Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2004: Results

10. Daniel Wu in New Police Story - Wu makes for a pretty whiny and obnoxious villain. Not in a way that works either. 

Best Scene: Last "duel".

9. Cameron Bright in Birth - Bright delivers on the specific hollow note asked of him but never makes an impact beyond that. 

Best Scene: Being challenged.

8. Tim Meadows in Mean Girls - Meadows finds the right tone for the material hitting his comedic marks while still being believable. 

Best Scene: Riot control.

7. William Hurt in The Village - Hurt manages to deliver what dramatic heft he can from the tricky material even if it only allows him to go so far with it. 

Best Scene: Explaining his decision. 

6. Bud Cort in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou - Cort gets the most out of his unusual role being both funny but also finding his own little arc as the surprisingly supportive "bond company stooge". 

Best Scene: Human being. 

5. Billy Bob Thornton in The Alamo - Thornton is the most interesting part of his film finding honesty in his deconstruction of man who knows he doesn't live up to his "living legend" status. 

Best Scene: Talking to Bowie. 

4. Nick Nolte in Clean - Nolte gives a very quiet and moving portrayal of man managing his own grief while also trying to honestly negotiate between family members dealing with the same loss. 

 

Best Scene: Important talk with his grandson.

3. Alfred Molina in Spider-Man 2 - Molina manages to thrive within the idea of the comic book villain while still providing essential grounding to provide balance. 

Best Scene: Finale. 

2. Peter O'Toole in Troy - O'Toole provides honest gravitas to tricky material and even more importantly emotional truth. 

Best Scene: Priam speaks to Achilles. 

1. Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice - Good predictions Omar, Tony, Bryan, Shaggy, Tybalt, Tahmeed, Ytrewq, Luke, Robert, Harris, Maciej, Tim, RatedRStar, My top three of the year all are dealing with tricky material. O'Toole finding life in material that so many become stiff and awkward from. Hoffman finding genuine comedy even when so much of the attempted comedy around him is falling flat. Then Pacino who is in a slightly different situation in that he's dealing with Shakespeare however trying to accentuate a certain context many would argue was not intended in the original material. Pacino though excelling in this alternative approach and finding humanity within his "villain". Although I still settle on Hoffman. Because honestly being good in the bad comedy is a particularly rare occurrence and it's notable while I still found his film largely unfunny, I still laughed thanks to Hoffman. And really put say Dan Fogler, or even Jack Black into that role, I don't think they would've escaped the mediocrity let alone make the mediocrity into something that actually worked.  

Best Scene: "Do we not Bleed" 

Updated Overall

Next: 1953 Lead

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2004: William Hurt in The Village

William Hurt did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Edward Walker in The Village. 

The Village follows an isolated village surrounded by a forest where strange creatures seem to lurk. 

William Hurt plays the elder of the village, a performer who may have had the best armor to deal with the sometimes ropey dialogue of M. Night Shyamalan, because Hurt himself sometimes has a very peculiar way of delivering lines. And for me, unless he’s lost in space, this works regardless even if most actors you might call it stilted, for Hurt it works and for Hurt I was convinced every word he says in this film which is an achievement in itself, particularly when also very talented actors like Joaquin Phoenix and Sigourney Weaver I found fumbled a bit when trying to get every word across. Hurt handles it with ease. Hurt is effective in doing his best to essentially earn the twist in playing the man who is part of the village, bringing the general needed gravitas as the elder so to speak. What Hurt does so well is play very much with the twist in mind throughout the film and more than anyone earns in his performance. As there is the sense of the weight of the lie in everything that he does, even as he tries to keep this general calm of the man projecting concern and strength for his community. 

