Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1993: Results

6. Sean Penn in Carlito's Way- Penn gives a suitable enough performance that does not fall into the problems of his later work, but still it is not anything that remarkable.

5. Sam Neill in The Piano- Neill does his best to not fall into his cliches of his sort of character creating a believable portrayal of a man who simply does not understand the woman who he wants as his wife.

4. Val Kilmer in Tombstone- Kilmer brings to life the role of the larger than life Doc Holliday well combining both the flamboyancy and morose qualities of the man beautifully. 

3. Christopher Lloyd in Twenty Bucks- Lloyd is so incredible in his short segment of his compilation film to the point that I wish the film had been solely about him. He creates a terrific portrait of a small time criminal who is as efficient as one probably could be in his line of work.

2. Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List- Kingsley gives a very quiet, but very moving performance as the man who desperately tries to save as many people as he can by trying convince another man to do the right thing.

1. Richard Jordan in Gettysburg- Good Prediction RatedRStar. Although this year is a spectacular year for supporting actor I can easily choose my favorite non Oscar nominated performance of the year in Richard Jordan. I really do not cry from watching films but watching Jordan's performance as a civil war General pained by the fact that he must fight his best friend is the closest I have ever come to doing so. His performance is so powerful I am very tempted to give him the whole year.

Overall Rank:

1. Richard Jordan in Gettysburg
2. Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List
3. Pete Postlethwaite in In the Name of the Father
4. Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List
5. Christopher Lloyd in Twenty Bucks
6. Val Kilmer in Tombstone
7. Stephen Lang in Gettysburg
8. Leonardo DiCaprio in What's Eating Gilbert Grape?
9. John Malkovich in In the Line of Fire 
10. Jack Lemmon in Short Cuts  
11. Gene Hackman in The Firm
12. Dennis Hopper in True Romance  
13. Bruce Davison in Short Cuts 
14. Martin Sheen in Gettysburg 
15. Kevin Conway in Gettysburg 
16. Gary Oldman in True Romance
17. Steve Buscemi in Twenty Bucks
18. Richard Attenborough in Jurassic Park 
19. Tom Waits in Short Cuts
20. Sam Neill in The Piano
21. Brian Mallon in Gettysburg
22. Harvey Keitel in The Paino
23. Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park
24. Christopher Walken in True Romance
25. Don Baker in In the Name of the Father
26. Tim Robbins in Short Cuts
27. Clint Eastwood in A Perfect World
28. Wilford Brimley in The Firm
29. Viggo Mortensen in Carlito's Way
30. Saul Rubinek in True Romance
31. Sam Elliot in Tombstone
32. Charlton Heston in Wayne's World 2
33. Bob Peck in Jurassic Park
34. James Gandolfini in True Romance
35. Tom Berenger in Gettysburg
36. Peter Wright in Naked
37. Stephen Tobolowsky in Groundhog's Day
38. Ed Harris in The Firm
39. Brad Pitt in True Romance
40. Stephen Lang in Tombstone
41. Sean Penn in Carlito's Way
42. Wayne Knight in Jurassic Park
43. Bill Paxton in Tombstone
44. John Lynch in In the Name of the Father
45. Sam Elliot in Gettysburg
46. Fred Ward in Short Cuts
47. Michael Biehn in Tombstone
48. C. Thomas Howell in Gettysburg
49. Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive
50. Michael Rooker in Cliffhanger
51. David Strathairn in The Firm
52. Chris Penn in Short Cuts
53. Samuel L. Jackson in Jurassic Park
54. Gary Busey in The Firm
55. Bronson Pinchot in True Romance
56. Tom Hulce in Fearless
57. Robert Downey Jr. in Short Cuts 
58. John Turturro in Fearless
59. Chris Elliot in Groundhog's Day
60. Matthew Modine in Short Cuts 
61. Christopher Reeve in The Remains of the Day
62. Michael Rapaport in True Romance
63. Powers Booth in Tombstone
64. John Lithgow in Cliffhanger
65. John Leguizamo in Carlito's Way
66. Joroen Krabbe in The Fugitive
67. Peter Gallagher in Short Cuts
68. Jason Robards in Philadelphia
69. Luis Guzman in Carlito's Way
70. Dylan McDermott in In the Line of Fire
71. Antonio Banderas in Philadelphia
72. Pierce Brosnan in Mrs. Doubt Fire
73. Frederic Forrest in Falling Down
74. T.J. Lowther in A Perfect World
75. Greg Cruttwell in Naked

