Best Supporting Actress: The Poll & My Ballot.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015 at 2:00PM 
Think of our newscast as a screaming woman running down the street with her throat cut."
Rene Russo is so hardshell intoxicating in Nightcrawler. I understand the potshot I've heard a couple of times that she's cribbing from Faye Dunaway in Network (one of the all time best performances of any kind) but if you're going to steal, steal from the best. My favorite thing about her work is the way she both recoils from and recalibrates to Jake Gyllenhaal's Lou Bloom constantly. She's repulsed by him (witness that amazing date scene) but recognizes a soul mate... or rather, a mate in soullessness, and the financial worth of that.
Anyway, I jumped ahead. While the world prepares to celebrate Patty, Emma, Meryl, Laura, and Keira on Oscar night, we take a brief time out to continue the Film Bitch Awards. Though I enjoyed all of those Oscar nominated performance only two made my own correlative list: the steamrolling Patricia Arquette and Keira Knightley. Knightley has really been pushing herself in the last few years and her commitment is showing in more relaxed, more interesting, and more successful performances. While The Imitation Game isn't her most challenging role, there's something to be said for perfection. She nails her every scene and very nearly saves the film from itself on a couple of occasions.
Keira, surprised to see her name again.It's always a difficult thing to extract five performances from the hundreds available in the supporting realm and say "these five. right here" but it must be done. My "was considering" list was about 24 women long but in the end I went with the aforementioned British beauty, two semi-forgotten actresses who vividly reminded us of their gifts, our most versatile new chameleon, and a singular icon who had a rather amazing multi-headed year of memorable new characters.
Check out my ballot for why I voted this way. And make sure to vote on the Oscar poll in this category, too!
Reader Comments (68)
If producers/agents/actors were paying attention to True Detective's awards fate, they may end up avoiding the double same gender submission in Lead for good. The only time McConnaughey was nominated without Harrelson, he still lost, but that was a foregone conclusion - it was GALECA, where his competition was two Normal Heart actors, the surging Tambor and [insert snide remark] Spacey. I'm sure a lot of people are wondering whether McC would have won SAG, Emmy and Globe if he hadn't been up against his co-star. Something to consider anyway.
DJ Deeday -- that's really a good point and now I'm embarrassed at having done just the same.
Paul -- I HOPE NOT. I actually don't think that's at all why McConaughey lost.
DJDee - I'm certain the Arquette steamroll has to do with aging onscreen, a case where a performance is reduced to a single hook, but that hook is enough to get it to the statue. I believe this happens all the time (she sang it live; she learned ballet; he lost all that weight; he's Daniel Day-Lewis...) In this case, at least, it's a beautiful performance that I think is greater than a single hook. If she's winning for the wrong reason, at least she's winning.
But I disagree that it's sexist to give her praise for it without recognizing Hawke for doing the same thing. As you mention, the pressure is on actresses to stay young. That's why it's braver for her to take a part in which onscreen aging is a major part of the project. It shouldn't be this way, but it is.
At any rate, I love both Hawke and Arquette - to me they're the top of their respective categories, and it has nothing to do with aging.
DJ Deeday - I totally agree and have been saying that the whole time, but I genuinely think her performance is fantastic and have ever since I saw it the first time. Idk, my mom's a single mother so something about her performance really struck a chord with me. *shrug* It had nothing to do with her aging. That was interesting, but didn't elevate her work any for me.
Nat - I'm sorry! I noticed that and hope it didn't insult you, on your own website no less. Because yours is really the only film website I check regularly, I really didn't want to come off disrespectful.
Mike in Canada - I understand what you're saying and, even if I didn't LOVE the performance the way some do, I understand why you would. However, you really have me questioning this. I originally disagreed with you when you disagree with me about it being sexist (did that make sense? Probably not). I was thinking, yes, we are being sexist if we applaud her for it and not the other actors, Hollywood or no Hollywood. By doing so, we're endorsing Hollywood's sexism.
We're validating it. That certainly makes us sexist. But now I'm wondering if we should be applauding her for flouting Hollywood's stupid standards for women? Argh! My feminist brain is so confused!
Philip H. - Also raised by a single mom, so I totally see how that would connect you to her.
I don't think Arquette "aged" in any specific way. I mean, she didn't let herself go for the role. Mom aged at the same rate as Patty the actress. I always thought the "she aged on screen" claim was very weak and sexist, but without basis. The same could be said of any actress if you compare her looks now to her looks 12 years ago the only difference here is we can see the (slight) changes within a 2 hour period.
One of the things I loved about Boyhood, and what I think many are misinterpreting as "aging" is a lack of vanity--from everyone. The film works because it almost feels like a documentary. Yeah, she had her roots done and the make up was always clean, but the same could be said of hundreds of thousands of women whose lives are similar to Mom's. Most actresses would have wanted to up or down the glamor quotient. I love the performance because it just feels real in a way you rarely see on screen.
DJDeeDay - I would see it more as "recognizing" than "validating" - and I'd probably say that you can recognize it without applauding her for it, if that makes sense.
I mean, I think it's brave to take a 12-year-long role no matter who you are, and I also think it's brave for an actress to age naturally onscreen from mid-30s to mid-40s, although TV actresses kind of do it all the time anyway (Christina Hendricks and January Jones, for instance, started their show around 30, will finish around 40, and a big theme in their role is aging through that decade.)
I am a Streep fanatic. But I do feel there were nominations
That were unnecessary
Right off the top of my head are
Into the Woods
Music of the Heart
Doubt
Iron weed. Should have been supporting
I think bat MOTH she is worthy in all of the perforamnces and Ironweed is supporting but she's Meryl in the 80's,not yet willing to be supporting until Adaptation.
Meryl has now simply been nominated for nearly every hair color/hair cut that exists. Amazing! <3
Nat, I agree that there are other possible/probable reasons why McC couldn't beat Cranston, Thornton and Spacey, but that won't necessarily stop the industry from blaming it on the double lead submission. You know how it is.
Paul - I get what you're saying, but while beating McConaughey, Billy Bob Thornton beat his own costar, as well.
I feel I need to defend Erica Rivas in Wild Tales. Brilliant!
Stop discussing Streep just for two hours and watch it guys!
I have two category fraud picks, but it seems to be the consensus so...
1. Julianne Moore, Maps to the Stars
2. Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
3. Tilda Swinton, Snowpiercer
4. Rose Byrne, Neighbors
5. Viola Davis, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby
I put Agata Kulesza in lead, but she'd be #2 here, probably.
Peggy Sue- perhaps we'd watch Wild Tales if it were out in U.S. theaters. Unfortunately, it's not going to show its face until February 20 so I have very little to say on the subject.
Don't even get me started on Tangerines.
I don't really consider Erica Rivas supporting in Wild Tales because she is the lead of her vignette. Sure, it's a supporting amount of screen time, but still...
Paul -- but it's only 1/6th of the movie!
my choice will be:
1. Keira Knightley - The Imitation Game
2. Carrie Coon - Gone Girl
3. Naomi Watts - Birdman
4. Meryl Streep - Into The Woods
5. Tilda Swinton - Snowpiercer
Keira and Carrie basically stole their movie with a wonderful truly supporting turns.
I like Watts better in Birdman than Stone.
and Meryl, duh.
Swinton is as always such a delight to watch.
I haven't seen A Most Violent Year!
Russo is great, but there are better choices.
and I never understand the hype for Arquette.