Jeffrey Wells has had some insiders whispering to him that Alec Baldwin’s performance in the forthcoming Nancy Meyers rom-com for Moms and Dads “It’s Complicated” is good enough to net him an Oscar nomination. While a vested party told Wells that Baldwin’s performance is a “total breakout” those kinds of whispers are best taken with a gigantic box of salt, because they’re supposed to whispering this kind of stuff. However, when a non-vested party says something like the below, we tend to sit up and pay attention:
The non-vested director-writer said that “besides Baldwin, It’s Complicated is also a very strong showing for Steve Martin. A nice rebound after the last Panther movie and something more in tune with his talents. Part of the fun of having Baldwin and Martin host the Oscars is the possibility of one or both of them being nominated. It’s a strong film and Universal will have a much-needed crowd pleaser. Meryl could be a lock as well for Best Actress, with the Julia Child performance being pushed for supporting.”
Of course, all of this depends on the actual film which probably won’t screen for critics until after Thanksgiving. As Wells notes, Baldwin is on a tremendous upswing right now, having navigated himself out of the ugliness of his divorce with Kim Basinger, and earning well deserved praise for his hilarious turn on “30 Rock.” Oh yeah, he also happens to be hosting the Oscars with Steve Martin this year too. But the flipside to this is that Nancy Meyers has never been an “Oscar director.” Her films are generally middle of the road and yes, well crafted, romantic comedies for older adults. If the film manages be something more than what the current trailer suggests, then a nod for Baldwin or Martin could become likely. The Best Supporting Actor category is anybody’s game this year, and just the spot where surprises are very likely to happen.
If Baldwin is nominated it will be yet another recognition for an actor who should’ve won years ago. Baldwin should’ve been nominated and won for his seven minute turn in “Glengarry Glen Ross” in 1992. We heard somewhere once that it’s the most used audition scene for drama students and it’s easy to see why. The scene has a certain vicious sexiness to it, but what people tend to forget is that, because it sets up the whole film, Baldwin has to really nuance the performance to make sure it’s believable enough that audiences are going to buy the rest of the story. If he over or under sells it, the film is blown. It’s the reason why anyone you’ve ever heard do it since, fails miserably.