The 2012 RopeofSilicon Movie Awards

You could probably argue Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) didn’t give the best performance of 2012, not that I would. For an actor to take on a role such as this and play him in a way none of us really expected and yet leave us feeling as if we had just been in the presence of the 16th President of the United States for 2+ hours is a testament to Day-Lewis’ talent.

Whether you’ve studied Abraham Lincoln or not, most people’s perception of him is as a towering figure and we’d expect a performance as powerful as our minds have led us to expect. Day-Lewis’ interpretation of Lincoln is not necessarily one of physical presence as much as he commands our attention with a soft-spoken performance. Yet that softness is pushed to the side at times and when he reads the lines “I am the President of the United States, clothed in immense power!” you better believe everyone was paying attention. The audience is putty in DDL’s hands in Lincoln and perhaps it’s his performance above all else that has most raving, and for my money that’s what makes his the best performance of the year.

Looking over my runners-up there were still a few I ended up leaving off, such as performances from Denzel Washington (Flight), Channing Tatum (Magic Mike and 21 Jump Street) and John Hawkes (The Sessions). I considered putting Gyllenhaal and Pena on one line to give me room to add one more to the runners-up list, but I felt that was unfair. So I bit the bullet, and made the call.

So much attention has been paid to Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) and Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) this year that two lead female performances have been greatly overlooked as a result while another was never even given a second glance. Don’t get me wrong, Chastain and Lawrence were great in their respective films and I considered both when it came to trying to decide who I would name “best” of 2012. But in my opinion there was no lead female performance better than Marion Cotillard‘s in Rust and Bone.

Playing an orca trainer that loses her legs in a tragic accident, Cotillard as Stephanie follows an unlikely path in a film that simply can’t be boiled down into a sentence. Cotillard’s performance runs the gamut of emotions to the point a small gesture such as touching glass can be moving. As I wrote in my review from Cannes, “Cotillard’s performance in this film is one scene after another of sheer perfection to the point she turns Katy Perry’s ‘Firework’ into an emotional epiphany, something no one would ever think possible and I statement I’ll let the film explain for itself.”

In addition to Cotillard, Helen Hunt‘s performance in The Sessions is one that seems to have been forgotten when it comes to the conversation of “best”. Yes, she was nominated for an Oscar, but in the Supporting category for political reasons and even still, no one is giving her the attention she deserves. The moment she breaks down crying in the car late in the film was better than anything she did in As Good As It Gets and all as a result of the performance she gave to that point.

Finally, Mary Elizabeth Winstead gave a performance that got better and better in Smashed. I typically don’t like films about alcoholics, but she won me over and thanks to a spectacular final speech I’m happy to pay her some attention though Sony Classics hardly gave the film the time of day.

What a category… There were so many great supporting actor performances in 2012 it can make your spin. Yes, I believe Samuel L. Jackson gave the best of the lot, but only by fractions as a case could be made for every single name above up to and including Michael Shannon‘s bat shit crazy cop in Premium Rush.

Matthew McConaughey was outstanding in Magic Mike, Scoot McNairy‘s performance in Killing Them Softly went overlooked as the Weinstein Co. mishandled the film’s release, Ezra Miller goes from a psycho in 2011 to a polar opposite character in 2012 and does so without skipping a beat and from the moment James Spader shows up in Lincoln you wish W.N. Bilbo could get his own film.

When it comes to my pick for the “best”, we’ve already discussed the performances in Django Unchained as many of you joined me in voting on the best performance not too long ago. In that article I wrote, “Jackson’s confidence as an actor exudes from a character that may cause the most conflicted feelings from an audience. From his denigration of Django upon his arrival to Candie’s plantation to the wretched scream he gives out when he sees his master shot in the chest.” Leonardo DiCaprio, however, was the winner of said poll and yet another supporting performance from 2012 worthy of note.

Along with DiCaprio, Jason Clarke was outstanding in Zero Dark Thirty, Tom Cruise was the only reason to watch Rock of Ages, Tom Hardy gve me reason to want to watch Lawless again, Dwight Henry was great in Beasts of the Southern Wilds and, as I said, Michael Shannon was just plain fun in Premium Rush, even if the film itself wasn’t too good.

Finally, I want to pay special recognition to Walton Goggins for his work in Lincoln and Django Unchained. His role in both films was small, but every single time he showed up he delivered. As Clay Hutchins in Lincoln he made us laugh and cheer and as Billy Crash in Django he made us angry. There’s no prize for small, but memorable roles, but if you have an idea for an award of recognition we could begin handing out each year to one actor or actress I’m all ears… I’m currently thinking of calling it RopeofSilicon’s “Not to be Overlooked” Award. Thoughts?

Anne Hathaway‘s performance of “I Dreamed a Dream” was great in Les Miserables, but Amy Adams‘ performance in The Master is an overlooked gem as the men in that film are getting most, if not all, of the attention.

As Peggy Dodd, Adams’ steely, all-knowing glare can throw your interpretation of everything you think you know about the film into question. Lancaster is called “Master” but who really is the Master? Peggy is one of the strongest female characters of 2012 and coming from an actress that can be just as intense as she can be delightful, this is a performance that once again showed Adams’ true range.

Additionally, Nicole Kidman (The Paperboy) and Anne Dowd (Compliance) gave noteworthy performances in two films that very few saw, but two films I expect will be watched at home for several years to come and Tilda Swinton‘s performance as Social Services in Moonrise Kingdom was another one of 2012’s small gems.