Female Acting 2013: Embarassment of Riches
Friday, November 22, 2013 at 8:28PM You guys.
How am I ever going to decide on my own awards ballots this year? When the Film Bitch Awards begin in late December / early January - hell even before then when I vote at the annual BFCA "Critic's Choice" Awards -- I will have to make a Sophie's Choices and narrow it way down. There are so many fine performances this year. How will I choose??? Oh god, how will I choose. And with a few films still unseen these two fields could even grow.
BEST ACTRESS - MY LONGLIST BALLOT
in no particular order
- Meryl Streep, August: Osage County
- Julie Delpy, Before Midnight
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Enough Said
- Jane Adams, All The Light in the Sky [opens December 20th]
- Brie Larson, Short Term 12
- Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
- Emma Thompson, Saving Mr Banks
- Veerle Baatens, The Broken Circle Breakdown
- Greta Gerwig, Frances Ha
- Judi Dench, Philomena
- Paulina Garcia, Gloria [Qualifying Run. Opens in January]
- Adèle Exarchopoulos, Blue is the Warmest Color
Can I just have 12 nominees this year?
This drama queen moment has been brought to by the realization that both Garcia and Adams are getting qualifying runs and a recent revelatory rewatch of Enough Said. Damn Julia Louis-Dreyfus just nails the comedy and the pathos of all of those self-mangled relationships and her own proactive empty-nest crisis. It's a performance of great technical precision but also intuitive feeling. And how she manages facial expressions that prompt painful sympathy with a crosscurrent of funny schaudenfreude is beyond.
Seven of these ladies I'll have to dismiss with "in any other year!"... or eight if Amy Adams in American Hustle (the last remaining possibility that I'm aware of) turns out to be great. Who are you rooting for?
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - MY LONGLIST BALLOT
in no particular order
- Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
- Margo Martindale, August: Osage County [Opens for Christmas]
- Maribel Verdu, Blancanieves
- Léa Seydoux, Blue is the Warmest Color
- Oprah Winfrey, Lee Daniels' The Butler
- Sarah Paulson, 12 Years a Slave
- Joanna Scanlan, The Invisible Woman [Opens for Christmas]
- Melonie Diaz, Fruitvale Station
- June Squibb, Nebraska
- Octavia Spencer, Fruitvale Station
- Scarlett Johansson, Don Jon
- Scarlett Johansson, Her [Opens December 18th]
- Julianne Nicholson, August: Osage County [Opens for Christmas]
- Kaitlyn Dever, Short Term 12
- Elizabeth Debicki, The Great Gatsby
- Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
- ... and I feel like I'm forgetting someone
I've narrowed it down to 16 favorites (for now) with two possibly grand performances still unseen: Naomie Harris in Mandela, and Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle. I'm not mentioning cameo roles like Alfre Woodard's in 12 Years a Slave since the Film Bitch Awards have their own category for that.
Any FYCs?
We'll do the men as well but there's a few more movies I have to see first.
Reader Comments (81)
Brie Larson in my opinion gives the best female lead of the year she deserves a nom but should get the Oscar and I've seen blanchett in "blue jasmine" and bullock in "Gravity" Larson was better than them
Oh right!
How could I forget Binoche as Camille Claudel?!
Nathaniel! Please don't finalise your ballot without watching Camille Claudel, 1915. The film itself may be an acquired taste, but Binoche is just mesmerising. Performance of the year, for me.
My lists, as of 11/23/2013:
Best Actress:
1. Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
2. Judi Dench (Philomena)
3. Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Enough Said)
4. Elle Fanning (Ginger & Rosa)
5. Barbara Sukowa (Hannah Arendt)
6. Sandra Bullock (Gravity)
7. Julie Delpy (Before Midnight)
Best Supporting Actress:
1. Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)
2. Julianne Moore (What Maisie Knew)
3. Octavia Spencer (Fruitvale Station)
4. Sharon Stone (Lovelace)
5. Melonie Diaz (Fruitvale Station)
6. Amy Siemetz (Pit Stop)
7. Alexandra Maria Lara (Rush)
8. Eva Mendes (The Place Beyond the Pines)
9. Catherine Keener (Enough Said)
10. Janet McTeer (Hannah Arendt)
11. Margo Martindale (August: Osage County)
Nate, have you seen Laurence Anyways? If not, you need to. Clement gives the performance of the year! Also, love for Gerwig and yet none for Sumner? She was a wonderful complement to Gerwig's performance.
This year is too rich almost. I feel your pain.
