Saturday 28 January 2017

Best Actor 2016

And the Nominees Are:

Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge

Casey Affleck in Manchester By The Sea


Denzel Washington in Fences


Ryan Gosling in La La Land

Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic

159 comments:

Psifonian said...

1. Mortensen
2. Garfield
3. Washington
4. Gosling
5. Affleck

Luke Higham said...

1. Mortensen
2. Affleck
3. Washington
4. Garfield
5. Gosling

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Have you watched The Edge Of Seventeen.

Charles H said...

I see some great predictions already, Here's mine.
1. Mortensen
2. Garfield
3. Washington
4. Affleck
5. Gosling

RatedRStar said...

Here we are Ladies and Gentlemen, the greatest year ever for lead actor,

This really could go to anyone, I think Viggo Mortensen would be my choice if I voted.

In the words of Viggo "FUCK THAT"

1. Viggo Mortensen
2. Andrew Garfield
3. Denzel Washington
4. Casey Affleck
5. Ryan Gosling

Luke Higham said...

I hope we'll get Affleck's review tomorrow night.

Charles H said...

Garfield or Viggo for me.

Anonymous said...

1. Mortensen
2. Affleck
3. Washington
4. Garfield
5. Gosling (I doubt he'll get a 5, but we'll see)

RatedRStar said...

I am starting to worry though about Affleck, and starting to feel very confident about Garfield =D.

I would still give Affleck a 5 though, I think he is great and there are moments where I think he is incredible.

I will name 2 scenes, the first is his scene in the police station despite the bad music playing, his completely shocked state and his attempt to kill himself are just horrifying to watch, like I would have done the same thing.

The second is his final fight in the bar, aside from him snapping, when he crys on the couch it is pretty sad as he almost looks like he finally gives up.

Mitchell Murray said...

Changing my predictions slightly:

5) Garfield - 3.5/5
4) Washington - 4/5
3) Gosling - 4/5
2) Mortensen - 5/5
1) Affleck - 5/5

Robert MacFarlane said...

1. Denzel
2. Viggo
3. Casey
4. Andrew
5. Gosling

My take: Mortensen, Washington, and Affleck are all great. Gosling's good. Garfield is embarrassing.

Charles H said...

Robert: Have you seen Saving Private Ryan?

Robert MacFarlane said...

@Charles: Of course. Kind of overpraised. Great battle scenes, Hanks and Davies are great. But thematically it's lacking, and the bookends are ruinous. Shakespeare in Love might not be the best film that year, but I prefer it to SPR.

Charles H said...

Robert: I agree on SPR. But i personally can't see Garfield's performance in Hacksaw the way you see it. I think it was a great performance, That handled the film quite nicely. Do you not like Garfield or Gibson in general?

Luke Higham said...

Charles: He loved him in Silence.

Anonymous said...

I personally found Shakespeare in Love mediocre because Ralph's little brother has no charisma whatsoever as an actor.

Luke Higham said...

Charles: But he doesn't care for Gibson as a director.

Robert MacFarlane said...

I like Garfield in most things I've seen in him (ESPECIALLY Silence), but he is about as mawkish as they come in Hacksaw. Hell, he borders on Simple Jack in the first half.

I despise Gibson as a director and storyteller. There's always a right-wing macho bent to his work. This movie is no different. I wish he stayed exiled.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous: Funny thing is, I've seen some of his far lesser-known works like Luther and Risen. He's actually quite good in moments from the former, but anyone could play the title role far greater than he does and Risen's complete garbage.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous: His best performance is probably in The Merchant Of Venice, but even I can't remember much from it.

Psifonian said...

@Robert: "I wish he stayed exiled."

That's a bit harsh, man. Regardless of how you feel about Gibson's work or his personal demons, an artist should still be able to create. No one deserves to be kept from being able to make art. Whether you wish to be a party to it is entirely up to you, but exile?

Charles H said...

Robert: Gibson is one of the most hated directors in Hollywood i believe. I'm no big fan of him. But in my eyes Braveheart and Hacksaw are decent films.