Within the moments where the young village stalwart Lucius (Joaquin Phoenix) decides that he should try to leave the village for better medicines, Hurt’s reactions within this area with a combination of concern and admiration. The former even not for the man’s life but rather something else that is nagging at him. When even Lucius attempts to make the trip unauthorized, Edward doesn’t react with anger rather appreciation for the bravery of the young man. Hurt’s reaction in the moment portrays honest affection for the spirit of the young man and really even a sense of hope for the future. The main crux of the story comes as Lucius is severely injured by the mentally unwell Noah (Adrien Brody), leaving Edward’s blind daughter Ivy (Bryce Dallas Howard) to want to save him. Coming to the revelations of the piece, though again I’ll credit Hurt for very much wanting to do the work to try to provide a bit of depth within the context of the twist. Including when Edward tells Ivy of his own father, a financial wizard who was murdered for his wealth. Hurt brings within the delivery of this speech frankly a sense of modernity, a hint of nostalgia for his dad, but also a very strong sense of motivation for the man’s rejection for the rest of the world. Leading to the twist which felt unavoidable at the time of the film’s release, as Edward shows her that the strange creatures lurking in the woods are in fact costumes the elders wear to keep their children to stay within the village. Hurt even within this revelation even excels in his almost half embarrassed/half calming declaration that it is “farce” as he supports his daughter breaking the rules and leaving the forest.

 Leading to what really is Hurt’s standout scene where the rest of the elders come to learn of the choice and some of them severely question the break of their oaths. Hurt is terrific in the scene because what he calls upon is this old passion in his performance as he speaks not only of the crimes of Noah, but the hope of his daughter and Lucius. Bringing within it not just a sense of love and concern for the future, but also the sense of conviction of someone who is reckoning essentially against the strictures of his old choice and instead supporting the fundamental spirit of why he made that original choice. It’s a strong scene for Hurt, one that naturally reveals this history professor who made the decision to go with others to hide essentially in the forest away from society to make some idealized version of society to avoid those ills, now dealing with the ills regardless. Hurt makes the pain of dealing with these realizations feel absolutely real and creates something tangible in the emotional strain he brings in every word noting the man's true passion to hold onto the idea of innocence behind the village meanwhile allowing the fundamental rules of the village to be broken.  It’s there and it is only a shame that this is basically the end of the notion and not something the film deals with beyond a certain point. Which is unfortunate as the film might’ve had something if it continued in the direction alluded to by this scene, but basically the film is wrapping up so that’s that. Regardless, Hurt delivers on alluding to that potential, in creating a performance that not only naturally supports the twist also weaves within it some genuine emotion. I will say it is unfortunate the film isn't better because what Hurt does is create a greater promise within the premise, which sadly the premise as is only allows Hurt to go so far. 

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2004

 And the Nominees Were Not:

Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice

Peter O'Toole in Troy

William Hurt in The Village

Nick Nolte in Clean

Billy Bob Thornton in The Alamo

Predict These Five, Those Five Or Both.

Tim Meadows in Mean Girls

Daniel Wu in New Police Story

Cameron Bright in Birth

Alfred Molina in Spider-Man 2

Bud Cort in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou

Alternate Best Actor 1981: Results

5. William Hurt in Body Heat- Hurt is good when he allowed to be, but much of the time it seems the filmmakers were more interested in his physical form than his acting ability.

Best Scene: Ned Racine looks over Matty's yearbook.

4. Klaus Maria Brandauer- Brandauer gives a very daring performance in his portrayal of the growing compromises of an artist that oddly brings out a greater humanity.

Best Scene: Hendrik Hoefgan tries to plead for one of his fellow artists.

3. Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark- Ford gives a great performance creating his most iconic role with his funny, thrilling and all together entertaining portrayal of Indiana Jones.

Best Scene: The opening quest.

2. Jürgen Prochnow in Das Boot- Prochnow's performance is a spectacular based on being a gritty face of reality aboard submarine on the wrong side of a war. 

Best Scene: The Captain watches the helpless men drown.

1. Mel Gibson in Gallipoli- Good Predictions Koook160, Psifonian, and RatedRStar. All I can say is my top four is an extraordinary group, but I'm going with the performance that I got the strongest emotional reaction from, which is really saying something considering I reacted pretty strongly to all of them. Gibson's performance though is an amazing piece acting, the early part of his performance being Gibson at his charismatic best in his depiction of the cynical Frank, and the end being such a heartbreaking portrayal of such a man having to face the harsh realities of World War I trench warfare.  

Best Scene: Frank and Archy both fail to complete their final run.

