Best Actor: Michael Sheen

Showing posts with label Michael Sheen. Show all posts

Sunday, 7 February 2016

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2015: Results

10. Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation - Elba gives a charismatic performance as a godlike military commander, even if his character gets progressively less interesting as the film proceeds.

Best Scene: The Commandant prepares the men to attack.

9. Stanley Tucci in Spotlight - Tucci, much like the majority of the cast of spotlight, gives a realistic portrayal of a man in the film's story, and only stands when it aids this story.

Best Scene: "You don't know the half of it"

8. Adam Driver in Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Driver creates a most unusual yet still very effective and complex villain

Best Scene: Kylo and Han.

7. Emory Cohen in Brooklyn - Cohen gives an extremely charming performance that is essential the film's success, as he flawlessly avoids the various potential pitfalls of his technically simplistic character.

Best Scene: Tony and Ellis the night after the dinner with Tony's family.

6. Michael Sheen in Far From the Madding Crowd - Sheen gives a very moving performance in his portrayal of a man whose emotions reveal themselves, for better or worse, after being shown a hint of love.

Best Scene: Boldwood joins Bathsheba in song.

5. Benicio Del Toro in Sicario - Del Toro is appropriately chilling in his depiction of a cold killer, yet is particularly compelling in revealing the man behind the actions.

Best Scene: A family dinner.

4. Oscar Isaac in Ex Machina - Isaac is wildly entertaining yet also appropriately enigmatic as his odd tech genius who he plays as though he's a real BRO at heart.

Best Scene: "Have you tried dancing with her?"

3. Walton Goggins in The Hateful Eight - Goggins gives quite the impressive performance, as he's hilarious, incisive, and somehow makes a friendship between a racist Sheriff and a black bounty hunter believable.

Best Scene: Reading the Lincoln Letter.

2. Richard Jenkins in Bone Tomahawk - Jenkins is completely unrecognizable in his funny yet heartbreaking portrayal of a real old timer of the old west.

Best Scene: The flea circus.

1. Nicholas Hoult in Mad Max: Fury Road - Good prediction Psifonian. This year is simply amazing, and having to choose between them is absurdly difficult. I could go so many different ways for my winner, since I love all these performances. I could go with any performance in my top 12 and they'd be deserving. My top two came down to the two performances that I've found myself quoting the most incidentally. I could easily switch at any time. Hoult is outstanding in his compelling and entertaining portrayal of zealotry, then is quite heartbreaking in his depiction of a loss of this blindness.

Best Scene: A promised trip to Valhalla.

Overall Rank:

