Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1963: Donald Pleasence in The Great Escape

Donald Pleasence did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe RAF "The Forger" in The Great Escape.

The Great Escape as a large ensemble with so many characters getting their own little spotlights throughout. Most of the cast is quite solid even if the accents used by Charles Bronson and especially James Coburn are a little questionable. The most poignant personal story belongs to Pleasence who plays Colin Blythe who is rather different than every other man int he camp in that he is much more of the bookish type who worked a desk job and only happened to be in the camp because he went for a joy ride in a plane that happened to be shot down. He does serve a very important part in terms of the escape as he is the one who makes the fake documents to help all the escapees.

Donald Pleasence takes great care in his creation of Blythe as a rather sensitive tea drinking fellow who has found himself in the wrong place. Pleasence is very good because he avoids any parody in his portrayal of his manner. Characters like this quite often are used for comic purpose. He gives instead an earnest depiction of this man who would rather be watching birds, and comes off as always rather sweet in his depiction of Blythe that as well suggests the man's past. He doesn't overplay this sweetness either making it a natural part of his character. He also though does show the usefulness of Blythe within the camp portraying a certain cunning that always exists in the same man who wishes he could have milk with his tea. Pleasence, along with pretty much the entire cast, creates a nice sense of camaraderie in his performance. There is always the sense that there is no selfishness in his work and there is a certain devotion in Pleasence performance that suggests properly that Blythe honestly wishes to help all the men escape.

The main conflict of his story though comes in that Blythe is losing his eyesight and it seems he will be unable to attempt escape. Pleasence is very good in these scenes not only in his portrayal of the physical nature of his poor eyesight which he portrays as Blythe always attempting to focus though he can't, but as well the quiet disappointment in Blythe that he portrays so unassumingly that he makes it all the sadder. Blythe is allowed to go because a fellow pow Hendley (James Garner) volunteers to take him along. Pleasence and Garner are an unlikely pair to be sure but they actually have a certain chemistry that really works well in their scenes together. They create a great deal of sympathy for their plight and makes their story possibly the most powerful. Although they are very low key in their portrayal of it their little friendship ends being quite moving particularly their last scene together. Pleasence exit is short but appropriately heartbreaking in that he still portrays Blythe as his pleasant optimistic self even as he faces death. Blythe's story could have easily been a throwaway one but Pleasence gives such an emotionally genuine performance that he makes Blythe one of the best parts of the film.

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Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1963: Tsutomu Yamazaki in High and Low

Tsutomu Yamazaki did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Ginjirô Takeuchi in High and Low.

I just gave High and Low my leading win for 1963 for Toshiro Mifune's great lead performance, but the film also has a terrific ensemble. The group of policemen distinguish themselves particularly well and each of their performances brings something to the film even though they very easily could have all faded together given the limited nature of their roles. The supporting player that I am focusing on though is not even seen until an hour into the film although he is heard. Tsutomu Yamazaki portrays the kidnapper who tries to extort 30 million yen from Mifune's King Gondo, and in the first hour we only hear his voice as he makes his threats as well as his demands.

Although it may seem slight Yamazaki does handle his voice work well setting up the right tone for who this kidnapper is even though we can't see him. He delivers the threats with a certain sly attitude that suggests that there is something personal to the man's attack on Gondo. Something interesting though is that after he is done making the phoned threats Yamazaki's performance goes from vocal only to a silent performance when we finally see him. Yamazaki's role is limited but he is still quite effective in these scenes. Above all he shows a very human villain his reactions as he looks over a paper about his work. Yamazaki expresses silently pride and sinister joy of his successful scheme, but as well an intense disappointment and hatred as he sees the public praising Gondo.

Yamazaki is extremely good in making Yamazaki three dimensional even though he is not saying a single thing. He gives the emotions of him in just these reactions the complexity they deserve. He makes apparent that there is a lot going on in this man and this kidnapping means something far deeper to him than a monetary gain. He is always very realistic in his portrayal and his Yamazaki always expresses what is going on in the man's mind in a compelling fashion. His silent performance though continues into a long and brilliant set of scenes that involves the cops trailing him as he goes about tying up the loose end of his two drug addict accomplishes. They trail him and we watch Takeuchi's moves as goes about preparing to cause an overdose in the two people.