Overall Rank:

1. Bob Hoskins in The Long Good Friday
2. John Heard in Cutter's Way
3. Mel Gibson in Gallipoli
4. Jürgen Prochnow in Das Boot
5. James Caan in Thief
6. Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark 
7. Klaus Maria Brandauer in Mephisto
8. Dudley Moore in Arthur
9. Ian Charleson in Chariots of Fire
10. Ben Cross in Chariots of Fire
11. John Travolta in Blow Out
12. Michel Serrault in Garde à Vue
13. Robert Duvall in True Confessions
14. Alberto Sordi in Il Marchese del Grillo
15. Keith Carradine in Southern Comfort
16. Mark Lee in Gallipoli
17. Armin Mueller-Stahl in Lola
18. Powers Boothe in Southern Comfort
19. Henry Fonda in On Golden Pond
20. Herbert Grönemeyer in Das Boot
21. Lino Ventura in Garde à Vue
22. Jeremy Irons in The French-Lieutenant's Woman
23. Sam Neill in Possession
24. Ugo Tognazzi in Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man
    
25. Mario Adorf in Lola
26. Philippe Noiret in Coup de Torchon
27. Andre Gregory in My Dinner With Andre
28. Mel Gibson in Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
29. Steve Martin in Pennies From Heaven
30. Richard Dreyfuss in Whose Life Is It Anways?
31. Kurt Russell in Escape from New York
32. Timothy Hutton in Taps 
33. William Hurt in Body Heat
34. Donald Sutherland in Eye of the Needle
35. David Naughton in An American Werewolf in London
36. John Gordon Sinclair in Gregory's Girl
37. Sean Connery in Outland  
38. Jeff Bridges in Cutter's Way
39. Fernando Ramos da Silva in Pixote
40. Craig Warnock in Time Bandits
41. Treat Williams in Prince of the City  
42. Marian Opania in Man of Iron
43. Jerzy Radziwiłowicz in Man of Iron
44. Carlos Alberto Riccelli in They Don't Wear Black Tie
    
45. Nigel Terry in Excalibur
46. John Belushi in Continental Divide
47. Mickey Rooney in The Fox and the Hound
48. Wallace Shawn in My Dinner With Andre
    
49. Bruce Campbell in Evil Dead
50. Mel Brooks in History of the World Part I
51. Kurt Russell in The Fox and the Hound
52. Harold Ramis in Stripes
53. Bill Murray in Stripes
54. Frédéric Andréi in Diva
55. William Hurt in Eyewitness
56. Jack Nicholson in The Postman Always Rings Twice
57. Peter MacNicol in Dragonslayer
58. Makiko Shibata in Muddy River
59. Diogo Dória in Francisca
60. Paul Newman in Absence of Malice 
61. Robert De Niro in True Confessions
62. Harry Hamlin in Clash of the Titans 
63. Warren Beatty in Reds 
64. Roger Moore in For Your Eyes Only
65. Sylvester Stallone in Nighthawks
66. Sylvester Stallone in Victory
67. Stacy Keach in Butterfly
68. Richard Benjamin in Saturday the 14th 
69. Andy Kaufman in Heartbeeps
70. Stephen Lack in Scanners 

Next Year: 1981 Supporting 

Alternate Best Actor 1981

And the Nominees Were Not:

Jürgen Prochnow in Das Boot

Klaus Maria Brandauer in Mephisto

Mel Gibson in Gallipoli

William Hurt in Body Heat

Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark

Alternate Best Actor 1988: Results

5. Forest Whitaker in Bird- Whitaker gives a performance that combines the charm and pain of his character well.

Best Scene: Bird's death. 

4. William Hurt in The Accidental Tourist- Hurt is very strong here by realizing his character's depression while still giving a charming and sometimes humorous performance.

Best Scene:  Macon chooses Muriel.

3. John Malkovich in Danger Liaisons- Malkovich takes an unorthodox but effective approach to his womanizer character by stressing the mechanics of the man's method.

Best Scene:  Valmont tries to reject Madame de Tourvel.

2. Bob Hoskins in Who Framed Roger Rabbit- Hoskins is terrific in the lead of this film interacting perfectly with the strange cartoon characters throughout the film as well giving an entertaining and sometimes powerful performance entirely on its own as well.

Best Scene:  Eddie tells Roger what happened to his brother.

1. Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers- Good Prediction Michael Patison, Mark, and Maciej. Well it should be no surprise to anyone that Jeremy Irons wins this year. Although I liked all these performances Irons stands far and above as the best. He is simply incredible in his portrayal of the twins of his film and their interconnected world. Irons here not only gives one but two great characterizations here finding the subtitles that differentiate the two perfectly as well as creating a fascinating connection between them.

Best Scene:  Beverly and Elliot finally separate.

Overall Rank:

1. Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers
2. Klaus Maria Brandauer in Hanussen
3. John Neville in The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 
4. Willem Dafoe in The Last Temptation of Christ
5. Bob Hoskins in Who Framed Roger Rabbit
6. Eric Bogosian in Talk Radio
7. Bill Murray in Scrooged
8. Charles Grodin in Midnight Run
9. Robert De Niro in Midnight Run 
10. John Malkovich in Dangerous Liaisons
11. William Hurt in The Accidental Tourist
12. Gene Hackman in Mississippi Burning 
13. Michael Keaton in Clean and Sober
14. Bruce Willis in Die Hard  
15. Keith Carradine in The Moderns 
16. James Woods in Cop
17. Joe Mantegna in Things Change
18. Steve Martin in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
19. Michael Caine in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels 
20. Harrison Ford in Frantic
21. Robert Duvall in Colors
22. Daniel Day-Lewis in The Unbearable Lightness of Being  
23. Don Ameche in Things Change
24. Michael J. Fox in Bright Lights Big City
25. Forest Whitaker in Bird 
26. John Cleese in A Fish Called Wanda 
27. Jeff Bridges in Tucker A Man and His Dream
28. River Phoenix in Running on Empty 
29. Mel Gibson in Tequila Sunrise  
30. Isaach de Bankolé in Chocolat
31. Leslie Nielsen in Naked Gun 
32. Tom Cruise in Rain Man 
33. Harvey Fierstein in Torch Song Trilogy
34. James Woods in The Boost
35. Sam Neill in A Cry in the Dark
36. Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu in The Vanishing
37. Eddie Murphy in Coming to America
38. Edward James Olmos in Stand and Deliver
39. Kevin Costner in Bull Durham
40. Gene Bervoets in The Vanishing
41. Andy Lau in As Tears Go By
42. Sean Penn in Colors 
43. Sidney Poitier in Shoot to Kill
44. Tom Hanks in Big
45. Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man
46. Tom Berenger in Shoot to Kill 
47. Kurt Russell in Tequila Sunrise
48. Ray Liotta in Dominick and Eugene
49. Alec Baldwin in Beetlejuice
50. Warwick Davis in Willow
51. Emilio Estevez in Young Guns
52. Richard Dreyfuss in Moon Over Parador  
53. Francois Cluzet in Chocolat
54. Tom Hulce in Dominick and Eugene 
55. Navin Chowdry in Madame Sousatzka
56. Chris Sarandon in Child's Play 
57. Sylvester Stallone in Rambo III
58. Matthew Modine in Married to the Mob
59. Roddy Piper in They Live
60. Clint Eastwood in The Dead Pool
61. Brad Dourif in Child's Play
62. Jim Varney in Ernest Saves Christmas
63. Alex Vincent in Child's Play

Next Year: 1988 Supporting

Alternate Best Actor 1988: William Hurt in The Accidental Tourist

William Hurt did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Macon Leary in The Accidental Tourist.

The Accidental Tourist is an enjoyable film about a writer of travel guides who deals with personal troubles after the sudden death of his son.

William Hurt had received three Oscar nominations in a row. He found himself nominated from 85 to 87, but he was not nominated this year despite the fact that his film was nominated for best picture. It seems the academy, as well as most everyone else just decided this was the drop off point for William Hurt as a leading man for whatever reason. After this none of his leading performances made a stamp in the awards season and he did not find himself Oscar nominated again until he was well embedded as a character actor instead. His snub here really did seem to mean more than just not being nominated for an Oscar honestly.

It is a real shame though that William Hurt was forgotten for his leading man work here as I have to say I really like Hurt as a leading man. Hurt is just has a certain screen presence that creates a great deal of likability which is most certainly true of this performance. He is very unassuming as the travel guide writer Macon Leary, and this really works very well for the part. Hurt is careful in his portrayal in he emotes just enough in his part, in that he is someone we can easily follow through his personal story as he pulls us into his character's troubles rather than pushing away with them as one easily could do.