Robert MacFarlane said...

@Psifonian: Perhaps harsh. I wish he would stick to acting, he's much better at that.

RatedRStar said...

Louis: You have been quite clever in not revealing any thoughts on these five in anyway possible which makes the predictions a lot harder, I wonder if there is a plot twist in this lineup.


Robert MacFarlane: This song I have linked reminds me of this lineup, you might be familiar with this little sound in terms of mystery and surprise, who knows what Louis will go for =D.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlPupxGyxZM&list=PLU4ktq2pWONtJ7o5pLZyWJc88nttIzMKx&index=31

RatedRStar said...

Mel Gibson I like to think of as a great actor and a good director, to think I might not have said that if I went back in time to how I was in 2012 lol.

Luke Higham said...

RatedRStar: Back when you had an immense hate for Joaquin.

RatedRStar said...

=D Me and Joaquin are like bumchums now =D hehe.

BRAZINTERMA said...

BEST ACTRESS:
5 - Streep
4 - Stone
3 - Neega
2 - Portman
1 - Huppert

BEST ACTOR:
5 - Gosling
4 - Washington
3 - Garfield
2 - Mortensen
1 - Affleck

BEST DIRECTOR:
5 - Lonergan
4 - Villeneuve
3 - Gibson
2 - Chazelle
1 - Jenkins

BEST PICTURE
9 - Hidden Figures
8 - Lion
7 - Fences
6 - La La Land
5 - Manchester by the Sea
4 - Hacksaw Ridge
3 - Arrival
2 - Moonlight
1 - Hell or HighWalter

Michael McCarthy said...

I'm gonna do something crazy.

1. Denzel Washington
2. Casey Affleck
3. Viggo Mortensen
4. Andrew Garfield
5. Ryan Gosling

Omar Franini said...

1. Affleck
2. Mortensen
3. Garfield
4. Washington
5. Gosling

RatedRStar said...

Michael McCarthy: Why is that crazy? lol =D.

Charles H said...

RatedRstar: If you predict these 5 anyway it would look correct. Louis could go for anyone. They're all great.

mcofra7 said...

I really have no idea

1. Mortensen
2. Washington
3. Affleck
4. Gosling
5. Garfield



Bryan L. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Matt Mustin said...

1. Mortensen
2. Affleck
3. Gosling (For the record, I love this performance)
4. Garfield
5. Washington

Calvin Law said...

1. Affleck
2. Washington
3. Garfield
4. Mortensen
5. Gosling

Giuseppe Fadda said...

1. Mortensen
2. Washington
3. Garfield
4. Affleck
5. Gosling

Maciej said...

1.Mortensen
2.Affleck
3.Garfield
4.Gosling
5.Washington

Anonymous said...

Why does everyone think Affleck won't get a 5? He's pretty extraordinary despite the film being overpraised.

Álex Marqués said...

1. Mortensen
2. Affleck
3. Washington
4. Garfield
5. Gosling

Anonymous said...

My predictions:

5. Gosling - 3.5

4. Garfield - 4.5

3. Washington - 5

2. Affleck - 5

1. Mortensen - 5

Michael Patison said...

1. Viggo Mortensen
2. Casey Affleck
3. Denzel Washington
4. Andrew Garfield
5. Ryan Gosling

Bryan L. said...

Interesting fact about recent Best Actor lineups.

In 2013, Bruce Dern (Nebraska) was the only one of the nominees who didn't play a real person in their performance (Dicaprio as Jordan Belfort, Bale as Irving Rosenfeld, McConaughey as Ron Woodroof, Ejiofor as Solomon Northup.)

2014: Michael Keaton (Birdman) was also the only one of the nominees who played an original character. (Cooper as Chris Kyle, Redmayne as Stephen Hawking, Cumberbatch as Alan Turing, Carrell as John du Pont.)

Same in 2015 for Matt Damon in The Martian; (Dicaprio as Hugh Glass, Cranston as Dalton Trumbo, Fassbender as Steve Jobs, and Redmayne as Lili Elbe.)

