|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 26, 2018 19:06:40 GMT
It seems a bit of a paradox to be both underrated and yet Oscar-nominated, and yet, we know for a fact there are certain films and performances that receive Oscar love and yet never quite get recognized by the public for being worthy, or are lost in the shuffle of time. This thread is dedicated to performances you feel that haven't gotten quite the love they should, even if they got nominated or even won. There are many that I'd submit, but I kinda wanna make this more of a discussion thread than simply a "list performances" thread. So here goes.
The impetus for this thread is Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan. Often left out of the conversation when discussing Hanks and his awards prestige, I actually find it one of his strongest career performances. Hanks is overlooked when talking about the film, but honestly, I think he is one of its better qualities. Hanks has gotten criticism for only taking roles where he plays heroic good guys against the odds, and on paper and on the surface, Captain John H. Miller is one of those parts. But there's more to Miller than that. He's a damaged soul desperately trying to keep himself focused not just for his own survival, but that of his men . . . and over the years, he's lost ninety-four men under his command. His fraying nerves and diminishing faith in his own abilities manifests in his trembling hand, the way that he will sometimes lose his cool and lash out, and when moments like that cause poor decision-making (like the ill-judged assault on the machine-gun nest), you can see the toll the war has taken on this man who has kept his humanity separate from his soldiery. Hanks plays Miller as both an enigma and, yet, an eerily familiar presence. Discussion on Hanks's nomination is lost in the noise of Norton vs. McKellen, but for my money, Hanks trounces them both (and the conversation really ought to have been between him and Nolte for the prize).
So let's talk Hanks's nominated performance here, as well as any others you got.
|
|
|
|
Post by pacinoyes on Mar 26, 2018 19:21:15 GMT
I would mention one in particular, and that's Peter Fonda in Ulee's Gold - the performance of his life. Fine film too and he's wonderfully controlled and humane in that part. It's such a quiet, painstakingly realized performance a lot of people go right by it and don't see how crafted it is.
As for Hanks, he's very fine although I don't like where his film ends up so I blame him (unfairly) but you can't go by me, I like all the nominees that year including Benigni.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 26, 2018 19:32:08 GMT
I would mention one in particular, and that's Peter Fonda in Ulee's Gold - the performance of his life. Fine film too and he's wonderfully controlled and humane in that part. It's such a quiet, painstakingly realized performance a lot of people go right by it and don't see how crafted it is. As for Hanks, he's very fine although I don't like where his film ends up so I blame him (unfairly) but you can't go by me, I like all the nominees that year including Benigni. Fonda would be my second pick of the nominees behind Duvall, who was robbed so hardcore that year. Fonda's very underrated, even if I don't nominate him. |
|
|
|
Post by wallsofjericho on Mar 26, 2018 19:36:34 GMT
Albert Finney in Under the Volcano. Almost as good as Abraham that year in my opinion.
|
|
|
|
Post by fiosnasiob on Mar 26, 2018 20:42:55 GMT
Thinking about the Best Actor category, I could name some fantastic performances that I feel doesn't get enough love but I think it's mostly due to the fact that they are under-seen (Giancarlo Giannini in Pasqualino Settebellezze and James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope are 2 of them, as good as their HEAVY competitions) now the one performance that I think gets a lot of undeserved crap is Pacino in Scent of a Woman, he shouldn't have won but it still a brillant performance and as far as I'm concerned, the second best of the nominees.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 26, 2018 20:47:41 GMT
Thinking about the Best Actor category, I could name some fantastic performances that I feel doesn't get enough love but I think it's mostly due to the fact that they are under-seen (Giancarlo Giannini in Pasqualino Settebellezze and James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope are 2 of them, as good as their HEAVY competitions) now the one performance that I think gets a lot of undeserved crap is Pacino in Scent of a Woman, he shouldn't have won but it still a brillant performance and as far as I'm concerned, the second best of the nominees. Co-signed on James Earl Jones. If it weren't for George C. Scott, he'd easily be my choice of the nominees that year. It's such a great performance with excellent chemistry with the equally excellent Jane Alexander. Giannini's a good pull, too, even if I'm not quite as high on him as you. Pacino's an interesting case. I don't think it's a bad performance by any means, and I do think it's kind of become the whipping boy of those who deride late-career Pacino (HOO-AH!), but I do think that the other four nominees (plus the un-nominated Jack Lemmon and Harvey Keitel) operate on an entirely different level of greatness, personally. Still, I do think Pacino gets too much shit for it, because it is still good work. If you wanna talk about a performance that gets way too much crap, Art Carney's win for Harry and Tonto rises above the rest. I guarantee you most people who hate it haven't seen it, and think that a road movie about an old man and his cat can't possibly be as good (or as cool) as movies about Michael Corleone or Lenny Bruce or J.J. Gittes. And yet, I think with the best performance of the year in Gene Hackman being unrecognized, Carney was the right man of the bunch. It's incredibly moving, nuanced work, and people forget that Carney was twenty-odd years younger than his character and managed to be convincing to the point that people dismiss his win as "oh, they gave it to the old guy." I will defend this win until my dying day. |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2018 21:06:42 GMT
Richard Farnsworth in The Straight Story should be considered one of the 3-5 best nominees in his category, IMO. He gets some love on here but I don't see it much outside of this forum.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 26, 2018 21:08:36 GMT
Richard Farnsworth in The Straight Story should be considered one of the 3-5 best nominees in his category, IMO. He gets some love on here but I don't see it much outside of this forum. Goddamn right. |
|
|
|
Post by fiosnasiob on Mar 26, 2018 21:12:27 GMT
Thinking about the Best Actor category, I could name some fantastic performances that I feel doesn't get enough love but I think it's mostly due to the fact that they are under-seen (Giancarlo Giannini in Pasqualino Settebellezze and James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope are 2 of them, as good as their HEAVY competitions) now the one performance that I think gets a lot of undeserved crap is Pacino in Scent of a Woman, he shouldn't have won but it still a brillant performance and as far as I'm concerned, the second best of the nominees. Co-signed on James Earl Jones. If it weren't for George C. Scott, he'd easily be my choice of the nominees that year. It's such a great performance with excellent chemistry with the equally excellent Jane Alexander. Giannini's a good pull, too, even if I'm not quite as high on him as you. Pacino's an interesting case. I don't think it's a bad performance by any means, and I do think it's kind of become the whipping boy of those who deride late-career Pacino (HOO-AH!), but I do think that the other four nominees (plus the un-nominated Jack Lemmon and Harvey Keitel) operate on an entirely different level of greatness, personally. Still, I do think Pacino gets too much shit for it, because it is still good work. If you wanna talk about a performance that gets way too much crap, Art Carney's win for Harry and Tonto rises above the rest. I guarantee you most people who hate it haven't seen it, and think that a road movie about an old man and his cat can't possibly be as good (or as cool) as movies about Michael Corleone or Lenny Bruce or J.J. Gittes. And yet, I think with the best performance of the year in Gene Hackman being unrecognized, Carney was the right man of the bunch. It's incredibly moving, nuanced work, and people forget that Carney was twenty-odd years younger than his character and managed to be convincing to the point that people dismiss his win as "oh, they gave it to the old guy." I will defend this win until my dying day. Actually when I saw your name and the title of this topic I expected to see Art Carney name, I know you are a big supporter of his. I absolutely agree that most people who gives this performance a lot of crap haven't even watched the movie but that's the difference with Al Pacino, people saw the performance and some trash and mock it like if it was some kind of amateurish tevenovela work, and I've seen some serious movies websites writers does it, I really don't get it. Not the best of the year....Okay but as you say, still good (or better in my opinion) work from a legend. |
|
|
|
Post by wallsofjericho on Mar 26, 2018 21:13:56 GMT
Thinking about the Best Actor category, I could name some fantastic performances that I feel doesn't get enough love but I think it's mostly due to the fact that they are under-seen (Giancarlo Giannini in Pasqualino Settebellezze and James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope are 2 of them, as good as their HEAVY competitions) now the one performance that I think gets a lot of undeserved crap is Pacino in Scent of a Woman, he shouldn't have won but it still a brillant performance and as far as I'm concerned, the second best of the nominees. Agreed. It's a really good technical performance too and one of the more convincing portrayals I've seen of someone with blindness. I'm all about Denzel that year but I have Pacino third from the nominees. |
|
|
|
Post by FrancescoAbides on Mar 26, 2018 21:43:37 GMT
Jeff Bridges' performance in Crazy Heart is underrated, even though he won an Oscar for it. So what the hell man?
