There are a couple performances I haven't seen and I'm hopeful they will all be pretty good. I like that I'm getting to experience some films and performances I haven't seen before.
2003 Best Supporting Actor
Tim Robbins - Mystic River
While watching Tim Robbins act in this film again, I just really came to like this performance and his acting ability. To me, it's a very understated, low key acting job that actually hits hard and delivers some powerful emotions that sorta sneak up on you. It's not a loud, Oscar bait-y thing it's just what a good performance should be. Let the actor find the character and then have them dive deep inside to give us something so interesting and compelling that it's hard to tell actor from character. I know that comes off a bit pretentious by me but the sentiment is there. I don't need to be hit over the head with something that screams hey, this is acting! I tend to prefer the more subtle and quiet performances. And that's exactly what we get from Tim Robbins here. He plays a guy who wears the sadness and resignation of his childhood trauma on his face. He comes off sort of child-like still, obviously stunted by his tragic encounter as a youth. He has this torment raging in his mind that makes his adult person one quiet, fucked up mess. It makes it so he's not even 100% sure if he killed Penn's daughter or not at first and believes he may actually be capable of being a monster or wolf like the men who preyed on him. It's just a very strong performance and the highlight of the entire film for me. A job well done by Mr. Robbins.
Alec Baldwin - The Cooler
Another film that I had never heard of and probably would never have watched if not for this project. I always forget that Baldwin is Oscar nominated, which I'm sure many other people do as well. But in saying that, I'm actually really glad I got to watch this film. It's not a high mark in cinema, but it's definitely entertaining. William H. Macy plays a guy that is a casino cooler, he "cools" people on hot streaks just by playing at the same table or being near them. Alec Baldwin is a casino owner who's partner brings in a young guy to infuse some life into the moribund and boring old casino. Baldwin pops onto the first scene he's in, acting like a badass casino boss. No humor, just straight acting. But then he settles back into being Alec Baldwin again, though with less obvious humor. Baldwin's character wants Maria Bello out of Macy's life so his casino can keep raking it in. (Maria Bello, though, would have been a great Best Supporting Actress nomination) Baldwin stick to this hardline casino boss and it works for him. He does a great job at making us believe he's a casino boss and a tough guy. It's like he's auditioning for a spot in an Ocean's Eleven movie, which is a compliment. He seals it at the end when he's essentially rooting for Macy's character to win a ton of money from his casino which seals his fate. To me, this is representative of Baldwin's work over the years and represents a career nom.
Benicio del Toro - 21 Grams
So I just watched this film after the director, Alejandro Inarritu, just won Best Director and Best Picture for Birdman. The two just happened to coincide with each other but it was absolutely interesting in seeing the progression, especially since this one got some Oscar love. I'll say right now that I really, really enjoyed Benicio del Toro in this film. I just really liked his arc. The non-linear format that the story is presented in can be challenging. You really need to pay attention to this one in order to understand all that's going on. I know that del Toro plays Jack, a very religious man who has done time and has seemingly recovered from a drug and alcohol addiction. Unfortunately, Jack kills 3 people in a hit and run accident which sets in motion the events of this film. Jack is a man that's had a hard life who has found Jesus and is trying to fly on the straight and narrow. The tragedy happens and del Toro's character has to deal with the fallout. Del Toro does a magnificent job at convincing us that he could absolutely be a very religious man but also a convict and drug addict. I really do think that del Toro does a fantastic job portraying the ups and downs of his character. We as the viewer feel for him. I feel it's left up to interpretation whether or not he killed those people sober or not. I think he did but just panicked. Something a lot of us would do, also. It's hard to judge Jack for that singular action. He turns himself in and faces judgement but does he deserve the subsequent events? That's where del Toro shines. He portrays the character honestly and without any sense of wrong or right. I was interested in how I'd like this film, but I didn't think I'd really love a performance such as this from it. I think Benicio does a fantastic job here and deserves a lot more love for it.
Djimon Hounsou - In America
And here I was hoping that I'd finally get to see a Hounsou performance where he wasn't a screaming, loud, stereotypical African native. Which is what he is here, at least in the beginning of the movie until we finally meet him. At first, he's this scary guy who screams upstairs in the apartment complex the immigrant Irish family we are following lives. But then we meet him and find out he's a painter and also dying of AIDS. I honestly wasn't very clear about why he was screaming except that maybe it was the tortured artist thing and his being sick. I don't think the film explains that very well. But after we meet him, he becomes this gentle soul, who seemingly was longing for human interaction. He essentially becomes the guardian angel of the family and is this nice, loving person. Which is at odds with what we first experienced from him in the beginning, that brooding, screaming African. It's an odd turn in itself but Hounsou does a good enough job. I think I said the last time I wrote about him that I wish he would do something else besides the loud African character or the wise African character. I want to see his acting ability in a less ethnic role. Maybe I have to search that out and see what else he's done but I just think he could be really good at something other than "African." This is a feel good immigrant story and Hounsou is fine in his role. Not a bad choice by the Academy.
Ken Watanabe - The Last Samurai
This movie reminded me so much of Glory (which I honestly wrote before I learned that this was directed by the same guy who directed Glory. I count that as a victory in learning directors.) I swear that the beginning was a remake. So why would a man agree to get his ass whooped by a samurai? There's soooo many good shots tho. You don't have to speak Japanese to understand the looks he gives, which Watanabe is very expressive with. I laugh at my drunk thoughts lol. This is a very entertaining film. Watanabe is very proud, noble, disciplined, stately, and just a plain ol' quiet badass. That's a lot of adjectives to say Watanabe does a great job here. He launches his international stardom with this film and it's obvious to see why this role would translate so well. His character is just so thought through. It's easy to think of it as a one note performance but Watanabe deliver a very complex job. This is never more evident when Watanabe's character's son is shot and the look on his face is one of pure horror, regret, and fatherly love. That's what I like so much about this performance. Watanabe offers up so much depth even when you don't realize it. His delivery of his lines is at times pained, but the delivery does the acting for him. I don't know if that makes sense but Watanabe is an actor that can command his presence with just his voice/readings. Which really does make him a true star. It's a great thing that this film found him and introduced us to him.
This! This is why I love this category! It's so diverse and so different and so interesting. It seems that year after year that we get good to great nominees. 2003 is incredibly strong. OK, so Hounsou easily brings up the rear. But that is as far as it is easily-wise. I liked Baldwin, del Toro, Watanabe, and Robbins. I'd put Baldwin 4th. It was good but yeah. I'm putting Robbins 3rd, del Toro 2nd, and Watanabe 1st. Partially because del Toro already has an Oscar and also because I just really do like Watanabe and The Last Samurai way more than Robbins and Mystic River. This is a harsh category because the nominees are pretty good. I'll stick by Watanabe as the winner and I really wish he could have won.
Oscar Winner: Tim Robbins - Mystic River
My Winner: Ken Watanabe - The Last Samurai
Benicio del Toro
Tim Robbins
Alec Baldwin
Djimon Hounsou
