3. Max Von Sydow - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
It's another one of those "Really!?" moments from Oscar history; though Max von Sydow certainly acts his heart out trying to bring life to Stephen Daldry's inept adaptation of acclaimed novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, are we really nominating actors just for trying now? Playing the mysterious man known initially as "The Renter", his relationship with young Oskar should be the stuff of emotional Oscar gold, but Daldry so patently bungles the material that in actuality, it's a syrupy, maudlin mess that seems to exploit the tragedy of 9/11 rather than engage with it in a thoughtful way. As the mute grandfather figure guiding Oskar through the story, Sydow is able to only give a scarcely competent performance considering how little the film's script gives him. It's not his fault, and I too was hoping for another stellar performance from the legendary actor, who is nevertheless the standout in an insulting film that somehow also scored a Best Picture nomination.