1.
Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Master
Born: July 23, 1967 - Fairport, New York, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 2006 - Best Leading Actor for Capote (win); 2008 - Best Supporting Actor for Charlie Wilson's War (nom); 2009 - Best Supporting Actor for Doubt (nom)
Oscar snubed performance(s): 1999 - Flawless; 2000 - Almost Famous; 2007 - The Savages; 2011 - The Ides of March
One of the most serious actors in the business, Philip Seymour Hoffman has been getting some of the AMPAS's recognition he deserves after his Oscar-winning performance in Capote, after being snubed for previous memorable acting work. This year, Hoffman stars The Master alongside Joaquin Phoenix, playing a "charismatic intellectual" with a faith-based organization that begins to catch America and he promises a lot during the movie trailer. It stills unclear if Mr. Seymour Hoffman has a co-leading or a "normal" supporting role in The Master, but everything tends to promote him in order to be in the Best Supporting Actor race. Early reactions of the secret screening say he delivered one of the best performances of his career, which means a lot, since this man is a well above a "normal" actor. He was great in last year's The Ides of March, in spite of his small screen-time, but it was good enough in order to generate some Oscar buzz (that didn't give him more than a BAFTA nod), but I believe things will be different for The Master. Paul Thomas Anderson is a great "actors' director", so it's easy to expect an acting gem from this true acting talent, who's also one of the most respected actors in the industry today. Plus, the movie is getting a massive Oscar buzz in a lot of categories, so it's impossible for the Academy's members not notice Seymour Hoffman's work.
2.
Leonardo DiCaprio for Django Unchained
Born: November 11, 1974 - Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 1994 - Best Supporting Actor for What's Eating Gilbert Grape (nom); 2005 - Best Leading Actor for The Aviator (nom); 2007 - Best Leading Actor for Blood Diamond (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2006 - The Departed; 2008 - Revolutionary Road; 2011 - J. Edgar
Quentin Tarantino is known for writting extremely interesting characters, but even more interesting than that it's having Leonardo DiCaprio playing a Tarantino villain! Oscar voters love westerns and Django Unchained promises to delight audiences at the worst point of view. While being a western is no guarantee of Oscar buzz, the same can't be said about DiCaprio presence: everybody knows this guy is overdue for fourth nod and for his first win. He has one of the most impressive bodies of work of his generation and he combines box-office success with general critical acclaim in every flick he is in, but being a ruthless (yet charming) plantation and slaves owner on the silver screen and delivering some comedic lines is something we never saw from him! Tarantino gave Oscar nods to John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson and Christoph Waltz (win!) and I truly believe DiCaprio will be the next one on the list. His "bad guys" are always delicious to watch and the movie trailer gives us a scene-stealing and charismatic Leonardo DiCaprio. Plus, he delivered an Oscar-nod-worthy performance in last year's J. Edgar but he got snubed, so maybe the Oscar voters decided to wait for Django in order to give him more than just a nomination, if you know what I mean... He just looks awesome in the movie trailer, but will his "awesomeness" be enough for the AMPAS? Mr. Seymour Hoffman is in the race too!
3.
Dwight Henry for Beasts of the Southern Wild
Born: ? - ? - 1963
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
The Academy loves fresh faces and there's nothing fresher in this year's Best Supporting Actor race than Dwight Henry, the first-time actor who's a New Orleans baker. Mr. Henry stars Beasts of the Southern Wild, alongside the miniature Quvenzhané Wallis (also a first-time actress), having a co-lead role that can be easily promoted as a supporting one if the producers want to campaign for the Oscars (since the Best Leading Actor race promises to be just crazy this year!). The movie itself received huge acclaim during Sundance Film Festival, winning the festivals top prize, gaining Oscar buzz in the Best Picture category and the same happened with Dwight Henry's work. Critics raved his impressive acting debut as Hushpuppy's dad and the movie spend some considerable time exploring the sweet father-daughter relation, giving Mr. Henry plenty of time to shine. Beasts keeps a strong Best Picture buzz and if the movie's Oscar traction keeps this strong during the awards season, I can see the AMPAS honouring a micro-budget production in the big categories. So, if the Academy buys Beasts of the Southern Wild for the Best Picture and Best Director fields, I see Dwight Henry receiving the profits of such love since he's an important part of the whole package. Plus, Oscar voters may want some color in the nominees shortlist...
4.
Russell Crowe for Les Misérables
Born: April 7, 1964 - Wellington, North Island, New Zealand
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 2000 - Best Supporting Actor for The Insider (nom); 2001 - Best Leading Actor for Gladiator (win); 2002 - Best Leading Actor for A Beautiful Mind (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2005 - Cinderella Man; 2007 - 3:10 to Yuma
I must confess Russell Crowe is one of my favorite actors working today and I consider him a true acting genius (his work in A Beautiful Mind was simply superb!), but he seems far from the awards recognition he got in the early 2000's. This year, he plays the Jean Valjean's cruel antagonist in Tom Hooper's Les Misérables and everybody loves a good "villain". Crowe is a terrific actor and it's easy to believe he will nail the character and deliver a great performance and since Les Miz is winning HUGE Best Picture buzz and the movie will be a contender for the "Best Performance by an Ensemble Cast" awards, I believe Russell Crowe will win enough Oscar traction. He has one of the most delicious parts, this guy can sing (not in a Broadway-worthy way, let's be honest, but he can control his voice well-enough) and he was one of the most loved sons of the Academy some years ago, so it's easy and a bit obvious predicting his presence in the next Best Supporting Actor Academy Awards nominees shortlist.
5.
Matthew McConaughey for Magic Mike
Born: November 4, 1969 - Uvalde, Texas, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
I think I'm not lying when I say most people never took Matthew McConaughey seriously enough to ever imagine him as an Academy Award nominee, but a couple of days ago, I found this man a magnet in The Lincoln Lawyer and extremely charismatic in How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. In fact, he began a cicle of quality projects since last year and his 2012 movies' list is just impressive: The Paperboy, Killer Joe, Mud, Bernie and, finally, Steven Soderbergh's Magic Mike, for which he's getting Oscar buzz. Considered the movie's scene-stealer by some of the most prestigious critics, McConaughey delivers one of the most raved performances of his career in Soderbergh's latest. Playing a self serving, all-indulging proprietor of a male-stripping club, who renounce friendships in order to expand his business sounds like a role with enough depht for the AMPAS tastes and the Golden Globes will bite this performance almost for sure. Plus, Magic Mike turned into a respectable box-office success, scoring $112.2M in US (I've not seen the movie, yet). No matter what, McConaughey seems to be putting his career on track and soon or later the Academy will reward him for that and I believe it can happen this year.
6. Don Johnson for Django Unchained
Born: December 15, 1949 - Flat Creek, Missouri, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
Reactions from Django Unchained released footage during Cannes Film Festival, described Don Johnson as the stand-out of Quentin Tarantino's latest alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. Most Oscar predictions folks aren't paying attention to Don Johnson's Oscar recognition possibilities, but I believe that, if he becomes the movie's biggest surprise, it's quite probable seeing him getting some accolates during awards season. An outstanding scene-stealer always gets a good spot in the Best Supporting Actor race and since Django Unchained's Best Picture keeps this strong, maybe it will score two nominations in this category: DiCaprio and Johnson!
7. Michael Fassbender for Prometheus
Born: April 2, 1977 - Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: 2008 - Hunger; 2011 - Shame
Fassbender may be seen as the first big male supporting performance of the year, specially if you have in consideration how limited his role in Prometheus could be. He was able to defeat the character's limitations and the result is a stealer' acting work that may be good enough in order to make Oscar voters going against their prejudice around Sci-Fi performances. Fassbender was Oscar-worthy in last year's Shame (the year's best male performance to me), but the Academy decided to snub him somehow and people didn't like it... I believe the Academy members won't to be able to ignore him again, unless they want to wait for Fassbender's promising 2013.
8. Ryan Gosling for The Place Beyond the Pines
Born: November 12, 1980 - London, Ontario, Canada
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 2007 - Best Leading Actor fot Half Nelson (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2007 - Lars and the Real Girl; 2010 - Blue Valentine; 2011 - Drive
To be honest, I'm getting tired of seeing the Academy denying his well-deserved second Oscar nomination. After the atrocious snub for Blue Valentine (magnificient performance!) and a 2011 full of cinematic successes, it was expected to seeing him getting a nod for his iconic role in Drive, but it didn't happen. Playing motorcycle stunt rider considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child promises to be pure delight and, according to some reports, Gosling is a "co-lead going promoted as supporting" and the AMPAS loves shinny supporting roles with a lot of screen time. It will be all about the movie's critical and commerical receptions and its (lack of) similarities with Drive.
9. Woody Harrelson for Seven Psychopaths
Born: July 23, 1961 - Midland, Texas, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 1997 - Best Leading Actor for The People vs. Larry Flynt (nom); 2010 - Best Supporting Actor for The Messenger (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2011 - Rampart
This year is full of great comedic performances so far, but Woody Harrelson was just hilarious in Seven Psychopaths movie trailer: a cruel mob boss who's obsessed with his kidnapped loved puppy. Harrelson is a terrific actor most times, but he simply excels himself doing comedy comedy (do you ever saw Zombieland or his extremely funny work in Friends With Benefits?) and since Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) is a good writer-director, I believe in Harrelson's Oscar chances. But the Academy doesn't goes for comedy that often and this year's contenders are quite interesting, overall.
10. James Gandolfini for Killing Them Softly
Born: September 18, 1961 - Westwood, New Jersey, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
It seems that James Gandolfini was born to play some kind of criminal human being (like his Emmy-winning work in The Sopranos T.V. series) and critics just raved his performance in Andrew Dominik's Killing Them Softly. While the movie could easily be just a "Brad Pitt show", according to reviews Gandolfini more than holds himself: he does a wonderful job! But 2012 seems to be full of villains and it will be difficult seeing this flick giving an Oscar nod to another actor besides its leading man, but it stills possible! Gandolfini's performance reviews are really strong, but maybe people are already used to seeing him playing a "bad man"...
6. Don Johnson for Django Unchained
Born: December 15, 1949 - Flat Creek, Missouri, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
Reactions from Django Unchained released footage during Cannes Film Festival, described Don Johnson as the stand-out of Quentin Tarantino's latest alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. Most Oscar predictions folks aren't paying attention to Don Johnson's Oscar recognition possibilities, but I believe that, if he becomes the movie's biggest surprise, it's quite probable seeing him getting some accolates during awards season. An outstanding scene-stealer always gets a good spot in the Best Supporting Actor race and since Django Unchained's Best Picture keeps this strong, maybe it will score two nominations in this category: DiCaprio and Johnson!
7. Michael Fassbender for Prometheus
Born: April 2, 1977 - Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: 2008 - Hunger; 2011 - Shame
Fassbender may be seen as the first big male supporting performance of the year, specially if you have in consideration how limited his role in Prometheus could be. He was able to defeat the character's limitations and the result is a stealer' acting work that may be good enough in order to make Oscar voters going against their prejudice around Sci-Fi performances. Fassbender was Oscar-worthy in last year's Shame (the year's best male performance to me), but the Academy decided to snub him somehow and people didn't like it... I believe the Academy members won't to be able to ignore him again, unless they want to wait for Fassbender's promising 2013.
8. Ryan Gosling for The Place Beyond the Pines
Born: November 12, 1980 - London, Ontario, Canada
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 2007 - Best Leading Actor fot Half Nelson (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2007 - Lars and the Real Girl; 2010 - Blue Valentine; 2011 - Drive
To be honest, I'm getting tired of seeing the Academy denying his well-deserved second Oscar nomination. After the atrocious snub for Blue Valentine (magnificient performance!) and a 2011 full of cinematic successes, it was expected to seeing him getting a nod for his iconic role in Drive, but it didn't happen. Playing motorcycle stunt rider considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child promises to be pure delight and, according to some reports, Gosling is a "co-lead going promoted as supporting" and the AMPAS loves shinny supporting roles with a lot of screen time. It will be all about the movie's critical and commerical receptions and its (lack of) similarities with Drive.
9. Woody Harrelson for Seven Psychopaths
Born: July 23, 1961 - Midland, Texas, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: 1997 - Best Leading Actor for The People vs. Larry Flynt (nom); 2010 - Best Supporting Actor for The Messenger (nom)
Oscar snubed performances: 2011 - Rampart
This year is full of great comedic performances so far, but Woody Harrelson was just hilarious in Seven Psychopaths movie trailer: a cruel mob boss who's obsessed with his kidnapped loved puppy. Harrelson is a terrific actor most times, but he simply excels himself doing comedy comedy (do you ever saw Zombieland or his extremely funny work in Friends With Benefits?) and since Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) is a good writer-director, I believe in Harrelson's Oscar chances. But the Academy doesn't goes for comedy that often and this year's contenders are quite interesting, overall.
10. James Gandolfini for Killing Them Softly
Born: September 18, 1961 - Westwood, New Jersey, USA
Previous Oscar acting recognition: none
Oscar snubed performances: none
It seems that James Gandolfini was born to play some kind of criminal human being (like his Emmy-winning work in The Sopranos T.V. series) and critics just raved his performance in Andrew Dominik's Killing Them Softly. While the movie could easily be just a "Brad Pitt show", according to reviews Gandolfini more than holds himself: he does a wonderful job! But 2012 seems to be full of villains and it will be difficult seeing this flick giving an Oscar nod to another actor besides its leading man, but it stills possible! Gandolfini's performance reviews are really strong, but maybe people are already used to seeing him playing a "bad man"...
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