Best Actor 1952: Results

5. Jose Ferrer in Moulin Rouge- I was disappointed by Ferrer, since I though he really failed to really get inside of his character. I think had a good moment or two, but overall I think this was a missed opportunity.

4. Kirk Douglas in The Bad and the Beautiful- Kirk Douglas is good as the producer, who shows well his passion to get to the top as a filmmaker, I think though the colder edge of his character is not well earned by Douglas or the film. Also Douglas not given a conclusive scene for his performance, which leaves his performance from being complete.

3. Gary Cooper in High Noon- I am not really a fan of Cooper or the film High Noon, but he is effective as Marshal Will Kane. He really gives a memorable iconic, if simple turn, that works well as the moral center of the film.

2. Marlon Brando in Viva Zapata!- Brando's performance is as strong but quiet effective piece of acting that easily overcomes being miscast as a Mexico revolutionary. I really liked his performance because he played the part with realism and simplicity, and never tried to turn Zapata into a larger than life figure.

1. Alec Guinness in The Lavender Hill Mob- Guinness' performance is a well done piece of acting in terms of creating facade, but also showing a clever criminal underneath. But I really do not care about that because more importantly his performance is hilarious. He and Stanley Holloway have terrific comedic chemistry, his comedic timing his brilliant, and some spot on reactions could not be funnier.

Deserving Performances:
John Wayne in The Quiet Man

Best Actor: Gary Cooper in High Noon

Gary Cooper won his second Oscar from his fifth and final Oscar nomination for portraying Marshal Will Kane in High Noon.

High Noon tells the story of Will Kane who must stand alone, due to the cowardice of the towns people against four men seeking revenge against him.

Gary Cooper is not one of my favorite actors, I find he has a lack of presence and power, especially in his voice, much of the rime in his performances, as well as can be incredibly dull as well. This performance though is his most iconic though, and usually regarded as his best as well. What he looks like in the film certainly is iconic and notable, his Marshal uniform, and the way he walks down the streets all alone certianly is memorable, but how good is his actual performance.

A major aspect of Cooper's performance that I usually criticize in his performance is a certain lack of passion or power behind many of his performances, but I will say this usually results from being too unemotional, and too withdrawn. Here his withdrawn personality actually works quite well for his performance. Will Kane stands in the middle of the film as a moral center, who must do the right thing no matter what will come of him. Cooper stands in the middle this time his face expresses honest emotion of sadness and dread but also am urgent responsibility to justice and what is right. 

I think despite the effectiveness of Cooper's quiet expression that carry through film, many other aspects of the film threaten to undermine Cooper's portrayal. For example I really feel many of the other actors really overplay their roles, or underplay them sometimes quite terribly. This does leave Cooper to carry all of the wight in the film. Another threat to his performance is the back story the film attempts to, quite poorly in my opinion, juxtapose on Will Kane. The back story such his involvement with Katy Jurado's character seems out of place, certainly poorly fleshed out and does nothing for the film, and works against the effectiveness of the film.

Cooper manages against this though to give an honestly honest and effective performance. A simple performance but a truthful and powerful one. His performance of Will Kane is one that the audience can follow through his struggle of his hour before his destiny comes. Cooper gains empathy in this film during each of his disappointments and his entire struggle in the film. Cooper does this not really pleading for sympathy but truly earning with iconic characterization of Kane that really is effective. Overall this is a performance from Cooper which fulfills his role without effort, and creating what is his best performance.

Best Actor 1952

And the Nominees Were:

Kirk Douglas in The Bad and the Beautiful 

Marlon Brando in Viva Zapata!

Gary Cooper in High Noon

Jose Ferrer in Moulin Rouge

Alec Guinness in The Lavender Hill Mob

Best Actor 1943: Results

5. Walter Pidgeon in Madame Curie- I think Pidgeon does a fine job with the role, but the role is just a bit too simple for anything amazing to come from it.