Tom Hardy in The Revenant
Nicholas Hoult in Mad Max: Fury Road
Sylvester Stallone in Creed
Richard Jenkins in Bone Tomahawk
Walton Goggins in The Hateful Eight
Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies
Samuel L. Jackson in The Hateful Eight
Oscar Isaac in Ex Machina
Benicio Del Toro in Sicario
Michael Sheen in Far From The Madding Crowd
Emory Cohen in Brooklyn
Kurt Russell in The Hateful Eight
Bruce Dern in The Hateful Eight
Michael Angarano in The Stanford Prison Experiment
Matthew Fox in Bone Tomahawk
Adam Driver in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Harrison Ford in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Sam Elliot in Grandma
Stanley Tucci in Spotlight
Josh Brolin in Sicario
Matthias Schoenaerts in Far From The Madding Crowd
Liev Schreiber in Spotlight
Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation
Michael Keaton in Spotlight
Tim Roth in The Hateful Eight
Joel Edgerton in The Gift
Jeff Daniels in Steve Jobs
Roland Møller in Land of Mine
Ethan Hawke in 10,000 Saints
Jan Bijvoet in Embrace of the Serpent
Michael Shannon in 99 Homes
Toby Jones in Tale of Tales
Tom Noonan in Anomalisa
Jason Statham in Spy
Will Poulter in The Revenant
Brian d'Arcy James in Spotlight
Richard Kind in Inside Out
Louis C.K. in Trumbo
Domhnall Gleeson in The Revenant
Michael Madsen in The Hateful Eight
Rory Cochrane in Black Mass
James Parks in The Hateful Eight
Brendan Gleeson in In The Heart of the Sea
Billy Crudup in The Stanford Prison Experiment
Peter Sarsgaard in Black Mass
Sean Harris in Macbeth
Demian Bichir in The Hateful Eight
Louis Hofmann in Land of Mine
W. Earl Brown in Black Mass
Hugo Weaving in The Dressmaker
David Morse in Concussion
Liev Schreiber in Pawn Sacrifice
Paul Giamatti in Straight Outta Compton
Tye Sheridan in The Stanford Prison Experiment
Hugh Keays-Byrne in Mad Max: Fury Road
John Cusack in Chi-Raq
Chiwetel Ejiofor in The Martian
Dave Bautista in Spectre
Jeremy Renner in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Seth Rogen in Steve Jobs
Peter Sarsgaard in Pawn Sacrifice
Michael Douglas in Ant-Man
David Harbour in Black Mass
Forrest Goodluck in The Revenant
Oscar Isaac in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Billy Crudup in Spotlight
Domhnall Gleeson in Brooklyn
Sean Bean in The Martian
Paul Dano in Youth
Luigi Sciamanna in Embrace of the Serpent
Mark Strong in Kingsman: The Secret Service
Jeff Daniels in The Martian
Nathan Jones in Mad Max: Fury Road
Richard Jenkins in Spotlight
Tom Hardy in London Road
Jack Reynor in Macbeth
Jim Beaver in Crimson Peak
Jim Broadbent in Brooklyn
John Goodman in Trumbo
Josh Helman in Mad Max: Fury Road
Lewis Black in Inside Out
Brendan Gleeson in Suffragette
Peter Mullan in Sunset Song
Michael Stuhlbarg in Trumbo
Bill Camp in Love & Mercy
Jon Gries in Faults
Arthur Redcloud in The Revenant
Lourenço Mutarelli in The Second Mother
Mikhail Gorevoy in Bridge of Spies
Tom McCamus in Room
Mark Rylance in The Gunman
Corey Stoll in Black Mass
Samuel L. Jackson in Chi-Raq
Domhnall Gleeson in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Neal Huff in Spotlight
Chris Ellis in Faults
Jurgen Prochnow in Remember
Kit Harington in Testament of Youth
Vincent Cassel in Tale of Tales
Paddy Considine in Macbeth
Ben Whishaw in Spectre
Bruno Ganz in Remember
Jude Law in Spy
Simon Pegg in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Kurt Russell in Furious 7
Harvey Keitel in Youth
Martin Landau in Remember
Cory Michael Smith in Carol
Sylvester Groth in The Man From Uncle
Chris O'Dowd in The Program
Albert Brooks in Concussion
Brionne Davis in Embrace of the Serpent
James Spader in Avengers: Age of Ultron
John Slattery in Spotlight
Ben Whishaw in The Lobster
Franz Rogowski in Victoria
Michael Cyril Creighton in Spotlight
Milo Parker in Mr. Holmes
Paddy Considine in Child 44
David Arquette in Bone Tomahawk
Colin Morgan in Testament of Youth
Colin Quinn in Trainwreck
Benedict Wong in The Martian
Alan Rickman in A Little Chaos
Kurt Egyiawan in Beasts of No Nation
Jeffrey Donovan in Sicario
Josh Brolin Everest
Christian Berkel in Trumbo
Tom Holland in In The Heart of the Sea
Forest Whitaker in Southpaw
Angus Sampson in Mad Max: Fury Road
Ralph Fiennes in Spectre
