Overlooked

5 Greatest Performances by Inanimate Objects

01 The FOOD in 'Big Night'(1996, Columbia TriStar) If we conducted a study, we'd probably find that people gained weight just watching Campbell Scott and Stanley Tucci's ode to the edible.

02 The BRIEFCASE in 'Pulp Fiction'(1994, Miramax) Gold bullion, Marsellus Wallace's soul, a self-contained light source? No one but Quentin Tarantino knows what's inside the piece of luggage that changes men's lives, but boy, would we like to.

03 The CUCUMBER in 'This Is Spinal Tap'(1984, MGM) Never considered the manliest of produce, the cuke earned its cool in the pants of bass player Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer), who might consider a name change.

04 The SUNGLASSES in 'Cool Hand Luke' 1967, Warner) The eyes may be the windows to the soul, but for the frosty hack who harasses Paul Newman's chain-gang banger, the mirror shades are windows for the soulless.

05 The FIELD in 'Field of Dreams' (1989, Universal) Jeez, the tag line for this baseball flick might as well have been ''If you build it, they will cry.''

Honorable Mention - Mariel Hemingway's BREASTS in 'Star 80' (1983, Warner) Just how good were they, the implants that Hemingway got prior to production? Well, they drove Eric Roberts to one of his greatest performances (see No. 80).

5 Great Performances That Just Don't Fit

01 Douglas Rain in 2001: A Space Odyssey(1968, Warner) Rain's work is chilling in its deliberate monotony, haunting in its persistence, and once computers take over the world, it's his voice -- the voice of HAL -- that you'll hear in your nightmares.

02 Richard Pryor in Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979, MPI) One of the greatest storytellers ever to stalk a stage, Pryor wasn't nominated for an Oscar for this, his first stand-up film. Pity, because no one ever did as much real-world research for a role as he did.

03 The Band in The Last Waltz(1978, MGM) It's a fantastic performance, full of passion, talent, and charisma. They had to learn as many lines as any thespian. So why wasn't Robbie Robertson's group nominated for their farewell turn in Martin Scorsese's film? Clearly, the Academy doesn't know how to rock.

04 Tom Hanks and Tim Allen in Toy Story(1995, Disney) Animation voice work never gets its due, and never has there been a sweeter, truer pair of performances than these. Woody and Buzz live in the hearts of kids of all ages, and not because of the CGI magic.

05 Francis Ford Coppola in Hearts of Darkness (1991, Paramount, not on DVD) While making Apocalypse Now, an obsessive Coppola allowed his wife to document his methodical unraveling. Self-destruction on camera is like a train wreck: You just can't look away.