The pressing element on Macon is the death of his son which Hurt portrays marvelously because it is something that he realizes in the subtleties of his performance. There is a depression in his performance, but Hurt is terrific becuase he shows the depression without this being left as a depressed performance. He is very moving in his rather short moments that are very underplayed by him.  These scenes are effective because he brings to life the sadness in Macon from the death of his son as something that has settled within to a certain point that it leaves him not a man of constant overwhelming grief, but instead an internalized grief that leaves him in his haunted state. 

One could argue this film is in a part a romantic comedy involving Macon's relationship with his recently divorced wife Sara (Kathleen Turner), and his relationship with a stalker like dog trainer Muriel (Geena Davis). Hurt though does not at all seem like the romantic leading man with his performance here. In his scenes with both Davis and Turner Hurt does not at all portray the romantic angle in really any scene with them. This actually works in favor to his character and the film as he portrays both relationships in a most unorthodox fashion. In both situations though Hurt portrays Macon as a haunted man attempting reaching to find some happiness, but is really unable to break the certain malaise that he cannot escape from.

In his relationship with Turner's Sara, Hurt is effective in portraying the distance that was caused by the death of their son as well as by her own decision to separate at the beginning of the film. When she tries to reconnect with Macon Hurt is quite good because he shows the appropriate familiarity with her that explains why he returns to her, but he is strong in his ability to create that distance that never does leave him when he is with her. The other relationship with Muriel the dog trainer is very different but Hurt handles it equally well. In the beginning Hurt is quietly amusing with how taken aback Macon is by her persistence. Even when he lives with her Hurt is consistent portraying Macon as looking for something but still not really finding it.

Hurt knows how to portray Macon's very slow change as in his scenes as he slowly opens up, Hurt portrays perhaps a happiness but not one that can ever overcome his sadness as well as in equal measure a certain confusion over what he really wants. The confusion and the sadness do not really subside in one moment but Hurt instead more powerfully shows it to be something that slowly wears away. His final moment of the film, in fact the very final shot, is just perfectly played by Hurt as he shows finally the persistence of Muriel allows him to break out of his sadness with a simple but powerful smile. This is a very strong performance by William Hurt that is a moving depiction of his character's plight, as well as more simply as a charming leading man.

Alternate Best Actor 1988

And the Nominees Were Not:

Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers

John Malkovich in Dangerous Liaisons

William Hurt in The Accidental Tourist

Bob Hoskins in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Forest Whitaker in Bird 

Best Supporting Actor 2005: Results

5. George Clooney in Syriana- Clooney never is believable as a world weary CIA operative, but worse than that he fails to act as the anchor to for the audience he is suppose to be.

4. Paul Giamatti in Cinderella Man- Giamatti gives a good performance even if his character is limited. He shows both the friend in his boxing manager character as well as the furious promoter and showman.

3. Matt Dillon in Crash- Dillon is actually quite effective, and realistic in the role as a racist police officer who still manages to pull through when needed. The only problem is the nature of the film leaves his character with too little to do to make the impact Dillon indicates he could have made in the scenes he does have.

2. Jake Gyllenhaal in Brokeback Mountain- Although his characterization at the beginning of the film is a bit shaky and inconsistent Gyllenhaal certainly makes up for it later as he realizes the frustrations and pain in his character that lead him down a road to bitterness.

1. William Hurt in A History Violence- Good Prediction RatedRStar. Although he most certainly has the least amount of screen time for me he has the most impact. He makes an effective antagonist and actually turns his one scene role into an actual character particularly in Hurt's realization of his character's peculiar relationship with his brother.

Deserving Performances:
Ed Harris in A History of Violence
Mickey Rourke in Sin City

Best Supporting Actor 2005: William Hurt in A History of Violence

William Hurt received his fourth Oscar nomination for portraying Richie Cusack in A History of Violence.

A History of Violence tells the story of Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) a small town family man who becomes a hero by killing to violent men. After killing the men and gaining media attention he finds men looking for him who believe him to be someone else a man involved with violence and crime Joey Cusack.

