Film in 2012 may not have been
quite as strong overall as 2011, but right at the top there were a lot of good
and very entertaining films. 2012 also featured many wonderful performances,
particularly among men (many great performances that would have made my lists
in past years were sadly left off). The LeapBackBlog Film Awards are comprised
of what I think were the best and most interesting films, the strongest
performances (taking into consideration who the actor is and what else they
have done), the narrative style that drew me in (best directing), and exquisite
craftsmanship (best technical achievements). But really, these are lists of my
favorites from the year.
Playing Peggy, Amy Adams at first seems to be a
quiet doting wife to Lancaster Dodd, kind and gentle, but as the film
progresses it becomes clear that she is really the one with the control and
power behind The Cause. Adams’s work in The
Master is therefore sort of misleading. She does not seem to have much
dramatic work, and yet is a commanding presence in many of the scenes (most of which
she is just sitting and watching – it is only near the end of the film where is
vocally asserts her true authority). And thus, her performance is a key
component to the film. It is one of the year’s more difficult subtle
performances (and best).
Villains seem to make up a lot of 2012’s best supporting
work, and Javier Bardem’s
Silva in Skyfall
is maybe the best of the lot. James Bond villains have always been amplified
and sort of comically evil (and we love them for that reason). Bardem captures
the essence of the typical Bond villain but also does something new. Silva
actually makes Bond uncomfortable (as well as the audience to some extent),
because he is much more than Bond’s equal. He is a real threat to Bond, more so
than any villain in the franchise’s history. The performance is completely
magnetic – the scene in which Bond and Silva first meet is among the year’s
best.
Alison Brie
is hysterical in The
Five-Year Engagement playing the sister (Suzie) of one of the film’s leads (Violet).
Along with Chris Pratt (who
is also killer in support), she delivers much of the film’s funniest moments
(as the leads are given most of the drama). Brie is particularly fantastic
giving a speech at her sister’s engagement part, on the verge of tears, and
giving her sister a pep talk later in the film in an Elmo voice (maybe the
film’s best scene). Comedy is always overlooked, but Brie just radiates too
brightly to be ignored.
Django
Unchained is full of great and fun performances. Jamie Foxx is at his best in the
lead as Django and Christoph
Waltz (who very easily could have made this list, and would have in most
years) is top-notch in support. But, it is Leonardo
DiCaprio who shines the brightest. He is thoroughly insane as Calvin
Candie, a cruel plantation owner. While Waltz is funny and engaging, DiCaprio
is forcibly dynamic as he seemingly by sheer will takes over every scene
commanding the attention of the audience (and the other characters). He is the
focus of all his scenes. Villains often have the latitude to go big with their
performances, and DiCaprio goes huge. He is an absolute blast to watch.
Tom Hardy
had the impossible task of following Heath Ledger’s Joker in The
Dark Knight playing Bane in The
Dark Knight Rises. The role is also particularly challenging as Hardy’s
face is almost altogether obstructed by a mask. Yet, he is brilliant. Using his
body language and the way he moves, along with his menacing eyes, Hardy
constructs Batman’s most brutal foe. Bane also very much lives in the gypsy
voice that Hardy gives him – his line delivery (though, it does take some
getting used to – but it does become easily understandable eventually) is
playful and authoritative, an odd combination but it completely works. Every
scene that Hardy is in is a pleasure to watch. He certainly lives up to
Ledger’s Joker.
After seeing The
Dark Knight Rises, Anne
Hathaway seemed destined to make this list for her fantastic work as Selina
Kyle (essentially giving the definitive performance as the character). However,
her work in Les
Miserables as Fantine is even better. She is heartbreaking, leaving every
viewer emotionally touched. Her rendition of I Dreamed a Dream is magnificent,
perfectly capturing the dismal low that Fantine finds herself in, having lost
everything. The viewer forgets that they are watching an actress and a
performance. It is probably the best performance of the year (at least in
support).
Philip
Seymour Hoffman’s work in The
Master is among his best. As Lancaster Dodd, the man at the head of The
Cause, he has a wonderful duality to his performance. He is completely
infatuated with himself and utterly oozing with confidence, and yet he also
seems completely lost and alone, shackled in solitude by the farce he has
created around himself. Whenever Hoffman is on screen, he demands the attention
of the audience, as the center of it all – and the audience completely obliges
him as they cannot look away. His work is just too compelling. The scenes
between Hoffman and lead Joaquin
Phoenix are especially electric.
Following up on his brilliant work in We Need to Talk About Kevin, Ezra Miller turns in another
phenomenal performance in The
Perks of Being a Wallflower as Patrick. Miller has so much energy and
intensity in the film that he pulls the audience’s attention towards him in
every scene (which is the mark of truly great work – the viewer cannot look
away). Patrick burns almost too brightly, that when he gets low there almost
seems to be a lull or void, and Miller is able to capture these darker emotions
of sadness and loneness incredibly well. While 2012 was full of great
supporting work by male actors, Miller might just turn in the year’s best
performance in the category (a performance that has been shamefully
overlooked).
Flight
has a number of wonderful supporting performances in it – namely from John Goodman, James Badge Dale, and Kelly Reilly – however, it is
Reilly that serves as the film’s heart playing Nicole, a vital role given
Whip’s fall (the film’s lead character). Her work in the film needed to be
strong, as she allows the audience to get behind Whip, even despite himself and
his vices, because she believes in him and is behind him. Reilly is also a ray
of hope in Whip’s life as she too is an addict, but a recovering one who is
determined to start her life anew. As good as Denzel Washington is in Flight,
the film would just not be the same emotionally without Reilly’s excellent
supporting work.
Emma Watson
grew up before the eyes of cinemagoers playing Hermione Granger for over a
decade in the Harry Potter franchise. Starting as a newcomer to acting, she got
better with each film devolving into one of Hollywood’s great young stars (her
work in the Deathly Hallows Parts 1
and 2
is especially strong). In The
Perks of Being a Wallflower, Watson has the difficult role of playing both
the ‘dream girl’ and a well-drawn realistic character as Sam, and she pulls it
off beautifully. She wins the audience and Charlie over with her charms, but is
not without flaws and struggles – once again presenting young women with a
female character they can relate to and care about (when Hollywood seldom
offers good female characters).
No comments:
Post a Comment