Another fun fact: Jack Nicholson has won three Oscars, two for leading roles and one for support. In each case the actress who played opposite him won Best Actress- Louise Fletcher and Helen Hunt as featured here, and also Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment when Jack won his supporting Oscar.
They werent in the same movie, but in 1938 the best Actor and Actress that won that year were Spencer Tracy and Bette Davis. Two of the Best of all time.
Tough choice: for me it's a tie between Foster/Hopkins and Nicholson/Fletcher. The chemistry between Clarice and Hannibal is precisely what drives the plot of Silence of the Lambs, so in my opinion they were just perfect. As for McMurphy and nurse Ratchet, the constant conflict and the dichotomy of their personalities is vital for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and what makes this movie so good. Both movies are masterclasses in acting/directing and screenwriting.
Good afternoon everyone My first choice of Best Actor/Best Actress combination was Gable and Colbert for IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT. According to Frank Capra's autobiography, Gable was loaned out to Columbia, a minor studio at the time, as punishment for turning down some projects at MGM. Capra also said that Colbert was building a house in Sun Valley and needed cash, so she took the role as a freelancer while she was on a scheduled vacation. She supposed said something along the lines of "That (a slur for Italian-Americans) might be on to something here." I wish more people remembered Claudette Colbert. She is a better actress than Joan Crawford or Bette Davis; Colbert never ate the scenery. A couple of months ago we were chatting her. Oscarman42 you said that Davis and Crawford were MOVIE STARS while Colbert, Loretta Young,, Irene Dunne were actresses. You were right of course.
Controversial choice - but Hepburn and Fonda top the list for me - both had such strong connection working with and bouncing off each other. Old schoolers giving one last great performance each and their chemistry was remarkable. The funny thing is I'm not to sure if i would've voted for Hepburn that year if i was an Acedemy member (and i wasn't a toddler lol). I think Streep in the 'French Luitenent's Women' was over all stronger.
Katharine and Henry, because of who they were (and still are in memory). Their mere presence, let alone their acting, elevated any material they touched.
None Of Those Listed Are Very Good. At All. Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert are The Champions Of Oscar Duos ! Bette Davis and Gary Merrill In All About Eve, Should Have Been Nominated, But Merrill Wasn't. George Sanders Won That Year, 1950, But Merrill Was Much Better, George Sanders Was Stiff Cardboard.
Glad you included Fonda and Voigt for Coming Home. Am guessing their better work you alluded to were Klute and Midnight Cowboy. But they are great in this film and their love story was beautifully handled. Best moments, Bruce Dern: "What did you do to your hair?" Fonda: "I stopped straightening it." And Voight, addressing college kids, saying "I've done things for my country I'm not proud of." Powerful. I'm not a fan of Nicholson's performance in Cuckoo's Nest. He's miscast and we see all his Jackisms in the performance. He's too counter-culture rebellious and not the fun-loving miscreant Kesey wrote about. Personally, I think they got the casting right on Broadway when McMurphy was played by Kirk Douglas. That probably helped son Michael obtain the rights to produce the movie. And Louise Fletcher is BORING as Nurse Ratched. Very interesting that Kate and Hank had never met prior to Golden Pond. Their wins were well deserved and long overdue for Fonda. But Chariots of Fire WAS the best picture that year. Also interesting about Claudette Colbert's backstory for It Happened One Night. It's such a wonderful film. But then, Casablanca was projected to be an unmitigated disaster too, wasn't it? And look how that turned out.
Thank you. 1. I searched for this one after I first watched the best supporting duos. 2. The problem with Coming Home, Golden Pond, and As Good, the films are about ordinary people experiencing ordinary things. 3. The other four are about unusual situaions and take place in unusual settings. 4. I don't know how the professionals judge the formal. I would fall asleep after the first word uttered. 5. It Happened is one my favorites. Claudette played the best poor lottle rich girl. Was she acting, I don't know about her real life.
Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable by all means… « The worst picture in the world » she said, but « It Happened One Night » won the five major Oscars ; due to their astonishing chemistry among other ! He tamed the rich girl he used to call « brat » and who, actually, was miserable in spite of her wealth. Greetings from France 🇫🇷
Gable & Colbert are my choice. Louise Fletcher's role should have rated a supporting nomination, not a leading nomination. She was, however, excellent! Henry Fonda should have received a Lifetime Oscar, not a lead Oscar. Burt Lancaster won every major award that year and deserved to win the Oscar as well. Jane Fonda lobbied for her father to win and it worked.
