It sure is a faceoff. We're recasting All About Eve this month on at the Large Association of Movie Blogs. More details here.

“Woman to Woman”

Last week I gave a listing of films with duo-male leads, and this week it’s time for the women. There are a number of films which depend on strong female ensembles - The Hours, Hannah & Her Sisters, Howards End, Sense & Sensibility, but in each there’s always one player who takes precedence - if they were eligible you know who I'd vote for, right? For me, these five films below do a fine job of paying equal attention to both participants in the duo making for some strong girl on girl action. Interpret that as you will.
               
Melanie Lynskey and Kate Winslet in Heavenly Creatures (1994)

I know it subverts the entire film’s existence as a vehicle for Pauline’s development, but for me Heavenly Creatures doesn’t really begin until Juliet appears on screen. Lynskey and Winslet are two starkly different actresses, which allows them to do such good work opposite each other – added to their youth which makes their performances less pretentious than older actors might have played it. As far as screen-time goes, Juliet is a supporting player – but I can’t think of this one in any other way than as one with c0-leads.

Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger in Terms of Endearment (1983)

I, with my high sense of cynicism, like to think of the Oscar win for Terms of Endearment as the most bogus picture win of the eighties – which is saying something considering the slate of winners that decade. The film itself doesn’t particularly hamper the mother and daughter bond of MacLaine and Winger, though a significant amount of it develops with them away from each other. At her best I’d support MacLaine’s win, though there are times I side with Winger. Either way, it’s a fine alliance.

Annette Bening and Julianne Moore in The Kids Are All Right (2010)

There’s little doubt in my mind that The Kids Are Right worked so well because of the alliance of Bening and Moore. It was the first thing that drew my interest to the project, and the chemistry they maintained throughout was what kept me interested in it long after. It’s not just because they’re playing lovers, there’s a striking rapport between them – even as actors (just watch them at the Golden Globes) and it’s that modulation which the film depends on.

Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon in Thelma & Louise (1991)

I feel a bit ridiculous admitting this, but for a long time I couldn’t warm up to Jodie Foster’s work in The Silence of the Lambs because I resented her winning Oscars not only over the Countess de Mereteiul but over one of the strongest female duos – Thelma and Louise. Excessive parodying has turned this into something of a cliché – but the redheaded twosome of Sarandon and Davis is a highpoint of the nineties. Of the five pairs on the list, I don’t think any complements each other as well as they did, but Sarandon has a way of working well with her women (even in lesser fare.)

Anne Baxter and Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950)

There are so many reasons that this one’s a classic. What ii find most interesting about All About Eve when it comes to the duo lead front is the fact that both Bette and Anne have brilliant scenes opposite each other, and on their own and yet the film still manages to foster excellent supporting roles for Celeste Holme and George Sanders (among others). Like with Amadeus last week, I can’t choose between Eve and Margot. Both women are legends of classic cinema, and both offer up legendary performances.
           

Do you think these five duos have evenly matched players? Which is your favourite? Who’s missing?

Oh, Marilyn!

Seriously? Not the slightest bit of resemblance there...? Or is it just me? For some reason Kate Heigl is loathed, which is unfortunate, because she is a good actress in search of a good role. On that note, head over to Yojimbo for a look at a lovely scene from All About Eve.

All About Eve...and the Women...

I always feel a little bad for Anne Baxter. Sure, she won her (deserved) Oscar playing a sympathetic prostitute in The Razor’s Edge. But, few recall that film or her performance in it. She’s remembered today for her duplicitous Nefertiti in The Ten Commandments, and the like minded Eve Harrington in All About Eve. It suggests that she has little range, but that’s not true. The thing is the film is supposed to be all about Eve – but it isn’t. It’s a giant irony actually, since the film is really all about Margo. But I like to remember Anne Baxter though, because she’s just as important (and excellent) as Bette Davis. The thing is, I’ve never been overly fond of Ms. Davis. I’ll always appreciate her talent, but I’ve never found myself particularly enamoured with her. I’ve often preferred her less popular work (Now Voyager, The Letter) to her more admired (What Happened to Baby Jane, Jezebel). But I can firmly champion Margo Channing as her more ardent fans do, even if it’s still not my favourite of hers. Still, if Tracy Lords represents the fullest representation of our Lady Kate on screen then Margo Channing is most certainly the embodiment of diva-Bette. But, as usual, I’m getting ahead of myself. I should retrace my steps.

