Making a Case for Sam Rockwell and Moises Arias for Best Supporting Actor 2014

 It's May 24th. It's not even officially summer. I'm salivating at the Oscars already, and it's not for 10 months or so. I have a lot of issues. Yet, I was captivated by two performances this summer already, that by no means will even be mentioned come Oscar season. Which, of course, is a completely normal thing for me to discuss.

The thing with the Best Supporting Actor role is that it's always far and away the most competitive category. Last year, Leonardo Dicaprio didn't even get nominated for his role in Django Unchained, a role in which it wouldn't have surprised me to see him win the category. With that said, often times the indie stars get pushed aside and go unnoticed. I'm here to give them some notice.

I saw a film called Kings of Summer last week, a hilarious film that comes out in limited release on May 31. The undoubted scene stealer? Rico from Hannah Montana. I couldn't believe it. I thought he was going to hurt the overall film, and in part, that's what makes Moises Arias's performance brilliant. Every time this dude was on screen he was cracking jokes. Not only was he cracking jokes, but he was cracking jokes that hit. He was so oddly funny. I don't know how many of his lines were improvisation and how many of his lines were written, but either way he delivers. He knocked this role, Biaggio, out of the park.

The whole film itself is hilarious and is one of my favorite movies I've ever seen, and it was the best movie I've seen this year for sure. In large part, due to the comic relief of Moises Arias. The three main teenage casts were played beautifully and almost effortlessly. It's not that the other two main casts were mediocre, in fact, they were almost as amazing as Arias. The film has it's serious moments, and Arias does a great job adapting to the mood of each individual scene. He's hilarious when appropriate and he's serious when he needs to be. The way he delivers the jokes varies based on the scene as well. He can deliver these weird, calm one liners when necessary, and he can be an awkward spazz, too.

His performance will get no mention come award season, I can guarantee that. The only thing he will get nominated for is some random "Best Newcomer" or "Best Young Actor", along with his co-stars, Nick Robinson and Gabriel Basso. And it truly is unfortunate. His performance deserves some credit. I couldn't think of any other actor in the game right now that can do what he did in Kings of Summer.

Another actor who has been getting pushed aside for most of his career is Sam Rockwell. He is one of the most underrated actors in the game right now. He was one of the only parts of last year's Seven Psychopaths that I enjoyed. He was fantastic, and yet, he didn't get the credit I thought he deserved. And likely, that's how his role from The Way, Way Back will be this year too. I think Rockwell will get some buzz, but with the heavy hitters coming in the fall, I think Rockwell gets squeezed out of the competition.

His role in The Way, Way Back is amazing. He's far and away the best part of the film, though Allison Janney is hilirious as well. She's just not in the film enough to be on the same level as Rockwell. Everybody is comparing Rockwell's role in this film to a role the Bill Murray would have played in the 80s, and while I see the line being drawn, I think he's done his own thing here. He flies through his dialogue at a rapid rate and everything that comes out of this guy's mouth is golden.

Rockwell earns his wings during the dramatic scenes, too. There are two scenes that he delivers wonderfully. There is a scene where Rockwell's character Owen is talking with the main character, Duncan, and the emotion that he says his lines is so genuine. He's easy going and likes to have a good time, and when he realizes Duncan needs someone to talk to, Rockwell turns this switch on and you can tell that Owen truly cares about this kid. I loved this scene, and another scene at the end when Duncan hugs Owen. The way Rockwell shows his emotions just with his eyes, and no dialogue, is enough reason for him to at least have a few mentions come Oscar season.

I could see Rockwell being the weird addition to the Golden Globes that the Globes always seem to have. Not that he's not deserving or anything, just that maybe someone will get snubbed in place of him. I wish I could say the same about Moises Arias, but I just don't realistically see him getting any recognitions during Award Season. It's unfortunate. Their work is flawlessly executed and it's a shame they won't get rewarded for it.

The thing with the acting categories in films is that there is only 5 spots. Someone has to be 6th best, 7th best, and so on. There will be 5 performances that are considered better than Rockwell and Arias this year, there is no doubt about that. I just want to give credit where it is due, when I see a performance that truly moves the audience.

In years to come, Rockwell will get his due. And who knows, maybe his role in the Cannes film 'A Single Shot' that comes out later this year will get him there. He deserves it. As far as for Arias, he's just 19. And honestly, he can do these kind of roles for 10 more years. He will look young for a long time. In fact, in Kings of Summer he looks around 15 years old, which if he's smart, he can use to his advantage for years to come. With his role in Ender's Game coming later this year, too, it's clear that Moises Arias has broken away from his "Disney" label. Which can only help for award seasons to come.

You can follow Will Harmon on Twitter at @willharmon8