Next Year: 2003 Supporting

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1993: Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List

Ben Kingsley did not receive an Oscar nomination , although he did receive a Bafta nomination for portraying Itzhak Stern in Schindler's List.

Ben Kingsley despite being nominated two years before along with Harvey Keitel in his wholly uninspired performance in Bugsy was not nominated along with Ralph Fiennes for this film. This is perhaps a little strange as the academy loved the film, clearly loves Kingsley, but since it was probably Peter Postlethwaite who took his place I am not going to complain too much about the oversight. The reason his performance perhaps though was left off is just how understated he is in the role of Itzhak Stern an accountant who takes most the responsibility in setting up and maintaining Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson)'s factory that ends up saving many Jews from the Nazis.

Ben Kingsley early on the film portrays Itzhak Stern as a man who tries to be almost a nonentity acting around Schindler. Stern does not only set up the factory for Schindler, but while doing so he helps many people find work at the factory who would otherwise likely be sent to a death camp. Kingsley is very good here as Stern is quiet around Schindler in that early on his task of saving others is really something that is hidden from Schindler who only really desires the Jewish workers to save money. Kingsley goes about his performance showing Stern as a man very much of his task, and going up trying to bring as many people to the factory carefully and cautiously.

There are many scenes where Stern is a man among others quietly observing as he stays out of the way of death, such as a certain scene where he slowly walks as someone is killed by sniper fire near him. Kingsley is always very powerful in these scenes. He is able to create this man who is a powerful internal strength that keeps him together through all of the horrible events that transpire around him. Kingsley poignantly though does portray the very honest small reactions of Stern as he sees the horror. A great deal of credit must be given to Kingsley as he does convey the emotions so genuinely yet handles them in the appropriate restrained fashion caused by the precarious circumstances his character is in.

Kingsley is effective in that he does not show Stern as a man who changes during the film, whereas that is the main focus with Schindler in the film, instead he portrays well the slowly changes how Stern views and reacts to Schindler. At first Kingsley has Stern treat Schindler in a business like fashion, even though he does well to portray the very real concerns that always weigh on Stern, but he is rather cold to Schindler who he is using in the same way Schindler is using him. Kingsley eases into Stern treating Schindler as someone who can be exploited, for good ends but exploited nevertheless, to something a little more.

The change in the relationship is brilliantly handled by both actors. Kingsley does well because he never does rush it as first really Stern comes closer to Schindler in that the situation for Stern and the other Jews becomes more and more dire. Kingsley is terrific in emphasizing the earnest want in Stern to save as many people as he can, as well as his very serious concerns due to the deaths all around him. He shows well the pressures Stern is under as well as the way he channels these pressures to Schindler as keeping safe becomes slowly more difficult.

Stern stands as a constant of morality during the film. Kinglsey is able to effortlessly bring to life this genuine goodness throughout the film, and in a way his performance actually allows the transformation of Schindler entirely earned. At the end of the film the two really become true friends, and Kingsley is moving in showing how he finally opens up to Schindler in his beliefs in regard to what is right. Kingsley is very powerful in the moments of realization for Schindler, as he stands firm and reminds Schindler what a great thing he has done, as well as what his actions truly mean. Kingsley simply is outstanding through the film bringing to life the righteousness of his character in all honesty without having a single false moment in his entire performance.