No one could have played Clarice except Jodi Foster. I'm watching her currently in True Detective and can say she will probably win the Emmy for thst role.
Because Fletcher was an unknown actress to me, when I saw the film, I only saw Nurse Ratched not an actress trying to be something else. So in my mind hers was the strongest performance.
Not sure there is a best because tow couples are adversaries and two are couples. I personally liked the duel back and forth btw Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher.
1. Foster/ Hopkins incredible character dynamic 2. Fonda / Hepburn the air crackles around them 3. Colbert/ Gable. I think it’s the banter that works so well, verbal volley . I rather prefer Colbert of the two and I am not completely sold on the romantic aspect but the witty tone between them is what sells it. They might rank higher but I think both had more romantic chemistry with other co stars 4 . Nicholson / Fletcher kind of uncomfortable chemistry given she’s the nurse and he’s the patient 5. Fonda / Voight it’s more the story than the chemistry 6. Hunt / Nicholson they each have more chemistry with Greg Kinear . I could have seen Debra Winger in Hunts role . I know it seems off given their previous film together. I also am not sure if Winger had already retired. I do see her as a possible better match.
Great analysis! The banter is the highlight of IHON. Definitely an uncomfortable "couple" in OFOTCN. I completely agree with your assessment of the leads playing off better with Kinnear in AGAIG.
You asked about a different duo in As Good As It Gets,if memory serves me right Melanie Griffith was offered it first and declined and Holly Hunter accepted the part Hunter bit later withdrew.
How about the underrated Walter Connelly in It Happened One Night? Seems like he and Eugene Pallette cornered the market on frustrated fathers of wacky heroines in that era. Weren't we lucky?
William Holden was nominated for Best Actor for NETWORK, but lost to Finch. He and Dunaway had several memorable scenes in the movie. If he had won I would have them at the very top of this list.
Gable and Colbert are tops for me. Marion Davies also "turned down" the role since MGM and Hearst would not let her appear outside an MGM film. Colbert's brittleness worked perfectly with Gable's easy charm. Davies and Gable made two other films together.
@@patburke5740 Humphrey Bogart was a sentimental favorite that year. I suspect that Academy voters thought they would get a lot more chances to vote for Brando. Yes, Brando was robbed
Hepburn and Fonda no question. Katherine has said that Henry Fonda reminded her of her greatest love Spencer Tracy in a way I think she while making this movie got to feel that love again from Spencer through Henry. Watch the last half hour of that movie it transcends acting it's almost like they've known each other their whole lives and they had never met before that movie.
My pick would definitely be Gable & Colbert. Love their banter & romantic chemistry. IHON is such a great movie. Such a classic ❤. ….and I totally agree with you on the Nicholson & Hunt, ZERO chemistry. I’ll never understand why she was cast & why on earth she was nominated and then won the Oscar for such a overrated performance 😮 she was probably my least favorite thing about that movie. I agree that a Debra Winger would have been a better choice or maybe Ellen Barkin. I’ve always thought she was an amazing (and underrated) actress.
I wish that Vivien Leigh's leading men has won when she received her Academy Awards. I have read that neither Clark Gable liked working with her in GONE WITH THE WIN, nor did Man Brando in A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. Funny, these are the performances that these actors are best remembered. I have nothing against Robert Donat and Humphrey Bogart winning for GOOD BYE MR. CHIPS and THE AFRICAN QUEEN respectively
@@oscarman42 Brando wanted Jessica Tandy who played Blanche DuBois on Broadway with him. Karl Malden said that it was understood that STREETCAR needed a big name. Malden said that a lot of people were curious how Leigh would play Blanche as a follow up to Scarlett O'Hara. Leigh played Blanche in London where she was directed by her husband at the time, Laurence Olivier
You have this completely backward. Brando thought Jessica Tandy was miscast "she didn't have the finesse or cultivated femininity the part required nor the fragility that Tennessee envisioned." In his memoir he said Vivien Leigh was perfectly cast. "In many ways she was Blanche." (This is from an article by Laura Dorwart.)