What, Nathaniel, no love for Emma Watson's hilarious, dead-on entitled valley girl in The Bling Ring? She and Nyong'o are fighting it out for my top spot there, with Mickey Summer and Scarlett Johansson VERY close behind. I think I might be even more excited about Supporting Actress this year - especially with A:OC still coming and the borderline performances in Blue is... and The Spectacular Now.
Best Actress is so easy for me right now: Blanchett, Delpy, Gerwig, Louis-Dreyfuss (you are so right about her performance; really quite a marvel), and Zhang in The Grandmaster (SO glad she's getting some love here; it's her best performance), and I DREAD having to drop any of these when I see August and American Hustle. It already hurts enough having to leave off Melissa McCarthy in The Heat, the best comedic lead of the year.
Robert G - Witherspoon would be Supporting for Mud. And unfortunately she didn't have much to do, only had a few scenes and will probably be ignored.
Sorry, this is more Oscar-related than Film Bitch related, but as much as I respect the idea of having a Best Actress lineup all of women over 40, I would loooove it if at least one never-nominated-before actress snuck in. Larson, Louis-Dreyfus...just SOMEONE to shake things up and surprise us.
DJDeeJay, that's what I was leaning towards. It was the first time since she won the Oscar that I've seen Witherspoon give a performance I actually wanted to talk about. The whole film is just so quiet that I can't see it really playing out in any category, but I wouldn't be mad if Witherspoon, Tye Sheridan (lead), and McConaughey (supporting) started getting some attention. McConaughey won't happen because of Dallas Buyer's Club. Sheridan won't happen because he's a teenage male lead and the category doesn't skew that young for men. And Witherspoon alone isn't really worth a full blown campaign unless she pushed for it herself, Melissa Leo style.
I would like to see these nominees in lead:
Veerle Baetens
Berenice Bejo
Julie Delpy
Adele Exarchopoulos
Brie Larson
But none of them will make it.
No Supporting Actress list is complete without Emma Watson in The Bling Ring
No Julia Roberts? Interesting ...
Cannot believe I left off Mickey Sumner from my Supporting Actress list. Egregious!
I have faith in Adele Exarchopoulos getting in. I am thinking of Adjani getting in when for The Story of Adele H. when she was 21.
Am I the only one who doesn't understand the love for Philomena? Dench is perfectly fine in the role, but the movie is absolutely abusive towards her character and ultimately she isn't given enough chances to shine when they're making her the butt of every joke. I guess this is my equivalent to Nathaniel's thoughts on Sandra in Gravity (currently my favorite lead actress perf), but I just don't understand the love for that turn/movie.
I'm excited for Julia Roberts in August: Osage County. I know its a major category fraud
For Your Consideration
BEST ACTRESS
Rooney Mara, AIN'T THEM BODIES SAINTS
Waad Mohammed, WADJDA
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Meg Foster, THE LORDS OF SALEM
Ella Joyce, TEMPTATION: CONFESSIONS OF A MARRIAGE COUNSELOR
Shailene Woodley, THE SPECTACULAR NOW
and as for LIMITED/CAMEO ROLE...Anne Loiret was subtle, warm and watchful as Lea Seydoux's mom in BLUE...
I love this site! But Nathaniel if you haven't already checked out Laurence Anyways like the previous posters have suggested, you are missing out on one of the best performances of the year! Suzanne Clément is really fantastic in it!
No Luminita? Kinda surprised... Guess Child's Pose isn't eligible then, han?
Other than that, it was a really difficult year for me too (im having real trouble to narrow down to only 5). I would highlight other amazing performances like Juliette Binoche's in "Camille Claudel 1915" and Catherine Frot's in "Haute Cuisine".
Rats! Also forgot Amy Seimetz. She was seriously the beating heart of that movie.
And as much as I love Suzanne Clement, as I said before it is one of the best acting turns in 5 years, I keep on identifying that performance with 2012- even if I saw that movie in 2013.
I was wondering where Alfre Woodard was. I guess cameo makes sense, because she only has one scene, but I feel like her screen time isn't that much less than Paulson's.
Nathaniel, you loved Frances Ha but Sumner can't make your long list? She is a lock on mine at this point.
To just not mention Julia Roberts in her best turn after a string of good turns in bad films is just so obviously revealing the hater in you. I'm done with this blog.
New folder, there are a ton of actresses in August: Osage County and everyone is going to want to back different performers as their favorites. Did you see any of the August posts before this? Or a description of why he prefers the actual lead of the film to get a leading actress nomination? It's not anti-Julia bias; it's a huge ensemble film with an overwhelming amount of possible nominees. Not choosing one doesn't mean anyone hates them.
