1940 – Jack Oakie
The Great Dictator
Jack Oakie had a really difficult task to accomplish in this movie, and I think he handled it perfectly. He had to go up against Charlie Chaplin. It must have been pretty daunting to try to keep pace with such a legend. But he pulled it off, and created a memorable character. And honestly, I think he was just as funny as Chaplin. The character of Benzino Napaloni was a parody of Benito Mussolini, with a touch of Napoleon Bonaparte thrown into the mix.
He actually doesn’t have a lot of screen-time, but when he was on the screen, he was a bit of a scene stealer, and that’s saying something, again, when he shared the screen with Chaplin. There was a confidence about him that demanded attention. And it was necessary for the character. He needed to be just as much of a megalomaniac as his partner in crime, Adenoid Hynkel. He was just as self-obsessed, just as maniacal, and most importantly, just as silly. In fact, I’d even say that the two men had a really great on-screen chemistry. They really knew how to play off of each other to create some really funny scenes. I particularly liked the running gag each time they tried to shake hands. One would extend his hand while the other would raise it in the Nazi salute. Each realizing their mistake, they would both switch at the same time, back and forth, back and forth. Yeah, it was a little corny, by today’s standards, but I can’t deny that it was still funny.
And just as Chaplin had that fast-paced silly German accent and nonsense dialogue, so too did Oakie have to deliver all his lines just as rapidly, but with an Italian accent. You see, I don’t think he, or Chaplin, for that matter, were making fun of Italians or Germans. They were making fun of Mussolini and Hitler. And they weren’t just making fun of them. They were making political statements, calling real dictators buffoons.
So here’s the thing. While I know that Jack Oakie did a fantastic job, I have to ask if his performance was so outstanding as to warrant an Academy Award nomination. And the short answer is… I don’t know. Did the actor deserve the recognition? I think so. Did the role itself deserve it? Maybe not. An Academy Award nomination should be a good blend of a well-written character and a skilled actor. And Benzino Napaloni was written to be silly, which is difficult to translate into intense or powerful. And the more I think about it, Chaplin was able to pull it off. The script just didn’t give Oakie enough time or range to do the same thing.