Not even going into my thoughts on the whole thing since at some point I ended up more engaged in a conversation at our Oscar party then the actual ceremony.
"What Helen is saying is her portrayal of a queen was more realistic then Colin Firth's portrayal of a king" - Best quote of the night.
Congratulations Melissa Leo for being the first jackass who says "FUCK" during an Oscar speech.
Katharine Hepburn received her second Oscar nomination for playing Alice Adams.
In this dark age of film, Alice Adams surely stands out as one of the best films. George Stevens obviously knew how to make a story work with the cinematography and the dialogue, something that was missing from most of the films of this dark age. The story follows a family, most specifically a mother and daughter. The father and son of the family are content with working a hard life in a drugstore, but the mother and daughter try every chance they get to be more "social". The girl goes through humiliation and social highs that leads her to learn what it really takes to be popular.
Katharine Hepburn plays the daughter and title character Alice Adams. She comes from a very unpopular and hard working family, so that doesn't make her exactly acceptable in the social society of her town. But, she decides to throw herself out there in the wealthy people's world, and soon makes it her obsession to be accepted by popular people. She is never herself - she puts on one big act, that seemingly impresses everyone that she actually comes from a well-to-do family. Katharine Hepburn is magnificent as Alice - luminous, always shining through the camera as if it's in love with her.
Of course, this performance wouldn't be perfect if it didn't Hepburn showing the heartbreaking inner depth of Alice. Her insecure way of chatting with people and hardly letting talk back is an obvious sign this woman has social problems and know her game quite well. Katharine Hepburn adds so much wonderful vitality and again, luminosity to her performance that makes the most painful moments (one including a dress) more saddening to watch. She's fake, constantly lying and putting up a facade of wealth and charm - and for what? Love and popularity. Alice Adams is certainty one of the most interesting characters I've ever seen, and I am not hesitant in saying Katharine Hepburn is stunning in her characterization.
Miriam Hopkins received her only Oscar nomination for playing Becky Sharp.
Becky Sharp holds a place in history as being the first feature film to use three-strip Technicolor. Unfortunately, it's not very good. Becky Sharp relies too much on Miriam Hopkins to get the film across, and unless she can deliver an all-mighty performance, Becky Sharp, the film, will fail. Becky is from a low class family, and is a bit of a bad luck magnet for many people around her. She tries to be an impressive woman, but everything around her keeps failing. She's desperate for something more and it shows.
Miriam Hopkins is able to show the most obvious qualities of Becky without trying. She is pretty, charming, and desperate. It's interesting to watch Miriam so charmingly slip into the character of Becky with a somewhat ease and poise. But, again unfortunately, Hopkins slips into the mediocre material that is Becky Sharp. She is breathtaking in Technicolor, and for most of the time, she relies on her beauty, not knowing the whole production is relining on her (try imagining Vivien Leigh riling on her beauty in Gone With The Wind).
But, I won't take anything away from the fact Miriam Hopkins obviously tried to get alot out of Becky Sharp. The little touches she adds to the character, like a sweet little chuckle, is interesting and charming. Which is sort of another problem, Becky Sharp is supposed to be a little unlikeable, and Hopkins is instantly lovable with her charm and humor. Not much of a problem with me, but it is going against the original character.
Overall, Miriam Hopkins spotty qualities of greatness, but nothing worthy of an nomination. She goes a bit hammy during the latter half of the picture, and in the beginning she relies too much on her beauty to get the feelings across to the audience. Charming, but not much else.
Norma Shearer received her first Oscar nomination for playing Jerry Bernhard Martin in The Divorcee.
For a movie made in 1930, The Divorcee is actually very risky. Other then having rich cinematography, The Divorcee also offers a well written screenplay that can still hold up 80 years later. Jerry and Ted are young, in love, and apart of a fancy NYC crowd that looks glamorous. However, on there third wedding anniversary, Jerry discovers Ted has been cheating on her, and decides to have some fun all her own. She sets out on an odyssey of liaisons and finding herself through other men.
I feel Norma Shearer has developed a bad reputation from audiences of today. Her irresistible beauty, fascinating voice and charm, all of her performances are easily interesting because of the actress herself. And in The Divorcee, she certainly shines. It almost because she avoids all the obvious acting habit that most of the actresses of that time fell for. Jerry's fake sounding giggle is annoying, but I think that was put into the performance by Shearer to show Jerry is not very happy with her new life.
