Lots of great Ensembles this year, but for me, these five stood out:
Argo
(Affleck, Cranston, Arkin, Goodman, Garber, Donovan, DuVall, McNairy, Cochrane, Denham, Bishe, et. al.)
Every
inch an organic ensemble, the acting really pops without overt
limelight hogging. Everyone makes the most of divided screen exposure
to evoke their characters. Credit Affleck for a selfless central
performance that allows his cast to work wonders around him.
The
Avengers
(Downey Jr., Evans, Hemsworth, Ruffalo, Johansson, Renner, Hiddleston, Jackson, Gregg, et. al.)
The
interactions between the characters (who don't always get along) is
where The Avengers
offers up the most spark. Credit the actors for equitably rising to
the occasion of knowing exactly what role to play and never upstaging
one another.
Lincoln
(Day-Lewis, Field, Jones, Strathairn, Gordon-Levitt, Spader, Hawkes, Nelson, Haley, Holbrook, et. al.)
The
principals are excellent, but none particularly more impressive than
the multitude of supporting players who lend this historical drama
such accessible voice. The ensemble is a rich who's-who of character
actors from which it's hard to select a stand-out.
Les
Miserables
(Jackman, Crowe, Hathaway, Redmayne, Tveit, Barks, Seyfried, Cohen, Carter, at. al.)
This
starry ensemble is liberated to incorporate levels of expressiveness
in their facial ticks and vocal inflections that would go undetected
on a Broadway stage, and each one delivers with tremendous,
theatrical flare.
Moonrise
Kingdom
(Gilman, Hayward, Willis, Norton, Murray, McDormand, Schwartzman, Swinton, Balaban, et. al.)
The
cast is a splendid one, replete with tickling performances from the
many frazzled players whose search for the missing twosome, and of
course from the two young leads themselves, who find ways to layer in
authentic emotion through their deadpan line delivery.
Just missed: Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, The Dark Knight Rises, The Grey, Silver Linings Playbook