Kobina Amissa-Sam in Beasts of No Nation
Ryan Gosling in the Big Short
Ron Livingston in James White
Stacy Keach in Truth
Christopher Plummer in Danny Collins
Bradley Cooper in Joy
Jesse Plemons in Black Mass
John Hawkes in Everest
Bobby Cannavale in Danny Collins
Taron Egerton in Testament of Youth
Sebastian Koch in Bridge of Spies
Paul Giamatti in Love & Mercy
Brad Pitt in The Big Short
James Badge Dale in The Walk
Ben Mendelsohn in Slow West
Corey Stoll in Ant-Man
Stephen Root in Trumbo
Wesley Snipes in Chi-Raq
John C. Reilly in The Lobster
Robert Downey Jr. in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Alec Baldwin in Concussion
Jamey Sheridan in Spotlight
Christian Bale in The Big Short
Taron Egerton in Legend
Jason Statham in Furious 7
Sid Haig in Bone Tomahawk
Jeremy Strong in The Big Short
Scott Shepherd in Bridge of Spies
Kyle Chandler in Carol
Steve Carell in The Big Short
Derek Jacobi in Cinderella
Jake Weary in It Follows
Jake Gyllenhaal in Everest
Kevin Bacon in Black Mass
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje in Trumbo
Hugh Grant in The Man From Uncle
Ving Rhames in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Jeremy Renner in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Bill Hader in Inside Out
Bobby Cannavale in Spy
Harry Lennix in Chi-Raq
Dwayne Johnson in Furious 7
Jesse Plemons in The Program
Javier Bardem in The Gunman
Ed Harris in Run All Night
Dave Chappelle in Chi-Raq
Chris Evans in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Sean Bridgers in Room
Kid Cudi in James White
Jim Broadbent in The Woman in the Van
Michael Stuhlbarg in Steve Jobs
Norman Lloyd in Trainwreck
Robert Redford in Truth
Nonso Anozie in Cinderella
Bobby Cannavale in Ant-Man
Mark Ruffalo in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Graham McTavish in Creed
Ben Whishaw in In the Heart of the Sea
Rory McCann in Slow West
David Thewlis in Legend
David Thewlis in Macbeth
Ben Whishaw in The Danish Girl
Keir Gilchrist in It Follows
John C. Reilly in Tale of Tales
Channing Tatum in The Hateful Eight
Jon Bernthal in Sicario
John Magaro in The Big Short
Finn Wittrock in The Big Short
Chris Hemsworth in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Hiroyuki Sanada in Mr. Holmes
Ezra Miller in The Stanford Prison Experiment
Matthias Schoenaerts in The Danish Girl
Daniel Bruhl in Woman in Gold
William H. Macy in Room
Michael Stuhlbarg in Pawn Sacrifice
Edgar Ramirez in Joy
Dennis Quaid in Truth
Michael Caine in Kingsman: The Secret Service
Charlie Hunnam in Crimson Peak
Benedict Cumberbatch in Black Mass
Donald Glover in The Martian
Sean Bean in Jupiter Ascending
Sean Harris in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Ty Simpkins Jurassic World
Michael Pena in Ant-Man
Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Avengers: Age of Ultron
Ben Kingsley in The Walk
Adam Scott in Black Mass
Ben Whishaw in Suffragette
Alexander Skarsgard in The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Andy Serkis in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Common in Run All Night
Robert De Niro in Joy
Mark Ruffalo in Spotlight
Samuel L. Jackson in Kingsman: The Secret Service
Michael Pena in The Martian
John Cena in Trainwreck
Tony Bellew in Creed
John Magaro in Carol
Nick Robinson in Jurassic World
Lebron James in Trainwreck
Curtis Jackson in Southpaw
Anthony Bourdain in The Big Short
Hugh Jackman in Chappie
Barry Otto in The Dressmaker
Vincent D'Onofrio in Jurassic World
Liam Hemsworth in the Dressmaker
Richard Thaler in The Big Short
Miguel Gomez in Southpaw
Austin Stowell in Bridge of Spies
David Dastmalchian in Ant-Man
Christoph Waltz in Spectre
David James Elliot in Trumbo
Dean O'Gorman in Trumbo
Adam DeVine in The Intern
Nat Wolff in The Intern
Anders Holm in The Intern
Caleb Landry Jones in Heaven Knows What
Andrew Rannells in The Intern
B.D. Wong in Jurassic World
Douglas Booth in Jupiter Ascending
Nat Wolff in Grandma
Emile Hirsch in 10,000 Saints
Tom Sturridge in Far From the Madding Crowd
Jose Pablo Cantillo in Chappie
Ninja in Chappie
Joel Kinnaman in Child 44
Topher Grace in Truth
Guillaume Canet in The Program
Quentin Tarantino in The Hateful Eight
Eddie Redmayne in Jupiter Ascending

