Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1963: Results

5. Peter Sellers in The Pink Panther- Sellers is by far the best part of his film giving a hilarious turn that steals every scene he is in.

Best Scene: Clouseau takes the witness stand. 

4. Donald Pleasence in The Great Escape- Pleasence adds a lot in his little turn giving one poignant portrait of a man who wants to escape a prison escape even when his eye sight begins to fade.

Best Scene: Blythe thanks Hendley. 

3. Robert Shaw in From Russia With Love- Shaw is a great Bond villain. He is great as the silent menace, but he is something really special when he finally opens his mouth.

Best Scene: Colonel Nash reveals himself to be Red Grant. 

2. Brandon De Wilde in Hud- De Wilde is essential to his film being the man in the middle and creates a powerful reactionary performance by showing both how he deals with the men around him and as well how they change him.

Best Scene: Lon reacts to Hud and Homer's fight. 

1. Tsutomu Yamazaki in High and Low- My win for the supporting this year also goes to the great film High and Low. Yamazaki's performance as a kidnapper is one that only gets better the more I think about it. Despite the limitations for most of his film he creates a great complex villain, but as well in his last scene somehow manages to be heartbreaking in his portrayal of a desperate man.

Best Scene: King Gondo meets with Ginjirô Takeuchi.

Overall Rank:

1. Tsutomu Yamazaki in High and Low
2. Melvyn Douglas in Hud
3. Brandon De Wilde in Hud
4. Robert Shaw in From Russia With Love
5. Donald Pleasence in The Great Escape
6. Peter Sellers in The Pink Panther
7. James Garner in The Great Escape
8. Tatsuya Nakadai in High and Low 
9. Claude Rains in Twilight Of Honor
10. Kenjiro Ishiyama in High and Low
11. Phil Silvers in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
12. Walter Matthau in Charade
13. Dick Shawn in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
14. James Donald in The Great Escape
15. Isao Kimura in High and Low
16. Spencer Tracy in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
17. Bobby Darin in Captain Newman M.D.
18. Pedro Armendáriz in From Russia With Love
19. Terry-Thomas in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
20. Stanley Adams in Lilies of the Field
21. Johnathan Winters in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
22. Hugh Griffith in Tom Jones
23. John Huston in The Cardinal 
24. Nigel Green in Jason and the Argonauts 
25. Roddy McDowall in Cleopatra
26. Paul Lynde in Bye Bye Birdie
27. Buddy Hackett in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World 
28. Mickey Rooney in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
29. Charles Bronson in The Great Escape
30. John Leyton in The Great Escape
31. James Coburn in Charade 
32. Jesse Pearson in Bye Bye Birdie 
33. Peter Falk in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World 
34. Eddie Anderson in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World   
35. David Warner in Tom Jones
36. Tatsuya Mihasi in High and Low  
37. Jim Backus in  It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World 
38. Robert Duvall in Captain Newman M.D.
39. Angus Lennie in The Great Escape
40. Tony Curtis in Captain Newman M.D.
41. Jimmy Durante in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World  
42. Sid Caesar in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
43. Gordon Jackson in The Great Escape
44. George Kennedy in Charade
45. Milton Berle in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World 
46. Ned Glass in Charade
47. Nick Adams in Twilight of Honor
48. Ossie Davis in The Cardinal
49. Dan Frazer in Lilies of the Field
50. Heinz Weiss in The Great Escape
51. Peter Bull in Tom Jones
52. Jacques Marin in Charade 
53. George Devine in Tom Jones
54. Ralph Nelson in Lilies of the Field
55. James Coburn in The Great Escape
56. Cecil Kellaway in The Cardinal
57. Eddie Albert in Captain Newman, M.D.
58. Bobby Rydell in Bye Bye Birdie
59. Martin Landau Cleopatra
60. Hume Cronyn in Cleopatra
61. George Cole Cleopatra
62. Robert Wagner in The Pink Panther
63. Richard O'Sullivan in Cleopatra

Next Year: 1980 lead

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1963: Robert Shaw in From Russia With Love

Robert Shaw did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Donald "Red" Grant in From Russia With Love.

I have to admit the first time I watched From Russia With Love it took me quite some time to recognize Robert Shaw as the villain who is always on Bond(Sean Connery)'s trail despite having seen several of his films before this one. This can in part be attributed to his very short and very blond hair that he sports here that is quite the contrast from his dark hair in his 70's work. The even bigger reason though is that Shaw does not speak until late into the film despite having a great deal of screen time throughout the film. For over an hour Shaw plays Red Grant who stalks Bond for the agency SPECTRE to make sure that Bond inadvertently gets SPECTRE important spy equipment which he does by killing anyone who might interfere as well as preparing to set up Bond's own demise in the worst possible fashion.

