I've been saving actually watching De Niro's performance just for the project even though I've wanted to see it before now. I just hate rewatching films over and over because I'd like some reactions to be new and fresh and it makes it easier to actually watch them instead of putting it off like I did for a lot of the 2000s films. Anyway, I've seen Hurt before but eager to watch it again because it's been so long and I only vaguely remember it. Haven't seen the rest but they are some big names so I'm expecting quality, as usual.
1980 Best Actor
Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
What else can I say about De Niro's win for playing Jake LaMotta that hasn't already been said before? This is one of those films and performances that transcends being just for film nerds. Everyone has either seen, heard, or talked about this performance at some point. Even those that haven't seen it, know exactly what it's about. De Niro went all out for the role by boxing in almost a hundred amateur bouts and then took a break during filming to gain 60 some pounds to play the older, fatter LaMotta. His dedication is evident in the intense performance he gives for the film. LaMotta is a pathetic figure, a lowlife thug who was good at boxing and little else. He goes through his personal relationships like they are boxing matches as well. He beats on his wives and he fights his brother a ton. He's a jealous, paranoid man who thinks everyone else is playing him for a fool by sleeping with other guys or by sleeping with his wife or by undermining his success. He can never shed the anger that hangs around him as he goes through life and De Niro shows this extremely well with every fiber in his characters being. There is complexity in the anger and the jealousy that I think lesser actors would have struggled to show. De Niro takes LaMotta from being a simple angry boxer into a fully fledged flawed character who reacts to life in the only way he knows how. I've always hated the tour de force description for performances but De Niro really does deliver something like that here. Even though he's not a very sympathetic figure, we are drawn to him as an audience in this magnetic kind of way and that's fully because of De Niro's acting ability. It's can't take your eyes off of him good. So much has been written about this performance that I feel like I'm just regurgitating tired points and really just want to get across that this is an amazing piece of work from De Niro. Everyone should see it at least once and I completely agree with him getting the win even though I still have 3 others to see in this category - the performance is that good.
Robert Duvall - The Great Santini
Fun fact about this film, it was actually released to cable and airplanes first. It got a good review by the New York Times and it was pulled and then released in theaters. How crazy is that? The being debuted on airplanes is the most interesting part of that fact. The film is about Duvall who plays the Great Santini, a nickname he gets from being a Marine Corps fighter pilot officer. The thing that stands out to me about the performance is that Duvall plays a great military man. He has demeanor and the personality to be one hundred percent believable. The year prior in 79, Duvall was nominated for Apocalypse Now in an iconic role but it shows that he was made to be a military man. I think he's perfect in that regard. He makes himself into a Best Actor nominee with the treatment of his family. He's a disciplinarian and a bully. He's a hero outside of the family life but inside he is a terror. He instructs his son, who is a star basketball player, to take out an opposing player for fouling him hard. He threatens to hit his wife and kids and he is just a loud mouth overall. But he does all this from a place of love which I really do think counts for something. When Duvall meets his tragic end, the family does seem relieved but also sad because their dad/husband is gone. I think his brutal ways are seeped in love and aren't meant to be final. He might react and be drunk or be scared at something but he loves his family. Duvall is great at the dual personality of the military man. And that's something I saw firsthand when I was in. Tough with us but even tougher on the family - even in public. Duvall is good in the role but he was up against a very strong lineup with two performances that some consider all timers. He wasn't winning but he is still deserving.
John Hurt - The Elephant Man
Wow, this is a great performance from John Hurt. He has an extraordinary job of acting with tons of makeup and prosthetics on. There have been lots of other people who have had similar acting conditions but I don't think any come close to how devastating Hurt is as John Merrick (fun fact: his real name is Joseph Merrick, no idea for the change since it comes from the book it is based on). Hurt is phenomenal and he blows me away because he does so much with so very, very little. We don't even see Hurt fully until 13 minutes in and we don't even hear him speak until 40 minutes in. I actually love that slow exposure and Hurt makes the most of his screen time. Hurt is so gentle and warm and child-like in his performance that you can't help but want to be friends with Merrick. He's a normal person underneath his deformity that just wants to belong and wants to fit in and take in all that life has to offer. I love how young and child-like Merrick's voice sounds because it lends to that precocious nature once we learn he can speak. He's like a kid caught up in making new friends and experiencing new things and it's legitimately sweet. When Merrick is beaten or exploited by the night watchman who brings visitors to his room to frighten and to gawk, I feel a sense of anger and protective ambition. I want them to leave Merrick alone and Hurt makes his character into a very sympathetic figure. Now, some famous critics disliked how sentimental the film was but I feel it's necessary because Merrick is so innocent. Hurt keeps his character innocent and scared because that's how he should be portrayed. He was a deformed outcast who was beaten and gawked at for his whole life before he was rescued and allowed to live a life of substance. Hurt also has to act convincingly with just his body to emote whatever it is Merrick is feeling and Hurt does an amazing job in that regard. It's the voice, the eyes, and the whole body that Hurt is able to excel at turning into expressive features. You can say it's minimalist in looks but Hurt says so much with little movements and expressions and looks behind the makeup. To give a performance of that quality through prosthetics and makeup is a thing of genius. His big scene after being chased in the train station where he screams he's a man, not an animal is a thing of primal defense that is absolutely heartbreaking. I don't care if this film is sentimental because Hurt actually gets you to feel for his character in an authentic way. I think Hurt is brilliant as Merrick.