However, Andrew Garfield is the only one nominated this year for playing a historical figure.

Álex Marqués said...

94dfk1: I find that very refreshing.

Mike Hannigan said...

Frankly, I don't remember last time we had such a poor year.

1. Mortensen (4.5). Shining star among pretenders.

2. Washington (3.5) Much over-the-top performance in a very theatrical fashion. Everything says: look at me, I can act. He is dominative, witty, angry, but generally too much calculative.

3. Gosling (3) Quite a charming performance, though not very much as an actor. He bases on his charm, look and fitness skills, but doesn’t really have any chance to prove acting abilities.

4. Garfield (2.5) In the first part, it seems like a parody of Forrest Gump. He doesn’t bother to add any sort of roughness to his character. It’s Mr Perfect, but, ok, it was the decision of director who was interested in visual spectacularity and religious pathos, not in psychological truth.

5. Affleck (2) A terrible deadpan performance lacking any emotional depth whatsoever. Critics say this is a triumph of minimalism, but, truly, this is very mannered performance full of lazy lingering looks, sudden suspensions of voice, and not much more. Nothing to compare with Robert Duvall's minimalistic turn in "Tender Mercies".

Calvin Law said...

I mean this is one year I'd be happy for anyone to win, both for Louis' predictions and the Oscars themselves.

Unknown said...

Mike Hannigan:

Personally, If you think this year is quite dissapointed for you, then I guest you would feel the same for 2013, 1993 or 1962 too. Your POV always seems too harsh on everything hah?!

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Having not seen Fences, I can't really comment on Washington. However, I'll just shoot the barrel:-

1. Mortensen (I really hope he wins here, it's one of his best performances)
2. Affleck (extraordinary turn which would be an extremely deserving winner)
3. Washington
4. Garfield (Terrific work that perfectly works in tandem with Mel Gibson's awesome direction)
5. Gosling (you know it's an impeccable year when most people guess his work will finish last. It's a great leading man performance which has incredible chemistry with his co-star, and amplifies the film's impact all the more)

I reckon Louis will give Mortensen and Affleck 5's, and the rest of the 3, 4.5's.

Mike Hannigan said...

Ngoc Toan Nguyen:

Thanks for a comment, I like your sense of irony.

I think it's very natural that there are poorer and better years. This one I consider quite dissapointing. We all have some movies behind us, some books, and all of these influence our views on performances too. It's all the matter of personal views, more or less. I respect you have different opinion on 2016, that's why we are here to discuss, sometimes fight, but in a peaceful way.

2013 was clearly one of the strongest, 1993 too, despite utterly undeserved nomination for Fishburne (Michael Douglas should have jumped in). 1962 was so so, with two very strong performances and three only ok. 2002 and 1964 were pretty impressive.

But 2011 was quite poor, only Oldman and Dujardin deserved for nomination, in my harsh opinion. In 1980s there were plenty nominations out of nowehere, for instance 1985 with easy and fully deserved win for Hurt, who competed with poor players.

JackiBoyz said...

1. Washington
2. Affleck
3. Mortensen
4. Garfield
5. Gosling

L Rime said...

I like Affleck's turn in Manchester By The Sea, but I'm not sure it's a 5. I've seen much better minimalist performances(ex. Tom Hardy in Mad Max).

Álex Marqués said...

As far as minimalist perfs go, I don't think Hardy was as good as Theron in that film, or Gosling in Drive. I wouldn't give him a 5 for that role, even if the movie is great.

Anonymous said...

Here we go...

1.Mortensen (Easily the best of the lineup)
2.Washington
3.Garfield
4.Gosling
5.Affleck (Start complaining)

Anonymous said...

I mean I would say Bridges in Hell or High Water is a better minimalist performance than Affleck. Most Bridges's performance is quite and contemplative.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous: I agree.

RatedRStar said...

Psifonian: I might be wrong about this but I dont think I have seen you ever put forward a winning request that you would like? do you know that when you win a predictions you can put forward any performance, as I said I might be completely wrong but I dont think ive seen you put one forward?

Anonymous said...