275. Mrs. Harris

275. (16 Nov) Mrs. Harris (2006, Phyllis Nagy) 24



Phyllis Nagy seems determined to make movie magic, but she has no actual artistic flair or understanding of romance or drama. This does, at least, have a polished look, when Nagy's not getting too ambitious with visuals. But it's glossing over a truly sloppy and frothy character drama. Annette Bening hams it up incessantly while Ben Kingsley is a nonentity when he's supposed to be a charismatic force. Chloris Leachman is a scene stealer only because no one else is good. Famous faces like Ellen Burstyn and Chloe Sevigny make cameos without making the faintest impression.

Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1993

And the Nominees Were Not:

Richard Jordan in Gettysburg 

Sam Neill in The Piano 

Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List

Val Kilmer in Tombstone

Sean Penn in Carlito's Way

THE DICTATOR

THE DICTATOR
Written by Sasha Baron Cohen, Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schafer
Directed by Larry Charles
Starring Sasha Baron Cohen, Anna Faris and Ben Kingsley


Nadal: When the thought of decapitating someone’s head doesn’t make you feel good, that’s love.

When a movie opens with a proclamation that is dedicated to the honour of the now deceased, former dictator of North Korea, Kim Jong Il, you know that what is about to follow is certainly going to be some of the most outrageous footage you’ve ever seen. THE DICTATOR, the latest Sasha Baron Cohen comedy vehicle, delivers this without flinching and the laughs, assuming you’re willing to go to all of these horrendously offensive and borderline racist places, follow in side splitting droves. I’m not sure what this says about me exactly but I had no problems going there and I was having such a good time, I didn’t want to leave.

Hailing from the fictional Republic of Wadiya, a Middle Eastern country where it is sunny year round according to their weather forecast, the Supreme Leader, Admiral General Aladeen (Baron Cohen), rules without any question or concern for how he treat his people. As he has people executed left and right, he is also plotting to trick the United Nations into thinking his nuclear capacity will be used to better the world instead of destroying it. Upon visiting the UN in New York City to continue his long con, he is replaced by a lookalike Aladeen and an attempt his made on his life, by the order of his right hand man (Ben Kingsley). While he tries to get back to his position of power, so that he can stop Wadiya from (gasp) becoming a democracy, he falls unexpectedly for Zoe (Anna Faris), who is of course the nicest person in the history of humanity.

Still under the direction of BORAT helmer, Larry Charles, THE DICTATOR marks Baron Cohen’s transition from mockumentary to scripted comedy. It’s a fairly smooth one and most certainly a marked improvement after his last similar outing, BRUNO. While the laugher and shock factor remain in tact though, the bite is a little less severe. This is because THE DICTATOR does not capture the visceral immediacy that BORAT did when it exposed people’s dark and dirty souls without them realizing. Instead, the underbelly of humanity is brought to light here in an oversimplified and often cliched manner, preying on the audience’s more inherently ignorant points of view on Middle Eastern culture, including my own apparently. In the end, THE DICTATOR provides the big laughs but it does so so easily that it eliminates any need for real thought on the subject, making it an excellent comedy but only a so-so satire.

Best Supporting Actor 1991: Results

5. Ben Kingsley in Bugsy-Kingsley gives a rather dull performance that never really even becomes comfortable with his gangster mannerisms he attempts to employ.

4. Harvey Keitel in Bugsy- Keitel certainly is as good as one could be as the gangster here being exactly as he should be unfortunately he does almost nothing over the course of the film.

3. Jack Palance in City Slickers- Palance like Keitel basically is exactly as he should be in his role, unfortunately just like Keitel he has far too little to do.

2. Michael Lerner in Barton Fink- Lerner is only in three scenes but he dominates the three scene with his rather enjoyable performance as the quick talking movie executive.

1. Tommy Lee Jones in JFK- Good Prediction RatedRStar. Tommy Lee Jones easily wins this year with his fascinating performance that carefully but very effectively creates the enigma of a man his character should be.

Deserving Performances:
John Goodman in Barton Fink
Ted Levine in The Silence of the Lambs
Gary Oldman in JFK

Best Supporting Actor 1991: Ben Kingsley in Bugsy

Ben Kingsley received his second Oscar nomination for portraying Meyer Lansky in Bugsy.

