The Emmys were last night. Cranston won his fourth Best Lead Actor award for Breaking Bad. Most celebrities, critics, and a lot of moviegoers/television fans felt that McConaughey was the leading choice for Best Actor and many had no doubts he would win. So as expected, a lot of people were very shocked that Cranston won. Not because Cranston isn't a great actor by any means, but because many feel McConaughey as Rust Cohle was better (as far as acting goes).
Let's take a step back for a moment. I have heard many people say that Cranston as Walter White was great because of the character development that was reached to a pinnacle in the Final Season. Most of the Final Season, Cranston's White was calm in demeanor and as we all know, accepting in the consequences and gravity of his choices. We appreciate this in the Final Season because of all the build up of past seasons and the fact that we finally get to see the end result of an insane and hugely original, luring story. Here's the problem: if you are going to give an award for the Final Season, you have to pretend that said season is the only one you have ever seen and judge by the acting you see in that season and that season alone. No character development from previous seasons or anything of the sort can be considered. If these factors could be considered then this award wouldn't be for the Final Season, it would be for Breaking Bad as a whole. As far as Aaron Paul, he definitely deserved the award. He was at his best Jesse Pinkman ever in the Final Season, showing more emotion and character complexity at the same time. Cranston's Walter White on the other hand, in my opinion, was not at his best. Season 4 was absolutely astounding and if the seasons were swapped, then I would have a much harder time calling this one. But from an objective point of view, considering ONLY the Final Season Walter White, I would say that the acting is not nearly as complex or intricate than a certain competitor.
Enter True Detective. A show that isn't very popular and did not have a lot of buzz surrounding it, but yet it served to completely surprise and blow away its viewers with an experience unlike anything they have ever seen. McConaughey played lead character Rust Cohle alongside, also nominated, Woody Harrelson playing Martin Hart. Before this show started to air on HBO, McConaughey completely turned his career around, with amazing films like Mud and Dallas Buyers Club (for which he won Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Oscars). McConaughey was unrecognizable in True Detective, entering a mode of acting that I rarely give credit for to actors. He entered Gary Oldman's field of performance and became a chameleon. Not one moment of True Detective wasn't believable and the complexity and intricate, small things that made Rust Cohle were far more personality than Walter White had in the Final Season. There were so many tiny details, ticks and personality traits that made Cohle feel human. It made the character feel like a real person. McConaughey BECAME Rust Cohle for True Detective and he is a character that will never be forgotten.
Now I am not saying Walter White will ever be forgotten (obviously not!), and I am not saying that Walter White didn't have personality. But what I am saying is that McConaughey in the 8 episodes of True Detective, in comparison with Cranston in the Final Season of Breaking Bad, is much more intricate and much deeper. In the Final Season we see a man who is on the ropes, finally confronted with his actions and the consequences they represent. He is calm and accepting in his fate and does what he can to make things right. McConaughey as Rust Cohle goes full circle in the one season of True Detective and shows more emotion and fractured personality traits than anything we've seen in a while. His emotions are furious and his character is, to put it modestly, incredibly messed up. So here is my final question . . . which one is harder to act as, 1) a character you have had 5 (6 if you consider "The Final Season" as its own entity) seasons to develop and who is primarily calm and shows little emotion due to acceptance or 2) a character who shows every form of emotion thinkable and who is terrifying yet incredibly vulnerable? Look at the Final Season of Breaking Bad as its own entity, ignore every other season and pretend they don't exist, then compare it to the 8 episodes of True Detective. Which one took more skill? Be honest.
I love Breaking Bad as much as the next guy (hell I own the whole series and watched every episode of the Final Season when it aired), but from a critic point of view and from an objective standpoint, I honestly feel as a film critic that McConaughey was better. Cranston was great, but McConaughey, I feel, showed more complexity and more range of character traits and emotions. Don't consider character development in this because it is NOT a factor when you are judging solely one season.
Why did the Emmys snub (as many articles pouring in to IMDB have stated in their titles) McConaughey? Maybe they wanted to be nice to Cranston because this was the final season of Breaking Bad and because we will never see Walter White again. Maybe the Emmys shared the Oscar's disdain when McConaughey said "God" in his acceptance speech and they didn't want it happening to them. Maybe they just don't like McConaughey. Perhaps they got last year mixed up with this year. Or . . . maybe they honestly thought Cranston was better. Regardless of the reason, we can speculate all we want. What is clear, is that most people, moviegoers, celebrities and critics alike were speechless when the winner was announced. Critics are still pouring in articles to IMDB about how McConaughey was snubbed. So one thing is for sure, I am not alone. In fact, Cranston was surprised that he won. He joked about the Emmys getting it confused because he said he would have voted for McConaughey. But then again, this is the Emmys. I got insanely upset when Jeff Daniels won for Newsroom over Cranston in Breaking Bad. The Emmys are always unpredictable but last night is already being called the most confusing Emmys ceremony in many years.
What do you think? Do you believe Cranston deserved the win? Did McConaughey get snubbed? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
As always, thanks for stopping by and reading this post. It means the world to me and it's what honestly makes me feel that these blogs are worth the time. Until next time!
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