Best Actor 1940: Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator

Charlie Chaplin received his second, or only acting nomination (depending how one looks at his nomination of sorts for the Circus) for portraying the dictator Adenoid Hynkel, and a Jewish barber in  The Great Dictator.

The Great Dictator is a comedy  which satirizes Adolf Hitler,  and was made back when Adolf Hitler was still around.

Charlie Chaplin portrays a dual role of course so it is best to examine the two performances separately. Firstly Adenoid Hynkel clearly a parody of Adolf Hitler, especially since Chaplin's on screen persona strongly resembled Hitler. He plays this half his performance entirely for laughs. I would say he does succeed in doing this, although the question is how much of the humor comes from his direction and how much does it come from his actual performance.

For example his Hynkel speech that opens his scenes as Hynkel is certainly enjoyable. He is certainly good at being satirical in his over the top speeches that do satirize Hitler's speeches quite well. I will say though that the funniest part of this scene though is the translators quiet responses to Hynkel's overly emotional statements, which certianly are not part of Chaplin's performance but rather his script and direction.

I will say his performance does go back and forth to the matter of the comedy of Hynkel. It is always in part with many of the crazy things Hynkel does, but I will give Chaplin most certianly credit for his physical movements, and comedic timing which are both strong. I will say also though that Hynkel is not a particularly consistent character since after all shouldn't he have the Hitler voice all the time, and not revert to Chaplin's voice, but hey its a comedy so it really is fine anyways.

Now how about his performance as the Jewish Barber. Well I will say he does contrast the two characters well, showing Hynkel to be forceful but the Barber to be very restrained and quiet. The Barber is made certianly a nice little character by Chaplin. He is a charming nice man who really wants nothing more than to have a quiet life.

With the Jewish Barber I would again say the comedy that comes from his performance does come from both from his direction, but also most certainly his comedic reactions. I would say this is shown best with the scene where the five men are going to be chose for a suicidal mission by which one finds a coin in their pudding, but the problem is there is a coin in each of their puddings. The set up is funny, the music Chaplin uses is funny, as well is the reaction of the other men, but Chaplin's reactions are great as well, so his performance does compliment, or complete much of the comedy from Chaplin's direction.

The Barber is not a particularly complicated character though, he is just a nice little man with a nice little barbershop and a nice little lover interest. Chaplin though is good at being nice though. He is only really required to do more than be funny and nice, in his final scene. The final scene being a big dramatic speech not only to end the film, but also gives a message to the viewing audience basically to fight against the way of the Nazis. Chaplin's performance of the speech is intense, passionate, and powerful. I must say it really is technically out of character, but hey it does work, and he was doing it for a good cause so I really cannot fault him too much.

Overall this is a performance I admire very much, as well as enjoy. The only question is how much great acting does Chaplin technically do. Well that it hard to say, but being funny should not be overlooked I think, and I felt he was funny here. He did not make too really complex characters, but rather two effective ones still. He is not always consistent with either characters, but I feel these inconsistencies do work in his favor. I will say I am not completely sure of this rating but I will stay with it nonetheless, because although I might not let other actors get away with some of what he does, I also do not think any other actor really could have given a performance as effective as him in either part.

Best Actor 1940: Raymond Massey in Abe Lincoln in Illinois

Raymond Massey received his only Oscar nomination for portraying Abraham Lincoln in Abe Lincoln in Illinois.

Abe Lincoln is a standard 40's biography film about Lincoln's early life to his success as a passionate politician.

Raymond Massey's portrayal of Lincoln is certainly aided by Massey's physique. He is quite believable as Lincoln, since he does resemble him quite well, which certainly does add to his portrayal. I will say though that this believability is not throughout his performance because at the beginning of the film he must portray the pretty young Lincoln. His early scene in the home is a bit silly, and Lincoln performance can't really be entirely realistic.

After this initial scene though Massey is able to come back well enough still, even though he does use a very particular voice as Lincoln. It is a bit unusual most certainly, but Lincoln was an unusual man, so I did feel it worked in that aspect. Although again as the younger exuberant Lincoln the over 40 Massey is not entirely believable but he still is fine and better than his first scene.

This is a 40's biography film so one thing that must be remembered is that there really is not too much negative material to found about Lincoln in the film. He is portrayed almost as an entirely great guy especially in the early scene of the film where he tries to find his place in the world. Lincoln is portrayed as properly nice by Massey and charming in a down home sort of way without laying on the niceness of Lincoln too much.