Next Year: 2015 Lead (Please name and rank the top three you'd like to see reviewed)

Thursday, 28 January 2016

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2015: Matthias Schoenaerts and Michael Sheen in Far From The Madding Crowd

Matthias Schoenaerts did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Gabriel Oak in Far From the Madding Crowd.

Far From the Madding Crowd is yet another effective enough adaption of the story about Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan), a woman who has inherited a very large farm, and has three very different men vying for affections.

I have previously covered the three men with the 1967 version of the story where they were played by Alan Bates, Peter Finch and Terence Stamp. Bates played Gabriel Oak as just an honest bloke with a low key charm whose a bit down on his luck. Matthias Schoenaerts, a Belgian actor, which you would not know, well other than his name obviously, as he seems a bit a master of accents as one would never second guessed that he was really a New York thug in The Drop nor is there any reason to question his status here as an English shepherd. Schoenaerts fits right into the role to be sure, giving just the needed physical stature for the role. Though it would be easy enough to copy Bates's take on the character, it was a good performance after all, Schoenaerts takes a different approach. Where Bates was that likable average Joe, Schoenaerts takes a more stoic approach to the character. Schoenaerts plays him in a much colder fashion than Bates, though I don't mean that he plays the character as cold. Schoenaerts internalizes his performance even more than Bates did, and seems to purposefully strip away any direct charm from his Gabriel Oak. Though again that does not mean that this is not a charming performance.

On the contrary Schoenaerts actually has a very appealing presence, but it is never directed in a way as though he's trying to win any one over. There is a likability that Schoenaerts finds just in the way he so genuinely creates the modesty of the man. This is an interesting way to play the part, and it actually helps to further explain Bathsheba's original rejection of him at the beginning of the story when he's still a man with property and wealth. Schoenaerts is very good in this scene by showing his proposition as wholly earnest, though without an excess of passion, as Gabriel is just not the type of man who would try to actively win her over. Schoenaerts suggests even though Gabriel does have a charm of his own, the instinctual nature of the man keeps Bathsheba from accepting him at this point. Gabriel though loses his wealth through an unfortunate incident, which keeps him no longer acceptable even since Bathsheba becomes rich by chance, and with no where else to go really Gabriel starts working for her. With Bathsheba's new found status this does lead her into a situation where she meets her second potential suitor William Boldwood.

Michael Sheen did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying William Boldwood in Far From the Madding Crowd.

The role of Boldwood in the 67 version was played by Peter Finch. Finch's performance was purposefully restrictive as he portrayed the man ruled by his upbringing to hold back his emotions. Michael Sheen, who is perhaps known a bit more for his depictions of more open and about British chaps, takes a bit of a different approach for Boldwood. The character stands as a disciplined sort, but Sheen plays this less as an active conditioning. Sheen's approach is less of man being trained to be this way, but rather a man only simply is this way due to a lack of experience of being showed any real love throughout his life. Where Finch shows his interactions to remain proper, Sheen instead reveals more of timidness as he tries to speak plainly with Bathsheba early on, which could be seen as rude at a cursory view, but at closer inspection Sheen presents a man unsure of how to act exactly. Sheen's approach is a rather intelligent one since he manages to makes Boldwood no longer seem as much of a thankless role, by finding a way out of the restrictions Finch set with his characterization. Sheen still makes Boldwood fit as the same man in terms of his stature and general background, but finds a way not to be nearly as constrained by these elements of the character.

Sheen's alternate starting point allows him to set a different path for the character than what Finch took in that earlier adaptation. Boldwood only becomes a potential suitor when Bathsheba purposefully sends a mocking valentine to him. Sheen realizes the cruelty of the act particularly well as Boldwood makes his own proposal to Bathsheba. Sheen is really quite moving by suggesting such a nervousness in the moment from a lack of experience with such matters, while exuding a very real tenderness in his request at the same time. Sheen is terrific in just how much emotional vulnerability he shows in any of the scenes where Boldwood is interacting with Bathsheba, as there's even a sweetness in the way Sheen suggests his love for Bathsheba is gradually building a certain confidence which allow him to express more emotions. One particularly great scene for Sheen is when Bathsheba sings a song for her workers, with Boldwood in audience as well, and Boldwood joins in. Sheen is very affecting in the scene as he reveals Boldwood coming out of the confines of his original emotional state through his feelings for Bathesheba. The feelings that Sheen finds are only ever wholly genuine, unlike her last suitor one Sergeant Frank Troy played in the original by Terence Stamp, but here unfortunately by Tom Sturridge.

