A Year. A Category. A List.....

[Culturegeek]

This is just for some mental calisthenics. I'm rarely able to do full awards because laziness slips in. But it's a fun thing to do and a cheap way to do it.

[Culturegeek]

I’m going to follow rules, and keep myself to five nominees. I normally don’t eve stick to rules here.

(Film) Best Actress, 1999

Honorable mention: Annette Benning in American Beauty had a virtually unplayable role from a writer who has challenges (cough) writing women and nearly came out the other side. It might be synonymous with “filler” nominations, but Meryl Streep in Music of the Heart is the kind of effortless acting that we need more of. Cecilia Roth came very close to scoring a personal nomination for All About My Mother. So did Nicole Kidman (who’s performance in Eyes Wide Shut is probably too small to be considered a lead) who reveals heretofore unseen talents under Kubrick. I didn’t care for The Dreamlife of Angels but Elodie Bouchez and Natacha Regnier are very good. And, frankly, Rene Russo defined cool strength for me with The Thomas Crown Affair.

Leila Hatami, Leila: A searingly understated performance, Hatami is no less than devastating in this Iranian domestic drama. She’s like a lost Ibsen heroine or one of Mizoguchi’s leading ladies – just a thoroughly lived-in and rich characterization. Just devastating

Janet McTeer, Tumbleweeds: This, perhaps, rates as one of my favourite nominations from the 90s. An unknown actress, small film, lots of competition, a bigger similar film. And yet her performance was so good, so alive, so vivacious that it was undeniable.

Hilary Swank, Boys Don’t Cry: Before she became an internet punching bag, she gave a terrific performance. I thought Boys Don’t Cry was one of the best films of the year and she’s a main reason why. Her second Oscar was royally under-deserved and she hasn’t done as much as I would’ve liked to see, but when you actor-role pairings don’t come this strong that often, so it’s worth treasuring.

Kate Winslet, Holy Smoke: Talk about life force. Few actresses dominated the screen as readily as she did in the Campion film. The film itself is no great shakes – Campion’s screenplay loads the decks in favour of Winslet – but it almost doesn’t matter. Her titanic physicality and almost obscene sensuality more than make up for the screenplay’s infelicities

Reese Witherspoon, Election: Such a clear demonstration of an actress before she became a mega-watt superstar. A unique honing of all her gifts – a ferocious single minded performance that doesn’t miss a comedic beat, astonishingly unlikeable at times and yet completely reasonable (within the screenplay). The film loses itself along the way – Payne’s predilection for condescension gets a real workout – but she gets the laughs and in a big way.

My winner: Kate Winslet

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(Film) Best Actor, 1998

Honorable Mentions: Tom Hanks provides a strongly stoic centre to Saving Private Ryan. The partnership between George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh is a truly great one and Clooney rewards Soderbergh for his initial faith with his greatest screen performance in Out of Sight. John Hurt is quietly dignified in Love and Death on Long Island. Bill Paxton invests just enough pathos to turn his banal everyman into a tragic figure in A Simple Plan. With Truman Burbank, Jim Carrey gave us inklings of the performances he could give with later roles if just given the chance. I think Bulworth is pretty terrible, but I can’t deny that Warren Beatty gives a surprisingly gutsy performance.

Robert Downey Jr. , Two Girls and a Guy: His smug, freewheeling persona got an active workout in this mediocre off-off Broadway play masquerading as a movie, but he’s never less than enthralling as a narcissist caught in his lies. If the film lived up to him, we’d be talking about a minor masterpiece.

Ian McKellan, Gods and Monsters: Just achingly beautiful. That odd combination of wry detachment and deep feeling works wonderfully in this story of memory. It’s a lightly complex intriguingly stylized characterization.

Edward Norton, American History X: Thought experiment. Imagine this movie without Edward Norton. Does that not sound terrifying? Another case where if the movie was as good as he was, we’d be talking about a masterpiece. But he’s compelling throughout and nearly makes the shitty screenplay work through sheer force of will.

Eamonn Owens, The Butcher Boy: The most lunatic child performance since Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynsky crazed through Heavenly Creatures and perhaps the most brash since Jodie Foster. The film does measure up to his ferociously charged work.

Ulrich Thomsen, Festen: The straight man is generally not the best role to play, but in this dark, dark comedy, Thomsen gets the best moments, lines and triggers a raging family explosion that ranks with the best of Miller and Williams. And he remains completely dedicated to the challenging tone of his role (he can never drift into playing for laughs because what he’s saying is deadly serious; he can never be too serious because that would telegraph his intentions). Remarkably work.

My winner: Ian McKellan

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Best Actor, 1997

James Spader nails the disaffected eroticism of Crash in a way that speaks far too directly to my psyche. Russell Crowe and Gary Pearce absolutely nail the hard-bitten Hollywood noir; Crowe has never been as soulful and Pearce finds an intriguing way to depict opportunist moral rectitude in LA Confidential. Matt Damon’s relaxed charisma is on full display in Good Will Hunting and it’s as winning a Hollywood breakthrough as any. Kevin Kline’s twin turns in The Ice Storm and In & Out remind us just how thoroughly winning a talent he was, regardless of genre or style. John Cusack in Grosse Pointe Blank remains a comic highlight for me.

Aaron Eckhart, In the Company of Men: The most audacious debut performance of the 90’s? Maybe. His turn in the Mamet-meets-Laclos caustic comedy is perfect – the personification of the blandness of evil. The films works thanks to his terrific characterization.

Ralph Fiennes, Oscar and Lucinda: Ralph Fiennes Oscar history is wildly disappointing in proportion to his talents, but no bother, this is one of his finer moments. He approaches his fanciful gambler from a completely different centre of gravity to his other acclaimed works and more than matches the spritely newcomer acting across him. It’s a dazzler.

Peter Fonda, Ulee’s Gold: It’s so small, but it’s a minor gem nonetheless. Fonda’s world weariness and grace was one of the standout performances of the year

Ian Holm, The Sweet Hereafter: God, what a masterful piece of work this was. Every scene was beautifully underplayed, every moment building imperceptibly to an overwhelming tragedy. His grieving lawyer remains one of my all time favourite performances.

Al Pacino, Donnie Brasco: Man, reminds you how annoying narrative can be when it comes to the Oscar race. Donnie Brasco contains Pacino’s last great performance and one of his best film performances ever, easily his best since his 70’s heyday.

Winner: Ian Holm

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Yeesss on Holm and Pacino. One of his last great turns.