Best Supporting Actor 1993: John Malkovich in In the Line of Fire

John Malkovich received his second Oscar nomination for playing potential presidential assassin Mitch Leary in In the Line of Fire.

In the Line of Fire is a very well made thriller about a man who wishes to assassinate the president (Malkovich) and the secret service agent (Clint Eastwood) who must stop him.

Malkovich finds the right note with Mitch Leary and turns out to be incredibly effective in the role. Malkovich always has the right amount of creepiness and intelligence in his performance to make Leary a very memorable villain. Malkovich never really goes over the top with Leary but rather he keeps just this underscored creepiness that makes his performance work quite well.

Malkovich really is just right in his manner of speaking, to show the insanity of Leary but also that it is a sort of calculated insanity. He is not just crazy but rather someone who knows exactly what he is doing even if what he wishes to do is mad. This makes him all the more chilling, two scenes in particular stand out for me as incredibly chilling because of Malkovich's cold effectiveness. The scenes where he murders the two women and the two hunters.  Not just because of the act but because of that particular way Malkovich handles those scenes. He never starts going crazy but is just cold and merciless in the most disturbing way.

 Malkovich though does not make Leary a one dimensional murderer but also a isolated man who wants to be understood. I really like how Malkovich shows Leary's want for Clint Eastwood's character to understand, how Leary felt cheated by the government. Malkovich makes Leary want for understanding feel believable and honest despite coming from such an odd character. I felt he was exceptionally strong though when he freaks out briefly in particular scenes. Because Malkovich only does this at specific times it shows that Leary is not easily upset but becomes so when he feels betrayed. His coldness at almost all other times is perfectly contrasted by Malkovich, which makes these few "loud" scenes completely appropriate and very effective. Malkovich gives an interesting  performance, and creates memorable character with Mitch Leary.

Best Supporting Actor 1993: Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive

Tommy Lee Jones received his Oscar from his second nomination for playing Marshall Samuel Gerhard in The Fugitive.

The Fugitive is a just fine thriller about a man Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) who is on the run from the law and trying to prove his innocence.

Jones plays the man trying to catch Kimble, who is not a villain but just a federal Marshall doing his job. This basically describes Jones's performance also. He basically is just the man in charge searching for him and he never does anything more than that really. The only thing about the performance that might be considered more is his character comes around to believing that Kimble is innocent. Jones does not really do anything special in terms of showing his character's transition but he still does it well enough. It is something that is a little more to the performance.

Most though he just gives orders and runs after Kimble nothing more nothing less. I suppose he has the right manner in his yelling of orders and questioning people. He certainly seems like the character he is playing. He is completely believable as the federal Marshall. He never does anything wrong in this performance. In fact the way he runs around and looks is just perfect. There is absolutely nothing wrong with his portrayal here of the Marshall and he handles the part well even if he never quite makes it something spectacular though.

Best Supporting Actor 1993

And the Nominees were:

Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List

John Malkovich in In the Line of Fire

Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive

Pete Postlethwaite in In the Name of the Father

Leonardo Dicaprio in What's Eating Gilbert Grape

Who do you Pick? Who do you Predict?

Best Supporting Actor 1954: Results

5. Tom Tully in The Caine Mutiny- Tully does basically nothing with his role which is basically nothing in itself.

4. Edmond O'Brien in The Barefoot Contessa- O'Brien is okay and certainly seems slimey enough, but he never really becomes more than adequate with this performance.

3. Karl Malden in On the Waterfront- Malden is one of three perfect supporting performances from On the Waterfront. He has all the right passion and strength in to make his important scene appropriately powerful.

2. Lee J. Cobb in On the Waterfront- Cobb is perfect as the villain of On the Waterfront, making him a realistic and very effective villain. His role perhaps could have been stock but Cobb never makes it so.

1. Rod Steiger in On the Waterfront- All of three of them are great and perfect in their roles, but Steiger merely gave the emotional punch for me. He is always spot on as Charley, and His performance in the famous cab scene just strikes a perfect emotional note for me and that is what makes Steiger my third actor to win twice.

Deserving Performances:Raymond Burr in Rear Window
Van Johnson in The Caine Mutiny

Best Supporting Actor 1954: Lee J. Cobb in On the Waterfront

Lee J. Cobb received his first Oscar nomination for playing corrupt waterfront boss Johnny Friendly in On the Waterfront.

Lee J. Cobb represents the evil side of the moral scale in On the Waterfront as the arrogant Johnny Friendly. Friendly is very much the low life, and a evil man in basically all regards but Cobb never plays him in one way, nor does he ever seem one dimensional. Like all the other characters he is realistically played by Cobb and despite being evil he still is clearly a person. The well written screenplay and Cobb create a very realistic and memorable villain in Johnny Friendly. I like the fact that it shows Friendly as a man who came up from poor beginnings to evil ends. Cobb makes Friendly fully realized as a selfish man with his own interests, and one who refuses to be part of the rest of the crowd and just another fella.

