Rethink It
In a piece called "Narratives and Precedents," Hollywood Reporter columnist Scott Feinberg explains how various thematic narratives have sold a nominated performance to Academy voters. It's a sharply observed piece, but he errs in describing George C. Scott's swaggering titular character in Patton as "a man who gains great power but loses his sense of perspective."
Scott's war-loving general goes through a bad career stretch after he slaps that soldier in Italy, but his perspective is firm and rooted from start to finish. He gets disciplined by Gen. Eisenhower in Act Two and he has to cool his act for political purposes, but his understanding of his identity and destiny never changes.
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on January 1, 2012 at 8:20 PM
comment #1
reverent and free
says ...
Beale doesn't quite fit either. He doesn't gain power, throughout the whole story he's used and manipulated by others and there's never a moment where we see things from his point of view. If anyone fits that role in Network it's Diana maybe.
Posted by reverent and free
at January 1, 2012 9:02 PM
comment #2
Mr. Alcamus
says ...
It certainly doesn't fit Richard III who is evil from the start.
As for Kane, It could be argued, but I don't see it either. He starts off as a selfish, self-involved and impetous. He ends up the same way. He bought (and lost) a lot of stuff along the way but there's no evidence he ever had perspective or a moral center. His purchasing of the Chronicle staff, yellow journalism, and starting a self-serving war in the salad days of his youth (before he is even supposed to be corrupt) are evidence enough of that.
Posted by Mr. Alcamus
at January 1, 2012 9:24 PM
comment #3
scottfeinberg
says ...
As I forewarn in the introduction to my piece, the precedents listed below each 2011 performance will not always match its narrative perfectly; they are just a few of the most similar sorts of characters that I could identify. I encourage you to look at the actual piece and scan the other precedents, not just those for Leo as J. EDGAR.
Posted by scottfeinberg
at January 1, 2012 9:31 PM
comment #4
Ray
says ...
My favorite scene in Patton (not online, dammit) is the hallway scene after Patton is benched and builds to rage at the window... "An entire world at war... AND I'M LEFT OUT OF IT?!??!?"
I'm sure that to the 1970's anti-war crowd that came off as a monstrous sentiment, but it struck me as capturing Patton's tragedy: the thing he is best at, better than anyone else, and he's constantly frustrated in his attempts to do it. Some people are geniuses at music, or sports, or finance.... Patton's a genius at war, someone who feels reincarnated for this particular time and place, THIS is his moment, and he's left out of it.
God, I love that movie. So many layers, never gets old, always watchable.
Posted by Ray
at January 2, 2012 6:42 AM