2010 Calvin Awards: Best Breakthrough Performance
By David Mumpower
February 10, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Entering 2009, most of our staff was unfamiliar with Christoph Waltz. Some of our die-hard cinephiles had caught a few titles here and there, but most of his filmography has eluded our staff. That's rather unusual for an actor in his early 50s. The problem is that most of us don't speak German thanks (fittingly enough) to some of the soldiers glamorized in the movie that made Waltz famous, Inglourious Basterds. While Brad Pitt is the ostensible star of the Quentin Tarantino title and other notables such as Diane Kruger, Eli Roth and B.J. Novak received the body of the pre-release publicity for the WWII film, Waltz steals the show. And this happens almost immediately, too.
From the instant he makes a polite request of a dairy farmer to sample the man's wares, Waltz brings the malevolent Colonel Hans Landa to life, giving the character an unabandoned zeal. Landa doesn't hunt down enemies of state because it's his job; instead, he relishes the opportunity to prove that he is the best Jew Hunter in all the land. This chilling examination of the face of evil in the 1940s offers the perfect balance of viciousness to the over-the-top storytelling Tarantino employs in heroicizing the Basterds. Without Waltz, this film would border on being a comedy. His presence alone is enough to remind the viewer of what is at stake. We were captivated by his every move and believe he is the clear cut choice for Breakthrough Performance of the year.
Jeremy Renner finishes in second place for 2009 for his work in The Hurt Locker. Renner's character, SFC William James, replaces a prior officer who met an unfortunate fate. From the moment he shows up on screen, he personifies the opinion that the rest of the world holds of American soldiers. They believe our troops to be reckless, dangerous and addicted to adrenaline. Renner boldly plays up this archetype in creating a character who talks off his armor when attempting to disarm a bomb rather than seeking out stronger personal protection. He ditches his headset when others try to warn him to err on the side of caution. This is a man who embraces the practice of doing those thankless tasks that need to be done and if he gets to irritate others in the process, that's a happy bonus. Renner is a modern day cowboy who seems to relish conflict in all of its forms. His portrayal of this character is instantly iconic and we anxiously anticipate his follow-up performances.
Carey Mulligan, Sharlto Copley and Chris Pine comprise the rest of our top five selections in Best Breakthrough Performance. Mulligan's work on the finest Doctor Who episode in recent memory, Blink, already placed her on our staff's radar, but it's her role as Jenny in An Education that identifies her as a future movie star. Copley gives the appearance of mimicking Borat in the early portions of District 9 but then evolves the character into a desperate hero facing down a horrific fate. A complete unknown prior to this movie, Copley has already performed in a role for the ages. The question is whether he will always be known as Wikus or if he has more range in his acting arsenal. Speaking of typecasting, William Shatner's presence in the Star Trek universe is overwhelming yet Chris Pine somehow manages to make the character of James Tiberius Kirk feel fresh and new once more in the franchise reboot. Unlike Mulligan and Copley, Pine's short term movie career success is a foregone conclusion as Star Trek sequels will comprise the body of his next decade. And if he's anything like Shatner, his life will stay that way through 2060.
Performances in Up in the Air and The Hangover merit our next two selections. Anna Kendrick's character in Up in the Air, Natalie Keener, has one purpose in the film. She is to replace George Clooney's character by becoming the Job Terminator who does so through webcams . Over the course of the film, she realizes just how much she has to learn from her aging predecessor not just in terms of their chosen vocation but also with regards to the trappings of life. Kendrick somehow manages to avoid making Natalie a cliché and she stands toe to toe with Clooney, no small accomplishment for a young actor. Meanwhile, comedian Zach Galifianakis coins the phrase "Wolfpack of One" in The Hangover and immediately becomes one of the most popular funnymen in the industry. We are not certain if this role is a fluke or not, but at a minimum, Galifianakis will receive plenty of future work as comic relief from people won over by his charms in arguably the funniest film of 2009.
Three people whose names are still relatively unrecognized round out our nominations for Breakthrough Performance of the year. Gabourey Sidibe in Precious, Melanie Laurent in Inglourious Basterds and Anthony Mackie in The Hurt Locker. Sidibe's work as the titular lead in Precious may be hard to duplicate moving forward, but her stunning turn as an unlucky teen in a world that seems to be heavily stacked against her is heart-wrenching. Laurent is the female equivalent to the category winner, Christoph Waltz, in that most of her prior films were in a foreign language. Once we saw her in a showy role that didn't require subtitles to understand, we were desperate to see more of her. Mackie is the one actor on this list we've known and liked for a while (he's marvelous in We Are Marshall), but The Hurt Locker is going to be remembered as the film that made people stand up and take notice of him. He has moved from the list of That Guy actors to the list of "Can we get that guy who debates killing his boss in The Hurt Locker?" Oddly, this is a step up in the industry.
Several great performers just missed our list. Sam Worthington split his vote between Terminator: Salvation and Avatar, which is why he just failed to make the list. I strongly suspect history will laugh at us for this. Zachary Quinto was the Spock to Pine's Kirk, which makes for a somewhat fitting vote as Kirk once again outshines his Vulcan buddy by just a bit. Comedies Mo'Nique and Maya Rudolph demonstrate that they're more than just funny in Precious and Away We Go. Brian Geraghty is our bronze medal choice from The Hurt Locker, which puts him just a few ballots short of selection in the category. And Jesse Eisenberg wins us over by staving off the undead in Zombieland.
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Album
Best Breakthrough Performance
Best Cast
Best Director
Best DVD
Best Overlooked Film
Best Picture
Best Scene
Best Screenplay
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best TV Show
Best Use of Music
Best Videogame
Worst Performance
Worst Picture