And as far as disliking her is concerned, he also says in his memoirs that he probably would have banged her if she hadn't been married to Laurence Olivier.
My favorite duos here: The Great Kate Hepburn and Henry Fonda (perfect on-screen chemistry) and Jodie Foster with Anthony Hopkins...and I agree about Jack Nicholson having little rapport with Helen Hunt. Could Meg Ryan have been better in that role?
I think Ryan may have played more on the vulnerable side, whereas Pfeiffer could have balanced that with the tougher aspects of the character. Hunt just didn't strike me as a romantic interest.
It's hard since I consider "On Golden Pond" and "Silence of The Lambs" the best. I'd put them as a tie for the best actor and actress wins. I'll be honest, and this is also me being petty. Kate Winslet and Judi Dench didn't win, and Helen Hunt won. I'd also rank "As Good as It Gets" the last (minus Jack Nicholson since he is always amazing.)
I agree with the Nicholson/Fletcher pairing, i think it was the best winning duo ever. Not really a fan of Jodie Fosters performance- i think Michelle Pfeiffer would have given a better performance opposite Anthony Hopkins. I also think Myrna Loy would have been a far better foil to Gable's character than Colbert was. And i actually think Helen Hunt gave an amazing performance, it was Nicholson who i felt was miscast.
If you've ever seen the brilliant LIBELED LADY with Loy, William Powell, Jean Harlow and Spencer Tracy, she's basically playing the same role, the spoiled heiress, and she's great. But not better than Colbert was. Both were perfect.@@oscarman42
Outstanding assemblage and ranking of these winners and I overall concur. I can't help but think that Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando should have been at the top, for Steeetcar, if the Academy had got it right.
@@patburke5740 Thanks. I was thinking Taylor and Burton for Virginia Woolf, but Scofield was also so damn good I get that choice. However, Burton in almost any other year was a sure winner, deservedly.
Oh, my-this is especially tough. Two of these films are in my top 10 favorite films of all time-OFOTCN and Silence of the Lambs. Coming Home is one of my favorite films as well. I guess that if I was pressed, I would have to choose Nicholson and Fletcher. I think their roles were more directly intertwined for the entire film. No question that Hopkins and Foster were giving masterclasses in acting and what can you say about the iconic role that Hopkins gave us? Coming Home also has amazing acting within it. But Nicholson and Fletcher get the top vote for me.
Works for me! I think they were the most unlikely duo/pair (even counting Hopkins and Foster), because of the circumstances which led to them encountering one another.
Yes, two amazing performances in a movie that is still powerful and relevant. William Holden was fantastic as well, he had several great scenes with Dunaway (he was nominated for Best Actor but lost to Finch.)
Hopkins has been oft-discussed many times. Fletcher was asked this by a reporter after she won her Oscar, to which she expressed how insulting the question was, especially at a time like that.
It's intriguing to see what actors and actresses were offered these roles first. In some cases the alternate choices might have been very interesting (the other actors in Voight's role in Coming Home, the other actresses as possible Nurse Ratchets), but I can't imagine anyone coming close to Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter!
I also find it interesting to ponder what another actor might have done with a role. The lineup of actresses who turned down Nurse Ratched is pretty impressive. And without question, Hopkins was the right choice!
I agree with the analysis of COMING HOME. Voight was outstanding, he probably deserved to win that year, but I think MIDNIGHT COWBOY was his best performance. Fonda deserved the Oscar she won for KLUTE but her work in COMING HOME was nothing special, probably not even meriting a nomination, and that year Jill Clayburgh and Geraldine Page both gave Oscar-worthy performances.
I agree with you. Fonda's work in Coming Home, isn't her best work. She is much better in JULIA. I would have voted for Jill Clayburgh. Much of the buzz about COMING HOME centered on the sex scene in the movie
I think Michelle Pheiffer would have been good in Helen Hunt's role in As Good as It Gets. I did not particularly like On Golden Pond, and I thought Hepburn over-acted. Also, I kept thinking how much I missed Spencer Tracy.
