WHAT WAS THE ACADEMY THINKING?

Byline: Glenn Whipp

Film Writer

When you finish watching Martin Scorsese's mob drama "The Departed," you might remember Mark Wahlberg's foul-

mouthed tough guy cop. But is he really the best member of an ensemble that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Vera Farmiga, Alec Baldwin and Martin Sheen?

Oscar voters -- at least the actors' branch -- think so, nominating Wahlberg for a best supporting actor Oscar.

Wahlberg made the most of his minimal role, but he's arguably only the fifth-best actor in the film. Yet, he was the only one nominated from "The Departed." No DiCaprio. No Damon. (Both should be considered leads; both probably received votes in the lead and supporting categories.)

It's a head-scratcher, but no more so than Alan Arkin's nomination in the same supporting actor category. Don't get us wrong. We like Arkin. Nice guy. Fine career. And he was great as the profanity-spewing, drug-ingesting grandpa in "Little Miss Sunshine." (Does the academy have a soft spot for expletives? Based on the evidence ... @&#! yes!)

Why Arkin but not Steve Carell or Paul Dano, both of whom had more meat to their roles? The reasons are many and varied. But Oscar history is full of such omissions.

Here are 10 from the past 40 years:

Helen Hayes but not Maureen Stapleton for "Airport" (1970). Admittedly, "Airport" isn't deserving of any acting nominations. But if you're going to recognize any actress from this seminal disaster movie, why not Maureen Stapleton for investing some humanity into the role of the worried wife of the plane's mad bomber?

Robert De Niro, Michael V. Gazzo and Lee Strasberg but not John Cazale for "The Godfather Part II" (1974). This is what happens when you take sides against the family -- or do too fine a job bringing the "weak" brother to life.

Brad Dourif but not Will Sampson for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975). Dourif, playing the suicidal man-child, had the showier role, but Sampson was better as the immovable, mute Chief.

James Mason but not Jack Warden for "The Verdict" (1982). Neither Mason nor Warden ever won an Oscar, a shame. Mason got the nod this year as the ruthless lawyer battling Paul Newman. Warden as the dogged detective, though, gave the movie its considerable heart.

Michelle Pfeiffer but not Uma Thurman for "Dangerous Liaisons" (1988). No offense to Pfeiffer, but the movie's huge crossover audience -- college guys -- didn't chant her name when she came on the screen.

Ed Harris but not Gary Sinise for "Apollo 13" (1995). Harris was Houston's can-do, we-have-a-problem solver, but he couldn't have done it without help from Sinise's wounded, washed-out astronaut.

Robert Forster but not Robert De Niro for "Jackie Brown" (1997). Oscar loves a comeback story, often at the expense of a legend doing some of his finest work.

Burt Reynolds but not John C. Reilly for "Boogie Nights" (1997). Another back-from-the-dead story. We preferred the still underrated Reilly, playing the veteran porn star who'd just as soon be a magician.

Catherine Keener but not Cameron Diaz for "Being John Malkovich" (1999). If for no other reason, the look on Diaz's face when the chimpanzee comforts her while sharing a cage.

Matt Dillon but not Don Cheadle from "Crash" (2005). We could have easily substituted Cheadle's name in the "Boogie Nights" entry. Dillon has had the longer career, thus fulfilling the academy's inclination to reward a body of work. Cheadle, though, delivered the movie's defining voice-over and was fantastic as the conflicted LAPD detective.

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

[e-mail]

Inside the voters' heads

For ensemble movies such as "The Departed" and "Little Miss Sunshine," why does one actor get picked over another? Popular theories:

1) It's the resume, not the performance.

Longevity counts for something in this town. Nominations often go to performers -- Helen Hayes for "Airport," Fred Astaire in "The Towering Inferno," Gloria Stuart for "Titanic" -- who have been around the block a time or two.

"Was Arkin the best thing about 'Sunshine'? " asks an academy member producer. "No. But he's had a great career. (Steve) Carrell is a TV guy, and the kid (Dano) is just a kid."

Adds one Oscar campaigner: "You push the guy people know."

2) It's a way of saying sorry. Academy voters famously give nominations -- and Oscars -- to actors as a make-good for past oversights.

"The academy is always atoning for past mistakes," says a screenwriter member. "Al Pacino got his Oscar for 'Scent of a Woman,' not 'The Godfather' movies. This year, Scorsese will be recognized when he should have won long ago for 'Raging Bull' or 'Taxi Driver.' And you could argue that Wahlberg should have been recognized for 'Boogie Nights.' "

3) Academy voters love good stories.

"Again," says the Oscar campaigner, "you push the actor that makes for the best story. Who cares that Nicholson is great in 'The Departed'? Been there, done that. Wahlberg gets your vote because it's his time. He went from modeling underwear to having a career that's both commercially and critically viable."

4) Or perhaps the most basic explanation, offered by one Oscar consultant, works best: "The acting branch, consisting of actors, is (bleeping) nuts."

-- G.W.

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- 3) Gary Sinise, above left, was passed over for his work in "Apollo 13," while Ed Harris won an Oscar for the same film. Robert De Niro, below, in "The Godfather Part II," won an Oscar for that role, but not for "Jackie Brown," widely considered to have been some of the film legend's finest work.

Box:

Inside the voters' heads (see text)