Frances vs Sophie

by Cláudio Alves

With Sophie's Choice new to streaming on HBO NOW and Frances available to rent from Amazon, Youtube and others, we thought it could be fun to rehash one legendary Oscar race. It's when Meryl Streep and Jessica Lange battled out for the Best Actress trophy of 1982. Come explore this clash of acting titans as we investigate two great women's legacies, the pair of competing films and nominated performances in a detailed deep dive. In the end, who'll be the chosen victor? 

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Almost There: Rita Hayworth in "Gilda"

by Cláudio Alves

Few movies define a star so completely as Gilda does Rita Hayworth. It's impossible to overstate the cultural impact that the 1946 noir had, how it made Hayworth an immortal screen legend and how controversial it was. Some countries even tried to block the release of the picture or censor it. Such feeble efforts only made Gilda more popular, its licentiousness transformed into a thing of myth. In America, audiences went wild, but the critics were more miserly in their praise. Overseas, however, among the European tastemakers and film scholars, Gilda was quickly viewed as an object of serious artistry and not merely a box office juggernaut. Beloved by the public, celebrated by the intellectuals, it's no wonder the flick became such a historical landmark. 

It's safe to assume it was also the closest the actress ever came to an Oscar nomination. It would have been a deserved nod, that's for sure. In Gilda, Rita Hayworth is movie magic made flesh…

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Barbara Stanwyck: Comedy Goddess

by Cláudio Alves 

Despite being one of Old Hollywood's most electrifying actresses, Barbara Stanwyck feels somewhat forgotten (apart from cinephiles) when compared to her contemporaries like Bette Davis, Joan Crawford or Ingrid Bergman. The one role that arguable does keep her immortal with the mainstream is the devilish Phyllis Dietrichson in Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity, the noir to end all noirs starring the greatest femme fatale of them all. Still, to believe that Stanwick was essentially a noir vixen is unfair to her grand legacy. More than many actresses of her time, she rejoiced in hopping from genre to genre, unencumbered by exclusive contracts to studios that might want to pin her down to one type of role. 

Because of that, she was able to experiment with the extremes of Pre-Code libertinism (Baby Doll), weepy melodrama (Stella Dallas), historical epics (Titanic), tragic romances (There's Always Tomorrow) and even camp classics (Walk on the Wild Side). Her tonal flexibility was unparalleled as she was able to mold her trademark toughness and sexual confidence into almost any role conceivable. She was much more than just the venomous Mrs. Dietrichson, even though that is one of her greatest achievements. I'd go so far as to say that she was one of the great comediennes of her era, on par with Irene Dunne, Carole Lombard, and Jean Arthur. Just take look at her second Oscar nomination…

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All hail the great Glenda Jackson!

by Cláudio Alves 

50 years ago, Ken Russell's Women in Love was released in US theaters after having already opened in the UK the year before. Accusations of obscenity and licentiousness followed the picture across the Atlantic and, as it usually happens, polemic was a good catalyst for popularity. Nowadays, such arthouse offerings rarely get mainstream attention but the America of 1970 was a different place as far as moviegoing was concerned. In a time of radical change in society and tastes, Women in Love's tale of bohemian affairs, sexual candor and class hierarchies in 20s England was warmly received by critics and audiences alike. The performance of Glenda Jackson was of particular fame and catapulted the actress to the pantheon of celebrity.

So much so that, by April of 1971, she won the Oscar for Best Actress. To this day, it's one of the weirdest victories in the category's history…

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Oscar Category Fraud, By the Numbers

by Eric Blume

A few days ago, my fellow TFE writer Claudio flagged a website www.screentimecentral.com, which tracks the screen time and percentage of all Oscar nominees and winners.  Because Oscar category fraud has long been a heated debate here at the site, I thought it might be fun to play with the numbers on the site from the last 20 Oscars, to see what we might discover if, say, AMPAS instituted a time/percentage rule on who could be eligible for lead and supporting performances.

Now for those about to go crazy in the comments, settle down.  This is just a fun game.  We’re not suggesting there should be an implemented rule, but for the sake of stirring up a healthy, positive conversation, I’ve broken down some of the numbers, and it reveals a lot of interesting things...

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