Louis, do you have any thoughts and rating on Nawazuddin in Lion, he is one of my all time favorite actors.

L Rime said...

Alex Marques:

Eh, not really. Theron is good. But Hardy had the best performance in the movie. He did the most with less.

Álex Marqués said...

L Rime: "That's just like, your opinion, man" :)

L Rime said...

Alex Marques:

Thanks for the insult. I appreciate that you think I'm too stupid to understand what I said was an opinion.

Anonymous said...

I don't think he meant that to be an insult...

Álex Marqués said...

It wasn't an insult, in fact I really don't know why am I explaining myself. Sorry if you were offended, I guess...

Calvin Law said...

Everyone just chill and smile, it's Lebowski time! Speaking of which has anyone ever had the chance to use a Big Lebowski quote in real life?

Calvin Law said...

And on Mad Max, I think both Theron and Hardy are really good, but neither makes my lineup. Hoult, on the other hand, just gets better with time.

Robert MacFarlane said...

With Calvin on the Mad Max cast. Also, I quote Big Lebowski like scripture.

Charles H said...

Mike Hannigan: Hahhahha, Garfield parodying Forrest Gump? I won't even make a comment on that. Because you'll just make another false accusation that i'm calling you stupid again.

Anonymous said...

I could imagine the reaction when Streep gets her fourth Oscar.

Robert MacFarlane said...

I honestly found Garfield to sound like a Gump impression myself. Part of the reason I hate his performance.

Charles H said...

Robert: I really can't find much of Forrest Gump in his performance. But i do think Andrew Garfield has some Tom Hanks-like charisma in his performance.

Calvin Law said...

I agree with Charles, there's a bit of that old fashioned awkward charm in Garfield's performance. I thought Jimmy Stewart as well, but tempered with a bit of young Dean Stockwell. And I then in the battle scenes he reminded me a lot of Jim Caviezel in The Thin Red Line.

Unknown said...

Mike Hannigan:

Again, We all know that is just your subjective opinion about this year performances . But the point is in what perspctive that you could rank alomost all of the nominees rubbish is the main point I want you to clear out for me. Cuz your POV over all 5 performance seems non-sense to me and to be honest, come out from nowhere.

Charles H said...

Calvin: I completely agree with that abbreviation.

Mike Hannigan said...

Charles: Look closer. It always helps. :P

Nguyễn Ngọc Toàn: I did my best to comment on the all performances to justify my opinion. So, eveything is there :P

Charles H said...

Mike: Whatever floats your boat. Hehe.

Anonymous said...

Varun Neermul: Gonna rewatchans Manchester by The sea. Maybe i Will appreciate Affleck more.

Charles H said...

If i'm not mistaken, The SAG awards are tonight.

Luke Higham said...

Washington's winning I think.

Charles H said...

Luke: You're probably right, But i hope he doesn't. I hope a dark horse wins, Like Mortensen. But it's a two man race between Affleck and Washington as of now.

Mike Hannigan said...

Louis: Have you seen any of foreign language films nominated this year? If yes, what are your thoughts?

Luke Higham said...

Mike: Toni Erdmann. He didn't care for it and gave 3.5s to the leads.

Mike Hannigan said...

Yeah, Toni is bit too long, among few other problems. I recommend "The Salesman" though.

Luke Higham said...

Mike: He loved A Separation, so he might like that.

Anonymous said...

Louis: What do you think The Dark Knight Rises needed to be a masterpiece? I'd say the film need a second draft and remove the plot holes.

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous: Get rid of Talia Al'Ghul. As much as I love Cotillard, it's the sole black mark on her career and wish for it to be erased from memory.

Secondly, Give Bane a far more satisfying ending to his arc.

Anonymous said...

Luke: You're right on that one. It really felt underwhelming when Bane was revealed to be just a pawn.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

Probably would have been best to scrap the whole thing since part of their failing was in trying to one up the Dark Knight, so they thought what's the step up above a city in a chaos? A city about to explode!

Though if one has to keep the main plot more or less drop Talia, Bane works just fine alone, and drop Blake as well, keep the focus on Gordon instead.

