds. The early scenes are in the view of the fantasy though and Widerberg presents them as just seeming a dream of sorts for Stig who just is enjoying every one of their secluded engagements, which is very different from his family life which is troubled due to his brother being in danger due to the war.

Widerberg attaches the whole affair well to basically just an escape for Stig as there never seems as though he really recognizes the reality of his situation rather just embracing a certain immaturity that is allowed from it all. This changes though when Stig is caught multiple times by Viola's husband and it soon becomes obvious that he is aware of the affair, he just does not care. Thing are only made more complicated as both the husband and wife decide to share their insecurities with Stig, and Widerberg is very good in these scenes by showing basically Stig being forced to snap into reality. The abundance of pleasure as he goes about his days becomes severely muted in Widerberg's performance, and most importantly of all Widerberg slowly moves away from being just that lusty teen. Widerberg subtly conveys a maturation in Stig through his reactions to the desperation that he sees forcing him to realize his own, which only seems to become worse since he is no longer able to escape it through the affair.

One scene that is particularly effective in terms of Widerberg's work is when another girl, one who happens to actually be his age, attempts to seduce him, and Widerberg in his reaction portrays the exact maturation of Stig as he denies the girl, something that would not doubt seem ridiculous out of the Stig in the opening scenes of the film. This is a natural transition made by Widerberg as he presents the boy becoming the man in the way he no longer avoids the complications of life. This soon changes though as well when he stops the affair, causing a great deal of bitterness with the teacher, and Widerberg is good in changing Stig into being defined by a resigned frustration as he can do nothing to change his plight. That is until a more severe tragedy befalls him which instead forces him instead into a sadness, which Widerberg plays well again with that same resigned quality as though Stig is finally aware of what he can and cannot do in life. This is a good performance though I must admit that it is one that I was always oddly detached from. It hits all the appropriate points through the film though it just never quite took that next step for me, although I can see why one could potentially love this performance.

Alternate Best Actor 1995

And the Nominees Were Not:

Morgan Freeman in Seven

James Earl Jones in Cry, The Beloved Country

Jonathan Pryce in Carrington

Kenneth Branagh in Othello

Ethan Hawke in Before Sunrise

Rank Those Five or These Five or Both:

Mel Gibson in Braveheart

Richard Harris in Cry, The Beloved Country

Ian McKellen in Richard III

Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys

Johan Widerberg in All Things Fair