He can be loud as Friendly and properly so when he needs to. Cobb certainly feels exactly like the mobster you'd expect Friendly to be, loud, but self assured and in control. I find this performance fascinating because the friendliness he does have at time even though it is always a lie. This quieter Friendly is very interesting, because he acts like a fatherly figure to Terry and others when he needs to. Cobb is perfect at being deceitful in the right way. He shows that Friendly acting this way is not all just a trick but rather part of his overall sense of power. Cobb is just as apt at showing Friendly lose his cool. Cobb is perfect in these scene because he does not show him to be a psychopath but rather a cold hearted business man of sorts.  He never still loses his confidence he just has a perfect cold cruelty. Every time he is thinking of something perfectly evil he just has a more realistic evil in his performance. He shows perfectly that getting rid of someone in Johnny Friendly's view is just taking care of business.

The best scene in his performance is the final scene of the movie. This is where Friendly finally completely loses his confidence, and finally just completely almost loses it to Terry Malloy. Cobb is perfect in showing Frendly finally purely losing his business man method, and showing more of the thug he really is. The best though is when he completely loses his control of the waterfront. The way he tries to hold the power but cannot stand loses is completely correct. His pathetic state at the end of the film is really the perfect end to the film. If Cobb breakdown as Friendly was less finely attuned then perhaps the ending would not have quite as satisfying as it is.  But Cobb is spot on with Friendly's loss showing that Friendly truly lost his power, making it not the least bit artificial and help creating the perfect ending scene.

Best Supporting Actor 1954: Rod Steiger in On the Waterfront

Rod Steiger received his first Oscar nomination for playing Charley Malloy, Terry Malloy's brother in On the Waterfront.

Charley stands in a more to the middle point on the moral scale, although learning toward the evil side. Charley though is not really completely evil,  but he certainly is not good either. Steiger is not actually in the film that much. For the early scenes of the film he mostly acts as a yes man of sorts for Johnny Friendly. He is always backing up Friendly, and also trying to convince his brother Terry to stay on the "right" path. Steiger is good at showing that Charley cares about his brother, but at the same time still holds his own interests, and the interests of Friendly first. He has the right amount of cockiness and matter of factness in these scenes.

The early section of his performance is fine but nothing overly special actually, but it does not need to be either. The important part of his performance comes from two scenes that focus quite a bit on Steiger. The first scene being when he tries to convince Friendly that he will talk to Terry. Steiger puts all the right anguish and pain into this scene. He is incredibly effective here, because he shows he truly wants to save his brother but is still interested in himself still. The way he says "he's my brother", is just perfect. Steiger puts the right amount of power into his face, showing all the right fear and and regret. Steiger makes Charley sympathtic in this one scene despite the fact he had been just a yes man before this.

The greatest scene of his performance is the famous car scene. Now this scene might seem just like it is only Brando's scene, but Steiger is also essential to making the scene as powerful as it is. Steiger begins in Charley's earlier fashion trying to act like the confidant deep thinker, trying to convince Terry to not testify. Steiger is just perfect when he realizes Terry will not do it. His sadness and regrests are perfectly conveyed by Steiger. The best though is when Terry can't believe Charley would pull a gun out on him, and when Terry states the famous line. Steiger is perfect when he shows he can barely get the words out and that Charley himself really cannot understand what he is doing. All his smartness of before is perfectly stripped of him by Steiger. Charley breakdown is completely rings true, and is truly effective due to Steiger. He perfectly shows Charley's own regrets and sadness at what he did to his own brother. Steiger reactions to everything Brando does is spot on. Both are finely attuned with each other in this scene, and plays off each other perfectly. Both actors are downright perfect in this scene, making it one of the most powerful I have ever seen. 

Best Supporting Actor 1954: Karl Malden in On the Waterfront

Karl Malden received his second and final Oscar nomination for playing a priest Father Barry in On the Waterfront.

The three Supporting Actor nominations are rather interesting because each represent a different spot on the moral scale. Karl Malden is certainly on the good half of the scale as Father Barry, who is a priest who wants to strive for justice on the docks. Malden gives an incredibly interesting performance, and his performance stands out in a film filled with great performances. Malden is incredibly effective because he does not make Barry into a one dimensional character. He is not just some do gooder only but rather a real person trying to do this good. The good nature of the character never seems forced but rather quite natural due to Malden.

Malden is essential to the film because Barry's purpose to bring over Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) to the good side of things, and to help in the changing of the docks.  Malden's performance consists of a lot of pushing for good from all characters, pushing to get the various characters to stand up to, and to take down the evil Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb). The push involves many invigorated speeches from Malden. The speeches are incredibly powerfully done Malden and each one stands out in the film. He is particularly effective in the Crucifixion speech. Malden puts all the right power and passion in this speech to make the scene truly effective and incredibly memorable. He also allows even greater believability in Malloy's transformation since Malden shows Barry to be a truly inspiring and effecting person.

Malden is always strong in this performance and never fails to be interesting and effective. He standouts even when he is with Marlon Brando which is rather something. He is never forgotten in scenes with Brando and completely stands his own. He takes a good character and puts the right amount of depth into him. He shows the priest is not perfect but rather a man trying to do the right thing. He is not just a speech maker but a man who wants to understand and learn why the dock is the why it is. Malden shows all of this as well as possible. He is always spot on in every scene and he only makes the powerful scenes even more powerful. Malden gives a flawless performance as Father Barry, and his performance perfectly adds to the great On the Waterfront.