Top 20 actors due for an oscar

Edward Norton’s cred seems to be dropping as his replacement, Ryan Gosling, continues to rise. Still, Norton has put in enough great performances to land him in the overdo category. Again, he just needs the right role at the right time. Norton was nominated for American History X (lead), and Primal Fear (supporting). Roberto Benigni won for Life is Beautiful. Having recently watched the god-awful Primal Fear, Norton was good in that but it doesn’t hold up in the same way a De Niro performance does – it appears gimmicky. He’s got permanent cult status having starred in Fight Club.

Joan Allen, again, has always been great. But her two best roles, I think, are in Nixon and in Rod Lurie’s The Contender, a film I’ve seen many times and always come away with nothing but awe for Allen’s restrained, flawless performance. It’s especially poignant when compared to her drunken Pat Nixon (“you should have burned them.”) She’s also wonderful in the Bourne films.

Laura Linney is one of those actresses who is always, always, always ALWAYS good. She empties the tank every time. She is hardworking, versatile, funny … the list goes on.

For The English Patient. While there probably isn’t one film or one performance yet that screams Oscar win — well I guess the closest you get to that would be her work in I’ve Loved You for So Long, for which she was not even nominated. The film was weakened by a bad ending.

Baldwin would top the list of those I thought would win an Oscar in the next five years. They’re just waiting to anoint Baldwin into the club. No matter what he does, he proves himself teflon. Likable, a great actor in everything he does, Baldwin is right in front of the line.