Best Leading Actor 2013

5. Leonardo DiCaprio - The Wolf of Wall Street
It was a surprise to find out that DiCaprio was capable of such comedic performance. This performance required a great physical comedy acting, in which DiCaprio excells. On the other hand I was disappointed how much the film and DiCaprio let the character of Jordan Belfort be drab. It never gets deeper into his character. He's just having fun and so are we, but there not much more to this performance...

4. Bruce Dern - Nebraska
Dern is very fine in his mysterious character. We never know, why is he behaving like this. Is he just stupid? Or is he being senile? Is he just stubborn? We never get to know the answers for this questions. He keeps having a glazed look in his eyes and we keep asking ourselves: How is his mind working? It's a very likable character that I enjoyed well enough, but it might be too subtle to be remembered long enough. It lacks memorable scenes, or something that would make it memorable...

3. Matthew McConaughey - Dallas Buyers Club
McConaughey uses his juicy role and Dallas Buyers Club becomes an exhibition of one man. His great and complex performance is something nobody would expect from him five years ago. His character of Ron gets through many changes and they never seem forced. What seemed forced to me, was McConaughey's voice use. It was too over the top sometimes. As if he the voice getting through different situation than his body. But it wasn't such a big failure...

2. Christian Bale - American Hustle
Under the makeup, wig and the weight gain, there is a very complex performance. It evokes exactly the feelings that it should. He is probably the only one in the show, who stayed in his character throughout the enitre performance. And he was able to fight with his against type casting, as he really disappeared in the character...

1. Chiwetel Ejiofor - Twelve Years a Slave
Ejiofor wins this great year with the most complex performance that was supposed to really lead his film and he was able to do so without overshadowing it. It is a very subtle performance that (except of one short moment) never gets over the top. He is realistic and he moved with the audience so much, that they sometimes couldn't handle it. It is a performance that should be remembered for ages...

Best Leading Actor 2013: Bruce Dern - Nebraska

Bruce Dern doesn't give a leading performance in Nebraska. I usually don't care about category frauds, but this one really pisses me off. Not the one with Dern (he actually is a co-lead), but the one with Will Forte, who was pushed into the supporting category. which he certainly doesn't belong to. I think Dern would fulfill the meaning of collocation 'supporting actor', because he really rather supports the leading Forte's character, than is the leading character himself. And if my opinion here counts, I think that if he had been classified as supporting, he would be the one to beat Leto this year. But that is just my speculation that isn't important here.
What is important here, is the quality of Dern's performance. From the beginning it's clear that his character is going to be a little nuts. He wants to walk through the entire country, just because he got a letter that says that he has won a million dollars. You might say he's pretty naive, but we can't say that. Because we never get to see what's happening inside Woody's head.
In fact, we never get the answer to the question: Why does Woody behave like this? We never know, if it's because he's old, or becuase he's just stupid, or naive, or insane, or alcoholic. We never see behind what we see on the screen. Woody's character is a kind of mystery.
There is a particular scene in the film, in which Forte's character tells Woody not to tell anyone in a bar about the money. But Woody tells it everyone. He's childishly defiant.
It must be a big challenge for an actor to play such character. Because not having a reason for some behaviour and nevertheless play it realisticly is really hard. But Dern succeeded in this with such ease, that it almost seems that this character was a piece of cake to portray.
I really love how he uses his eyes. He keeps having a glazed look and that makes you think of what is going through his head. But there are some scenes, in which he expresses his emotions, as well. And they're equally good. What I especially appreciate about Dern's performance is that it never seems forced. Even though he has got seems that could have been overacted, or stand out of his performance (in a bad way), he always stays equally subtle and great.
The only blame I'd have is that because his performance is equally great, it lacks some memorable scenes, or the moments that I would think about a long time after watching the film. This way it's just a great performance that disappears from your mind a month after watching the film. And that's a pity...
The chances of winning an Oscar: I think he's the third. But he is a dark horse of the race, so he might upset...

Next Year: Best Leading Actor 2013

The Nominees:
Bruce Dern - Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor - Twelve Years a Slave
Christian Bale - American Hustle
Leonardo DiCaprio - The Wolf of Wall Street
Matthew McConaughey - Dallas Buyers Club (predicted winner)

What are your opinions about this year's nominees? Who will win? Who was snubbed? What is your ranking of the nominees? Who should win? What are your nominees? What is your prediction for my ranking? Comment!