It also helps Norma's performance out alot that the pain of infidelity is so well handled by the filmmakers. We feel her consistent pain of cheating and then of true love. As I said before, the charm of Norma Shearer is always present in her performance, combined with the overall quality of drama that lurks beneath her performance with ease and poise, Shearer gives an unexpected terrific performance. A fascinating actress in a unexceptionably great performance for it's time.
Bette Davis won the Oscar for playing Joyce Heath in Dangerous.
Dangerous is a very bad movie - what starts out as standard melodrama, eventually turns into a very ridiculous story about an architect who takes on a new job as an agent for a penniless, drunk actress. The problem is, she's been labeled a jinx by the theater world and is quickly dismissed when she tries to relive her old career and fame. Dangerous surely does not stand out as a big part of movie history, and as entertainment is fails horribly, coming off as a mix between boring and ridiculous.
Bette Davis is surely the light of this film, but that's not necessarily a good thing. Joyce is a hyper, staggering woman who doesn't like criticism and knows she's not the great actress she may have once was. There is actually a lack of depth and background with the character - all we know is she's a hopeless drunk and is known as a jinx. It's up to Bette to actually inject the character with some color and life, and unfortunately, she doesn't.
With every emotion, with every movement, Bette Davis overacts. It's as simple as that - the performance is overdone and Bette is always on the edge of looking unrealistic. It's only at the end where we finally see some good scenes with subtlety. Joyce has finally came to a crossroads and Bette is able to play these scenes with her natural abilities. But, boy, does it take a long time for that to show - what happens in the beginning is a horribly unusual performance that shows nothing except how Davis didn't know how to play a convincing drunk. And oddly, it's all very bland and boring, there's nothing enjoyable about her overacting.
For a great actress, Dangerous shows no potential for Bette Davis - and her interpretation is downright mediocre without any signs of hope.
Irene Dunne received her first Oscar nomination for playing Sabra Cravat in Cimarron.
Cimarron is often seen as one of the worst films to be awarded Best Picture. On one hand, I don't think it's that bad - it at least brought some new life to cinema, which was the wild west, and the realistic photography helps out in the story very much. But, on the other hand and more popular hand is that Cimarron is a horribly dated and even racist production that looks cartoonish by today's standards. The way it handles American Indians are particularly offensive. The story is a bit of the same - all over the place: when the government opens up the Oklahoma territory, a man claims a plot for him and his family and soon moves there to make a settlement. He builds up the town but feels too confined and runs away from his family.
Even though it's awful actor Richard Dix who became the star of the picture, he is missing for large portions of time. Enter Irene Dunne as his wife Sabra - she is loyal, responsible, loving, but a little racist, which surprised even me. She is given barely any depth (that goes to Dix) so it's up to Irene Dunne too add her own variation on the character since no one is going to help her. The most interesting aspect of the character is that she is racist towards the Indians and hesitant to let anyone help her, even though he husband practically abandoned her.
Cimarron is treating her just as she is treating "outsiders". Irene Dunne has nothing to go on, other then her character finally manages to overcome her fears. It's boring, useless, only redeeming because her character is the most interesting and she looks like Laurence Olivier beside of Richard Dix. But, it's obvious that even from the beginning Irene Dunne knew how to carry a movie, even one as big as Cimarron - still this is no acting masterpiece, not in the slightest.
May Robson received her only Oscar nomination for playing Apple Annie in Lady For A Day.
Lady For A Day is another typical Frank Capra fairytale, full of depression era hope and romance. The good thing is, the usual Capra-corn that is existent in so many of his films (and is unbearable) is not showing in the film - yes there is a certain amount of sentimentality showing throughout, but it is mostly a charming story that keeps the viewer interested even in the creakiest situations. The story of a street peddler who sends all the money she makes to her abroad daughter who is living a luxurious lifestyle. Suddenly she writes and says she's going to visit her in New York, and Annie has to find a way to make herself believable as a rich socialite.