Oh, my dear Oscarman42, that's a cinch. Unequivocally, the man with the Chester Cat smile Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975). Together as one, they were one of the scintillating duos who captivated their roles convincedly. Fletcher deserved eminence for her performance as the evil, villainess Nurse Rached, and her acceptance speech, where she thanked her parents by instrumentally using sign language, was one of Oscar's most endearing moments I remember watching in 1976. (I wouldn't be surprised if James Cann (may he RIP) drove himself to a brick wall headfirst for turning down the lead male role in the movie) As for the other winners in this video upload, my apologies, but Helen Hunt was awful in As Good as It Gets (1997) because she was so magnetically moody at times as a struggling detached waitress. Why she received an Oscar is beyond me. Perhaps one of the AMPAS's usual blunders is offering awards to less-deserved film artists. But the unforgivable atrocity I couldn't help but purge is Jane "Hanoi" Fonda, starring in Going Home (1978). After her rancorous involvement with the Vietcongs in 1972, Fonda dared to star in the film about emotionally scarred and mutilated soldiers who returned from Vietnam and won her second-best Actress Oscar. It was an event I couldn't stomach myself to accept. Jesu. I'd rather have busty Dolly Parton play the part than the traitorous inciter, and I'm NOT being funny in all this. Claudia Colbert's performance in It Happened One Night (1934) was also unworthy to be given an Oscar on her behalf. Brash, spoiled, obnoxious, and the least "funny," where I find Clark Gable engaging and masculine charismatic throughout the classic film. I find it difficult to understand why she decided to claim her Oscar after she denounced the film as the worst experience she ever got herself into, all the more reason Colbert was a difficult diva actress on film sets. I can't seem to place Jodie Foster in an aura of defining talents despite earning two Oscars for The Accused (1988) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Aside from Taxi Driver (1976), where she gave an amenable performance as a twelve-year-old prostitute, (very daring at the time because of her girlish age) I don't see Foster as a credible actress, least of all versed in any of her screen roles. Again, Nicholson and Fletcher, clear cut, were ranked, to my estimation, "the number one best winning duos," outdueling the mentionable winners creditably.
What do you think about the other actresses who turned down the part of Nurse Ratched? I think Bancroft and Page would have nailed it...and Lansbury would have been interesting, to say the least.
@@oscarman42 Of the three, I pick Anne Bancroft to play the part of Nurse Ratched if Louise turned down the role. Angela Lansbury, despite her riveting performance in The Manchurian Candidate (1962), wouldn't fit to play the lead role. Neither Geraldine Page, with her impeccable theatrical and screen career. Anne would be my choice as a logical substitute for Louise Fletcher.
@@oscarman42 I still feel Bancroft is a flawless choice to play the role second to Fletcher, Oscarman42. I mean, she has the aura of definite influence as a screen actress (Take the Graduate (1967). She made Hoffman look like a pitiful schoolboy when she magnetically lured him to her sensual grasp to make him her sex toy in the movie) I can picture her wearing her nursing cap and ruling the patients with her malice intentions and dreadful stares. Again, aside from Page and Lansbury, Anne would be terrific in the female lead role if not for Louise Fletcher.
Anthony Hopkins really wasn't a leading actor in that movie! 😮 We could have been spared Jack Palance from winning Best Supporting Actor and the tired jokes afterwards. 😅
Silence of the lambs is rightfully placed, every scene jodie foster is in with anthony hopkins shes on a whole other level but he just steals the show.
Hopkins definitely dominates every scene he is in...which makes Foster's work even more impressive in that she held her own with such a formidable opponent.
@@oscarman42her scenes with him are magnificent, the way she changes from the first scene with him, the nervous demeanour, of somebody heavily adrenalised, shallow breathing, high heart rate, fear in her eyes. She's a whole different person in the scene before he escapes, she's a whole lot more comfortable around him.
Nicholson/Fletcher Silence of the Lambs is one of the films I revisit every year, and I like showing it to people who haven’t seen it. But I recently rewatched One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest for the first time in 30 years (it was a HS class assignment!) It’s a film I’ll be revisiting for years to come.
Nurse Ratched’s slow burn. I thought she’d be the tough as nails disciplinarian that would show her soft side. Then the board has the meeting where most wanted to send McMurphy back to prison, she delicately interjects that they can help him. Gives me shivers!
