Michael Fassbender and first runner-up
Jessica Chastain had a year like no other new or veteran actor, appearing in no less than five films each in 2011. While we predict lengthy big-screen careers for both of them, Fassbender gained a slight edge in our eyes not only thanks to his chiseled good looks (on ample display as Rochester in
Jane Eyre as well as Magneto in
X-Men: First Class) but through his no-holds-barred lead performance as a struggling sex addict in
Shame. Such fearlessness is what stars are made of.
Honorable Mentions:
Out of a slew of great turns this year (including
The Debt,
Take Shelter and
The Tree of Life), Chastain delighted audiences most as a naive but well-intentioned Southern belle in
The Help. And not to be ignored,
Chris Hemsworth is well worth mentioning honorably for carrying the superhero epic
Thor and its bigger-name stars on his beefy but ultimately down-to-earth (literally) shoulders.
Review by
Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of
Movie Dearest and the
Blade California.
As someone who has Fish Tank as one of his favorite films of the past few years I might call into question the "new" part of the award but I can't complain about any positive attention that Fassbender gets. He's definitely one of the best actors going right now.
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