Rachel McAdams work in Spotlight is also pretty damn underrated, she is the heart and soul of this film, overlooked by Ruffalo's awful work and godawful "oscar clip". But I'm glad she was nominated.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Mar 26, 2018 21:44:11 GMT
Mark Ruffalo is underrated in general, but his incredibly warm and touching performance in Foxcatcher isn't given the credit it deserves, especially when his presence is the only thing keeping the film from dipping into absolute bleakness. The scene when Dave finds Mark in the trashed hotel room and he gives him a hug and whispers (barely audible) "I'm your brother and I love you" brings me close to tears every time.
|
|
|
|
Post by finniussnrub on Mar 26, 2018 21:53:59 GMT
Although the further you go back the more the performances become naturally underrated, just because less people have seen them, but two that spring to that mind even in that context are Laurence Olivier in The Entertainer, which I actually think is his best work, and Stuart Whitman in The Mark a great performance that almost no one talks about.
|
|
|
|
Post by JangoB on Mar 26, 2018 22:15:57 GMT
I've spent so much time thinking about Farnsworth's astonishing performance in "The Straight Story" that I've sort of subconsciously convinced myself that everyone else also thinks about him all the time and loves him and considers his nomination to be among the best ever. But if I come back to reality then I'll have to admit that it is an underrated performance.
Fully agree with you about Hanks - it's one of his best turns.
Paul Winfield and Cicely Tyson are amazing in "Sounder" and yet I don't think I've ever seen anyone mention them or the film (which is also excellent).
I love Jon Voight in "Runaway Train" and am very happy that an action movie got 2 nominations for performances. Seems kinda underrated though.
Hopkins is usually remembered for his Hannibal but his performances in "The Remains of the Day" and "Nixon" are equally, if not even more amazing.
And a recent one - Denzel in "Roman J. Israel, Esq.". Lots of talk about how his performance shouldn't have been there, how Franco was robbed and all that. Such bullshit.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Mar 26, 2018 22:32:48 GMT
and Stuart Whitman in The Mark a great performance that almost no one talks about. To be fair, I think that's because it's a very underseen film. I've been wanting to see it for a couple years now but I can't find it anywhere. Can't speak for others though... |
|
|
|
Post by mikediastavrone96 on Mar 27, 2018 0:34:05 GMT
There are a lot of people who gave Mark Wahlberg's nomination for The Departed crap because they would've rather seen one of his other co-stars nominated while I'd call him either the MVP of a really good ensemble or damn close. He fits so naturally with that dialogue and played off Sheen and Baldwin incredibly well, really helping to form the identity and tone of the police department within the film. Plus he does a great job escalating the tension in his scenes with DiCaprio and Damon with his sharp antagonism, and the subtle differences with the ways he plays on those dynamics helps underscore the greater tension going on within the film and is a big part of why that last scene is so satisfying.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 27, 2018 0:41:19 GMT
There are a lot of people who gave Mark Wahlberg's nomination for The Departed crap because they would've rather seen one of his other co-stars nominated while I'd call him either the MVP of a really good ensemble or damn close. He fits so naturally with that dialogue and played off Sheen and Baldwin incredibly well, really helping to form the identity and tone of the police department within the film. Plus he does a great job escalating the tension in his scenes with DiCaprio and Damon with his sharp antagonism, and the subtle differences with the ways he plays on those dynamics helps underscore the greater tension going on within the film and is a big part of why that last scene is so satisfying. Agreed. He's one of the highlights of the film, and while I'd rate Baldwin over him in terms of the overall ensemble, he's miles better than whatever the fuck Nicholson was doing. |
|
thomasjerome
Based
Posts: 3,230 
Likes: 2,819
Member is Online
|
Post by thomasjerome on Mar 27, 2018 0:41:46 GMT
John Lithgow in "Terms of Endearment"
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 27, 2018 0:42:44 GMT
I've spent so much time thinking about Farnsworth's astonishing performance in "The Straight Story" that I've sort of subconsciously convinced myself that everyone else also thinks about him all the time and loves him and considers his nomination to be among the best ever. But if I come back to reality then I'll have to admit that it is an underrated performance. Fully agree with you about Hanks - it's one of his best turns. Paul Winfield and Cicely Tyson are amazing in "Sounder" and yet I don't think I've ever seen anyone mention them or the film (which is also excellent). I love Jon Voight in "Runaway Train" and am very happy that an action movie got 2 nominations for performances. Seems kinda underrated though. Hopkins is usually remembered for his Hannibal but his performances in "The Remains of the Day" and "Nixon" are equally, if not even more amazing. And a recent one - Denzel in "Roman J. Israel, Esq.". Lots of talk about how his performance shouldn't have been there, how Franco was robbed and all that. Such bullshit. I loathe Runaway Train and Voight in it with all my soul, but fully agreed on all of the others. Hopkins's Nixon isn't convincing as the man himself, but I view it as an interpretation rather than an attempt to visually capture Nixon. |
|
|
|
Post by Christ_Ian_Bale on Mar 27, 2018 0:52:24 GMT
I'm always disheartened when I see hate for Williams and Branagh's noms for My Week with Marilyn. With Williams, I can totally see the argument that it's not a great portrayal of Marilyn herself, but I think it works wonders as a portrayal of a woman with a sad, sympathetic tenderness shrouded underneath a worshipped surface, shaped by the public eye into a symbol for sex and empty misquotes. Sort of the same way Kidman's very good work in Grace of Monaco is undermined, not just by the fact that it was a shitty movie, but by the simple fact that she's supposed to be a particular person that she's not quite emulating well, while doing everything else right.