May Robson plays the rough and world weary Apple Annie. She is full of street smarts, hopeless ideologies, and a rough appearance that doesn't automatically make her a nice old lady. She is a distant woman, who doesn't let anyone around her or care for her emotionally - it's never really clear why, but maybe it's because she is a street person, ready to fight at any moment. Even though Annie is an old woman, she is clearly someone one would not want to mess with.
Robson invests alot of charm and charisma in the part, yet she doesn't unearth a true sense of Apple Annie in the many scenes she has the opportunity to do so in. It's also disappointing that Robson almost virtually disappears in the second half of Lady For A Day, her charismatic turn as the tough old lady can only go so far. She has many moments where she is so lovable and likable but there's a terrible amount of expectations laid at her shoulders and for the most part she can't live up to it. She is very good, she verges on being very great, but she doesn't have alot to do besides being charming and a tough old lady. Still, there little touching moments that she does have are overwhelmingly good.
Claudette Colbert won the Oscar for playing Ellie Andrews in It Happened One Night.
It Happened One Night is one of the freshest and magnificent movies ever made. It's hard to believe a movie this old can actually be this exciting and entertaining. The story of a spoiled heiress who gets married to a man her father has set her up with, and she is not in love with. She runs away and finds herself on a bus with a down on his luck reporter whom ends up blackmailing her so the two will travel together. Oh and of course, they fall in love.
Claudette Colbert plays the spoiled heiress, Ellie Andrews. As it starts, Colbert is ridiculously good as the bratty young woman. To see such disdain behind her pretty eyes for her new husband is as socially relevant today as ever. Colbert shows how Ellie wants more out of life, but never knows how to find it. When she stumbles upon Clark Gable, the wonderful romantic comedy begins - the two have amazing chemistry together. When the two performers get caught in hilarious predicaments, it as if the stars align for them. Everything fits perfect together.
Colbert even handles the drama magnificently, never really overdoing it, just letting herself go with the flow of things. Of course, the script of It Happened One Night is helping out a great deal, but with the help of Gable, Claudette Colbert manged to craft an amazing comedic performance. She has the chops to pull off charming romance, slapstick comedy, and heartfelt drama, all with ease and poise and all successfully.
Norma Shearer received her third Oscar nomination for playing Jan Ashe in A Free Soul.
A Free Soul is nothing special. I'm sure without the top star cast and the controversial (for the time) subject matter, the film would have hardly made an impact in it's time or today. But the cast is interesting to see: Lionel Barrymore in a good performance, Clark Gable before he became a star, and her featured actress. The story is a bit ridiculous: a mobster stands charges of murder and an alcoholic defense lawyer takes his case. His daughter breaks her engagement to a "good" guy and has a liaison with the mobster. He ends up killing her fiance so he can have total grips on her, and now it's up to her dad to defend him for murder. He is a regular Prince Charming.
Norma Shearer plays Jan Ashe, a spoiled popular girl who loves to show off. Shearer immediately shows the common qualities of the character, and plays on that until it's time for her character to have an arc change. Norma wonderfully makes this story work - showing how this high brow girl can actually fall for such a low life. She doesn't realize she is addicted to her lifestyle of free living and fancy riches.
She's wonderfully portrays this woman who can't seem to make the right decision. Shearer can plays humor, romance, drama - she did it better then any melodramatic actress of her era. For such lackluster material, Norma Shearer was able to make wonders out of it, and play a simple character with complexities. Some might say Barrymore steals the film, but Shearer successfully carries it to his big climactic scene.
Grace Moore received her only Oscar nomination for playing Mary Barrett in One Night Of Love.
One Night Of Love is really not that special. It's melodramtic, badly lite, and the story is beyond mediocre. It follows Mary, an aspiring opera singer who finally has her dream come true when she is taken under the wing of a famous male opera singer. Through a grueling process of practicing, the two of them fall into a passionate love affair.
Grace Moore plays the ambitious, talented, but naive Mary. She's a small town girl, with big town dreams. Grace Moore immediately shades the character of Mary with the right qualities: she is talented, but no one wants to take notice. She just doesn't have the "it" factor that the stars of those days had. She even keeps the right balance once Mary becomes a famous opera singer. It's up until the predictable romance that Moore's performance suffers.