Yamazaki is easily identified in every scene through a pair of dark black sunglasses and he makes for the perfect adversary in these scenes. As through his whole performance Yamazaki does suggests through subtle hints of perhaps some fear in the man, but most of it is overridden by his confidence. Yamazaki has a perfect cocky stride in these scenes as he goes from place to place suggesting perhaps that Takeuchi thinks this is just the end of his perfect plan. He very effective in showing the full extent of the smugness particularly in the scene where he by chance comes across Gondo and asks for a light. Yamazaki shows a distinct pleasure in the man as he seems to tease fate due to his perceived knowledge that he merely is completing the last step of his task.

Yamazaki is a very effective in being the villain in a very low key fashion in these scenes. He is quite chilling for example in the scene where he tests his drugs on an addict and kills her without a second thought. Yamazaki is cold and brutal in that scene by showing in Takeuchi's face that this is merely just a step in his plan. He is careful not to show pleasure in this very scene as why should Takeuchi get any in fact there may be the smallest pity suggested, but he perhaps is all the harsher in showing that Takeuchi commits this evil in such a base manner. This leads Takeuchi though to finally bring the drugs and finish the plan and it is brilliant scene for Yamazaki. He starts out with quiet happiness seeing that he has gotten to the end of his plan, then that shifts to a more serious but casual showing knowing he will need to get down to business with his accomplishments who he clearly has no respect for, but then it finishes as he finds himself in the police trap. Yamazaki is amazing as his shifts to a full on disbelief and fear knowing that all his planning has meant nothing.

As much as I love that scene it seems like nothing compared to his final scene where Takeuchi is soon going to be hanged and comes face to face with King Gondo. We have only had glimpses of the man before this point and Yamazaki has had to certainly take minimalistic approach, this is his first and only traditional sort of acting scene and Yamazaki does not waste it. He and Gondo meet in a small room alone separated by glass and as he first comes in Yamazaki plays him as the villain. Yamazaki gives him that smug face ready to stare down his enemy, waiting to see some hatred against him, but Gondo has no hatred in his face. Yamazaki portrays actually that it pains Takeuchi in seeing that Gondo does not hate him.

Takeuchi's motivation though is revealed to be that Gondo's house on the hill always seemed mocking him in his small shack below. Yamazaki is outstanding because he realizes this motivation honestly, as something that comes right from anger in his soul not anger for Gondo but an anger toward his lot in life. Yamazaki shows Takeuchi try to keep it all together as the cunning villain he wants to be but portrays that the fact that he is about to executed is always on his mind. Yamazaki actually manages to make this a heartbreaking moment as he realizes the fear in Takeuchi so powerfully, and creates a truly impressive dynamic though as he shows that Takeuchi still tries to stay the villain through his indignant tone he attempts to keep up up until the point when the fear overwhelms him completely. It is an incredible scene as Yamazaki makes us feel sorry for a villain who wanted to brought to justice throughout the rest of the film. It is no wonder that Kurosawa decided to scrap a single scene after this one because of the strength of Yamazaki's performance. The more I think about Yamazaki's work the better it gets. This is a great performance and despite the limitations put upon Yamazaki, he creates a complex character that ends up being so much even while having so little.

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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 Actor 1963: Results

5. Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2-  Mastroianni gives a good performance but he is always overshadowed by the man he is suppose to be portraying. 

Best Scene: Guido speaks with his wife.

4. Steve McQueen in The Great Escape- McQueen as the Cooler King is all about the cool which he brings in his trademark fashion.

Best Scene: Hilts goes to retrieve his ball.

3. Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar- Courtenay gives a complex and entertaining performance as a man who lies to hide his insecurities.

Best Scene: Billy tries to speak with his mother after his grandmother's death.

2. Dirk Bogarde in The Servant- Bogarde gives a brilliant performance showing the layers come off of what seems to be just a normal unassuming butler.

Best Scene: The Sevant reveals his true nature to his employer.

1. Toshiro Mifune in High and Low- This year came down between Bogarde and Mifune for me. It comes very close for me as I do love Bogarde performance, but I will go with Mifune's work which I found the most moving of all the performances this year. Mifune gives a poignant performance as a man who chooses to do good no matter how much harm it will cause. His portrayal of the moral decision moral on fuels the entire film and Mifune made it so I remembered even during the second half of the film in which he only occasionally appears. 