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Agreed.

Álex Marqués said...

I should see The Salesman, since I thought A Separation was an absolutely brilliant film. On the same tier as Drive and The Tree Of Life, for me.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Are you looking forward to Affleck's Batman movie, despite not caring for the Justice League movie?

Anonymous said...

1.Mortensen
2.Affleck
3.Garfield
4.Washington
5.Gosling

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Aside from Rush, who would you cast as Bertie & Elizabeth in The King's Speech.

Louis Morgan said...

Anonymous:

Yes, though I'm not sure it's going to happen based on Affleck's flipflopping which might be due to studio interference.

Luke:

I actually would have put Pearce as Bertie instead. A better director maybe could try to purge those odd tendencies Bonham-Carter developed in her time with Burton, though to be fair they were a little more muted there than some of her other contemporary work.

Charles H said...

I can't believe it! It's almost here!

Luke Higham said...

Good luck everyone, The Lead Actor race officially ends here.

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Can I have your SAG thoughts later on.

Charles H said...

Yes! Macy's in.

Charles H said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Robert MacFarlane said...

Well, Affleck's Oscar has just been canceled.

Luke Higham said...

I fucking knew it.

Louis Morgan said...

Luke:

Okay we have one open acting race left. The momentum could shift in someone else's favor in lead actor since someone else has to win BAFTA, but Washington's chances are looking pretty good now.

I'd say the other three are probably sewn up, I'm glad I can say I called Stone relatively early.

With the PGA win, and Hidden Figures taking ensemble (rather than Moonlight or Manchester) I'd say picture probably is a done deal as well.

Charles H said...

Luke: You were fuckin' right, But i didn't want to believe it. In my heart, I had the feeling. But i denied it. This race has gone to the birds.

Anonymous said...

The race just got interesting again.

Robert MacFarlane said...

I think Denzel will win the Oscar given SAG history with Best Actor as a category.

Psifonian said...

*sees Stone won and "Manchester" got shut out*
I like the cut of your jib, SAG.

Robert MacFarlane said...

Alright, for the big 6, I think our winners will be:

Picture: La La Land
Director: Chazelle
Actor: Denzel
Actress: Stone
Supporting Actor: Ali
Supporting Actress: Davis

Robert MacFarlane said...

Also, David Harbour is totally running for Congressman or Senator one day.

Charles H said...

All we can do is hope that the Baftas give someone else momentum.

Anonymous said...

Garfield could potentially win at BAFTA but it's a long shot.

Matt Mustin said...

Is Washington considered a surprise win, because I kinda figured he'd win this one.

Robert MacFarlane said...

I predicted him for SAG a month ago.

Mike Hannigan said...

Yeah, well. Just on the record. Last time SAG winner in the main male category wasn't awarded Oscar in 2003, but Johnny Depp was rather a surprise winner, as they couldn't decide between Murray and Penn. This year is somehow similar, there is no one front-runner, as he was last year, so eveything can happen at the Oscar. They can even award Garfield-Gump.

I know Emma Stone is quite high in most of your rankings, but I rather think of Ruth Negga as a dark horse of the race. She wasn't nominated for SAG, as she isn't for BAFTA.

And we have: Washington-Negga-Ali-Davis, first ever non-white line in Oscar's history. I know that these are movies, and only movies matter, but this Academy looks like wanna go down in history in a difficult times.

I'm happy for Ali though.

Mike Hannigan said...

My predictions for big 6:

MIND:
Movie: La La Land
Director: Chazelle
Actor: Washington
Actress: Stone
Supporting Actor: Ali
Supporting Actress: Davis

HEART:
Movie: Moonlight
Director: Chazelle
Actor: Mortensen
Actress: Huppert
Supporting Actor: Ali
Supporting Actress: Kidman

Bryan L. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bryan L. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
GM said...

1. Mortensen
2. Washington
3. Gosling
4. Affleck
5. Garfield

Calvin Law said...

I'd be happy for a Washington victory, to be honest. Loved Affleck but Denzel really isn't that far off.

