Nicole Kidman Tribute: Big Little Lies (2017)

by Mark Brinkerhoff

Wow. The power of women.

 I remember Nicole Kidman's speech at the 2018 Golden Globes like it was yesterday. You certainly could sense a genuine sisterhood between the five principle stars (Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz and Laura Dern) of Big Little Lies, HBO's unexpectedly titanic, initially limited series. Amid the backdrop of #MeToo, it was quite a moment for Nicole Kidman and company.

The actress's output in the 2010s was, charitably, something of a mixed bag. For every dazzling turn in Rabbit Hole (2010), The Paperboy (2012), or Paddington (2014), there were plenty of barely released (if at all) misfires like Tresspass (2011), The Railway Man (2013), and Queen of the Desert (2015). With the notable exception of Lion (2016), things looked awfully bleak for Kidmaniacs stateside heading into a post-presidential election year...

I can't say Big Little Lies was super high on my radar before it premiered. Other than having heard the pairing of Kidman and Witherspoon, a rather oddball one at the time, in a David E. Kelley-scripted soapy melodrama (?), the exact nature of the project—or Kidman's role in it—eluded me. Until that point in her career, Kidman had stuck to the big screen since coming to Hollywood, the long exception being Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012), a Philip Kaufman-directed biopic that aired on HBO. So it was interesting to see her segue to "prestige television" in what would become pretty much her mainstay today.

Watching the first episode of Big Little Lies, arguably the entertainment event of early 2017, it was spunky, foul-mouthed Witherspoon who really popped for me. Her firebrand Madeline Mackenzie immediately became the fan favorite, while Kidman's ex-lawyer Celeste Wright appeared recessive by comparison and even inscrutable at times. What exactly is going on in Celeste's world—or in her head?

Seven years is plenty enough time to avoid spoilers. (If you haven't seen Big Little Lies, it's well worth the seven-hour investment.) Let me just say that, dark secrets and intrigue aside, Kidman's performance as an outwardly "perpfect," wealthy wife and mother in an idyllic, seaside California town—it's the slow-burn that subtly powers the back half of the series in a really impactful way. Kidman rarely has been in better command of her immense gifts of an actress.

For as many films as Kidman has starred in thus far, two of the more common characterizations curiously remain underrepresented in her filmography: motherhood and (figurative) sisterhood. Big Little Lies allows her to plum the depths of these particular relationship dynamics in interesting, challenging ways—whether that be hanging out, albeit guardedly, with her girlfriends, or carefully parenting her twin sons who may know more about her abusive marriage than she cares to admit. (You can feel the palpable fear and trepidation, even in silence.)

By the penultimate episode, Kidman truly is firing on all cylinders, particularly in scary confrontations with her onscreen husband (played chillingly by Alexander Skarsgård) and her enormously affecting therapy sessions (opposite a criminally underrated Robin Weigert as their therapist).

It's a masterclass in acting, for all involved.

When things finally do come to a head, Kidman responds with a mix of both conviction and compassion. Her heartbreaking intervention with one of her sons, who is found to be emulating his father's violent tendencies, demonstrates a quiet fierceness and maternal care Kidman seldom has been asked to deliver. And, boy, does she deliver. 

"You need to tell me what you've been doing at school. You're not gonna get into trouble, but you gotta tell me the truth. Do you understand? We all do bad things sometimes. I can help with them, but you need to tell me. It's all right, baby." 

Regrettably, the creators and stars of Big Little Lies and HBO pushed their luck and opted for a second season of the series, which ended on just the right note after seven perfectly crafted episodes. Despite adding none other than Meryl Streep to the cast, the second season paled in comparison to the first. (Recently, they maddeningly have been threatening a third.) Yet this in no way dimishes the potentcy of Kidman's work here, which won her a well-deserved Emmy and still ranks among her very best.