I suppose it is easy enough to disregard the silent killer performance, but one should still give credit where it is due. Throughout the Bond films (and I have seen most of them) there often is the silent killer character. Usually they are quite forgettable and there actually is not all that much menace to their performances as they usually are not exactly the greatest actors. This is Robert Shaw though and he no doubt would not allow himself to be forgettable ever. Although he is indeed silent Shaw is very good in creating that menace in every moment he is making sure we never forget him. Shaw as well perhaps just a little extra through his demeanor that suggests through his expression, that do suggest emotion, that Grant finds killing all the low level henchman just a bit tiresome and there is a bit of hint that he is waiting for the bigger game which is Bond.

Shaw does make for the best silent villain in Bond history but he suddenly breaks the silence after he kills an MI6 agent and then impersonates the man claiming he was sent there to help Bond escape enemy territory. Shaw breaking his silence has to be for me one of the best parts of the film, and on my original watch it was quite a revelation as Shaw reveals himself  through his always ear catching voice. It isn't exactly the usual Shaw though and Shaw quite brilliantly does a posh upper class type accent that has a certain affected manner to. It is a great accent that Shaw does as he is playing Grant who is playing the role of the desk jockey agent who would have been sent to help Bond. He is quite enjoyable with the slight parody he does yet he has a certain incisive quality still there. Although his menace is in part hidden he inserts a passive aggression in his performance through his sly smile and the way he seems to take so much joy in calling Bond "old man".

Due to Bond catching on a bit Grant takes action leaving Bond standing in front of the wrong end of the gun. Grant drops the act and so does Shaw giving us the full villain. Shaw loses the fake accent shifting to Shaw's far more vicious voice. This is a terrific moment for the film as a whole because the moment his voice changes we can see that Bond's danger is real. Shaw now does not hold back and it is Shaw doing what he does best which being awesome. Shaw's intensity is incredible as he announces his plans to kill Bond and make him beg to die. Shaw even manages to make the talking villain work because of how much sadistic joy that Red Grant is getting as he mocks Bond with the fact that they have been playing him all along. Shaw doesn't even leave it there going the extra mile and even suggesting a little bit extra about Red Grant, which technically speaking was not at all required.

For example when Bond asks what mad house they got him out of Shaw actually portrays Grant as taking a little offense from that than he possible should otherwise from this suggesting actually a bit of Red Grant's past which was mentioned earlier. Also when Bond offers him money Shaw plays it showing a honest bit of interest but his better judgment turns him from the offer. Shaw gives a bit of motivation there with him and shows that half of him cares only about the money enough to give him a second thought, but he as well shows that his other half would rather just enjoy the fact that he gets to make Bond suffer as well as not disappoint his employer. These might not be substantial moments, but usually these types of roles are never given any shading so its nice to see that Shaw puts in the extra effort here.

Shaw is like an in the hole for the film. He waits and stays hidden until its time to make his impact. He's a great villain all together being the right physical threat for Bond, and later even a proper mental opponent as well. Shaw's portrayal of Red Grant makes the entire film better because his presence and his relatively brief set of scenes where he can finally talk. Shaw, I think, perhaps made Connery up his game too as his best work in the film is his confrontation scene with Shaw. They are great together and Shaw makes more than a worthy foe for James Bond. As with most of Shaw's work I just loved watching Shaw here and the wait for him to strike only makes his performance seem all the more remarkable here. Many Bond villains are forgotten as soon as they are dispatched. The incomparable Robert Shaw would never let that be and instead, with his relatively limited role, made Red Grant the greatest Bond villain for over five decades.

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1963

And the Nominees Were Not:

Tsutomu Yamazaki in High and Low

Brandon De Wilde in Hud

Robert Shaw in From Russia With Love

Donald Pleasence in The Great Escape

Peter Sellers in The Pink Panther

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1975: Results

5. Leon Vitali in Barry Lyndon- Vitali gives a good performance being properly pompous but as well managing to be somewhat sympathetic by showing where his character is coming from.

Best Scene: Bullingdon duels Barry.

4. Charles Durning in A Dog Day Afternoon- Durning doesn't have much of a role, but he makes more than the most of it portraying the method of the police negotiator in a very compelling fashion.

Best Scene: Moretti tries to handle Sonny and the crowd. 

3. Max von Sydow in Three Days of the Condor- Max von Sydow is excellent in his portrayal of the cold calculated killer who we absolutely believe when he says his job is refreshing.

Best Scene: Joubert warns Condor about his possible fate.  

2. John Cazale in Dog Day Afternoon- Cazale once again gives a great tragic performance. He is terrific in creating both a danger in that violence bubbling underneath the man, but as well the sadness by earnestly showing just how lost his character is.

