Jessica Chastain ♥ Viola! Does Jessica Chastain ♥ Gravity?
Monday, October 7, 2013 at 9:30PM Hayden, a faithful reader, commenter, and fellow actressexual, alerted me to Jessica Chastain's latest love-fest on Facebook. That girl does emote with girlie gusto and I love her for it (as previously noted). I follow her so I'm not sure how I missed this one but if I were Sasha Stone at Awards Daily I'd be feeling pretty spectacular that such a great actress described me as "amazing". No world class actress ever said that about me [commence sobbing]...
I was busy picturing Jessica Chastain in an astronaut suit when I read this status update. Picturing Jessica Chastain in movies she's not in is an AMAZING time waste. Try it some time. After I was done with that I realized that Jessica said nothing about Gravity in this post, despite the link to Sasha's article. Maybe she hasn't seen it because if she had wouldn't she have said so?
Meanwhile Hayden was busy obsessing over the last sentence. He writes:
It really bothers me when people IN the industry talk about Viola Davis' career like some charity case. *cough* meryl *cough* But especially since Viola Davis is such a non sequitur to what Chastain was even talking about.
It's like she shouted "Mandy Patinkin, holla" at the end of her post.
LOL. 'Mandy Patinkin, holla' -- voiced by Claire Danes for her first Homeland win -- is surely one of the greatest things ever uttered in an acceptance speech and I think of it EVERY time that I see Mandy Patinkin being awesome. Which is often, in fact, since he is. I've loved him since the skinny-dipping in Yentl and that didn't even turn out to be the highlight of his cross-platform career.
Are you watching the new season of Homeland? This tweet made me laugh so hard last night...
They just gave Claire Danes Thorazine on #Homeland just to stop her from acting.
— Mick LaSalle (@MickLaSalle) October 7, 2013
Regarding Viola Davis...
Listen... I say what Jessica Chastain said all the time and it's true that it's a charity case. BUT NOT FOR VIOLA.
This charity is for audiences because she's a freaking GREAT actress and we need much more of her than Hollywood seems willing to give. Put her back in a spacesuit actually and we'll talk again. She was so good in Solaris in a typically small role. Remember that? Honestly I'd watch her in anything. Even when the movie is terrible (*cough* Beautiful Creatures) and her role is thankless, I'm happy to be watching her.
P.S. If you missed my post on Jessica & Viola's latest collaboration, Eleanor Rigby, check it out.
P.P.S. Wow is this post a ramble. Viola. Mandy. Homeland. Facebook. Sasha Shout Outs. So much to discuss. Go!
Reader Comments (25)
For a second I was thinking how much more I would've like GRAVITY had Chastain been in it.
And then I thought about Viola Davis in that role, and I'm pretty sure it would've been the greatest movie of all time :)
Love Jess and her Facebook page. I doubt she's seen it since she's filming Nolan's new movie at the moment, but no doubt when she does, we can expect another post gushing with her love for SaBu.
Well Davis IS back in a space suit and very soon. Unfortunately it's for Ender's Game.
Chastain is adorable.
Homeland is such a mess. It's like the show got entirely the wrong idea from its praise in Season 1 (I liked the pilot as a good set-up but could never really abide by a clinically bipolar person being in the CIA let alone considered the best in her field) and then went so far off the deep end. Danes will probably win another Emmy but I am already done with the show.
Season 2, when things just peaked the moment Brody confessed, only looked worse in comparison with Zero Dark Thirty. I know Chastain's performance was actually pretty polarizing but that craziness actually seemed to be a natural progression and in line with the post-9/11 themes that I **thought** Homeland was going for but decided to use sparingly in the most dramatic moments. When I think the writers on Homeland forget Carrie is bipolar they bring it back in the worst, cloyingly ways possible.
I'd like nothing more than David Simon and Kathryn Bigelow could combine forces to make a show on the US intelligence agency. Don't care if people will lose their minds over again re: Simon's opinion on the NSA or the ZDT and torture/access claims, I just want a serious subject to have adults working the controls than the Homeland writers who are just dropping the ball in ways that continue to surprise me.