All About Eve is a story that’s not original, but not clichéd either. Margo Channing – a celebrated actress of the stage is realising that her career is waning. She is simultaneously accosted by an overzealous fan who seems (despite the ostensible) intent on replacing the great diva. That is the story – in a nutshell, and yet it doesn’t do justice to the excellence that is All About Eve. It's a film with everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end. Of course, any classic worth its weight depends particularly on the dialogue, and Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s writing in All About Eve is exceptional, but I don’t think of the writing of the lines when I remember All About Eve so much I think about the line readings. It’s not a conceit on my part to pinpoint each actor in All About Eve – particularly the women – as being at the top of their game (case in point, four of them were nominated for Oscars). But by pinpointing the women I fail to identify one of the most fully nuanced characters of the piece – Addison Meredith, played beautifully by George Sanders. The tagline for All About Eve reads “It’s all about women and their men.” I’m never sure that that is an accurate tagline, but for some reason I rarely recall the men in this show, it’s not that they don’t achieve their task but being caught up in the delicious machinations of the casts we often only remember the ladies (and George).

All About Eve is mostly remembered for its climatic part scene where Davis’ Margo drifts deeper into cynicism. It’s a rare and beautiful moment to see all those excellent actors together in one room literally playing off each other. A young Marilyn Monroe makes as appearance here as Miss Casswell and she as excellent. I’ve never been overly fond of her work, but as I’ve said before, she does wonders with a bit role here. It’s as we watch the tug-of-war between Margo and Eve that I come to appreciate the talents of both ladies. It really does seem to be a perfect match of protagonist and antagonist and it’s all really handled well, but if I were forced to give a favourite performance of the film (more nepotism, than talent based) I’d probably single out Celeste Holme. Celeste plays a friend to Margo who realises Eve’s duplicity too late. The role is a bit contrived but I just find Ms. Holme so mesmerising in it. It is her face (and narration) that takes us back to our first meeting with Eve, and for such a silly role she handles it with a surprising amount of grace. But, honestly, I wouldn’t pick between them. From Davis, to Baxter, from Sanders to Holme, even Ritter in a bit role and all those other performances from actors who's names have become lost in history (George Merrill, Hugh Marlowe).

All About Eve is a rarity, it cruises dangerously close to perfection...who knows? It even achieves it at times. Quotable lines, classic performances, smart direction. It sits comfortably at #18 on my list of favourite films. Slow curtain, the end.

The Best Supporting Actress Nominees: Favourites

I’ve been tinkering with this list for a while, so finally I’ve completed it., which marks the final category, Check out the others, if you missed.

Favourite Actor Nominees

Favourite Actress Nominees

Favourite Supporting Actor Nominees

                 

Favourite Actor Winners

Favourite Actress Winners

Favourite Supporting Actor Winners

Favourite Supporting Actress Winners

                 

Here is the list of the thirty supporting nominees that have had the most profound effect on me. These are the women that I think are best, well not quite the best...I'm not sure I understand what that word means anymore. Here are the women that I like the most. Enough.

                 

TIER THREE

30 – Glenn Close in The World According to Garp

29 – Maggie Smith in Othello

28 – Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights

27 – Natalie Portman in Closer

26 – Meg Tilly in Agnes of God

25 – Angela Lansbury in The Manchurian Candidate

24 – Kate Winslet in Iris

23 – Ruth Hussey in The Philadelphia Story

                          

TIER TWO

22 – Judi Dench in Chocolat

21 – Margaret Avery in The Color Purple

20 – Marianne Jean-Baptise in Secrets & Lies

19 – Marisa Tomei in In the Bedroom

18 – Julia Roberts in Steel Magnolias

17 – Cate Blanchett in Notes On A Scandal

16 – Oliva De Havilland in Gone With the Wind

                 

THE FINALISTS

15 – Shirley Knight in Sweet Bird of Youth

Along with Angela Lansbury above, Knight lost her chance at Oscar to Patty Duke in The Miracle Worker. All three performances were good so I can’t say that Duke’s was underserved. Knight’s performance, though in Tennessee Williams’ play is quite good. As the estranged girl friend of hero [Paul Newman] she plays a young girl Heavenly – as tongue-in-cheek as Tennessee can get, and her role though quite important to the film; is not excessively large; but she plays it well. With a team of future Oscar winners, she holds her own quite nicely. Her ‘big’ scene comes when she faces off with Ed Begley in his Oscar winning role as her father. It’s a nice, strong moment and she does well with what she’s given.

