- Joined
- Aug 8, 2006
- Messages
- 7,672
- Reaction score
- 679
Affleck as Robert Ford was a crushing performance.F. Murray Abraham (Amadeus) and Daniel Day-Lewis (There Will Be Blood) were the only ones that jumped off the list at me as shoo-ins without looking further.
Last 40 years starts us at 1980. Might help to link these at the top of your OP:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Academy_Award_Best_Actor_winners_by_age
Based on critical acclaim and the betting odds at the time of the ceremony I'd say the biggest omission from the shortlist in the poll is Colin Firth for The King's Speech. His betting odds were ~1/33 at the time (that's 1/33, not 33/1, which means his chances of winning were predicted to be 97%).
https://www.forbes.com/sites/doroth...ar-odds-are-on-the-kings-speech/#b0acf4426620
For the remaining two spots it's really tough, but only because of roles before 2000. Robert De Niro for Raging Bull, Ben Kingsley for Gandhi, Anthony Hopkins for Silence of the Lambs, Tom Hanks for Philadelphia, Nicholas Cage for Leaving Las Vegas, Jack Nicholson for As Good as it Gets, Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman, Roberto Benigni for Life is Beautiful. They don't make it easy.
I think Sean Penn in Milk is probably my favorite performance post-2000. Forest Whitaker was unbelievable in The Last King of Scotland, but he's hamstrung by the fact the film itself was probably the worst of any winner's during this period. DDL was incredible in Lincoln, and Casey Affleck is probably the most underrated winner of the new century so far for Manchester by the Sea.
I think William Macy should’ve got the Oscar for Fargo.