Each weekend a profile on a just-opened Oscar contender. Here's abstew on this weekend's new release, NIGHTCRAWLER, which is a perfectly dark treat for a Halloween opening.
Rene Russo as Nina Romina in Nightcrawler
Born: Rene Marie Russo was born February 17, 1954 in Burbank, California
The Role: Screenwriter Dan Gilroy (2006's The Fall, The Bourne Legacy) makes his directorial debut with Nightcrawler (which he wrote as well). The film stars a gaunt, crazy-eyed Jake Gyllenhaal (a Best Actor Contender) as Lou Bloom, an unemployed but determined man in Los Angeles that stumbles upon a career as a news journalist. He video records car crashes, home invasions, and bloody crimes, selling the footage to the local news station. Russo stars as a veteran television producer, in charge of the "vampire" shift of the lowest rated station in town. She encourages Bloom's budding career, forming a twisted relationship with him to gain viewers.
The film is also a family affair for Russo who is married to Gilroy (he also wrote two of Russo's previous films 1992's Freejack and 2005's Two for the Money) and her brother-in-law, Oscar nominated writer/director Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, Duplicity), is a producer on the film.
Previous Brushes With Oscar: The roles that brought Russo the most acclaim, in Tin Cup (1996) and The Thomas Crown Affair (1999), aren't your typical Oscar bait (she didn't even receive Golden Globe nominations). The only film she has appeared in that was nominated for the Academy Award was 1993's In the Line of Fire, which was nominated for 3 Oscars (and lost all 3). She also was nominated for the SAG award for Best Performance by a Cast for Get Shorty, during the awards' very first year.
What Critics Are Saying:
Russo, who is Gilroy’s wife, is every inch as enticing here as she was in “The Thomas Crown Affair,” but Nina’s seductiveness is all the more disquieting for being shot through with fear.
-Anthony Lane The New Yorker
And it’s fantastic to see Russo — who happens to be Gilroy’s wife — working again; with luck, the hardened fragility she brings to Nina will remind non-relatives in Hollywood that she’s still a stunning, steady presence on screen.
-Ann Hornaday The Washington Post
Her name is Nina Romina, she’s the news director of the TV station with the lowest ratings in town, and she’s played by Rene Russo with a steely desperation that’s both chilling and quite moving.
-Joe Morgenstern The Wall Street Journal
And Ms. Russo is perfect as a ruthless, ambitious and cold-blooded shrike.
-Rex Reed New York Observer
My Take: Winning raves when she took on the Faye Dunaway role in the remake of The Thomas Crown Affair, Russo in Nightcrawler again gains comparisons to Dunaway due to the actress' Oscar-winning role in Network. But just as she was previously able to make the character her own, her Nina may bear similarities to Dunaway's Diana Christensen but she is an entirely different creature. Despite her pursuit of success and a relentless drive, there is a weariness to Russo's Nina. The years of survival of hardened her, but what Russo naturally brings to the role is a fragility beneath the tough exterior. She's a powerful woman in a top position, but she isn't above using her femininity as a weapon, like the sultry way she coos her lines. She's seductive even while saying the most reprehensible things. And an awkward dinner date with Bloom, which turns into a power struggle, never feels like Nina has lost control despite his demands. It's almost as if Nina has known, and even looked forward, to the outcome. Bloom has awakened a fire that she perhaps thought had gone away completely, just as Russo the actress seems to be revitalized as she sinks her teeth into this meaty role.
Fun Fact: Russo initially hadn't thought of being an actress. She actually began her career as model when she was spotted by an agent at a Rolling Stones concert in 1972. She became one of the top models in the 70s apperaing on the cover of Vogue several times.
Probability of a Nomination: Slight Possibility. Russo is fantastic in the role (as is Gyllenhaal), but the subject matter and the heartless tone might be too much for the Academy's taste. But Russo has an advantage over Gyllenhaal in that her category is less competitive at the moment and her character, while ruthless, is not quite as despicable. She's also been actively supporting the film and doing lots of interviews, with the focus being on her absence from film and how great it is to have her back. If voters are feeling nostalgic for former stars of the 90s (can you imagine if both Michael Keaton and Rene Russo got nominations this year?), she could find her way into the final five.