                

14 – Celeste Holm in All About Eve

This performance is often regarded as inferior, especially in comparison to the ostensibly better performances of Davis, Baxter and Sanders. However, I love this performance from Celeste Holm. She’s the first person we see in the narrative, and her expressive face is what leads us back to the memory of Eve Harrington so long ago. Celeste’s part is for the most part reactive. She watches while Margo goes crazy, while Eve changes her behaviour and as her husband dallies with the actress. And it is with that expressive face that she sells it. I love that scene in the bathroom with her and Eve, and it’s exceptionally well played. Never, do we doubt her love for Margo even though her actions could have suggested otherwise.

               

13 – Maggie Smith in Gosford Park

Maggie Smith is exceptional. That much we know. Even with those one-liners in Harry Potter she still excels. In Gosford Park she is given the perfect role for an aging actress. Her performance is hinged into the beginning and the end of the film. At the start, the absurdity of having her maid stand in the rain is sad and humorous at once; and her narcissism in shown again at the end where she laments how trying being a witness at court would be for her. And in between that he spot-on delivery of her lines is enviable; in particular those few scenes with Kristin Scott Thomas [with whom she shared an uncanny chemistry] where she changed the course of the narrative were done well. A beautiful job from her.

                 

12 – Patricia Clarkson in Pieces of April

For an actress that seems to be as ubiquitous as Patty I’m always a little bewildered at times when I realise that this is her only nomination. But then this performance is not as frivolous as it seems. The movie is enjoyable, if a bit trite but Patricia elevates her character to such a height that it’s amazing. There’s a scene that always sticks with me. It’s where she vomits in a bathroom on the road and replaces what we realise is a wig on her head. Then looking at her reflection in her mirror she gives her visage a knowing, deceptive smile. It’s a nice acting moment from her, and it’s little touches like that that make turn this character into a realistic character.

                   

11 – Helen Mirren in The Madness of King George

1994 in retrospect was quite a good year in this category. Although I was not enamoured with all the performances, it was a definite step up for the Academy from 1993. Helen Mirren’s Queen Charlotte is a Cannes’ winning performance and with reason. It is a bit of co-lead I suppose; she and Nigel Hawthorne are the driving force behind the film and she handles her role wonderfully. It’s a pity that this performance is not as remembered as it should me.

                 

10 – Judy Garland in Judgment at Nuremberg

I know that everybody in the world loves Rita Moreno’s vivacious Anita in West Side Story; but as much as I like the film and enjoy her performance I really was not gunning for her to win. I suppose that somewhere hidden there is an irony that when Judy went straight up drama she lost her Oscar to a straight up musical performance. Of course Judy has always and will always be remembered as an omnipresent musical star but this is my favourite acting performance of hers. As a pivotal witness in the Nuremberg trials there is an alarming weakness that she brings to the role which is unlike much we’ve seen her do before. Stanley Kramer handles her scenes very well and it comes off a deservedly nominated performance.

                   

9 – Dianne Wiest in Parenthood

There is something that just charms me about this movie; but more importantly there’s something that just charms me about Diane Wiest in the movie. As a single mother, who may be just a little crazy she imbues the character with so much good nature that she’s wonderful to watch. Never does it seem off, and never does it seem as if she’s trying too hard. Even in those silly moments with her daughter – it’s all done in good taste, so funny and yet so poignant. There’s just, as I said a charm about her that I can’t resist. She is a wonderful actress.

                       

8 – Joan Allen in The Crucible

As a fan of Arthur Miller I can’t say that The Crucible is my favourite play of his; but there is something amazing about the play nonetheless and the adaptation of it is able to capture the beauty of it. As Elizabeth Proctor Joan Allen towers above the cast [yes, even the talented Daniel Day Lewis]. Of course the effusiveness of her performance is owed to Miller’s original work; but there is just something outstanding about her performance that I just cannot put my hand on. It’s a pity that she had to go against my darling Binoche in 1996, a year earlier or later I could have seen her easily winning the populist fare that Oscar rewarded. And it doesn’t look as if he’ll ever get the recognition that she deserves.