Best Scene: King Gondo makes his final decision on the ransom.

Overall Rank:

1. Toshiro Mifune in High and Low
2. Dirk Bogarde in The Servant
3. Paul Newman in Hud
4. Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar
5. Sean Connery in From Russia With Love
6. Steve McQueen in The Great Escape
7. Richard Attenborough in The Great Escape
8. Sidney Poitier in Lilies of the Field
9. Richard Harris in This Sporting Life
10. Albert Finney in Tom Jones
11. James Fox in The Servant
12. Cary Grant in Charade
13. Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2
14. Rod Taylor in The Birds
15. Gregory Peck in Captain Newman M.D.
16. Dick Van Dyke in Bye Bye Birdie
17. Jack Lemmon in Irma La Douce
18. Stathis Giallelis in America America
19. Fred MacMurray in Son of Flubber
20. Todd Armstrong in Jason and the Argonauts
21. Tom Tryon in The Cardinal 
22. Richard Chamberlain in Twilight of Honor 
23. Richard Burton in The V.I.P.s
24. David Niven in The Pink Panther
25. Richard Burton in Cleopatra
26. Rex Harrison in Cleopatra

Next Year: 1963 Supporting

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Alternate Best Actor 1963: Tom Courtenay in Billy Liar

Tom Courtenay did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying William 'Billy' Terrence Fisher in Billy Liar.

Billy Liar is an interesting film about the bad decisions made by a young English day dreamer.

Tom Courtenay plays the protagonist in this film which is of the Kitchen sink drama genre. This one though sort of questions the genre a bit in that it is very much a comedy drama and not really in the way Alfie was either. When Alfie went serious it stayed rather serious but Billy Liar never stops with his more absurdest moments. Courtenay's performance is a little different as well even though like Alfie as well as Archie Rice irresponsibility is a major facet of his character. His irresponsibility comes out in a rather different fashion though and Courtenay portrays a very different leading character here.

The irresponsibility of Billy is shown through his constant fantasies that play out in his head that usual involve himself in some create place of power or something that makes him seem far more important than he is. Courtenay infuses this whole side of his performance with a certain insanity. In the fantasy scenes Courtenay has an incredible glee that has above all a boyish childish quality. It actually has a bit of a disconcerting aspect to it considering this behavior is coming from a man, and Courtenay actually does this the right way. It is clear that Billy is enjoying himself and perhaps we can enjoy it with it, but Courtenay is not afraid to show that there is definitely something off about it all.

The fantasy scenes are Billy at his most extreme but Courtenay does tone it down considerably when Billy is not longer around. Courtenay still gives Billy various shades in style depending who exactly he is with and when he is with them. When he is with less serious circumstances Courtenay portrays him as a bit of a seemingly harmless joker. He is far less intense in these moments than he is in the fantasy but Courtenay still suggests the irresponsibility although in a less extreme fashion for Billy. He makes him a bit of charmer although perhaps one who puts it on a little thick at times a little too thick for his own good. Courtenay does not go overboard in his portrayal rather he does well to accentuate Billy's defining feature.

The film is not called Billy Liar for no reason and the consistent thing about Billy is his propensity for telling lies big and small over the course of the film. He never really stops lying but he never seems exactly the devious fellow one would think he would considering how much lying he does. Courtenay's performance works especially well because of the way he avoids this in Billy. The reason is that his lying is almost just that of a second nature. Courtenay has no hesitations or stops in his performance and portrays his lying with that same sort of happiness that he expresses with his fantasies. His portrayal never makes Billy lying seem purposeful even when though it is, but rather it as something that Billy just has to do to be able to get by in the way he does.

Throughout the film Billy's lies catch up with them and Courtenay is very effective in the way he mixes subtly with his broader portrayal of Billy as the liar. As a liar Courtenay portrays him as a man not to afraid to do anything and even enjoys it a bit, but when called upon it he suggests something different right under his skin. Courtenay is excellent the way he plays up and down with the part in any of the scenes where he is called on his lies whether it is when his boss is calling on him for his slight embezzlement or when his two fiancees start suspecting something about Billy. Courtenay has Billy try to keep it up with the same confidence in the demeanor, but within this there is a weakness about Billy that pains him truly as he is forced to face reality which he hates to do. 

