IMO, despite some good performances in this lineup, this is one of those cases where one contender really stands out for me to the point where I just want to say the winner without really ranking anybody.
Cromwell slipping in out of nowhere wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I really don’t know what to make of it. It was a sweet and charming performance and memorable for that classic line, but I wouldn’t award him with an Oscar for it.
Brad Pitt and Tim Roth are both very campy in their roles (although I only vaguely remember Roth’s work), but still good. Pitt’s is probably one of his better performances but that is saying much.
Ed Harris is just Ed Harris, but he has been better nonetheless.
Kevin Spacey….not only is he in the best movie of the lineup, but gives the best performance and is one of the best characters to come along in quite a while. No contest.
Kevin Spacey gets my vote.
Posts: 1293 | Location: WV | Registered: October 23, 2005
Kevin Spacey is probably one of my favorite working actors who always impresses me. His performance here is no exception. Once again, he easily best the, quite solid, competition.
This is the rare Kevin Spacey performance that I liked. Most of the rest I loathe, and in general he's one of the smarmiest and hammiest actors around. But this role threw me for a loop, and it's pretty miraculous that the Academy even nominated it, let alone chose it as the winner. Really glad that Brad Pitt was remembered for "12 Monkeys." Ed Harris gave a great anchoring performance in "Apollo 13." Didn't care too much for James Cromwell or Tim Roth.
Rankings:
1. Kevin Spacey, "The Usual Suspects" 2. Brad Pitt, "12 Monkeys" 3. Ed Harris, "Apollo 13" 4. Tim Roth, "Rob Roy" 5. James Cromwell, "Babe"
Congratulations, Primetime Emmy Winners!
Comedy Series: 30 ROCK Drama Series: MAD MEN Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Alec Baldwin, 30 ROCK Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: Toni Collette, UNITED STATES OF TARA Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Bryan Cranston, BREAKING BAD Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Glenn Close, DAMAGES Guest Actress in a Comedy Series: Tina Fey, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE Guest Actress in a Drama Series: Ellen Burstyn, LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT
Posts: 24723 | Location: North Carolina, USA | Registered: April 11, 2005
1. Peter Friedman, Safe 2. Paul Sorvino, Nixon 3. David Morse, The Crossing Guard 4. James Cromwell, Babe 5. Justin Pierce, Kids
and five more:
6. Alan Rickman, Sense and Sensibility 7. Gene Hackman, Get Shorty 8. Saïd Taghmaoui, La Haine 9. Kevin Spacey, The Usual Suspects / Seven 10. Joaquin Phoenix, To Die For
I thought it was a pretty strong year for this category.
Kevin Spacey is amazing in the film but my only reservations have to do with his role really being lead. It is an ensemble film but he is in basically every scene in ways that Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri, Benicio Del Toro are not. Still he got my vote with James Cromwell in second place for my favorite film of 1995.
Posts: 27143 | Location: Phoenix, AZ | Registered: February 02, 2003
5. Ed Harris 4. Kevin Spacey 3. Brad Pitt 2. James Cromwell 1. Tim Roth
...Amazing that I put Kevin Spacey anywhere but 5th...but he was at least entertaining in his work here...I am no fan of his, but this (Still over the top work and not sure it needed to be) is quite tolerable and even enjoyable here and there.
Abosulutely loved 3, 2 & 1...Tim Roth is especially fine as a villian here...
"Notorious was nice, but it’s not in the color purple range" "Angels and Demons may get nominated for cinematography the imagery was profound" "District Nine will definitely win for best foreign film it made money and everyone loved it" ~ 8movies
Posts: 2714 | Location: nz | Registered: January 12, 2009
And there are many, many more. I agree that the Supporting Actor category is the deepest when it comes to great roles. __________________ "Those who think "Transformers" is a great or even a good film are, may I tactfully suggest, not sufficiently evolved. Film by film, I hope they climb a personal ladder into the realm of better films, until their standards improve. Those people contain multitudes. They deserve films that refresh the parts others do not reach. They don't need to spend a lifetime with the water only up to their toes."
"Notorious was nice, but it’s not in the color purple range" "Angels and Demons may get nominated for cinematography the imagery was profound" "District Nine will definitely win for best foreign film it made money and everyone loved it" ~ 8movies
Posts: 2714 | Location: nz | Registered: January 12, 2009
