I'd like to mention the MVP award to a person who has had the most impressive body of work throughout the year. There was a lot to choose from, but in my mind no other performer stood out for me as much as Brad Pitt this year. To me Pitt is part of that great trio of modern movie stars who are commonly linked (George Clooney and Matt Damon being the other two). What these three actors have in common is their knack for picking quality work, that is sometimes out of the mainstream.
Clooney for instance had a tremendous year himself with the rather underrated political pot boiler "The Ides of March", which he co-starred as well as directed and co-wrote. He also starred in Alexander Payne's superb "The Descendants" which contains a nice role for him.
The always reliable Damon has been no slouch continuing his collaboration with director Steven Sodebergh making the big hit "Contagion", he was also seen in the fantasy "The Adjustment Bureau", as well as Cameron Crowe's "We Bought a Zoo", which even though didn't go well with critics showed his continued interest in working with interesting directors. Damon was also seen in "Margaret" which was filmed years ago but finally got released, and those who have seen it are calling it a masterpiece.
Other actors and actresses have had extraordinary years like Jessica Chastain, Michael Shannon, and Michael Fassbender, but it was Pitt for me who really had the pick of the litter.
Pitt was seen in two films this year, not only were they two of the best films of the year, they were also two of his best performances ever, plus he had a hand in producing them, how's that for quality?
First in "Tree of Life", Terence Malick's coming of age, poetic opus, which also deals with the existence of God, and man's own place in the universe, Pitt plays the character of the father. Pitt's character is far more complicated than just the mere villain of the film. He starts off as a brute of a father who disciplines his sons harshly and can be down right abusive. But later in the film we get a man who is really sympathetic and is seen more as a failure, but also someone who truly loves his kids and is full of regret.
Pitt disappears in this performance, it lets him take the kind of risks most movie stars wouldn't approach, he's not afraid to become unlikable, it shows he's an actor of immense depth, something that is easy to forget.
Later in the year Pitt was seen in "Moneyball" where he plays Billy Bean, a former baseball player who works for the Oakland A's. Billy is one of those great movie star roles where Pitt is able to bring in his natural charisma, and charm. We get on Billy's side right away, he's a competitor and a rule breaker, he wants to win. Billy is a character who understands baseball is now a game for people with the highest paycheck, so he alters the playing field.
"Moneyball" was one of the smartest mainstream movies to come out last year, and its success was mostly due to Pitt's everyman performance. It got him a deserved Oscar nomination, although in my mind, he could've been nominated for both films he was in.
A movie star like Brad Pitt makes me interested in seeing what he'll do next, because it never seems to be boring. Like Damon and Clooney, he seems attached to working with interesting, and creative people, he doesn't always resort to his natural charm, he wants to challenge himself as well as his audience.
2011 will probably go down as a pinnacle in Brad Pitt's career, he's been around for awhile, but it's interesting that just now he seems to be hitting his stride.
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