Anonymous said...

Interesting that Garfield didn't show up

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

I've finally seen Silence. Louis, Calvin and the rest of you guys, you were right. It's one of the most powerful films I've EVER seen, and it may actually have surpassed Drive as my favorite film of the decade so far.

Calvin Law said...

Random question Louis, but why is Mahershala Ali so low for Place Beyond the Pines in 2013 supporting? I thought he was decent with the little he was given, certainly more than a 2 (which is what I assume he has).

Calvin Law said...

Tahmeed: Glad you loved it that much.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Ratings for Silence
Garfield-5 (He's my new win for the year)
Neeson-5
Ogata-4.5 (Could upgrade him)
Driver-4 (Close to a 4.5. He has one of the most powerful scenes in the whole film)
Kubozuka-5 (He was so haunting and heartbreaking. Ben Foster's position as my win is very much on thin ice now)
Asano-4.5 (Delicious portrait of evil that was just so excellently done)
I'd say Scorsese did some of his greatest directing ever here.

Álex Marqués said...

It's terrible that Scorsese didn't get nominated this time.

Anonymous said...

Guys, what would be your top 20 songs?

1.Nu Kan Du Få Mig Så Lätt
2.Sweet Disposition
3.Som Vanligt
4.She Smiled Sweetly
5.The Sound Of Silence
6.Dark Bird Is Home
7.The Funeral
8.Someday Never Comes
9.Love Hurts
10.Iktara
11.Luka Chuppi
12.Koi Kahe Hai
13.Ae Kash He Hum
14.Hurt (Johnny Cash)
15.The Weight
16.Don't Look Back In Anger
17.The Times They Are-A Changing (This song is an anthem for me and my friends right now...)
18.Girl From North Country
19.How Deep Is Your Love
20.Ae Ajnabi

Robert MacFarlane said...

It took me until actually talks by about the movie with someone else, but I realized my choice for Best Actor is actually Joel Edgerton in Loving.

Anonymous said...

21.Free Bird

Mike Hannigan said...

Robert: I agree. This is the least actoresque performance. Very natural, believable. He doesn't show off with his brilliant technique, like many nominees this year. Yet moving.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Varun:
1. Bridge Over Troubled Water
2. Bohemian Rhapsody
3. Hotel California
4. Candle in the Wind 1997
5. With or Without You
6. November Rain
7. Imagine
8. The Show Must Go On
9.(tie) Let it Be and Hey Jude
10.Take Me Home, Country Roads
11.Don't Look Back in Anger
12.(TIE) Don't Stop Believin' and Faithfully by Journey
13.One Sweet Day (while not the biggest fan of Mariah Carey, this is a song I'll always love)
14.Ami Banglay Gan Gai (one of the most beautiful patriotic songs ever, an absolute masterpiece)
15.How to Save A Life
16.Truly, Madly, Deeply
17.Wonderwall
18.Sunday Bloody Sunday
19.Man in the Mirror (the greatest song by the King of Pop)
20.Every Breath You Take

Luke Higham said...

Tahmeed: Can I have more detailed thoughts on Garfield in Silence.

Robert MacFarlane said...

@Varun: I don't have a ranking, but here's 20 songs I love in no particular order:

"Baba O'Reilly" by The Who
"Under Pressure" by Queen and David Bowie
"The Mother We Share" by CHVRCHES
"O Children" by Nick Cave
"Lights" by Ellie Goulding
"Punching in a Dream" by The Naked and Famous
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day
"Radio Nowhere" by Bruce Springsteen
"A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton
"Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen
"Birdhouse in Your Soul" by They Might Be Giants
"Life on Mars" by David Bowie
"Poet" by Bastille
"Some Nights" by fun.
"Chandelier" by Sia
"American Pie" by Don McClean
"Misery Business" by Paramore
"Miss Independent" by Kelly Clarkson
"Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gotye
"Complicated" by Avril Lavigne

Decided to deversify artists, or else this list would just be CHVRCHES.

Álex Marqués said...

Luke: Which is your top 5 for best actor this year?

