Paul Mescal, a throwaway Oscar nominee, plays a dad in “Aftersun.” We observe the resort vacation he takes with his 11-year-old daughter. Nothing much happens, including irrelevant use of the resort location--Turkey.
Father and daughter get along well. The film barely helps you realize that each has issues. Paul Mescal probably deserves some credit for investing … what … some mundane charm into a forgettable film.
Dismissing Austin Butler is way more difficult. He plays the title character “Elvis.” The question surrounding his performance is whether he put enough Elvis Presley into it or distractingly too much or both.
The answer: Butler did a fine job rendering a vulner-able, meant-to-be megastar who may not entirely rate our sympathy. His characterization wears an icky factor, more icky than Tom Hanks playing his manager/promoter. It’s this not quite likeable tone of “Elvis” that will keep Austin Butler from winning an Oscar as the mega-famous Elvis.
Bill Nighy, in “Living,” plays a character who is interesting because he is so UNinteresting. Nighy enlivens a rigidly bland British bureaucrat, including the modest transcendence that accents his life.
Nighy’s excellence is cute, enough to grant this elder actor an Oscar nomination but not cute enough to win. Similarly, his film, Living,” deserves attention for its well-crafted story and modestly framed message … just not too much attention.
Serious Best Actor Oscar contention hovers over Colin Farrell and Brendan Fraser.
In “The Whale,” Fraser plays a grossly overweight man. He is a smart man, not smart enough to avoid or correct his condition. He’s a teacher, whose Zoom students don’t know what he looks like. He’s a father, who hadn’t seen his teen daughter in years.
Fraser transcends the gimmick that grounds the story. The story blossoms into a warmly human set of interactions. The trick to the portrayal and film is that it stays modest. Whether interacting with his caretaker, his daughter, his students, or the one “intruder” into his homebound life, Fraser’s character manages a kind oignity in his neediness.
Oscar inclines to award such novelty acting challenges as Fraser playing “The Whale.” That sentiment will team with encouragement for what amounts to a comeback opportunity after years of personal difficulties.
Colin Farrell in “The Banshees of Inisherin” has no artifice to lean on for his Oscar bid. He plays a rather ordinary fella. The dramatic hook: His character’s hurt and confusion at being told by his longtime friend that he doesn’t want to be friends anymore.
Making that little bit of a movie idea into a rich, personal story, now that’s a fresh place to shine the Oscar spotlight. Farrell embeds himself into his simple, rural character (on an Irish island). He doesn’t have any added texture to his life like his friend’s love of music. Farrell immerses himself into being and finding “nice” in people, plain old likability. Being there for people: Farrell has made that into an Oscar-worthy role … except Fraser will win, not Farrell.