As the film goes on the believability of Massey certianly does grow. Massey is particularly good at showing the passion and strength behind Lincoln as he fights for the causes he believes in. He is particularly good in certian moments such as the debate scene with Stephen Douglas for Senator. Massey as Lincoln puts the right strong by respectful passion into his speech, which has the proper, power and strength.

Surprisingly enough there is just a little bit of a darker side shown involving Lincoln in the film which is his romantic life. He first has his loving but tragic relationship with Ann Rutledge , where Massey is properly charming, as well as properly saddened when tragedy hits. Lincoln though marries the cold Mary Todd. Massey shows actually shows a colder side of Lincoln in regards to this relationship that does work quite well without overriding the more heroic aspects of the character.

Overall I found this to be a fairly good performance as Abraham Lincoln. Not always completely believable in every aspect of Lincoln, but manages to be very strong in others. I will say it is a mixed performance that is I think more good, despite some lacking qualities. Massey does manage to still make an interesting portrait of Lincoln, that I would have actually liked to seen his Lincoln's journey during the civil war to his eventual death.

Best Actor 1940

And the Nominees Were

Henry Fonda in The Grapes of Wrath

Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator

James Stewart in The Philadelphia Story

Laurence Olivier in Rebecca

Raymond Massey in Abe Lincoln in Illinois

Best Actor 1960: Results

5. Trevor Howard in Sons and Lovers- I like that Trevor Howard tries to get something out of his fairly simplistic character, but he just is simply not given enough to do.

4. Spencer Tracy in Inherit the Wind- Tracy does a lot of big acting court room scenes, as well as believable mannerisms, he does both well, but not that well. And yes that's 9 losses to 0 wins for Tracy.

3. Jack Lemmon in The Apartment- Jack Lemmon gives a charming, and humorous performance, that simply is enjoyable to watch. He creates a character and performance that is just great to follow through on his corporate misadventures.

2. Burt Lancaster in Elmer Gantry- Lancaster's performance is a terrific one because of his fascinating creation of Elmer Gantry. His wild energy is just perfect for the wild Gantry. Lancaster completely throws himself into his role creating a compelling character, with a fascinating combination of sarcasm, and earnestness.

1. Laurence Olivier in The Entertainer- I will admit this one really was pretty easy for me to choose. Olivier stood out for me as the best with his outstanding portrait of the on his last legs Vaudevillian Archie Rice. Olivier portrait of Rice's facades he puts on to hide the truth are perfectly handled by Olivier, and his moments where he shows the real honest Rice are incredible.

Deserving Performances:
Anthony Perkins in Psycho

Best Actor 1960: Jack Lemmon in The Apartment

Jack Lemmon received his third Oscar nomination for portraying C.C. "Bud" Baxter in The Apartment.

The Apartment is the enjoyable story of an office worker who lends out his apartment for his superiors extramarital affairs in the hope of promotions. 

Jack Lemmon is an actor who I do believe can go over the top, and get quite obnoxious particularly in some of his comedic performance. In the Apartment Jack Lemmon though finds the right tone for his performance throughout, never taking it too far, but keeping at the right pitch. I certainly liked his C.C. Baxter, and simply found him to be a nice fellow to follow through his rather unusual method of corporate success. Lemmon makes Baxter story a nice one we can follow and can empathize with. Lemmon does a good job of bringing us into his story, and simply enjoy what he does, and has done to him. 

Lemmon has the right charm in this performance, and has the right comedic timing to be fully enjoyable. He never overstates a line, or emphasizes the wrong moment in his performance. He handles everything quite well and does his best to extract as the right amount of humor from each scene. Lemmon also finds the right tone to bring the more dramatic aspects of the film in with the comedic ones, so they naturally coincide. Thinking about it, it would be rather difficult subject matter to have an attempted suicide in the film but Lemmon knows how to play the scene to put the right gravitas to it without making it become too serious throwing off the comedy.

His chemistry with Shirley Maclaine is good, but I think the romance really mostly works because of Lemmon. He never really becomes an overly romantic figure in the film, instead he just shows the right sweetness and charm that works far better. Baxter's own internal revelation of how much he likes Maclaine's Fran, is subtly handled by Lemmon leading to his rejection of his bosses offer natural and satisfying. Lemmon could easily have gone too far with any part of his performance, but he always is enjoyable and charming. Lemmon just makes it a delight to be with him in this film, which in turn makes the film a delight to watch, it is a humorous very enjoyable performance, and possibly my favorite comedic performance from Lemmon.

