Best Actor 1951

5. Arthur Kennedy, Bright Victory

4. Fredric March, Death of a Salesman

3. Humphrey Bogart, The African Queen

I'd already had a hunch going in to this year that a BATTLE OF THE FIVES showdown between Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift would be inevitable. As per tradition, I like to spotlight whenever multiple performances within a year score a five from me - and as is generally the case, choosing a winner between these two wasn't easy. Both are grossly beautiful method actors delivering performances that would ultimately come to define their respective filmographies. Both play poor cads who commit heinous acts against women and yet, you kind of like their characters anyways. And what's more, both portray converse interpretations of a "manly" character. Where Brando's is largely an extroverted performance that is raw and loud and brash and virile with testosterone, Clift's is a deeply introverted performance that's loaded with sensitivity and most impactful when Clift does not speak. 

For a performance that's so strongly associated with a larger-than-life presence, I came away from my first viewing of Streetcar a bit surprised by how much smaller Brando's role was. And while that was slightly disappointing at first, I revisited the film and realized that every moment Brando presents onscreen is a perfectly interpreted piece to a role that could not have been as iconic as it is without him. Through Clift, I continue to be impressed by how much he can invoke me to deeply feel simply through silent, internalized emoting. I'm fairly confident now in my choice of the winner, though at one point, the man who landed in second was very close to changing my mind...

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2. Marlon Brando, A Streetcar Named Desire

1. Montgomery Clift, A Place in the Sun

IN CONCLUSION

Sight unseen, I knew that I was going to at least like Clift, Brando, and March. After all, George, Stanley and Willie are all outstanding characters. And Fredric March, in spite of his wild histrionics, still delivers a nice performance if only by virtue of how great the character is. I think he as good enough for a nomination. That being said, he still lands in fourth, and that's due to how pleasantly surprised I was by Humphrey Bogart. I was not expecting to like Bogie as much as I did, and it was really nice to see him in a role where he's not brooding the entire time. While not a terribly complex character, and I think acutely leverages his own star charisma to create an enjoyable performance, in addition to elevating it from the written role. 

My only disappointment here was in Arthur Kennedy - I came in thinking I'd like his Bright Victory performance way more than I actually did. I can see why AMPAS nominated him, and it's great that he was able to land a leading nod (this would be his only lead nomination from a total of five nominations, four of which he received in the Fifties), but the execution was not compelling whatsoever. 

And so Montgomery Clift nabs up a second win from me, while Brando has four more chances this decade to snatch something up. They'll throw down again in 1953 - where, based what I know and have heard, Clift may very well stand a chance in scooping up a third. 

OMISSIONS & OVERSIGHTS

I think it's pretty clear that Kirk Douglas was most likely the chap who ended up sixth this year. He showed up with two solid contenders for a nomination - as a cranky, abrasive reporter in Ace in the Hole and as an abrasive detective who gets real cranky in Detective Story. My guess is that he was most likely to have landed in Best Actor with Detective Story, especially since the film received nominations for Director, Screenplay, Actress, and Supporting Actress. It's funny that he missed, especially when Lee Grant and Eleanor Parker got in...both are really only around to support a narrative focused on Kirk's character. One might assume he split his own votes with Ace in the Hole, but given that that film only got one nomination (Best Story and Screenplay) - I don't know that AMPAS liked it enough to throw it Best Actor as well. Douglas did get a Golden Globe nomination  for Detective Story over the likes of Brando and Clift, so I wonder if one of those two edged him out come Oscar nomination time (in which case, I can't complain). My own personal opinion is that Douglas deserved to be in the top five (over Kennedy) - and I preferred him in Detective Story over Ace in the Hole. 

Douglas aside, I imagine that Gene Kelly was in the mix for An American in Paris, and Robert Taylor might have been in consideration for Best Picture contender and number one box office hit Quo Vadis. Similarly, Richard Basehart won Best Actor at the National Board of Review for Fourteen Hours while also starring in Best Picture contender Decision Before Dawn. And since dramatic plays had solid representation in the Best Actor field, perhaps the Cannes-winning Michael Redgrave could have stood a chance with The Browning Version.

See below if you'd like to revisit past BATTLE OF THE FIVES!

• 1940 - Best Actress
• 1944 - Best Actress
• 1949 - Best Actor
• 1950 - Best Actress