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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2005: Ed Harris in A History of Violence

Ed Harris did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Carl Fogarty in A History of Violence.Ed Harris portrays the Philadelphia gangster who comes looking for diner owner Tom Stall who recently killed two men trying to rob his diner..

Best Supporting Actor 2011: Nick Nolte in Warrior

Nick Nolte received his third Oscar nomination for portraying Paddy Conlon in Warrior.Warrior details a winner take all mixed martial art tournament whose two main combatants are estranged brothers (Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton) fighting for their own difficult reasons.

Alternate Best Actor 2011

And the Nominees Were Not:Ryan Gosling in DriveRobert Wieckiewicz in In DarknessMichael Fassbender in ShameMichael Shannon in Take ShelterBrendan Gleeson in The Guard..

Showing posts with label Ed Begley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ed Begley. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Best Supporting Actor 1962: Results

5. Telly Savalas in Birdman of Alcatraz- This performance is nothing becuase his character is nothing.
4. Victor Buono in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?- Buono gives an effectively humorous performance that is not a whole lot but creates some nice little moments when on screen.
3. Ed Begley in Sweet Bird of Youth- Although the Southern Political Boss is an old role, and Begley does not reinvent anything about it he everything the boss should be from the charisma to the cruelty. 
2. Terence Stamp in Billy Budd- Stamp gives an effective performance that is filled with charm and an incredible ease that fully realizes the purity of his character.
1. Omar Sharif in Lawrence of Arabia- Good Prediction Dinasztie and Moviefilm. Sharif gives a strong supporting performance that works in great harmony with Peter O'Toole amazing work as the lead. Sharif perfectly contrast his characters transition to sanity and understanding, as O'Toole shows Lawrence's transition into insanity and sadism.
Deserving Performances:
Peter Sellers in Lolita
Jose Ferrer in Lawrence of Arabia
Claude Rains in Lawrence of Arabia

Monday, October 24, 2011

Best Supporting Actor 1962: Ed Begley in Sweet Bird of Youth

Ed Begley won his Oscar from his only nomination for portraying Boss Tom Finley in Sweet Bird of Youth.

Sweet Bird of Youth tells of a young man (Paul Newman) Chance who wishes to regain some of his youth with his old girlfriend.

Ed Begley portrays a southern political boss apparently a liked Oscar type character since it also brought Broderick Crawford a win for best actor in 1949. Now I was not the biggest fan of Broderick Crawford's lead performance in All the King's Men and I think Ed Begley's performance as Boss Finley actually succeeds in a few ways with the same type of character where Crawford failed.

Begley just as Crawford did succeeds quite well in showing the brutal as well as pompous nature of the political boss, but I think Begley does it better. Begley always shows that Finley is the boss of any room, even when he is not talking always having an strong presence in any scene forcing one to notice him. Begley always has the right attitude in the part he is the political boss and he knows it, he knows it so well that he does not mind flaunting it as much as he feels like.

My major problem with Crawford was although properly cruel as the political boss he was always too obviously evil, Begley outs on the facade quite well. Begley even with thinking of various acts of cruelty usually likes to come off as a nice old man while doing it. There are moments where he is not an exacts his cruelty directly, but since Begley combines both types of moments with ease which are essential in showing how Boss Finley is able to be a political boss not just a crime boss.

Begley is effective in both types of moments of cruelty. He is appropriately gentle but with always that little evil glint in his eye, and that deliciously fake smile that goes with it. Begley knows how to make the facade of of Finely that allows him to keep power as well as mistress. There is a little charm, a perfect politician's charm, there in the boss that makes this believable.

In his scenes of more direct evil Begley is rather chilling, and properly brutal. Begley shows that when Finley facade goes away it is only when he means absolute business, when it something that angers him off in the just the right way it makes him go over the edge and the full force of who he is comes out. Begley shows him a pathetic bully, whose cruelty who shows no empathy for his worst actions.

I think most important to his performance though are his out in public scenes that establish his nature as political boss. Begley is very friendly in these scenes almost fatherly in his few moments with Chance that are set in the past when they were on good terms. Begley apparent warmness, and charisma in these scenes act perfectly to show exactly how Finley became the boss, and stayed as one. The role of the boss is not an original one by any means and Begley does not try to take some whole new entirely style to it, but he certainly meets all the challenges of the character.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Best Supporting Actor 1962

And the Nominees Were:

Terence Stamp in Billy Budd

Telly Savalas in Birdman of Alcatraz

Ed Begley in Sweet Bird of Youth

Omar Sharif in Lawrence of Arabia

Victor Buono in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

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