Jack Lemmon - Tribute
I could not find this anywhere online which is surprising to me since this is a Jack Lemmon film and you'd think his movies would be readily available. It's not even available on DVD, only VHS! Trying to somehow find a copy to watch so this will be only the second review I've had to skip because I couldn't find it (the first was Javier Bardem in Biutiful which was a foreign film that was only still in theaters when I first tried to review it and had to wait until it hit DVD later on). I'll update this whenever I actually get to watch his performance. Updating in 2019, as I have finally watched it. Got a VHS copy from Ebay and borrowed a VHS player from parents. Anyway, about the performance: this should really be called A Tribute to Jack Lemmon's Acting. It's basically a showcase for everything he can do as an actor and if you love Lemmon like I do, you'll really enjoy his performance. It's about a man who finds out he has cancer and is dying and his estranged son comes over to spend some time with him and he tries to be a better father and man. It's got that trademark Lemmon charm and humor where he quips a mile a minute and just fires off zingers and witty remarks one after the other. His usual frenetic style is abound here, so if you've watched his other films before you know exactly what you're getting. He also can be very dramatic and serious and showcase both that and the softer, more emotional side. He's just such a great actor that I feel like some of his performances and nominations just get overlooked. Like it's expected for him to be so good that he doesn't get as much credit as he should. But I do realize it's Lemmon and he's celebrated as one of the best to ever do it, but still you know what I mean. If you can find this one, I'd say it's worth a watch for Lemmon alone.
Peter O'Toole - The Stunt Man
So far I really liked O'Toole's work in Venus and was pretty meh on his role in My Favorite Year. I get that he was basically riffing on a mashed up version of himself and Errol Flynn in the latter film and he was good, it just didn't click or seem all that Oscar worthy to me. I had heard that this film was a bit of a hidden gem and was hopeful that this might be another great find from the project. After watching, it's a strange little film. O'Toole is a megalomaniac director of a WWI film who has a stunt man die in an accident because he swerves to miss a man on a bridge running from police. O'Toole makes a deal with that man to make him the new stunt man in exchange he won't tell the police. The film is all about O'Toole directing this film and the stunt man getting more paranoid that O'Toole is trying to kill him and the stunt man falling for the leading lady. The film makes it hard to tell at times between what is real and what is part of the film on purpose as we see all these tricks of getting shots and how they are really done and it's quite interesting. O'Toole's role, however, could really be classified as supporting. The stunt man guy dude bro is really the lead as the film focuses on him. O'Toole just plays the crazy, dedicated, overbearing, tyrannical director who oversees the project. His performance is pretty good and you get a lot of his deadpan British humor and play on words that is his charm and trademark. He's sort of the villain of the film though he's not terrible and he is actually quite funny at times. The performance works but I don't see how it is a leading one. I guess they don't want to put him in supporting because of who he is? It's also very reminiscent of his work in My Favorite Year, so it seems like this was Peter O'Toole in the 80s. The difference this time is that he wasn't playing a drunk but still has that overbearing charm. It's an odd little film and O'Toole is the only reason to watch it besides seeing how stunts are done behind the scenes. Unfortunately, this isn't going to compare all that well to the others in this category.
Obviously, I'm going to wait until I see Lemmon's performance before I write anything here, so I'll update when that happens. Updated: Having finally seen Lemmon, I can finish this! So De Niro is an all-time classic performance. The clear cut winner. Hurt, though, gives him a run for his money and in a weaker year would have easily won. More people should watch that film. Lemmon actually comes in third for me, so good thing I waited to sum these all up. He's such a solid actor and this was a showcase for his abilities. Well worth the watch if you can find it. Duvall makes a good military man and gives a good performance here, but is clearly not on the same level in this role as the first three names on this list. O'Toole is entertaining in a strange film but also in a smaller role than you'd think. He's good but if he was left off here, I wouldn't be upset. All in all, a pretty great year with no bad performance and some really fantastic ones. Glad to finally be done with this year, though!
Oscar Winner: Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
My Winner: Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
John Hurt
Jack Lemmon
Robert Duvall
Peter O'Toole
No comments:
Post a Comment