Nick's Best Supporting Actors (Or the Nickies)

I am stealing this one from my brother but here are my favorite performances by an actor in a supporting role over the last fifteen years or so. I will do Starring next week as it took me a while to come up with this one and then move on to actresses.

Bill Murray, Rushmore - Just plays it brilliantly. Every scene he is in he steals. The guy should just stick to roles like this and forget about being top billing. This is just a great film in which Murray steals the show.

Charlie Sheen, Being John Malkovich – Sheen is by no means a great actor and his screen time in this movie is about three minutes, but it is three minutes of gold. Every line he says is genius with just the right delivery.

Steve Buscemi, Reservoir Dogs – I could pick any performance this guy gives, as he is brilliant all the time. However, I first saw him as Mr. Pink. I was blown away by the movie, but it was Buscemi’s performance that stuck with me and still does.

Jack Lemmon, Short Cuts – Lemmon is one of my all time favorite’s and in Short Cuts he gives the best delivery of dialogue I’ve ever seen. When he is confessing to his son, who hasn’t seen in years about the affair he had I was just glued. This guy was just amazing and this performance was simply wonderful.

John Goodman, The Big Lebowski – OK, the performance is a little over the top yet, somehow it works. Goodman has never done anything of value unless it was with the Cohen’s and this is just another example. Plays it brilliantly and so easily.

Fred Willard, Best In Show – five minutes of brilliance. His improved performance as the dog show narrator was hilarious. A great movie in which Willard steals all by himself with his ad-libing.

Alec Baldwin, Glen Gary Glen Ross – An obvious pick yet, it needs to be mentioned. Baldwin plays the perfect asshole. He just oozes smarm in a historic five-minute scene. I could watch that part of the movie a thousand times and never get sick of it.

Benico Del Torro, The Usual Suspects – He came up with a dialect that no one could figure out simply because he made it up. Realizing his character was not a vital part of the movie he asked the director if he could deliver his lines in his unique delivery. It worked and because of it, made a name for himself.

Jack Black, High Fidelity – A role he was born to play. Every scene he is in he steals and gives a highly comedic performance. He is the real deal and this is the movie that put him on the map. To think he turned it down and had to be talked into it by Cusack.

James LeGros, Living In Oblivion – Plays the perfect spoiled actor. If you haven’t seen this one rent it, as there are a million great things in it. One of those is the job turned in by LeGros.

Chris Tucker, Friday – Tucker steals this movie away Ice Cube with a break out role that launched him into another world. His delivery and comic timing made this movie and without him, the movie itself would just have never worked.

Burt Reynolds, Boogie Nights – For the first time in years someone figured out how to use this guy. Reynolds started out early in his career with Deliverance and than kind of went into a very comfortable predictable place (with the exception of the Longest Yard.) Just as his career was on the down slope he makes a huge comeback giving just a great performance.

Dave Foley, Blast from the Past – OK, the movie itself kind of sucks. And yes all Foley is doing is playing a gay guy however, his performance put a smile on my face. I am a Kids In the Hall fan so, this one was easy. I always thought this guy was great and in a bad movie he comes away giving a great performance.

Sydney Pollack, Husbands and Wives – The great director gives a great performance in this Woody Allen movie. He comes across as the ultimate mid life crisis guy and finds a way to do it where you are sympathetic for him. Amazing if you think what he did with this role.

Bill Murray, Kingpin – I might as well begin and end it with the same actor. Again Bill Murray is brilliant and plays it just right. The comedic timing is just right and his performance is worth a rental on its own.