If Russell Crowe (A Beautiful
Mind) had not won last year for his
performance in Gladiator, he would win
hands down this year. Nominated for
the third time in a row for Best
Actor, he has proven much since he
costarred with fellow nominee Denzel
Washington in Virtuosity (1995). Not
only has he been nominated for three
years in a row but he has starred in
four movies that have been nominated
for Best Picture since 1997 (L.A
Confidential - 1997, The Insider -
1999, Gladiator - 2000 and now A
Beautiful Mind - 2001. Note: The
Academy Awards took place in the
following years for each movie). Does
this guy know how to pick movies or
what? Makes you kind of forget about
the whole Meg Ryan thing. Crowe has
already won two Best Actor awards for
A Beautiful Mind (Broadcast Film
Critics Association and the Golden
Globes), but can he accomplish the
same feat as Tom Hanks by winning Best
Actor two years in a row? My guess is
that he won't.
My money would be on Denzel
Washington (Training Day). Many
felt that he was robbed of an Oscar
for his role in The Hurricane (1999),
but this year he has already won three
awards for Training Day (American Film
Institute, Boston Society Of Film
Critics and Los Angeles Film Critics
Association) and has consistently
proven himself with the movies he's
been in. This is his third nomination
for Best Actor (has never won) and has
two Supporting Actor nominations (won
for Glory). Now I know this shouldn't
count against him but critics have not
been too enthusiastic about his latest
movie, John Q. I myself think that he
was once again outstanding, but I
remember a critic back in 1989 saying
that Tom Hanks will lose votes for his
performance in Big (for which he was
nominated) when he came out with The
Burbs just before the Oscars. What
should that matter? I still think that
Washington stands a great chance for
winning.
The other three nominated actors are
all victims of circumstance.
Tom Wilkinson is for some
unknown reason overshadowed by the
performance of co-star Sissy Spacek in
their film, In the Bedroom. I know he
got a nomination, didn't he? And he
has won once for the role (New York
Film Critics Circle). Well, if Spacek
deserves Best Actress (which she
unfortunately will win) then Wilkinson
not only would get Best Actor but he
deserves a lifetime award too. His
performance is so much better than
Spacek's;.can't people see that?
Overall the movie was above average
but Wilkinson's performance is what
really made it for me. Critics can't
look past the fact that Spacek has
made her "comeback" and that is why
they love the performance so much. But
if you take away Wilkinson from the
movie then all you have is a weepy,
kind of annoying woman that wines a
lot and throws things and likes to
slap people. Wilkinson had this quiet
anger that built up in him throughout
the movie. And I felt more sorrow for
him than for Spacek's character.
There are a few things that stand in
the way of Will Smith winning
the Best Actor award. First of all,
this is his first nomination. He is
still young and voters might think
that he stands a very good chance to
be nominated again in the future.
Secondly, he is not exactly what the
Academy might think of as Best Actor
material due to the movies that he has
done in the past. His most well known
movies are action or science fiction
and we all know that voters don't like
movies like that. Thirdly, Ali
performed way below expectations and
the movie wasn't nominated for Best
Picture. Finally, Smith has received
only two nominations so far for the
role and didn't win either of them. On
the other hand, critics like to shock
people in a category or two every year
and the Best Actor category could be
the one this year. Smith has already
established himself as a top rap star,
TV star and movie star. Just imagine
if he adds an Oscar to the mix.
Sean Penn delivered what is
obviously a great performance, but the
chance of him winning is hindered by
the bad to average reviews for I Am
Sam. The movie has also had mediocre
box office returns (in the $30 million
range) and many people don't like his
bad boy image (not that it should
count against his performance). Also,
Penn has only been nominated once for
the role, but still, mentally and
physically challenged characters have
turned into Academy gold, so Penn
isn't totally out of the picture.
Deserved To Be Nominated But Was
Left Out:
- Gene Hackman (The Royal Tenenbaums)
- Guy Pearce (Memento)
- Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge)
Who I Want To Win:
- Denzel Washington
And The Award Goes To:
- Denzel Washington
