Yeah, I know, another little delay in finishing these but life gets in the way. Of course, if anyone is reading this a year or two from now, they won't even know I took a couple weeks to finish this year! This is my favorite category and I'm always excited to see what it has to offer. I haven't seen any of the films so I've got a clean slate to review!
1982 Best Supporting Actor
Louis Gossett, Jr. - An Officer and a Gentleman
Sometimes context is important when reviewing these performances. If you watch Gossett and this film, you'll inevitably be reminded of other military films and drill instructor (or sergeant if you're Army like me) roles. Full Metal Jacket springs to mind for me because R. Lee Ermey is so iconic and memorable that you can forget he wasn't the first to do a role like that. In comes Gossett in a similar type of role, although way less profane and way more humane. Important to note that Ermey's performance was in 1987, so Gossett's performance was first and that apparently Ermey helped advise Gossett for the film. So with that in mind, it's easy to see how Gossett was nominated for a tough as nails Marine sergeant who threw out quotable lines while whipping his officer candidates into shape. I don't know if there are any performances like this one that came before Gossett but he definitely leaves a memorable mark while also showing some humanity in the process and that he's not just a heartless robot. Gossett looks and feels every bit the part which is half the performance right there. If you don't look or sound the part, your believability is toast. A drill sergeant is a pretty straightforward role, so you have to stand out at being the military guy while also going above and beyond just calling cadence and shouting insults. Gossett does this by actually wanting to see the officer candidates succeed even if this isn't explicitly shown or told to us in the film. Gossett does this in subtle ways that don't belie his tough exterior. I think that's why the performance works so well because it's not just a meathead yelling at people, there's an actual human quality to Gossett's work. There's also the fun fact that this is the first time a black man won Best Supporting Actor and was the first win for a black person since Sidney Poitier in 1963. That's crazy to think about but also lends some historical value to this win. The good thing is that the win is very much deserved and not solely because he's black. Gossett delivers a performance that is easily worth an Oscar.
Charles Durning - The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
This was the first of Durning's two straight nominations in this category (along with Lithgow) and I think it should be obvious after watching this that he was not nominated solely for this performance. Durning was also in Tootsie this year and was pretty good in that as Jessica Lange's father who becomes interested in Dustin Hoffman's woman. A well liked film but maybe not a nomination worthy performance on its own, either. Combine that with his turn here as the Texas Governor who sings a song about obfuscating the public and you can kinda see why he's nominated on having the two roles. This one doesn't look all that strong because he doesn't show up until the last 30 minutes and then only really does the one song and has another short scene and that's it. I guess it can be somewhat memorable and is definitely funny in that he sings about committing to an answer to the reporters' questions. But I think when you watch this film, if you were to pick a Supporting Actor nominee from the bunch, you'd go with Dom DeLuise who is much more memorable and funny in his role as the television watchdog. I'd honestly rather see him with the nomination because Durning is too slight. I know we see this time and again with people campaigning for nominations or the Academy using someone's work in an entire year instead of rewarding based on just one good performance. No big deal really since I did get to watch this film which was funny at times and kinda risque at others with all the working girls. Anyway, Durning isn't winning for this one.
John Lithgow - The World According to Garp
As I said for his second nomination (remember, I'm going backwards!), I felt that Lithgow was strong in his small role but ultimately overshadowed by Jack Nicholson because Lithgow's story just kinda trailed off. But it was easy to see that he was an actor to pay attention to. That's even more clear in this film as Lithgow plays a transwoman who hangs out with Garp. What I liked about the performance is that Lithgow doesn't bring attention to being transsexual at all. If you didn't know any better, you might think his character was just a tall, ugly woman. His role isn't used a cheap laugh and Lithgow gives it the sincerity it needs to become a heartfelt performance in a very strange and quirky film. It's not stereotypical at all, which I find refreshing, and Lithgow doesn't play it up in some super gay way with all the affectations. Lithgow's transwoman is a normal character and it's interesting to see this going on in 1982, although maybe it's not surprising with this year having three Oscar nominated films dealing with gender switching and identities. There are times, though, where Lithgow seems more like a peripheral character who steps into the forefront every now and then. I don't feel like there's any Oscar moments, just Lithgow delivering a good performance. It's very inclusive of the Academy and maybe that's what they were going for when they nominated Lithgow but it's still a nice little surprise. His Roberta Muldoon is kind and sweet and a positive, hopeful presence in the film - not a bad way to be nominated.