Kingsley portrays Meyer Lansky Bugsy Segal(Warren Beatty)'s old friend from childhood as well as fellow gangster. He is the more sensible one who sees the big picture, and understands crime in more terms of money refusing to take things too emotionally or personally. Kingsley really is not in the film very often but he has a few scenes that are important for his character.

Kingsley unlike his fellow nominee Harvey Keitel is not nearly as comfortable as a gangster. He tries the same trick as Keitel from the voice to his physical demeanor. Kingsley never seems to be completely natural with his gangster voice or his gangster style and it frankly seems a little too much like a performance rather than really being an embodiment of Meyer Lansky.

Unlike Mickey Cohen played by Keitel though the materials did seem to be there to make Meyer Lansky into a memorable or compelling character. The problem is though Kingsley is never able to convey any sort of inner killer, or power one would think would be in a character like this, something that Lee Starsberg was able to very well in the Godfather Part II as Hyman Roth who was based on Meyer Lansky.

Kingsley never gives more than a rather paper thin characterization of Meyer Lansky focusing far too much on the mannerisms of the character, which he does not even do well, without ever achieving any sort of deeper complexity to the character. It is is all around a rather unimpressive performance by Kingsley that never seizes any of the opportunities the role does indeed offer.

Best Supporting Actor 1991

And the Nominees Were

Ben Kingsley in Bugsy

Harvey Keitel in Bugsy

Jack Palance in City Slickers

Michael Lerner in Barton Fink

Tommy Lee Jones in JFK

Hugo

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Hugo, 2011
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Possible Oscar Nominations Include: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Costume<!- google_ad_section_end ->

Synopsis: It is the 1930's. And a little orphan boy named Hugo Cabret, lives in a train station in Paris, France. His father died in a fire, but before he did, they learned how to fix things. Clocks, wind-up toys, etc. But they're best project was automaton. But it's broken and rusted, and missing pieces. After his father dies, Hugo goes to live with his uncle, apprenticing as a clock repairman in the station. But his uncle is gone too, before long, so he lives in the train station, with automaton, trying to fix and repair it. During this time, he meets a cranky old man who works at a toy shoppe in the station, and his adventuresome god-daughter, Isabelle. When Hugo discovers that Isabelle, and her god-father Papas Georges might have a connection to do with his broken automaton, he embarks on his biggest adventure yet.

Before I write anything, I must apologize. I didn't like this film. Yes, yes, I know. You're crying out "but it's Martin Scorsese!" and shouting "but it's won so many awards already!" and bellowing "there's so much Buzz for it!" but I, whom frequently has unpopular opinions, didn't enjoy the film that much. But let me review it properly.

I thought the story was paced well. It wasn't action packed, but it wasn't slow either. There was always a new development going on, and Hugo was discovering something new. Asa Butterfield, who played Hugo, I thought, was terrific. He completely stood his own ground, and led the film on a journey. He was a good crier, which seems to be a terrible hard thing to do, especially if you are a younger male actor. And he did cheerful really well, and mischevious, and the whole time I was quite convinced that Asa simply was Hugo, and had no doubt about it. He gave a great performance.

Another solid point for this film was the Score. Howard Shore's score was really darling, and I quite enjoyed it. It was cliche French, but this was the 1930's Paris! It was fanciful! It was cliche! And I think Shore did a splendid job. I'd love to see this nominated, and I'm sure it has a good chance.

The tribute to Silent Films was very well done. When we get a big reveal from one the characters, it is very well done. This is where we see some fantatsic art direction, costume, makeup, etc. That was my favourite part of the movie, and thought it was a great tribute to Silent Films, and the entertainment industry of those days. This was definitely the strongest part of the film, while I felt the storyline with Hugo and Isabelle, and the automaton was weak.