I must say it is interesting that William Hurt was the actor recognized for this film. After all Ed Harris gives his career best work as a crime boss who is one of the first men who comes looking for Tom. He has a good deal of screen time whereas William Hurt has a slim amount of screen time that makes up only a scene worth of material as Richie the brother of Joey who also is involved with organized crime. Hurt and Harris both had been nominated several times before, perhaps they felt they wanted to see Hurt again after his long absence, or perhaps it is because the academy honestly thought he was just that good in his short single scene performance.

William Hurt I do feel is a bit of an underrated actor these days as he really is one of the best when given the right role. This is not to say Hurt can't give a bad performance as he most certainly can, but in my experience with Hurt performances he really tends to be bad only when he honestly doesn't put very much effort into his performance like his performance in Lost in Space. Nevertheless I am always interested somewhat in a William Hurt performance especially if he really throws himself into a role and he most certainly does in this role as Richie Cusack. Richie is only on screen for a few minutes, Hurt certainly knows this and does his best to make the most of it.

Hurt never for moments tries not to make an impact with his performance as a character who is built quite a bit actually. We know he exists and is another threat to Tom's life that forces him to directly face his past. Hurt really was the perfect choice to portray the single scene character that is Richie since Hurt knows how to make an impact with a single scene. Hurt doesn't waste a moment of his screen time instantly driving hard into turning Richie into a full fledged character as well as creating a memorable visceral performance that will standout despite being very very brief.

Hurt most certainly does not underplay the role in the least, but I never said an actor can't go for a broader and bigger approach in a performance in some of those performances that I have criticized before. If an actor is talented enough and knows just how and when and how to do it they can succeed exceedingly well by taking such a risk with their performance. For me this is most certainly true for William Hurt as Richie here he frankly does not have time to underplay as Richie, Hurt knows this and instead strikes hard and fast with his performance and always tries to be the center of attention.

Hurt is excellent actually as he shows from just his first moment a certain relationship with Mortensen as Richie's brother. Hurt does convey a certain warmness and understanding with his brother that effectively gives a hint into their history together. Hurt plays the scene well as a demented older brother the whole time. it works because Hurt always talks to Mortensen like any older brother disappointed in his younger brother, although certainly to an extreme, but Hurt always shows Richie having a certain familiarity with his brother even if he does not fully understand him.

When the mobster comes out in Richie Hurt is at first quite chilling in the way he coldly indicates to kill Tom without much hesitation, but there is always the sense that he does not exactly love the idea of killing his brother. Afterward though when nothing goes as planned Hurt is darkly comic and effectively so in showing almost that as a mobster everything has been pretty easy. Hurt humorously shows the complete disblief in Richie at his men's utter incompetence. I particularly love his last reaction where he almost tries to shrug after his murder attempt as just being an older brother. This is a short performance by Hurt but a memorable and enjoyable one. In his one scene he holds the screen and surprisingly realizes Richie into a character of his very own not just a simple one scene antagonist.

Best Supporting Actor 2005

 And the Nominees Were:

William Hurt in A History of Violence

Jack Gyllenhaal in Brokeback Mountain

George Clooney in Syriana

Paul Giamatti in Cinderella Man

Matt Dillon in Crash

Best Actor 1986: Results

5. Dexter Gordon in 'Round Midnight- Dexter Gordon most likely was only nominated for being Dexter Gordon, as he gives a entirely uncharismatic performance, that has not a single powerful or poignant moment.

4. Paul Newman in The Color of Money- Newman is actually good enough, and has one pretty great scene that almost seems to hearken back to his amazing performance in The Hustle.

3. William Hurt in Children of a Lesser God- Hurt does not have the most complex of characters, but still manages to give a very good performance. This is because of his outstanding charisma here, as well as his terrific chemistry with his leading lady Marlee Matlin.

2. Bob James Woods in Salvador- giving a very memorable as well a manic performance that works surprisingly well considering the type of film that he is in. Woods manages to both be a real man in a horrible situation, but also manages to give a fascinating portrait of a very original character as well.

1. Hoskins in Mona Lisa- Hoskins gives a very powerful performance that certainly overcomes some of the weaker material in the film. Hoskins turns his character into an interesting man, that slowly delves deeper into the truth of the man, well falling deeper into a situation. It is a complex portrait that Hoskins pulls off very well.

