(the third in a series—see intro post for details)
I’m bored and left cold by this entire roundup. If Kate Winslet had been nominated for Revolutionary Road, we could all congratulate her and be done with it. And I’m on the record as disliking Kate Winslet.
First up, though, is Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married. She’s the only one of those Disney-minted girls that actually turned into an actress. I’m rather fond of her in fluff, but every time I see a preview for this movie, my eyes just seem to sort of roll up in the back of my head and I’m flooded with annoyance. I don’t ever want to be rooting against her in the Oscars, but this year I find that I am.
Next: Angelina Jolie. Boring. Next! More…
okay, that was mean. But I have absolutely no desire to watch this movie or even think too much about it. If it was on network television, I wouldn’t bother clicking in. I think it’s gross that she won for Girl, Interrupted simply because the brilliant and far more spectacular damaged girl performance she delivered in Gia wasn’t Academy-eligible (it was a made-for-TV movie, but so good!). And her whole emotionally deranged thing is turning into a one-note piano. Stephie, this does not lessen the incontrovertible fact that, okay, yes, she is the most beautiful woman in the world. But really, watch Gia and try to tell me it isn’t the best thing she’s done in her entire life, charity work included.
Melissa Leo is next, in Frozen River. This role has obviously been good for her career, because IMDB says she’s got ten movies in various states of pre- and post-production lined up over the next two years, and I see she’s done her time in the Law&Order trenches and even a guest spot on Veronica Mars, which I’m pretty sure I remember quite clearly. It looks like the sort of breakthrough black horse performance that could come from behind, but I think this is a case where just being nominated is quite enough.
So, Meryl Streep is nominated. That was the sound of me scraping my jaw off the floor. Or it would have been, were there any reason to believe that this comes as a shock to anyone. All Meryl Streep has to do is wander in front of a camera to earn an Oscar nomination. This time for Doubt. And I don’t think she’ll win.
The reason for that is Kate Winslet in Revolutionary Road. I simply can’t fathom that she gave a stronger performance in The Reader. They should have nominated her for both. I mean, Soderbergh got two Best Director nods in a single year; it’s not unprecedented to double-dip same category/same year. And if she really was a better actress in The Reader, she deserves to win for it, sight unseen.
No Comments