Previously in the Nicole Kidman TFE Tribute: 

• Introductiom (1983-1989) - Early Australian films
• Billy Bathgate (1991) – her first Golden Globe nomination!
• Malice (1993) - when Kidman met Sorkin
• To Die For (1995) - her first Golden Globe win!
• The Portrait of a Lady (1996) - a Campion experiment
• Practical Magic (1998)  - comfort food cinema
• Eyes Wide Shut (1999)- Kubrick. Cruise. Kidman.
• Moulin Rouge! (2001) - her first Oscar nomination!
• The Others (2001) - a foray into horror
• The Hours (2002) - the Oscar victory!
• Dogville (2003) - Lars von Trier's masterpiece
• Birth (2004) - her best performance ever?
• Chanel N°5: The Film (2004) - a glamorous miniature
• The Stepford Wives (2004) - horror remade as comedy
• Bewitched (2005) - a magical misfire
• Margot at the Wedding (2007) - Rohmerian thorns
• Rabbit Hole (2010) - her third Best Actress nomination!
• Paddington (2014) - a villain turn in a fuckass bob
• Lion (2016) - her first Best Supporting Actress nod!

Nicole Kidman's travails through on-screen motherhood continue in our next installment. Get ready for things to get viscious, as this TFE Tribute delves into the cruel cosmos of Yorgos Lanthimos and his The Killing of a Sacred Deer.

Comments

[Mr Ripley79]

After The Paperboy and Lion I have slowly been less and less impressed with Nicole and I was a big fan from Bangkok Hilton days and this confirmed it,I didn't get the character and Kidman didn't really convince me or illuminate this role,she's too smart for that character plus for me Reese steals this show.

After this we got unimpressive or miscast turns like Boy Erased,Destroyer and Being The Ricardo's which I think is one of her very worst performances,no-one could convince me that she is Lucy.

Also not to be shady but she looks less and less like herself with every film or is that just me.

I still think her best work exists in the 90's

I like reading this though but am still none the wiser and don't think it's one of her very best but I appreciate the differing opinion.

[EricB]

Mark, this is a lovely tribute to Nicole's superb work in this show.

Agreed that expectations were low for Big Little Lies. But I think the combo of the surprise, superb comic verve from Witherspoon and Laura Dern...and the surprise, brutal complexity from Kidman and Skarsgaard made for eight incredibly compelling hours.

I think this is one of Nicole's greatest accomplishments, indeed when she seemed to have both the strongest control of her technique while remaining present and spontaneous and a little dangerous at the same time. She brings the show sophistication and depth, and emotional texture as well.

Agreed on Season 2, and oh lord please don't bring us Season 3 (although, of course, I will be watching it if so).

[Drew]

I am so glad she has this in her resume; this is definitely one of her best performances. It's true that in the early episodes, she was overshadowed by Reese (who was also excellent) but by the end of the series, you understand why she was in the background in those early episodes. The domestic abuse scenes are horrifying and I think her performance is one of the most realistic abuse survivor. It's maddening when she keeps going back but she makes you understand why.

I know a lot of people complain that she is doing too much TV right now since BLL and I agree. Also, not all TVs that she made are acclaimed. However, it needs to be said that if that means giving opportunities for female directors and female centered stories, I am all for it. She is always the one who carves her own path, either good or bad and I love her for that. Even with her production company, I am sure it's not easy to get financing for a 57 year old actress led movie ; that's the harsh reality.

Also, for people complaining she is not working with auteurs anymore, I don't see many auteurs make movies about 50 something women. I hope Babygirl turns out to be good; unlike others she made good on her promise with working with female directors.

[rdf]

Nicole is just as inconsistent in her performances as she is in her face lifts.

Of the movies that have been written up, I find 3 of them worthwhile. Sorry!!

[davidandwaffles]

Slightly off-topic, but @Drew, you make a good point about the auteurs. It was also the criticism of Streep for decades and I can't remember where, but she finally called it out that there simply aren't roles for her in any of their movies.
Which I think says more about how "auteur" is defined than what a woman's age and acting is.

[Peggy Sue]

Fuck Temple Grandin.