Best Scene: Sal asks Sonny if they will really kill the hostages. 

1. Robert Shaw in Jaws- Good Prediction RatedRStar, Michael Patison, and JamDenTel. Although I loved the performances of Max von Sydow, John Cazale, George Burns and Burgess Meredith I did not have to think twice about who would be my choice for the year overall. Robert Shaw is amazing in the role of the Ahab like shark hunter Quint. He is outstanding every moment he is on screen giving an equally entertaining and heartbreaking turn. His delivery of the Indianapolis speech alone should have guaranteed him both an Oscar nomination and an Oscar win.

Best Scene: The Indianapolis monologue. 

Overall Rank:

1. Robert Shaw in Jaws
2. John Cazale in Dog Day Afternoon
3. Max von Sydow in Three Days of the Condor
4. Burgess Meredith in The Day of the Locust
5. George Burns in The Sunshine Boys
6. Brad Dourif in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
7. Richard Dreyfuss in Jaws
8. Charles Durning in Dog Day Afternoon
9. Chris Sarandon in Dog Day Afternoon
10. Donald Sutherland in The Day of the Locust 
11. Will Sampson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
12. Leon Vitali in Barry Lyndon
13. Cliff Robertson in Three Days of the Condor 
14. Fernando Rey in Seven Beauties
15. Keenan Wynn in Nashville
16. Christopher Lloyd in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
17. Lance Henriksen in Dog Day Afternoon
18. Henry Gibson in Nashville
19. John Houseman in Three Days of the Condor
20. William Redfield in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
21. Christopher Plummer in The Man Who Would Be King 
22. Richard Benjamin in The Sunshine Boys
23. Allen Garfield in Nashville
24. John Houseman in Rollerball
25. Sully Boyer in Dog Day Afternoon
26. Philippe Leotard in French Connection II
27. Saeed Jeffrey in The Man Who Would Be King
28. Ned Beatty in Nashville
29. Sydney Lassick in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
30. James Woods in Night Moves
31. Keith Carradine in Nashville
32. Jack Warden in Shampoo
33. Scott Glenn in Nashville
34. Jackie Earle Haley in The Day of the Locust
35. Hardy Kruger in Barry Lyndon
36. Michael Murphy in Nashville
37. Murray Hamilton in Jaws
38. Fernando Rey in French Connection II
39. Kenneth Mars in Night Moves
40. Patrick Magee in Barry Lyndon
41. Danny DeVito in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
42. James Broderick in Dog Day Afternoon
43. William Duell in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
44. Luther Adler in The Man in the Glass Booth 
45. Scatman Crothers in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
46. Edward Binns in Night Moves
47. Robert DoQui in Nashville
48. Lawrence Pressman in The Man in the Glass Booth 

Next Year: 1975 Lead

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1975: Robert Shaw in Jaws

Robert Shaw did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Quint in Jaws.

Jaws is one of the greatest thrillers ever made which is of course about a tourist filled island being terrorized by a shark.

Robert Shaw is one of my favorite actors and one of the reasons is the variety of ways he takes on parts. The last three times I have reviewed him he played Henry VIII in a properly flamboyant larger than life fashion, Lonnegan in The Sting where he portrayed an Irish gangster with substantial menace through the sense of the anger within the man, and Mr. Blue in The Taking of Pelham where he again played a villain but found new ground while bringing the menace still by emphasizing the proper English soldier background of his character. This time as Quint he plays a rather different character an old American sailor who has his own checkered past with the Sharks.

Shaw does not appear too much early on in the film but when we do see him he makes quite an impact. His accent is downright brilliant putting on the voice of an Old Sea Salt. Shaw doesn't overdo it never making it a parody instead it perfectly amplifies the characteristics of this man. We don't even need to hear about his past just from Shaw's manner and style we know this man has been out to sea most of his life, and as well certainly has had his experience with sharks and knows what he talking about. All that he does adds to his character from his particular scowl with the turn in his mouth, the way he hunches over, or even that particular way that he smiles.

I have to say once again that I just love watching Shaw perform here again. What is amazing about Shaw as an actor is that despite how magnetic he is in his performances he can still be entirely natural as well. Shaw simply becomes Quint as easily as became Mr. Blue or Lonnegan, there never feels like a performance here. He just becomes the part in the most wonderful fashion that he just makes every scene more than it would be otherwise. He is such an energetic performer while even playing a cold or in this case a curmudgeon type of character. Shaw is on here as he usually is, but possible even more so than usual. Even in his two brief scenes early on he livens the film with his presence and makes sure we will remember him.

