actoroscar.blogspot.com

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Thursday, 27 July 2017

Alternate Best Actor 1954: Anthony Quinn in La Strada

Posted on 20:39 by allenales
Anthony Quinn did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Zampanò the strongman in La Strada.

La Strada is a great film by Federico Fellini which focuses upon a poor girl's, Gelsomina (Giulietta Masina), travels with a circus performer she's sold to.

Anthony Quinn plays that performer, and typically to western actors in foreign films he is dubbed so we unfortunately are not granted Quinn's booming voice which sadly would've have been especially fitting to this character. Luckily though this is a very physical performance, and Quinn is a very physical actor. In terms of casting Quinn is a perfect fit for the role as the circus strong man, but also everything that Zampanò represents. Fellini evidently described the character as representing the earth and we can see essentially that sort of grit from Quinn in his opening frame. Any high flying ideals are non-existent in Quinn's portrayal from the outset as he takes on Gelsomina Quinn exudes the general disinterest in her setting up quite obviously that Zampanò is only taking her on as necessity rather than any real desire. Quinn's expression hold the right discontent with this woman who seems to be looking for more out of life. Quinn on the other hand paints a man who is very much part of the darker side of life, and though perhaps he is not truly content with this in that he isn't exactly happy, yet he seems to help create this state of mind.

Quinn's work most often provides a striking contrast to the purity of Masina's Gelsomina. Zampanò is anything but that with Quinn accentuating this harshness though not overplaying it. Quinn rather than emphasizing an active sadism towards her portrays Zampanò treating her mostly as some sort of nuisance that he has to put up with. That is not to say that Quinn's approach is not at all cruel, in fact there is a distinct cruelty within just how little regard Quinn expresses in Zampanò's treatment of her. When he hits her with a switch in order to properly play the drums for his act Quinn's whole manner is less of a man mistreating this woman, but rather almost like he's trying to get a dog to learn a trick. We are given a slightly different side to the strong man when he is performing as such, and Quinn's terrific in these scenes in presenting the showman if only a for the few minutes while the act is going on. Those  moments arethe few times he doesn't seem tired with life, although just right after the act he returns to just as he was before. Quinn establishes only the slightest bit of joy in his whole being whenever he's finding in any direct satisfaction, such as with a different woman, or the monetary boon from performing his act. 

Quinn for much of the film is this force of nature that seems unchanging as hardened earth. Quinn brings that quality to life without becoming too symbolic though as he does create a man in the amoral Zampanò. There is nuance in his work, something that comes solely from Quinn, in the scenes as Zampanò keeps retrieving Gelsomina despite his disregard for her. There are hints of just a bit of remorse in Quinn's eyes, yet he reflects this as only a hint that never overtakes him long enough to become a good man for even a moment. Eventually the two also meet another performer, the fool (Richard Basehart) who purposefully pesters Zampanò for an unknown reason. Now in these interactions Quinn is more direct in presenting Zampanò's viciousness yet even this is shown as instinctual more than anything. As when Zampanò takes things too far Quinn depiction of the attack is that of careless bullying than real hatred. That act leads Zampanò to finally abandon Gelosomina, and though Quinn was the secondary lead for most of the film he becomes the primary lead in the last few scenes. Quinn is excellent in these scenes as he takes just that hint of remorse he brought in the earlier moments with Masina, to naturally reveal a man finally facing his actions. Quinn is honestly heartbreaking in portraying this man essentially writhing in his past actions, so effectively depicting this palatable anguish as the man who no longer can get by simply by not feeling. This is a terrific performance by Anthony Quinn, as even though we don't hear his voice, he makes a considerable impact on the film realizing the simplicity of the man without making this a simplistic performance.
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to Facebook
Posted in 1954 Alternate Best Actor, Anthony Quinn | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • Alternate Best Actor 1992: Benoît Poelvoorde in Man Bites Dog
    Benoît Poelvoorde did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Ben in Man Bites Dog. Man Bites Dog is a faux documentary that goes alo...
  • Alternate Best Actor 1973: Edward Woodward in The Wicker Man
    Edward Woodward did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Sergeant Howie in The Wicker Man. The Wicker Man is an effective horror f...
  • Best Supporting Actor 2016: Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals
    Michael Shannon received his second Oscar nomination for portraying Lt. Bobby Andes in Nocturnal Animals. Nocturnal Animals is a glossy holl...
  • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2016: Stellan Skarsgård and Damian Lewis in Our Kind of Traitor
    Stellan Skarsg å rd did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Dima in Our Kind Of Traitor. Our Kind of Traitor is somewhat effectiv...
  • Alternate Best Actor 2012: Matthias Schoenaerts in Rust and Bone
    Matthias Schoenaerts did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Ali in Rust and Bone. Rust and Bone is an effective film which follo...
  • Best Actor 2016: Ryan Gosling in La La Land
    Ryan Gosling received his second Oscar nomination for portraying Sebastian in La La Land. La La Land is a wonderful musical about the romanc...
  • Alternate Best Actor 1968: Max von Sydow in Shame
    Max von Sydow did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Jan Rosenberg in Shame. Shame is an excellent film that follows a couple th...
  • Alternate Best Actor 1954: Anthony Quinn in La Strada
    Anthony Quinn did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Zampanò the strongman in La Strada. La Strada is a great film by Federico F...
  • Alternate Best Actor 1968
    And the Nominees Were Not: Lee Marvin in Hell in the Pacific Burt Lancaster in The Scalphunters Charles Bronson in Once Upon a Time in the W...
  • Alternate Best Actor 1992: Eric Stoltz in The Waterdance
    Eric Stoltz did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Joel Garcia in The Waterdance. The Waterdance is a surprisingly low key film ...