James Mason - The Verdict
James Mason is a name I did not recognize when going down the list, but having finally come to his first nomination for me I looked into his filmography and was very impressed. Without listing all those films, just know that he's been in a lot of really famous films and was doing steady good work for decades. This was his third Oscar nomination on top of some other BAFTA and Golden Globe nods. After watching the performance, I can easily see why he had a lot of awards consideration. Mason plays the defense attorney that Paul Newman is going up against and Mason represents the Catholic Archdiocese and the doctors from their private hospital in Boston. He's a high powered attorney, one that you know right away is brilliant, ruthless, and highly respected/feared. We first see him with a team of lawyers preparing the defense in a sophisticated, professional way which contrasts to Newman's mess of a process. Mason is the kind of lawyer that can quickly turn witnesses statements against themselves and influence the jury without doing too much other than asking the right questions. He's slick and powerful and has a workman's like attitude to getting the job done. Mason encapsulates all of that well with his performance. Again, the word I use for that film and Mason here is solid. It really is solid work and Mason is fun to watch glide through his performance while Newman struggles with his character's flaws and demons (in a good way, mind you). Mason's performance is the second one that you really notice and gravitate towards after Newman (though Newman's partner, Jack Warden, would also get some consideration from me because he was very good, also) and a respected veteran actor putting in good work in a really well done and liked film is a no brainer for a nomination.
Robert Preston - Victor/Victoria
Wow, I really love this character and performance! I think it's natural to dismiss or be wary of names you aren't familiar with, but I'm learning more and more to just ignore that feeling. Which I think is a must because as I keep going back, I'm going to run into whole categories of names I don't know. So I need to be more open to new names instead of assuming I won't enjoy them because Preston was frankly awesome. Preston plays a performer at a club who gets fired after causing a brawl and happens upon Julie Andrews and the two eventually hatch a plan to have her play a man playing a woman with him as the sort of manager. As I've already said for the other reviews on this film, the whole cast has impeccable comedic timing and Preston is probably the best of the bunch with his dry, snappy lines. Almost everything he says is hilarious and he actually reminds me a great deal of F. Murray Abraham with his deep voice and large head and facial features. I could easily see Abraham playing this part as well as Preston did. Preston makes the film entertaining and I feel he really carries the comedy aspect of the film while Andrews does the singing and dancing. Though Preston does have a scene at the end where he takes Andrews' place in her show that is seriously hysterical. It just seems like Preston was made for the part as he really makes it his own. I think the main knock against the performance is that it kinda feels more like a leading part but I guess the film considers James Garner the male lead (and he's pretty good in this, too). But to me, I can't really find much wrong with his performance. He's great at the slapstick physical comedy aspect and both he and Andrews have excellent chemistry together as if they were a longtime comedy duo. It also makes me excited to see his most well known film, The Music Man, which was nominated for Best Picture in 1962 as well as anything else he did - that's his impact on me from this performance.
Another tough group to try and rank because all of the performances are pretty good with a couple contenders for the win. Durning brings up the rear because he doesn't really get much to do other than sing one song in his two major scenes at the end of his film. He's good, but it's not nearly enough for me. Lithgow is also pretty great at really humanizing his transsexual character and not making it about his sex. At times, though, he is more of a background character instead of truly supporting. Mason is also very good in his role as the defense attorney who is clearly smart and accomplished as an attorney. It's a strong performance from a veteran and shows off Mason's acting skill. Now the big question for me is do I stay with the historical win by Gossett who does a great job in his role? Or go with Preston who blew me away with his comedic sensibilities? It's a tough choice and honestly I've seen people online who have had those two win plus Lithgow and Mason as winners, so it's a strong group that is diverse and has it's individual backers. I think I'd like to stay with Gossett as the winner but Preston might grow on me enough to force me to change that. That's a pretty good dilemma to have.
Oscar Winner: Louis Gossett, Jr. - An Officer and a Gentleman
My Winner: Louis Gossett, Jr. - An Officer and a Gentleman
Robert Preston
James Mason
John Lithgow
Charles Durning
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