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Luke:
Garfield is absolutely stunning here as Rodriguez. Just like he did in Hacksaw Ridge, he does an impeccable job with the accent he chooses to use (ironically, I doubted both of his accents upon first seeing the trailers). He immediately brings the needed conviction to his values, and he does establish this strength well early on, except with a hint of weakness. He has a terrific dynamic with Adam Driver from the get-go, and both of them portray the dedication that both priests have flawlessly. Garfield is so great in the praying scenes in the village, that he makes the villagers' hero-worship of him feel completely earned.

With that being said, I did mention a weakness in Rodriguez that Garfield brilliantly shows. Rodriguez has a misconception and a bit of an arrogance when it comes to martyrdom in order to seal his place with Christ, and that does lead him to a bit of trouble. Garfield was amazing in the moment he breaks down laughing by the river stream, and he cleverly alludes to two interpretations; firstly, that he is slightly over his head, or that he will soon have a crisis of faith.

Garfield's strongest scenes I feel are the entire second half, when he is arrested by the Inquisitor's men. Garfield properly shows the passion and love that he has for Christianity in his conversations with Inoue, and he and Ogata strike up a great dynamic as well. However, once Rodriguez is really put to the test, Garfield is great in showing the stages of a man's break down in his faith. One amazing moment is his reaction when a man gets decapitated in front of him, and also his heartbreaking reaction to *spoilers*
Driver's final scene. After that, Garfield is great in showing the growing duress of his man; his mental decay was realistically done. His scenes with Neeson are also excellent, and Garfield is properly moving in his reaction of disbelief to his former mentor's change. And, when Rodriguez *spoiler* finally does commit what the Inquisitor wanted, Garfield properly shows it as the laborious sacrifice that one man makes for others, regardless of how long it took.

Garfield is magnificent in his scenes with Kubozuka. He shows the proper bemusement to him at times, and both actors bring about their difficult dynamic convincingly. Garfield properly accentautes Rodriguez properly accentuating his faith before his personal opinions of people, while Kubozuka is fascinatingly enigmatic. Garfield's final scenes in the epilogue could not be a better end; he shows the empty shell that he has to become in order to survive, and his last confession scene with Kubozuka greatly brings his character full circle.

This is just an outstanding performance, and I can't wait for Louis to review him.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

Alex: I know you didn't ask me, but this would be my updated top 5-

1. Andrew Garfield in Silence
2. Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
3. Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea
4. Chris Pine/Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water
5. Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge

Anonymous said...

Robert: I love 'Complicated', a girl I had a fling with used this song to describe me hahaha.

Tahmeed: Glad to see Don't Look Back In Anger on your list.

Luke Higham said...

Alex:
1. Garfield in Silence
2. Bridges in Hell Or High Water
3. Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
4. Washington in Fences
5. Affleck in Manchester By The Sea

I really want to see Adam Driver in Paterson though.

Tahmeed Chowdhury said...

A girl I once dated described our relationship using 'You and Me' by Lifehouse. Can't listen to it anymore cause of that xD

ruthiehenshallfan99 said...

Favorite Songs (Including movie songs) Don't have a real list yet or a real order (except the first two) but...

A Dream is A Wish Your Heart Makes - Ilene Woods
I Dreamed a Dream - Ruthie Henshall
Moon River - Audrey Hepburn
Indian Love Call - Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
You and Me - Lifehouse
Love is a Song - From Bambi
Theme from Valley of the Dolls - Dionne Warwick
Love is a Many Splendored Thing
Stormy Weather - Lena Horne
La Vie en Rose - Edith Piaf
Johnny Guitar - Peggy Lee
Imitation of Life - Earl Grant
The Man that Got Away - Judy Garland
It's Magic - Doris Day
Will you Remember - MacDonald and Eddy
God Help the Outcasts
When You Wish Upon a Star
Circle of Life
I'm with You - Avril Lavigne


Can't think of others.

Luke Higham said...

I could come up with a list, but I would probably choose up to 60 than 20 and it's hard enough trying to round it down.

RatedRStar said...