One thing that is so great about Jaws as a film is how in the middle it transitions from a brilliant monster on the loose film to an adventure film flawlessly. This occurs when the town finally hires Quint to kill the Shark who goes along with Chief of police Brody (Roy Scheider) and Shark expert Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss). Shaw absolutely dominates the film once the transition occurs as Quint does not only take over the shark expedition but he also takes over the film. This is not to say even the slightest thing against Dreyfuss or Scheider, they both commit themselves splendidly, but it is Shaw's show. Quint technically might get a slow start in terms of his appearances early in the film, but once's he's in charge Shaw sinks his teeth right in (no pun intended). 

Shaw is so brilliant abrasive here that he turns the jabs Quint gives Hooper into an art form. Shaw is such a delight as he ridicules Hooper in every way he can. Shaw mischievous smile and always firm delivery make every little thing he says not only very incisive but honestly quite enjoyable as well. The joy of performance is quite apparent here and boy does Shaw make it so we have just about as much fun as it appears he had making the film. He not only succeeds in doing that but also because of that he makes Quint even with all his crustiness endearing. He brings a great deal of humor even right along with it just through the enjoyment Quint clearly is having while giving everyone he can a hard time.

One of the reasons this performance is so good is due to Shaw's refusal to ever allow Quint to be just one type of man. Even while he gives Hooper all hell, he still adds some nice camaraderie between all three, and suggests that there is no true malice to Quint's mischief. Shaw is particularly effective in just the quick moments when Quint instructs Brody how to handle himself on the ship. Shaw is so nice in showing a bit of a gentler side to Quint as he deals with someone that he clearly has far greater respect for. Shaw puts in a little bit of warmth when Quint tells the chief just to ask him first when handling something on the ship. Shaw is fantastic how he inserts these moments adding greater complexity to the character while never compromising the rest of Quint.

Shaw just never fails to realize any part of the man and makes into all one wholly believable individual. He creates so many shades and never makes one overwhelm the other nor does he allow one facet to compromise another. For example the elements that make Quint into an Ahab figure are certainly well established through silent moments as he conveys the drive and conviction in Quint that will not allow him to give up on the mission or even allow him to ask for the further help. This is only part of him though and it only comes out in times of great stress. This something Shaw brings out so naturally and completely within all the rest. It will come in right after he is making a joke and Shaw still has it be something Quint would do. The Ahab element is in twined with the whole of Quint.

Now I have done plenty of praising I think of this performance as a whole. It is a outstanding performance that creates complexities in a character who could have easily been one note, but there is one scene that does stand out above the rest of his performance simply because I personally feel it is the best acted scene in all of cinema (yeah I just said that) that of course is the Indianapolis monologue. The speech details Quint's experience when he managed to survive after the ship he was on sunk during World War II even though he and his fellow crew mates had to survive in shark infested waters. Shaw delivery here is something to behold, truly behold there is nothing quite like how he tells the tale of Quint's horrific experience.

Shaw has almost a nostalgia at first as he describes the past of Quint's life, he keeps it that this was something in the past although not something he could ever forget. Despite this film being filled with many frightful moments, the most gut wrenching of them all is the morbid tale Shaw spins all through his words. He conveys the fear not as you might think, but there is so much power in the way Quint seems to be holding so much back not to be fazed by this. He is not emotional in the sense you usually think of the word in but there is an enormity of the emotions in the story even though he manages to keep his composure throughout the tale. Shaw brings the sadness, the anger, the pain, all of it with an unrelenting power.

The power of the speech is astonishing as Shaw takes you deep into Quint's mind and that traumatic event that Quint could never forget. Although you never see a shark in the scene Shaw never lets your mind escape the images he so vividly describes. Shaw never allows the attention to be wavered as the horror of it all unfolds and he allows the glimpses in the mind of Quint and what exactly drives the man. I really cannot do the scene or Shaw's performance justice in my review here. It is almost indescribable in its power, and Shaw's performance seems otherworldly at times in the way he seems to be everything stand still as he reflects on the terrible past of Quint the terrible past that has never stopped haunting him.

Shaw gives an incredible performance as Quint, it truly unforgettable work and the greatest from the great Shaw. This is a supporting performance that is captivating all on its own accord completely away from the film, even well it seamlessly mends with it. His portrayal of Quint is heartbreaking, humorous, entertaining, enjoyable, and all together excellent. There is never a wasted scene or even a wasted moment with Shaw. I honestly cannot praise this performance enough. Shaw gives my favorite supporting performance of all time, and this particularly amazing considering that Quint could have easily been an overacted one dimensional nothing. Shaw though turns him into once of the most compelling character ever to grace the screen. 

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1975

And the Nominees Were Not:

John Cazale in Dog Day Afternoon

Charles Durning in Dog Day Afternoon

Robert Shaw in Jaws

Max von Sydow in Three Days of the Condor

Leon Vitali in Barry Lyndon

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