Yesterday, we looked at the leading ladies who made 2012 a great year for film. Today, it's all about the men. It's almost harder to judge male actors because Hollywood has really developed a rigid structure of what men can or cannot do on film. You will rarely see a male protagonist start crying unless there's serious injury or death involved. They won't get very happy unless we're meant to laugh at them. They can get really mad, really serious, or really charming with seemingly no limit, but every other emotion is intentionally more subdued for believability. It's a stupid series of limits, but it's one that has developed for whatever reason.
2012 wasn't much of an exception. The difference that set these 12 performances above the rest of the field is commitment. These actors found a unique approach to the material they were working with that enhanced the overall production.
We're going with the same rules as yesterday: six honorable mentions and a top 6. Here are the Best Leading Actors of 2012. Asterisk indicates a VOD release.
Honorable Mentions:
- Jack Black, Bernie
- Steve Carell, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
- Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
- Martin Freeman, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
- Denis Lavant, Holy Motors
- Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained
6: Joel Murray, God Bless America*
You wouldn't expect to find a subtle, even-keeled performance in a brutal, violent satire about the degradation of society through the instant celebrity environment of American culture. Joel Murray manages just that. He is a man whose life has fallen apart in less than a day: he's fired from his job for sending flowers to a sad co-worker, diagnosed with a brain tumor so dangerous it cannot be operated on, and completely ostracized from his daughter who refuses to do visitation with him because he doesn't have the latest toys.
Does Murray go to overblown theatrics with tears and screaming? No. His posture shifts, his eyes don't seem as alive, and he becomes a desperate man so obsessed with manners that he'll shoot you while still saying "please" and "thank you" at the dinner table. Murray gives God Bless America a strong core of heart and humanity in spite of the gallows humor and ultra-violent execution.
Full Review of God Bless America
5: Matthew McConaughey, Killer Joe
I asked this on Twitter a while back and I'll repeat it here: did Matthew McConaughey get a new agent or something? He suddenly is in a lot of really thought-provoking films delivering excellent performances. Killer Joe is the cream of the crop of his 2012 output (though all 4 major performances are worthy of praise). His Killer Joe is charismatic and threatening in just the right balance. His choices are bold and unexpected at every turn but perfectly tuned to the style and approach to the material.
4: Robert Pattinson, Cosmopolis
If another actor starred in Cosmopolis, they would be praised and awarded for doing half of what Robert Pattinson pulls off in this tricky role. His Eric Packer is a man possessed. The painfully cool demeanor of the opening scene slowly crumbles to desperation, fear, and the horrifying realization that his life is over. The film, set in one day, is Eric Packer's Odyssey and trip into the Colosseum all at once. Pattinson balances out an unending ensemble of brilliant scene partners and finds the right angle to approach each distinct conversation. It's a subtle series of choices that helps humanize a rather cold character.
3: Liam Neeson, The Grey
Is Liam Neeson's Ottway the brave hero of The Grey, guiding the few men who survived a terrible plane crash back to civilization, or the angel leading them to their eternal slumber? Is he even real at all? Neeson, in one of the showier roles of the year, finds a kernel of truth so honest that what could be a morose body count horror becomes a frustrating and inspiring tale of survival.
Dane DeHaan, Chronicle
If Chronicle is the first time we've really gotten a Carrie story for teenage boys, Dane DeHaan is playing the Carrie figure. He is a depressed loner with a terrible home life ostracized from his peers before he even has a chance to say "Hello." His transformation into superpowered teen phenom swings between hero and villain until his schoolmates forever cement his fate in a prom night equivalent scene far more humiliating than a bucket of pig's blood on your head. DeHaan humanizes a very strange character, making a disturbed young man a tragic hero even when all hell breaks loose.
1: Mark Duplass, Safety Not Guaranteed
Committed. That's the best word to describe Mark Dupass' performance in Safety Not Guaranteed. He plays a man who is hunted down for a funny slice of life magazine article on time travel fantasies. But for Duplass' Kenneth, there is no joke. He is serious about his goals, serious about recovering his love, and serious about changing the history of the world. He is charming, strange, romantic, and maybe even just a little disturbed. Duplass' performance is what makes the ever-swinging arc of this story so effective in its many surprises.
Full Review of Safety Not Guaranteed
So what do you think? What were your favorite leading actor performances in 2012? Sound off below.