It would be like claiming people hated Winona Ryder or Barbara Hershey because Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman got all the awards attention for Black Swan. Not choosing an actress as your favorite does not mean you hate them.
And people recognize incredible performances by performers they hate all the time, even here. Were there any real fans of Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady? Yet you'd have been a fool to not even predict her being nominated for Best Actress. People complained that she got attention for that part and left the role off their personal ballots, but it doesn't mean that people hate Meryl Streep.
newfolder - robert g kind of answered but it is what it is. I am a huge fan of that play so i was bound to take issue here nad there. I did think Julia was good but i think it's a REALLY difficult part with a very complicated arc that she doesn't exactly nail so i like her but she'd be just outside this list. It would be intensely stupid of me to include her in my top 12 if i preferred 12 other women's performances, right?
kareem -- in truth i forgot her! but the film is in my "to rewatch" list as we move into the year in review stuff.
marco -- it did not get a quallifying rlease to the best of my knowledge (child's pose)
I can't imagine a world where anybody can convince me any of these ladies save for Exarchopoulos and Blanchett are worthier than Suzanne Clement in LAURENCE ANYWAYS. I look forward to people trying to do so and failing.
Late to this party, but Jennifer Lawrence was freaking awesome in CATCHING FIRE. She holds that gadzillion dollar franchise together in every frame. Can't imagine another young actress in the part. Of course, she has no shot for a nom for the Hunger Games, but she's brilliant. Can't wait for AMERICAN HUSTLE.
FYI--the trailer for DIVERGENT looks horrible, despite the lovely Shailene Woodley and Kate Winslet.
Can only pick two BA noms for now as I haven't seen some titles like SHORT TERM 12, GLORIA, or THE PAST. My vote: Greta Gerwig, Cate Blanchett.
Lupito Nyong'o should win Supporting. I can't even nominate anyone else.
"New folder", I am also a Julia Roberts fan (I assume that as you are) and, because of this, I am the first being critical with her. In my opinion, she is a far better actress than she uses to show and I completely disagree in that she has had a string of good turns in bad films. I want her in good roles, changelling herself, and that is why I am so excited with her performance in 'August'. But I appreciate reading criticism from other people because I feel I can be more objective making my own opinion and detecting both the strengths and weaknesses of her work.
In any case, you should not worry, you have a lot of strong reviews for Julia aside Nathaniel's opinion and I am pretty sure she will be finnally nominated as supporting (the category fraud is another question, but it is also true that they are just selling the categorization that everybody expected to buy from the beginning). An unfavorable opinion on a particular performance does not mean that Nathaniel (or whoever) is a hater. Even less when he is explaining his opinion with full respect on her. It is thankfully, in fact. General consensus uses to be veeeery boring.
Newfolder,
While Nat is not exactly a fan of Julia, he can't really be considered a hater, since he's mentioned a few times how he loves Julia in both Erin Brockovich, and Closer- also the two films that I thought she was fantastic in. Also, someone, not sure if it was Nat or someone else did a tribute on My Best Friend's Wedding not too long ago, and mentioned how Julia was really good in it.
Mike -- My Best Friend's Wedding is actually my second favorite of her performances after Erin Brockovich!
Late in posting but the only major omission I see (like many others) is Emma Watson in The Bling Ring - this was such a different character for her, and she managed to turn in a satirical performance that still felt realistic. I wish she could get Oscar nomination traction, but it won't happen.
My choice for Best Actress is definitely Cate Blanchett. I was never a fan but nevertheless always liked her, but when I saw Blue Jasmine, it was one of those times (like when I saw Viola Davis in The Help, or when I saw Tilda Swinton way back in The Deep End) when I knew I saw the best lead female performance of the year. As of now, I'd go with Sarah Paulson for Supporting - Lupita has the flashy role that was bound for a nomination, but Paulson really did something with a part that could have been forgettable. I am definitely looking forward to Nebraska, though, Squibb looks terrific in all of the clips from that.
BEST ACTRESS
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Brie Larson
Cate Blanchett
Emma Thompson
Judi Dench
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Margo Martindale
Sarah Paulson
Joanna Scanlan
June Squibb
Lupita Nyong'o
Nat,
Yes! Thanks, Nat. Julia's performance in My Best Friend's Wedding was better than Helen Hunt's Oscar winning performance in As Good As It Gets. She should have at least been nominated at the 1997 Oscars.