On the other hand, I saw this film in 3D. I don't know if it's because I don't fancy 3D that much, or if this is true, but I thought it was too 3D. Like, the 3D was too much that I almost felt like I was watching an animated film a lot of the time. It didn't look realistic, and I think that really bothered me. While the Art Direction in general was good, I didn't think it fantastic. Though this could be the fact that the 3D was trying way too hard. Anyone else agree, or am I crazy?

Overall, the film disappointed me. I try to never go into a film with any sort of high expectations, but it'd been talked up so much that I got my hopes up. Additionally, I probably would've liked it better in 2D. Things wouldn't have looked so animated and unrealistic and...distracting. Asa Butterfield certainly impressed me, as I mentioned, and Chloe Moretz was fun and charming as Isabelle. It was an interesting storyline, and after taking an Introduction to Film Studies class, I felt having the knowledge about silent films, and even having seen some of the ones glimpsed at was fun. The Silent film era was an interesting one, and I loved the focus on that, and the background in it, which was true and interesting.
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Will it win Best Picture at this years Academy Awards? Certainly not, though it stands a very good chance for Art Direction, Costume and Original Score.<!- google_ad_section_end ->

Rating: 6.5/10



HUGO

Written by John Logan

Directed by Martin Scorsese

Starring Ben Kingsley, Sasha Baron Cohen, Chloe Grace Moretz and Asa Butterfield

Isabelle: We could get into trouble.

Hugo: That’s how you know it’s an adventure.

Before any image even appears on screen, master filmmaker, Martin Scorsese, sets his scene with the sounds of his central character, Hugo Cabret’s life. Clocks are ticking, gears are clicking and trains are passing. These are the sounds one knows well when one lives behind the faces of clocks in a grand Parisian railway station. Once Scorsese shows us the images to match his intriguing soundscape, there is no escape. You are instantly taken on a 3-Dimensional journey that floats high above the snow-filled Paris sky and swoops seamlessly into the busy station. The magical ride that is Scorsese’s HUGO has begun and you won’t want to get off.

As Hugo, played by the talented young actor, Asa Butterfield, darts in and around clock gears and busy crowds, it is immediately clear that HUGO features some of the best, if not the best, 3D work to emerge from its current renaissance. In the hands of a skilled and dynamic filmmaker like Scorsese, the levels of depth added to the screen are dazzling. It certainly helps that Hugo’s journey, based on the Brian Selznick picture book, and the setting in which it takes place, are so rich and colorful to begin with. The train station where Hugo lives is populated not only with travelers but quirky, if not somewhat cliched, characters, and his unintentional interaction with them leads him on an adventure he hopes will heal his tormented past. It isn’t long before Hugo soon learns that he’s not the only one whose past haunts him.

While Scorsese’s intuition as a filmmaker lends itself incredibly well to the 3D format, his ability to tell a focused story is somewhat lacking here. Famous for hard hitting gangster films and tortured characters, his first foray into family filmmaking is certainly exciting but somewhat misguided. At times, it isn’t clear whose story he is actually telling. Is HUGO about a boy, orphaned after the recent loss of his father (Jude Law), struggling to find a way to move on, or is it a love letter to the great film masters of the past? Scorsese plays homage to film history throughout HUGO and, in doing so, he accomplishes two things. For one, he honours his influences with great style while bravely bringing film itself forward with his own commendable technique. The unfortunate offshoot though is that he seems to distract himself from the story at hand with his own visual prowess.

455. Hugo

455. (05 Nov) Hugo (2011, Martin Scorsese)* 57



There are moments of fun and whimsy here that suggest Scorsese doing a kid's movie was not a total misfire. But the film itself can be deadly dull, making it unsuitable for younger viewers. It's also hard to believe they'd enjoy the last act's ode to Georges Melies. Broad supporting characters and their distracting subplots really derail the film. (A train in a dream within a dream literally derails around the same point the film itself does.) When an obligatory chase scene takes place late in the film, it's clear this has outstayed its welcome. Nevertheless, the crafts are lovely and Ben Kingsley is quite good.