Deserving Performances:
(I have seen the Mosquito Coast, Sid and Nancy, as well as the Fly, more than ten years ago each so I really need to rewatch each before I can put them here.)

Best Actor 1986: William Hurt in Children of a Lesser God

William Hurt received his second consecutive Oscar nomination for portraying James Leeds in Children of a Lesser God.

Children of the Lesser God depicts the relationship between a teacher for the deaf, and a troubled deaf woman.

William Hurt portrays the teacher for blind students. Hurt has exceedingly large amount of energy in the role that works perfectly for the earnest character of James Leeds.William Hurt is just great in his early moments and his first time in class with the deaf students. It is actually quite enjoyable to see William Hurt teach in these scenes because of all the energy he throws into them.

Hurt really shows that Leeds loves to teach the students, as well as desperately wants to help them get along in life the best that he can. It could have been easy to either have been underwhelming or overwhelming in theses scenes and seemed disingenuous but Hurt never seems that way for a moment. Hurt shows that everything does come from an honest want to help the kids nothing else. 

James Leeds finds more to do than just teach the kids when he comes across the school cleaner Sarah Norman (Marlee Matlin) who was former student of the school. Their relationship together pretty much makes up for most of the film, as well as most of the film. It is a good thing than that Hurt and Matlin have terrific chemistry together.

Both actors form a fascinating dynamic with one another with Hurt being enthusiastically hopeful most of the time as James, where Matlin holds it back and is very defensive. Hurt though shows that Leeds honestly does care about her, and slowly shows that she means even more to James than just being a case of a troubled deaf woman, but perhaps he loves her as well. Hurt is excellent in portraying this transition and does not make it seem at all forced.

The eventual eagerness on Sarah's side though actually is made understandable, and natural by Hurt as well. The reason for this is Hurt is incredibly charming as James. Hurt here always conveys a  great deal of likability throughout his performance. Hurt is charismatic throughout his performance, and he convincingly portrays James' absolute conviction to the relationship through some rather simple honesty. 

There relationship as it grows is rather troubled because of her troubled past, and her belief that James wants deaf people to be more like hearing people. Hurt shines in there more troubled moments as well becuase he does show that James is not a perfect man, a good one sure, but not a perfect one. His scenes of anger, and argument with Sarah are again realistically portrayed by Hurt because he shows them as part of James' character.

Hurt shows James is not quite perfect through these scenes, but not bad. He rather just shows that James does not know everything, and the troubles slowly exasperate him as they would any man. these scenes work extraordinarily well because Hurt is able to bring out these these natural reactions, and natural transitions out of his characterization without fault. 

This really is not the most complex of characters, certainly not as complex as say Luis Molina, but  that does not deter at all the power of Hurt's work. Hurt gives an effective, charismatic performance. He is the perfect romantic lead in this film, because he acts appropriately appealing throughout as well as stays natural throughout. Most of all he succeeds in having terrific chemistry with his leading lady making their relationship one that is moving and memorable.

Best Actor 1986

And the Nominees Were:

William Hurt in Children of A Lesser God

Bob Hoskins in Mona Lisa

Paul Newman in The Color of Money

Dexter Gordon in Round Midnight

James Woods in Salvador

Best Actor 1987

5. Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam- Williams is given the right part that allows him to show his comedic ability in this film, it is not anything great, but it still is an effective enough performance.

4. Marcello Mastroianni in Dark Eyes- Mastroianni puts a whole lot of effort in his big romantic performance, some of his performance does not entirely pay off, but enough does for this to be overall a charming as well as tragic performance.

3. Michael Douglas in Wall Street- Douglas' Gordon Gekko is not the most three dimensional character, but Douglas is properly commanding and convincing in his entirely villainous role.

2. William Hurt in Broadcast News- Hurt's performance is not all that interesting, but it does fulfill the requirement of his role as the rather shallow newscaster. 

1. Jack Nicholson in Ironweed- Nicholson for me this year stands far and above the rest of the performances. His performance as the homeless alcoholic Francis Phelan is a sad, haunting, memorable performance, that easily is my choice.

Deserving Performances:
John Lone in The Last Emperor