Welcome to the 2024 SiftPop.com Sifties!
This year, the SiftPop writers came together to nominate five performances for Best Voice or Motion Capture Performance. This is a category that is woefully underrepresented at awards shows, so we sought to remedy that!
Here’s how the voting played out:
The main protagonist of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is named Noa for the Biblical figure who brought hope to the world in a time when destruction reigned down (perhaps a little too on the nose). Owen Teague had an incredible task replacing Andy Serkis as the main character of this new franchise. He replaces a compassionate leader who would do anything to help his people. Noa is a similar type of character, but he lives in a very different world than Caesar did. Through a similar level of compassion, Teague brings Noa to life in a beautiful way. He’s curious, tough, and cares deeply for others. Following in Serkis’ footsteps, Teague bring a similar gravity to the role. In this new world, though, Noa is asked to be a savior in a way that Caesar never was. He also has to learn a great deal about being a leader, and more about his species’ past in quick fashion. In a world filled with danger and chaos, Teague’s performance is the steady presence that helps guide everything forward.
Raka is the exposition dump needed to propel the story forward. The context he gives about Caesar’s words propel Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ themes forward. Proximus twists Caesar’s words, whereas Raka takes them as originally intended. Peter Macon’s performance takes hints from Rafki in The Lion King. He’s incredibly wise, respectful of the past, and helps guide Noa to the truth. Also, he’s tough, bringing balance to the story in the face of an oppressive leader whose greed and ambition know no limits. Macon’s performance is a great contrast to both Proximus and Noa, signaling his importance in the story as a whole. Every amazing story needs someone who can be a beacon for others, and Macon gives a pitch perfect performance for that.
Absolute power corrupts absolutely. That’s the deal with Kevin Durand’s character Proximus Caesar. The totalitarian leader of the coastal clan of apes twists the words of the original series’ protagonist, Caesar, to justify everything that he’s doing. Durand gives such a good performance because his character needs to be equal parts charming, cunning, and ruthless. It’s also a timely performance, with so many people twisting words of others to fit their own agenda. This movie wouldn’t work without a strong leader at the helm of an oppressed group. It’s also the role that forms the film’s central thesis of the movie. Without someone contorting Caesar’s original message, it would just be a generic action movie.
It was clear than an Inside Out sequel would introduce new emotions, but it was such a surprise to find such a visceral showing of what it’s like to have anxiety. So much of what makes Anxiety the character work comes from Maya Hawke. She clearly understands Anxiety on a deep level, and she showcases both the helpful and harmful effects that the emotion can have on a teenage brain. It is a remarkable performance, showing how Anxiety can interact with all the other emotions. The way that she interacts with Riley, though, is probably the strongest part of her performance. Hawke does a remarkable job of making Anxiety a character who you can empathize with, as much as you can’t stand her.
It takes immense talent to inject emotion into a character programmed not to have any, but that’s exactly what Lupita Nyong’o does in The Wild Robot. Nyong’o’s robot, Roz, stranded on a remote island after a crash landing, bonds with the inhabitants, particularly a young, orphaned goose (Kit Connor). Starting off as a character that is very much, well, robotic, Nyong’o slowly melts both the audience’s hearts and those of the other members of the forest, fading away their initial distrust of this outsider. With a vocal performance that has to be modulated from a character perspective, it makes her work so much harder, and thus, it’s that much more impressive when she pulls at the heartstrings so effectively. Though it’s unconventional, the surrogate and unconventional mother-son relationship is deeply moving. There were few cinematic experiences that brought audiences to tears quite like The Wild Robot, and without the emotional investment Nyong’o gets, that’s certainly not the case.
Make sure to check out the previous 2024 Sifties winners, and don’t forget to check back tomorrow for the winner of Best Film Ensemble!