Well there's a reason that I'm not reviewing all three suitors, as I had done for the three in the 67 version, since where Stamp gave the best performance in that film, Sturridge gives the worst performance in this film. So back to the good performances, though they are still attached to Troy somewhat. Technically it should be noted that Schoenaerts's indirect charm would have been a perfect set up for someone with a considerable direct charm, which Stamp had in the role. Now Schoenaerts's approach actually makes him really standout, even after his character is overshadowed in terms of the story as it focuses on Bathsheba's other two suitors. Gabriel never leaves the film but he is often reduced to a few reactionary moments here and there, with them often being silent. Schoenaerts keeps Gabriel from being forgotten though by standing well as the moral conscious of the film. He makes an impact with every single one of his reactions, as he always portrays well Gabriel's certain distaste with many of Bathsheba's actions, while still keeping a certain undercurrent of Gabriel's own true feelings for her beneath it all. Importantly Schoenaerts finds the right unsaid chemistry with Mulligan from the beginning, which he naturally transitions from being a possible suitor, to a true friend who's willing to tell her the harsh truths.

Now Sheen's moments are more specific as Boldwood has scenes still devoted to him. With every scene though Sheen reveals Boldwood coming out of his meek state all the more, even after Bathsheba has rejected him for Sergeant Troy. There is yet another very striking scene for Sheen when he discusses this with Gabriel. Sheen is rather heartbreaking by having Boldwood open up all the more as he presents just how devastated Boldwood is over the rejection, and suggests that allowing himself to become emotional through his interest in her has only caused him to suffer. When Boldwood is given a second chance with Bathsheba, Sheen continues to be very effective as his performance finds a considerable joy within the chance, but still an ever growing unease. As even in his new proposal Sheen lines it with a palatable fear at the possibility of being once again ignored by her. In the end Boldwood's story is a tragic one which Peter Finch portrayed as resulting from almost a time bomb as his emotions finally are let out all at once. Although that worked well, Sheen's approach is all the more powerful though as he manages to build to this point, by only ever depicting a growing emotional distress in Boldwood that leaves him to take his final irrational act of violence. This is even with this version's approach to the ending which is a bit rushed, and gives less focus to Boldwood than the 67 version did. Now the ending's swift pace continues as Bathsheba finally chooses Gabriel. This might have failed completely but Schoenaerts and Mulligan ,for that matter, manage to make up for the film's shortcomings because of that underlying chemistry they shared right from their first scene together. They make the ending convincing because it less of a revelation, and more of an acceptance. Both Schoenaerts and Sheen actually manage to best Bates and Finch, who both gave fine performances, as they manage to find their own unique approaches to the material which enliven their characters.

(For Schoenaerts)

(For Sheen)

Tuesday, 26 January 2016

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2015

And the Nominees Were Not:

Stanley Tucci in Spotlight

Liev Schreiber in Spotlight

Michael Keaton in Spotlight

Nicholas Hoult in Mad Max: Fury Road

Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation

Emory Cohen in Brooklyn

Benicio Del Toro in Sicario

Josh Brolin in Sicario

Walton Goggins in The Hateful Eight

Samuel L. Jackson in The Hateful Eight

Kurt Russell in The Hateful Eight

Oscar Isaac in Ex Machina

Richard Jenkins in Bone Tomahawk

Adam Driver in Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Michael Sheen in Far From The Madding Crowd

Matthias Schoenaerts in Far From The Madding Crowd

For Prediction purposes:

Tucci

Hoult

Elba

Cohen

Del Toro

and/or

Goggins

Isaac

Jenkins

Driver

Sheen

Best Actor