Top 20 songs for me in random order, genre is pretty obvious lol

Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance
Eyes Without a Face - Billy Idol
Follow You - Bring Me The Horizon
Blasphemy - Cinema Bizarre
The Running Free - Coheed and Cambria
I Fought The Law - The Clash
The Kill - 30 Seconds To Mars
Start Me Up - The Rolling Stones
Love You To Death - Kill Hannah
Are You Gonna Go My Way - Lenny Kravitz
In The End - Linkin ParK
Nancy Boy - Placebo
You Got It - Roy Orbison
Tekken II - Sex Machineguns
20th Century Boy - T.Rex
Sowing The Seeds Of Love - Tears For Fears
World Behind My Wall - Tokio Hotel
Hold The Line - Toto
Faster - Within Temptation
There's No Going Back - Sick Puppies

Luke Higham said...

RatedRStar: Nice to see The Kill on your list. :)

Charles H said...

Mike: After re-watching a couple of Garfield's scenes in Hacksaw i'm starting to see a hint of Gump.

My top 5.
1. Garfield in Silence (There's no competition here for me)
2. Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
3. Ralph Fiennes in A Bigger Splash
4. Colin Farrell in The Lobster
5. Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge

Luke Higham said...

Charles: Ralph Fiennes is easily the best thing of A Bigger Splash, though since I've been a proponent of Louis' rules I have to place him in 2015 lead.

Charles H said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Robert MacFarlane said...

I think my Actor lineup would be:

1. Joel Edgerton in Loving
2. Andrew Garfield in Silence
3. Tom Hanks in Sully
4. Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
5. Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea

Denzel barely misses out.

Charles H said...

Luke: I really didn't know if i should consider it 2015 or not. But if that would count as 2015 i'd say Michael Keaton in The Founder or Affleck would make the list. Yet to see Knight of Cups and Paterson.

Calvin Law said...

I'll hold onto mine for a while since I'm still deciding between Radcliffe, Driver, and Bridges for my 5th place.

Luke Higham said...

Louis: Your top 20 Non-Kurosawa Foreign Language films.

Anonymous said...

A review coming tonight?

Luke Higham said...

Anonymous: I really hope so.

Charles H said...

Luke: I hope so too, Louis was keeping a good pace with the supporting reviews.

Luke Higham said...

I think we can all agree that Gosling's not winning this lineup despite a possible five.

Charles H said...

Luke: I can see Washington and Gosling getting fives, But not the win.

Michael McCarthy said...

Did anyone other than me see The Founder? I'm curious to hear what other people thought of Keaton.

Charles H said...

Michael: I've seen it. Keaton is my 6th of the year.

Luke Higham said...

I'm thinking of requesting a Viggo performance on my next win.

Luke Higham said...

Alex Marques: You mentioned Jauja with Viggo Mortensen about a year ago and what did you think of him there.

Álex Marqués said...

I didn't see that one.

Luke Higham said...

Alex: Well, thanks for answering. :)

Could be an interesting one for a review I think.

Louis: Is it possible for Mortensen to go up for Eastern Promises.

Anonymous said...

Louis: Your top 10 comedic performances.

Louis Morgan said...

Calvin:

An oversight in the long list, since I did rather like his scene with DeHan.

Luke:


Harakiri
Z
The Samourai
M
Memories of Murder
Das Boot
I Saw The Devil
The Lives of Others
Grand Illusion
Hiroshima, Mon Amour
The Wages of Fear
The Seventh Seal
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Les Diaboliques
The Bicycle Thieves
Come and See
Army of Shadows
A Bittersweet Life
Ugetsu
The New Land

Possibly.

Anonymous:

Darren McGavin - A Christmas Story
Christopher LLoyd - Back to the Future
Irene Dunne - The Awful Truth
Peter Sellers - Dr. Strangelove
Michael J. Fox - Back to the Future
Madeline Kahn - Clue
Michael Palin - A Fish Called Wanda
George C. Scott - Dr. Strangelove
Alec Guinness - The Lavender Hill Mob
Kevin Kline - A Fish Called Wanda