Categories

  • 1937 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1947 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1947 Alternate Supporting
  • 1951 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1954 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1954 Alternate Supporting
  • 1968 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1968 Alternate Supporting
  • 1973 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1973 Alternate Supporting
  • 1984 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1984 Alternate Supporting
  • 1992 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1993 Alternate Best Actor
  • 1993 Alternate Supporting
  • 2003 Alternate Best Actor
  • 2003 Alternate Supporting
  • 2005 Alternate Supporting
  • 2012 Alternate Best Actor
  • 2012 alternate supporting
  • 2016
  • 2016 Alternate Best Actor
  • 2016 Alternate Supporting
  • 2016 Best Supporting Actor
  • Adam Driver
  • Alden Ehrenreich
  • Alec Guinness
  • Alex Frost
  • Andrew Garfield
  • Anthony Hopkins
  • Anthony Quinn
  • Anthony Wong
  • Ben Foster
  • Benoît Poelvoorde
  • Bernie Mac
  • Billy Bob Thornton
  • Bradley Whitford
  • Burt Lancaster
  • Casey Affleck
  • Charles Bronson
  • Chazz Palminteri
  • Choi Min-sik
  • Chris Pine
  • Christopher Lee
  • Cillian Murphy
  • Claude Rains
  • Cyril Cusack
  • Damian Lewis
  • Daniel Brühl
  • Daniel Day-Lewis
  • Denholm Elliott
  • Denzel washington
  • Dev Patel
  • Donald Sutherland
  • Edward G. Robinson
  • Edward Woodward
  • Elliott Gould
  • Eric Stoltz
  • Fredric March
  • George Sanders
  • Ghassan Massoud
  • Harry Dean Stanton
  • Harvey Scrimshaw
  • Henry Fonda
  • Ian Holm
  • Isao Numasaki
  • Issey Ogata
  • Ivan Dobronravov
  • Jack Lemmon
  • James Caan
  • Jason Isaacs
  • Jean Gabin
  • Jean Louis Trintignant
  • Jeff Bridges
  • Jeff Daniels
  • Jeffrey Wright
  • Jesse Bradford
  • Joel Edgerton
  • John Candy
  • John Cassavetes
  • John Hurt
  • John Ritter
  • Keanu Reeves
  • Kenneth McMillan
  • Klaus Kinski
  • Lee Marvin
  • Leslie Cheung
  • Liam Neeson
  • Louis Jouvet
  • Lucas Hedges
  • Mads Mikkelsen
  • Mahershala Ali
  • Malcolm McDowell
  • Matthew McConaughey
  • Matthias Schoenaerts
  • Max von Sydow
  • Michael Keaton
  • Michael Redgrave
  • Michael Shannon
  • Mikkel Følsgaard
  • Nawazuddin Siddiqui
  • Orson Welles
  • Oskar Werner
  • Ossie Davis
  • Park Hae-il
  • Peter Coyote
  • Pierre Fresnay
  • Raj Kapoor
  • Ralph Ineson
  • Rémy Girard
  • Richard Basehart
  • Richard Jenkins
  • Richard Jordan
  • Robert Donat
  • Robert Duvall
  • Robert Mitchum
  • Robert Shaw
  • Ronald Cheng
  • Ronald Colman
  • Russell Crowe
  • Ryan Gosling
  • Sam Neill
  • Shinya Tsuamoto
  • Shinya Tsukamoto
  • Stellan Skarsgard
  • Sterling Hayden
  • Sting
  • Tadanobu Asano
  • Terence Stamp
  • Thomas Bo Larsen
  • Tim Roth
  • Toby Jones
  • Tom Courtenay
  • Tony Curtis
  • Toshiro Mifune
  • Trevor Howard
  • Tsutomu Yamazaki
  • Tyrone Power
  • Viggo Mortensen
  • Vincent Price
  • Willem Dafoe
  • Yoo Ji-Tae
  • Yoshi Oida
  • Yosuke Kubozuka
  • Yul Brynner

Blog Archive

  • ▼  2017 (138)
    • ►  August (8)
    • ▼  July (13)
      • Alternate Best Actor 1954: Alec Guinness in The De...
      • Alternate Best Actor 1954: Anthony Quinn in La Strada
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 1954: Fredric Marc...
      • Alternate Best Actor 1954: Jean Gabin in Touchez P...
      • Alternate Best Actor 1954: George Sanders in Journ...
      • Alternate Best Actor 1954
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: Results
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: Park Hae-il ...
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: Yoo Ji-Tae i...
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: Jason Isaacs...
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: James Caan i...
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003: Bernie Mac a...
      • Alternate Best Supporting Actor 2003
    • ►  June (18)
    • ►  May (17)
    • ►  April (20)
    • ►  March (24)
    • ►  February (22)
    • ►  January (16)
  • ►  2016 (12)
    • ►  December (12)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

allenales
View my complete profile