Friday For Your Consideration: Earl Lynn Nelson

Welcome to a special edition of a seasonal weekly feature here at Movies with Abe, Friday For Your Consideration. As every year nears to a close, there are a number of actors nominated for Golden Globes, Oscars, and countless other awards. There are so many spots and there are so many deserving contenders, yet some inevitably get left out. In the absence of a film to review, I’d like to spotlight someone from a film already released this year who is sure to be forgotten by the end of 2014.

Earl Lynn Nelson (Land Ho!)
Where you’ve seen him before: Nowhere! Nelson, who is now 72, is actually a practicing doctor in Kentucky. This is his third-ever film role. He previously appeared in two of writer-director Martha Stephens’ film. She serves as co-director for “Land Ho!”

Why he deserves it: He knocks every scene out of the park. From my review from Sundance, “the way in which he delivers all of his lines is with such comic intentionality, and he never misses the opportunity to make a blunt and unapologetic sexual reference.”

Standout scene: It’s hard to pick just one since he’s funny the whole way through, and an added bonus is that he succeeds in his sentimental moments with on-screen ex-brother-in-law Paul Eenhoorn.

Why he won’t get it: I can’t believe that enough people have seen this movie to be able to vote for Nelson. It’s not guaranteed that he’d end up in lead or supporting since his performance could be categorized either way, and I would be so pleasantly shocked if he made an entrance into the race.