4. Gary Cooper in For Whom The Bell Tolls- Cooper gives a okay performance since he relies on his strengths in terms of his silent abilities, rather than his weaknesses.

3. Mickey Rooney in The Human Comedy- Rooney is actually surprisingly good, toning down his star persona to give an honest and very effective portrayal of a young man, who must deal with certain aspects of his life including the sad losses of World War II.

2. Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca- Bogart gives a completely iconic performance, and everything he does as Rick Blaine seems to be perfectly Rick Blaine, that's all I can really say about his performance. Maybe it really is as perfect as some claim, or perhaps it is a weaker performance protected by its own iconic nature, very hard to tell for me.

1. Paul Lukas in Watch on The Rhine- Bogart's performance may be more iconic but Lukas's is the greater achievement in pure acting. I read one article that described Lukas's win as bad because any descent actor could have given the same performance, I must say that reviewer is completely wrong. Lukas's performance is brilliantly fleshed out by Lukas in scenes when he is not talking suggesting everything without words, and equally powerful showing the conflicting emotions involved with the character's fight with fascism. This was not a run of the mill performance, any actor could have done, Lukas went beyond that creating a fascinating portrait of man struggling with the world.

Deserving Performances:
Joseph Cotton in Shadow of A Doubt

Best Actor 1943: Gary Cooper in For Whom The Bell Tolls

Gary Cooper received his fourth Oscar nomination for portraying Robert Jordan who helps the Republic side during the Spanish Civil war.

For Whom the Bell Tolls, is a semi epic war film that is much too long, and has many problems, even though I must admit I was not entirely bored well watching it.

Robert Jordan is an American who has come over to help the republic side in the Spanish Civil War. He is a man in command of his situation and fully aware of what he has to do. I will say that Gary Cooper is an actor I have a minor problem with automatically is that his voice can simply be too soft at times. It is just his voice, but I fell it does not always command as much presence as it should. In this performance Cooper is suppose to be rather commanding as Jordan, and his voice usually keeps me from fully believing his command in some of his other performance. Still though this is not automatically true for this performance.

I said it before and I will say it a second time Gary Cooper is an actor who is best when he is not talking. This not meant to be really a negative remark, I just find that he really is truly silent actor in many ways, since he conveys the most with his face and his eyes. Jordan is a man of few words and this work very well for Cooper. I do believe his command completely actually when he is just showing it through the way he stands and the way he looks at others. His ability to show this through his fully makes up for his voice completely for me. His voice still seems a little too soft, but I feel Cooper this time uses his physical command very well.

Most of the film Jordan is just trying to get the job done despite having to deal with an odd group of guerrillas and their odd former leader Pablo (Akim Tamirof). Cooper keeps Jordan in command at all times and that works out just fine for the performance, Jordan is a man who simply never really loses his cool. His romantic scenes with Maria(Ingrid Bergman) are rather odd though because Bergman and Cooper take such widely different approaches in these scenes. Cooper keeps it subtle and calm, while Bergman gives one of her needy emotional type performance. I think Cooper is actually more effective in these scenes because he remains far more subtle conveying truer emotions than Bergman with her obvious display of emotion. I think Cooper is actually weakened a little bit by her performance actually, but I think he still stays very effective.

Cooper's performance I expected not to really like at all, partially due to his huge failure as Sergeant York, but here I was pleasantly surprised actually. He stays a strong presence throughout the film, and he has some truly great scenes because of the power of his silent facial abilities. He really shows much more than I expected because of this, and made his character a little more complicated than I expected. Cooper is weakened by the other actors and the film itself, but he still has good scenes.

Best Actor 1943

And the Nominees Were:

Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca

Walter Pidgeon in Madam Curie

Paul Lukas in Watch on The Rhine

Gary Cooper in For Whom the Bell Tolls

Mickey Rooney in The Human Comedy


So who do you pick, and who do you predict? The iconic bar owner involved with Nazis, the Anti-Nazi, the solider in the Spanish American War, the death messenger, or Pierre Curie?