5. Spencer Tracy in Boys Town- Spencer Tracy's performance is not really bad, but he is not required to do anything more than be nice.
4. Charles Boyer in Algiers- Although I liked what Boyer did with what he had. Boyer was properly smooth, but the character just did not have enough to it, to create a really interesting performance.
3. Leslie Howard in Pygmalion- Leslie Howard is quite effective as Henry Higgins, not only in creating an entertaining portrait of the pompous professor, but also a more in-depth complex portrait of a cold man as well.
2. James Cagney in Angels With Dirty Faces- Cagney does his usual gangster performance for part of the performance which is good, but the best part of the performance is showing the soft side of the gangster as he tried to help his old friend who is priest. Also his last scene is amazing.
1. Robert Donat in The Citadel- This was quite the difficult one to choose because of the strength of these top performances. I went with Donat though because of his long change his character undergoes and Donat's effectiveness and believability of every single phase of his character. Donat's performance is powerful, charming, and very effective.
Deserving Performances:
