One of the reasons 1917 is so good is because of Sam Mendes’ long history with theater and his ability to work with actors. They rehearsed the film for months before they shot it because they knew once they got on set they would have to be able to act in long takes with no protective edits. Because of this, every performance goes deep and nails the short time they are on screen. With just a few lines, the smaller parts have to be as good as they can possibly be – and miraculously, they are. While people might spend time marveling at the lack of visible edits or wondering where they cut — I was was marveling at these actors so adept at their craft they can fluidly perform without needing the support of a shorter takes and retakes. In other words, they had to know this inside and out as they would in a stage play. And they do. Andrew Scott – BAM. Colin Firth – BAM. Steve Madden – BAM. Benedict Cumberbatch – BAM. Short scenes with maximum payoff by actors who really know what they’re doing and a director who made sure each of them knew deeply who they were, where they were in the story and what they had to convey when the moment came.
And of course Dean-Charles Chapman who is as dedicated a player to the film as a whole as any of them.
This is ensemble work at its absolute best.
But the whole thing wouldn’t work without the film’s heart — and that is the central performance of George MacKay, whose face and emotional reaction to the story IS the story. Mendes keeps the camera trained on his face, tracking his reactions from the beginning all through to the end. He must confront one agonizing decision after another: Should he go back now and leave his friend? Should he retreat when he is told no? Should he stay with someone who asks him to? His resolve only strengthens as the story heads for its conclusion.
MacKay’s work is exceptional – the more you know about the craft of acting, the more you’ll appreciate it. More isn’t necessarily better when it comes to acting. If you have a camera on your face for almost two hours we have to believe that it’s all really happening as it unfolds. The actors themselves are this film’s greatest visual effect and here we see finally why they matter so much.
There probably isn’t a more competitive category this year than Best Actor. In fact, I can’t even think of a year where there was more competition, although there probably has been. Usually there is a frontrunner and a challenger, or at most two really strong contenders in the race. And though we don’t really know who the frontrunner is yet, because the awards haven’t started dropping officially, we already know that it’s packed. It was packed months ago and it just kept getting more packed. Maybe the year 2002, when you had Daniel Day Lewis in Gangs of New York up against Jack Nicholson in About Schmidt and Adrien Brody won for The Pianist. In that case, the vote was split up between two strong contenders and Brody benefitted. Could we be in a situation like that now?
The two frontrunners in this case would be, if you follow the internet punditry world, Joaquin Phoenix for Joker vs. Adam Driver for Marriage Story. Could those two split and allow for an emotional win for a different contender? And could that contender be someone from out of nowhere in a war movie who carries nearly the whole thing on his shoulders? Well, if so then we’re looking at George MacKay for 1917, whose role – minus the weight loss and suffering at the hands of Nazis, must — with his acting alone — carry the narrative thrust of 1917. That’s what The Pianist was: it was mostly Adrien Brody’s acting in a film that followed one guy much the same way 1917 follows one guy.
The big difference between this year and 2002 is that Joaquin Phoenix hasn’t ever won an Oscar and is way overdue by this point, after turning in consistently great work for decades now. A humble actor, he hasn’t exactly chased the win and here, by all accounts, he is deserving. No other performance this year in the Best Actor category has been talked about as much. Ditto Adam Driver, who has also never won. Back in 2002, both Nicholson and Day-Lewis had won at least one Lead Actor Oscar. Both would eventually win three.
Coming so late in the race, MacKay is probably not on many lists and since SAG is voting right now, can he even be recognized enough to crack the top five there? And will that matter even in a year so strange as this one?
Last minute entries so far has also included the excellent Paul Walter Hauser in Richard Jewell who likewise has to be made room for by knocking someone else out.
How does the Best Actor race take shape? Without MacKay or Hauser it looked something like this:
Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Adam Driver, Marriage Story
Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Eddie Murphy, Dolemite is My Name*
A fifth slot for either: Adam Sandler-Uncut Gems, Antonio Banderas-Pain and Glory, Robert De Niro-The Irishman
*Most people out there aren’t even considering Eddie Murphy. I am probably the only person out there who is – but maybe it will be right, maybe it will be wrong but I’m not giving up on that one and will go down with the ship.
But remember this — Best Actor is tied to Best Picture a lot of the time, which helps a solid frontrunner like 1917 and means for Phoenix to win Joker should also get in for Best Picture.
So, if The Two Popes is really really liked, more than, say, Marriage Story, Jonathan Pryce will get in. If The Irishman is liked more than, say, Joker, Robert De Niro will get in. If Pain and Glory is liked Antonio Banderas will get in, even if the movie doesn’t make it into Best Picture.
Any of the contenders will benefit from an Academy really liking a movie – like Ford v Ferrari or Jojo Rabbit.
We can’t know that. So many of us in the predicting game make the mistake of thinking WE decide. We don’t. We have to follow the race, not lead it. I would predict it to go something like this:
Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
George MacKay, 1917
Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Adam Driver, Marriage Story
Eddie Murphy, Dolemite is My Name
But we’ll have to wait and see how it goes, now won’t we?
These are the other contenders:
Christian Bale, Ford V. Ferrari
Matt Damon, Ford V. Ferrari
Edward Norton, Motherless Brooklyn
Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit
Michael B. Jordan, Just Mercy
Mark Ruffalo, Dark Waters
Daniel Kaluuya, Queen & Slim
Kelvin Harrison, Jr. Waves
Robert Pattinson, The Lighthouse
Taron Egerton, Rocketman
Adam Driver, The Report