Tom Courtenay's best moments though come when Billy is faced with the harshest realities in life and he has no lies to fall onto. Courtenay in glimpses suggests a very different man and certainly a far more mature one. His smirk leaves him as do the constant lies and jokes he likes to tell. He instead is left as a fairly sad unimposing soul who has trouble even listening to his parents when they are telling him how things really are. It is striking to see the liar brought to the truth as Courtenay still shows this to be the liar but with all of defenses gone. With no lies left Billy is shown to be just a sad young man without a single proper direction to go and Courtenay is brilliant quite powerful in revealing just how Billy is deep down.

Tom Courtenay's characterization of Billy is excellent in his creation of the onion that is Billy revealing the various layers of him from his surface fantasies to his deep insecurities. Courtenay never allows his performance to be a single way here and it is quite interesting to see how he is able to be an entertaining liar yet still shows that the lies come from a very real personal problems in the man. Courtenay makes Billy a complex character and is convincing in every facet of the role. Billy doesn't have a direct path in the film bouncing back and forth in terms of his maturity, and in the end it is open to interpretations what exact path he has chosen. Courtenay performance allows this end to be both a compelling as well as fitting to his character.

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Alternate Best Actor 1963: Marcello Mastroianni in 8 1/2

Marcello Mastroianni did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Guido Ansemli in 8 1/2.

8 1/2 is a well made film about the strange journey a film director goes through as he struggles to make his next film. I only say well made film because it is a film I liked, but I just am not nearly as passionate about it as so many are.

The last time I reviewed Mastroianni is was for his performance in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita this time he once again teams up with the director although this time he acts as the surrogate for the director within the film. As with La Dolce Vita Mastroianni acts as a guide of sorts for the film although to different ends. Where in La Dolce Vita he made his way through various vignettes as the tired journalist where he did interact but just as often kept as a distance. In this film though Guido is always a part of them as sometimes they are only in his own mind yet this time his interaction is a much firmer thing yet there still seems a distance in this case as well.

8 1/2 is most definitely a director's film as the main character is there to even represent the director. Fellini pretty much strong arms the entire thing and it is hard at times to notice anything other than what he is doing at any particular time. The fantasy scenes in particular are shot in a way that never brings emphasis to what the actors are doing instead always focusing on what Fellini is doing instead. This is the case throughout the film and no one stands out like Fellini's direction does. It is his film the entire running time and therefore the actors at best are given limited time to do much of anything and even in that time they usually confined there in some fairly simple character requirement.

Mastroianni is probably given the most to do as Guido although even his part is quite limited in the scheme of things. Mastroianni is a very passive actor which works at times like his dead pan work in Divorce Italian Style as well as in La Dolce Vita where he was playing a passive character. This time he again plays a passive character although one can wonder if he necessarily had to be this way. Another actor may have made their own take on Fellini like say Peter O'Toole in the Stunt Man sort of thing, but Fellini himself probably would not have approved. In fact Mastroianni passive style probably made him the perfect choice as Fellini then knew there would not be any out of control characterization standing as his surrogate.

Mastroianni plays Guido as very much an observer above all else. Most of the time he is fairly downplayed and mostly seems to be examining what others say more than directly reacting to them. This approach actually does entirely fit the part of Guido in this film. He seems usually in a bit of a daze of sorts, a strange self reflective sort of daze rather than an uncaring one. This approach does suggest what is exactly going on through his head as he makes his little personal journey through the film where he has trouble making a statement with both his relationships as well as his new film. Mastroianni makes him as man trying for something but very much grasping into the air.

There really is not much of an arc to his character in this case. Where La Dolce Vita Mastroianni portrayed the slow descent of the man who slowly failed to find some sort of redemption for himself leaving him as a shell of a man only able to live with gilded extravagance, in this film he does not have the same type of journey. Guido is in more than anything a frame of mind that he cannot escape that leaves him on basically the same level of thinking throughout. Guido and Mastroianni's performance of him is almost a constant and his character journey is not really portrayed by a change in Guido but more of a change in what Guido sees therefore again the spotlight is given to Fellini and not Mastroianni.