Best Actor 1960: Trevor Howard in Sons and Lovers

Trevor Howard received his first Oscar nomination for portraying coal miner Walter Morel in Sons and Lovers.

The film tells the story of a young man Paul Morel (Dean Stockwell) who is an aspiring artist who comes from a poor mining town.

It is quite strange that Trevor Howard was nominated for this film since Howard actually does not portray the lead role of the film, but is rather a supporting role as the father of Paul. It is not even a domineering supporting role, the father really on a whole is not given very much time at all, and scenes that he is in tend to focus away from him. Howard though is an actor I tend to like almost whenever I see him, due to his unique screen presence. Howard though is given very little in terms of character since Walter is a typical cliched father who does not support his sons artistic aspirations. He drinks, and he yells with his wife (Wendy Hiller) about what he sees, believing it was her fault his sons turned out the way they did.

Howard though does try his best to make something out of his lacking character. He does not make his typical character one dimensional. In the little time he is given Howard shows that he really does care for his family, but shows a sadness which he covers with anger, that not only does his son not want to follow in his footsteps, but also that there is something wrong about his footsteps. Howard is only really given one scene that focuses on him all that much which is very early in the film,  when his only son who actually followed in his footsteps dies in the mines. Howard is good in showing the honest grief for his only son who wished to continue on his work.

Howard I think with Hiller are good in showing the long history of their characters' marriage despite barely given anytime to develop it. They properly showed that there fights are almost routine. This does allow Howard a brief good scene, near the end of the film where he does show his love for his wife once more, but Howard does not forget the character still showing their poor history at the same time. He has one more good scene where he tells his son not to let his mother down, like he did. He again shows honest emotion, and a little more to his character. Howard I did like when he was on screen, and I did like that he tried to show more to his simple character. Unfortunately the film refused to give him more of a character which possibly could have enabled a great performance.

Best Actor 1960: Burt Lancaster in Elmer Gantry

Burt Lancaster won his Oscar from his second nomination for portraying the titular role in Elmer Gantry.

Elmer Gantry has significantly grown on me on this viewing, and it certainly is interesting, and a much better film that Inherit the Wind which deals with some similar subject matter.

Lancaster has quite the challenge in this role, because the film, I believe, never portrays Gantry as either a good or a bad man entirely. Instead it more of simply portrays him, requiring what the audience thinks of him mostly to Lancaster himself. Lancaster as Gantry takes his wild man Lancaster approach rather than his straight man Lancaster approach, which works quite well for Elmer Gantry. Gantry begins in the film as a complete rapscallion to say the least, a womanizing drinker, moving from town to town. Gantry wild man energetic performance works quite well for the fast moving Gantry, and he perfectly shows the unstable nature of Elmer. He shows the right amount of sheer fun in his performance that of course works as well as possibly for the joy seeking Gantry.

Gantry goes and joins up with a Evangelical religious group in an apparent lust after their leader Sister Sharon Falconer (Jean Simmons, who should have been nominated). Now what I do find fascinating is the film says very little about Gantry motives early on in these moments, but Lancaster is completely able to fully show without words what is going on in Elmer's head. To get deeper in, and closer to Sharon, Gantry starts preaching as well right alongside here, bringing the fire and brimstone to the sermons. All of the sermon scenes really are incredible moments for Lancaster as Gantry. He is simply incredible and believable in his forceful preachings. Lancaster is terrific because he completely throws himself into the sermons both mentally, and physically. Each sermon by themselves are masterful moments by Lancaster.

The validity and truthfulness of Gantry and his organization is quickly questioned though, and he must defeat a critical journalist. Lancaster is terrific in this scene, as he slowly picks apart the writer, to bring him to Gantry's point. Lancaster makes Gantry ability to completely manipulate and control every problem that comes his way is completely convincing due to Lancaster quick concise manner. What is most outstanding about Lancaster's performance though is his portrayal of the change or lack of change in Elmer Gantry. I would say he most definetly changes through how much is left a little to interpretation, which is so great about Lancaster's performance. He mostly internalizes this change through his performance, showing subtle changes  throughout the film, which is truly incredible. Lancaster creates the perfect portrait of Elmer Gantry, of both earnestness, and sarcasm, and the way they interweave, and over take one another. Overall Lancaster's performance is simply great, and frankly his preaching scenes alone made his Oscar deserved.