In Branagh's case, yes he can be hammy as hell, but he's playing the ultimate Actor's Actor in a move that brings his entire career full circle, shaping almost his whole resume around Olivier before ultimately playing the man himself. I found it quite surreal and a joy to watch.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 27, 2018 0:59:37 GMT
I'm always disheartened when I see hate for Williams and Branagh's noms for My Week with Marilyn. With Williams, I can totally see the argument that it's not a great portrayal of Marilyn herself, but I think it works wonders as a portrayal of a woman with a sad, sympathetic tenderness shrouded underneath a worshipped surface, shaped by the public eye into a symbol for sex and empty misquotes. Sort of the same way Kidman's very good work in Grace of Monaco is undermined, not just by the fact that it was a shitty movie, but by the simple fact that she's supposed to be a particular person that she's not quite emulating well, while doing everything else right. In Branagh's case, yes he can be hammy as hell, but he's playing the ultimate Actor's Actor in a move that brings his entire career full circle, shaping almost his whole resume around Olivier before ultimately playing the man himself. I found it quite surreal and a joy to watch. I will forever bang the drum of hate against Williams, but Branagh wasn't too bad. I wouldn't nominate him, but a.) he's better than the winner that year, and b.) he's at least passably convincing as Olivier. |
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 27, 2018 1:09:25 GMT
Mark Ruffalo is underrated in general, but his incredibly warm and touching performance in Foxcatcher isn't given the credit it deserves, especially when his presence is the only thing keeping the film from dipping into absolute bleakness. The scene when Dave finds Mark in the trashed hotel room and he gives him a hug and whispers (barely audible) "I'm your brother and I love you" brings me close to tears every time. I hate his nominations for The Kids Are All Right and Spotlight, but damned if he didn't earn that nomination for Foxcatcher. It's good to know that Ruffalo hasn't forgotten to give good performances post-2010. |
|
|
|
Post by wallsofjericho on Mar 27, 2018 13:28:25 GMT
Also, special shout out to Laurence Fishburne in What's Love Got to do With It. 1993 best actor is so strong that he sometimes gets lost in the shuffle.
|
|
|
|
Post by sirjeremy on Mar 28, 2018 17:43:18 GMT
I think Diane Keaton's performance in Marvin's Room is one of her very best performances and doesn't get enough love. McDormand and a couple of the three British ladies in that category get talked about a lot but not so much Keaton. Perhaps because her film was judged as 'lightweight' and didn't receive any other nominations are two other reasons why pretty much nobody thinks about wonderful she is here, that and her iconic 70's role.
|
|
|
|
Post by stephen on Mar 28, 2018 18:18:04 GMT
I think Diane Keaton's performance in Marvin's Room is one of her very best performances and doesn't get enough love. McDormand and a couple of the three British ladies in that category get talked about a lot but not so much Keaton. Perhaps because her film was judged as 'lightweight' and didn't receive any other nominations are two other reasons why pretty much nobody thinks about wonderful she is here, that and her iconic 70's role. Good call. I'm so glad Keaton was the one who got nominated from that film. I'd also argue that she was also deserving of her 2003 nomination for Something's Gotta Give. |
|