/Rant over
I totally agree. It is our lost that Viola Davis is not leading more films. She is one of our best working actresses now and it is a shame that she is not receiving more roles in films that matches her talents. How about someone tell Denzel to call up Ridley Scott & Viola and get this Fences film adaptation started so they can win some Oscars?
Jessica definitely would've talked about it had she seen it. I love her so much. Every time I see her facebook posts praising other actresses I think so many people and actors should aspire to be like her. So willing to be a fangirl and tell people they're awesome, knowing there's no competition. She loses nothing for being a gracious and warm human being, telling others that their work touched her. Beautiful soul!
Give meryl credit for giving viola's career A boost (the help)
Outside of the isms, it's obvious why Viola Davis does not have a vehicle to shine in, Hollywood relinquished the woman's movie to television. Romantic comedies are the only standalone pictures where women are allowed to lead at the multiplex. Now I wouldn't mind seeing her in one but would Hollywood even bother? The isms. Remember Kathy Bates had a brief run as a leading lady for theatrical releases post-Oscar that were fairly successful, particularly FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, snubbed for an afterglow nomination.
Mark - Ummmmm NO. Viola gave HERSELF the career boost by giving an amazing, awards-worthy performance and getting nominated for an Oscar. If Meryl ever gave her a boost it was during Doubt when she won the SAG award and said "my god someone give that woman a movie." and even that is questionable. Not at all during The Help, though. That was all Viola becoming a bonafide star, and no Meryl help.
*and Meryl had nothing to do with it is what I was meaning to get at
I like to picture Jessica Chastain in any adaptation of ANYTHING! You can also add Holly Hunter and Laura Dern to that list. I can't stop thinking about how much more fun "August:Osage County" would be if Holly, Jessica, and Laura were the three daughters to Sissy Spacek's Violet Weston. This is especially sad since I have not seen anything but the trailer for sed film. Sigh.
Dear Jessica,
Maybe it's because I'm not your biggest fan, and I certainly don't understand the love you got with Maya, but I have to disagree. I've seen this "Hollywood is changing" type of article before. The Help was a huge hit and I don't see a lot of films in the works starring a bunch of women.
PS Relax. You'll get your Oscar
Love,
Peggy
Ive always felt that Homeland was pretty terrible.
I'm sure Viola would *hate* to get better, bigger roles because of friends' comments like that...
Seriously, if Viola wasn't such a great actress i might have been charity, but she is, so 'm with Nathaniel that's it's charity for us all.
Hopefully Jessica won't have to wait too long. Viola slipped that Tony Kushner is currently writing the Barbara Jordan biopic. Cross your fingers, folks!
I saw Gravity and Prisoners on the same weekend. I came out far more impressed with Viola did in her tiny role in Prisoners than Bullock in Gravity. Imagine what she would have done had she starred instead of Bullock in Gravity.
I'm sure Viola would *hate* to get better, bigger roles because of friends' comments like that
Her pride isn't bigger than her desire to work. Every bit of attention brought to her name forces the powers that be to deal with her on some level. As long as their words of encouragement concerning her name actually get her work instead of ending all ties to quality material--we should shut up about it until it becomes a professional negative for Davis.
I wanna a FENCES movie starring Viola so soon!!
it's thank to Solaris that i know who Viola Davis is .
I remember to see her in many movies or TV movies but i wasn't able to name her before this movie and i loved her hair and her look during her Oscar campaign for THE HELP (it's totally OT)
I like her, but she [chastain] is overdoing this 'act'.
(and people need to stoping saying everyone is a box-office draw)
*stop
@3rtful - I was being sarcastic ;)
I was just saying the other day, the only other actress I could imagine really pulling off Gravity was Jessica Chastain.
This might sound crazy - but the only other actress that came to mind while I was watching Gravity was Julia Roberts. Actually not Julia Roberts, but her Notting Hill character who won the Oscar for a space movie.
I just saw Prisoners, and Viola, in one short interlude, stole that entire film. Lovely, heartrending work from a soulful artist who is already leaving a lasting legacy, no matter what happens next.
Sawyer, I can hear her now...
"I'm just a girl, standing in front of an audience, asking them to love her."