This is probably exactly what the director wanted as his surrogate of course a performance being what the director wants is not necessarily a good thing. Looking entirely on its own though Mastroianni's performance is good for what it is. He does express what his character is going through and more importantly for that he actually allows us to understand a little more of Fellini is doing with his direction throughout. If it where not for Mastroianni work it would be much harder to understand any of the fantasy sequence and what they exactly mean. Mastroianni though in his segments establishes his character and what Guido is going through to allow us to understand what it is that Fellini is doing.

La Dolce Vita was a better collaboration between the two in terms of being collaboration. It allowed both to have their moments for example Fellini gets to shine in the famous fountain scene, but as does Mastroianni through his performance in the scene which receives substantial focus. Mastroianni even sometimes gets stripped of even reactions in this case like the fantasy dinner scene where he speaks to the women of his life and it is all from Guido's point of view. His point of view means the camera's point of view which means Fellini's point of view leaving Mastroianni holding the short straw. This is a good performance that serves its purpose splendidly but Mastroianni is always overshadowed by who he is suppose to be playing.

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Alternate Best Actor 1963: Steve McQueen in The Great Escape

Steve McQueen did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Captain Virgil Hilts USAAF "The Cooler King" in The Great Escape.

The Great Escape is a very entertaining thriller about a group of allied pows who decide to launch a giant escape plan from a Nazi prison.

The last time I reviewed a McQueen performance it was probably his most character driven work in Papillon. His performance here though is probably one of his most star style ones. His character is fairly simple in this case. He is a hot shot pilot who now is a hot shot escape artist. A man who will keep trying to escape no matter how many times the guards throw him into solitary confinement "the cooler" for his repeated tries to allude them. There is not much more to him besides that except maybe that Hilts has a very small little conflict in himself over his own want to escape and the needs of all of the prisoners inside of the prisoner of war prison.

McQueen clearly knows that his part is not all that complex so why bother making assumptions that it is. This performance is all about his moniker which is the "King of Cool" of course and well that is exactly what he is gonna be here cool. McQueen pretty much shows off just how cool he can be here and this time is all about his screen presence which is just fine. It technically works perfectly for his character since McQueen's style is definitely fitting for the hot shot pilot and the constant escapee. He has an incredible confidence in his performance that just fits the confidence of the Cooler King. McQueen is able to go all the why as the King of cool since that's how Hilts should be.

Since Hilts fits the part this can pretty easily be just a no holds barred Steve McQueen doing what he does best. McQueen with his sly smile and how casual manner does something quite special here. McQueen seems absolutely at ease with his portrayal as Hilts yet he never seems uncaring either. He makes it breezy and almost relaxed at times yet McQueen somehow is able to convey a certain passion as well. It definitely is a great trick that McQueen pulls in that it is pretty obvious that he is having a great time in the role all the time yet he is never out of place in the situation too. Although everything he would seem like a man who does not care, but McQueen never once comes off that way.

McQueen honestly is just great to watch here. His fun never is kept to himself and we can have the fun right along with him. Whether he is playing catch with the wall of the cooler, smartly talking himself in and out of various situations with the Nazis, or just the way he rides his motorcycle at the end there is just something so compelling about what he does. The way he is able to be just as entertaining and well cool well never seeming out of place either. There never is any disconnection here as McQueen can just go all the way with his charm and particular attitude that is all his own.

This performance is not an overly complex one just like the role, but I suppose I should mention the more dramatic meat of his performance. This is mainly in just a few brief moments most of them consisting with his interactions with another escapist who is rather to crack, and the other being when he has to sacrifice his own plans for the greater good of the men as a whole. There is not a lot to either of these scenes really and they are fairly simplistic still, but McQueen still handles them well. They are not that important to his character in the long run but McQueen still gives every line the right conviction and does exactly what he needs to.

Of course those moments are not what you come for when watching this performance. You come to see McQueen being McQueen. That is exactly what this performance is not much more than that but certainly not less. It is a performance though that could have only ever been delivered by Steve McQueen of course and it is a great show case for what exactly made him such a star. It is only made better that McQueen signature style never feels out of place with his character. This is definitely not the powerhouse performance of his in Papillon but nor was it meant to be. This is just a case of an exceptionally entertaining performance that adds to the film just like a star performance should.

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