                       

7 – Vanessa Redgrave in Howards End

Ruth Wilcox, more than any other character in Howards End, hovers over the film. It’s not the obvious type of hovering where a character’s death must be solved. But eventually we realise what it is, Ruth Wilcox is Howards End. At the end when Meg Schlegel finally gets the house, we can almost see the figure of Ruth smiling in heaven…and seeing that her character disappeared from screen almost two hours earlier, this is no mean feat. And that is because Vanessa Redgrave is so talented. I wonder if Merchant Ivory meant for this character to seem important. Even if he didn’t Vanessa certainly made it seem so. Her rapport with especially Emma Thompson is beautiful to watch and hers few scenes are just so well acted that there’s no doubt that her Oscar nomination was deserved.

                     

6 – Glenn Close in The Big Chill

I know that many are not as fond of this performance as I would like; but then many are not as fond of the film either. Glenn plays Sarah; one of a group of friend who meet for a weekend after the suicide of one of their friends. The group went to college and have met again after a parting of ways. The Big Chill is their story. You can click on the link to see more of what I thought of the performance; but with every thing she’s given and what is an ensemble film Glenn still manages to make Sarah seem more important. It’s a well deserved Oscar nomination.

                   

5 – Kate Winslet in Sense & Sensibility

I always felt that Kate’s first nomination [more than her most recent, obviously] was always the easiest; or should have been the easiest actually. With Jane Austen as her guide Kate played Marianne Dashwood, the eponymous ‘sensibility’ of the film’s title. She is the excitable middle Dashwood girls, who is Elizabeth Bennett of Pride & Prejduice – but with less morals. It’s a sweet performance from Kate, and a thoroughly English one. She plays well alongside Emma Thompson and even seems to make a convincing romantic connection with Alan Rickman, which ostensibly seems strange.

              

INTERNAL STRUGGLING: The Respected Women

4 – Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Liaisons

Mme Tourvelle. Michelle earned her first nomination in Frear’s Dangerous Liaisons, a nomination I wish had substantiated into a win. What I love about this performance is Michelle’s use of body language, but more importantly the use of her face. The internal struggle of Tourvelle is difficult to present cinematically, and wordiness would not be true to the character, but yet we are able to understand. Clichéd perhaps, but goodness is not something that we can hear and believe, it comes from inside and just happens to shine through. Michelle’s Tourvelle lets her goodness shine through.

                   

3 – Helen Mirren in Gosford Park

I watched this movie thrice one day. Just because, I knew on each viewing I’d pick up something new. When you know what’s going on, it’s amazing how everything falls into perspective. There’s a scene early, it’s actually the first time we meet Mrs. Wilson, she’s directing Clive Owen where he should be sleeping. He tells her his name and you see the slightest trace of surprise on her face that is immediately cast off. It’s both the genius of Altman and Mirren that make me love that part. It’s so subtle, and yet so telling. Mrs Wilson’s internal struggle in this role is so palpable, and that last scene where she breaks down her in her sister’s arm is never superfluous, but as tender and poignant as it should be. Only Helen Mirren.

                         

2 – Marcia Gay Harden in Mystic River

When Celeste goes to Jimmy we are to believe that this woman loves her husband. We must think that this is not a betrayal, no soliloquy is written for her to explain, we just have the actor there. And when that actor is Marcia Gay Harden, you can be assured that we’ll understand what she’s feeling – because she’s that talented. I won’t be covetous. Two Oscars in four years might have been too much, but it wouldn’t have been unseemly. No matter how much Clint Eastwood annoys me every now and again, I will forever respect him for directing this wonderful performance. Marcia Gay Harden in what could have been nothing but turned into what’s my favourite performance of her and of the entire film.

                 

1 – Julianne Moore in The Hours

I always find it strange that I love this performance so much. Because I never question that I wanted Catherine Zeta Jones to win her Oscar, I still don’t agree with Sage and Twister when the rail about her. But still, I cannot disagree that Julianne Moore is astounding in this film. It’s the sort of performance that only gets better with age. It’s the type of performance that so many of the supporting women must do – forced to keep their feelings inside. For a film so simple, there’s that one surreal moment where Laura is about to attempt suicide and we see her bed surrounded by a murky swamp. Laura awakes with a start – a newfound intelligence. It’s a moment that shouldn’t work, in the same way that crying in the bathroom or confessing to Clarissa shouldn’t. And yet…it does work. Is it Daldry, is it Julianne? I don’t know, but it is beautiful.

                     

Whew! That was a lot of writing. Thoughts?