Her line readings become very uneven and artificial sounding. When she goes for high drama, it just doesn't look real. Her voice is fantastic (not sure if she lipsynced), and carries her performance for most of the time. Grace Moore has a charm and the naivety of her early scenes are interesting and well played. However, the second just doesn't live up to anything, except being predictable and uneven. At the end of the film, Moore subsides a great effect on the audience, but a great performance it is not.
Norma Shearer received her fourth Oscar nomination for playing Elizabeth Barrett in The Barretts Of Wimpole Street.
The Barretts Of Wimpole Street was what I thought was going to be a very standard melodrama, but surprised me in many ways. With the help of a complex story and very modern style acting, the film takes on a whole new level. It's surprising how entertaining it is, yet never takes a sensational approach to the material. The story of famous romantic poet Elizabeth Barrett and her struggle to be estranged from her father and finally fall in love with the right man.
Norma Shearer was back again giving another surprising dramatic performance as Elizabeth. Elizabeth is actually a very hard character to play for this time -- she is bedridden and really a borderline bedridden woman, something that was very rare for an actress to portray on the screen. But, Shearer perfectly establishes Elizabeth is a woman who is full of life and when she finds unexpected and unbelievable romance, there's a spark that rises in her. Norma wisely underplays most of the vulnerability of Elizabeth, and the result is a completely lovely, luminous performance, that surprises me as much as Norma Shearer continues to surprise me.
The psychological anxiety that she generates in her performance is terrific and totally uncharacteristic of the acting styles of that time. The beautiful, incredible love poems that Barrett was able to create are beautifully explored by Norma Shearer, and combined with her looks, it all works, there just something --- beautiful about the performance. Like her most famous poem "let me count the ways", the performance carries a certain amount of luminosity that continues to surprise me. Subtle in many parts and when she has to take it over into melodramatics, she does it gracefully.
Marie Dressler won the Oscar for playing Min Divot in Min and Bill.
Min and Bill is simply one of the most charming movies I've ever seen. It can go from hilarious slapstick to heartwarming drama that makes it's very short screentime seem like cinematic gold. It transports you to another time - the time before the depression and it's interesting to see how people actually lived during that time. The story follows Min, the owner of a waterfront bordering house. She finds friendship in a fisherman Bill and ultimately has to fight with authorities over the well-being of an abandoned girl she took in many years ago...not to mention her mother.
Marie Dressler is certainly one of the most fascinating actresses ever to hit Hollywood and all of her star abilities are all present in Min Divot. Min is an incredibly strong old woman who is a little scary to everyone around her - she doesn't like nonsense and enjoys taking care of her boarding house. It's a rather simple part, but Marie Dressler breaths so much life and warmth into Min, it's amazing. Every slapstick move (and not being a fan of slapstick) Dressler knows exactly how to play it. There's nothing ridiculous about it, it's more of overreacting to the situation which was supposed to be the whole point.
She's so lovable that even when she kills someone, we are still on her side and heartbroken when she is sent to jail...happily I might add. Dressler is brilliant at playing the dark & light side of Min, who finds great comfort in taking care of the young girl. In her quiet moments, she shows how content with her life she is, but when she is around people, it's always something tough. This is a performance that is simplistic, but highly entertaining and incredibly well played.
Diana Wynyard received her only Oscar nomination for playing Jane Marryot in Cavalcade.
For a Best Picture winner, Cavalcade is an awful excuse for a movie. It's boring, badly acted, plodding, mediocre, and especially, badly filmed. The cinematography is uncharacteristic and terribly lite. The story (if you can call it that) follows a couple through various huge events in England before and after World War I. The group of people that surrounds them suffers through many tragedies, including a memorable one involving the Titanic. But, this is not entertainment by any means.
Stage actress Diana Wynyard plays Jane, a young lady in love with her husband. She is sophisticated, elegant, witty, and charming to everyone around her. What makes the character of Jane not work properly is the blandness of Cavalcade and the broad, stagy, cross eyed acting of Diana Wynyard. Wynyard's stage roots are so obvious, it forces her to try harder and harder and harder. Once I kept asking myself is she going to suddenly burst from all the hamminess that she puts on.
She adds the much needed romantic element that Cavalcade, and her performance maybe could have worked in Cavalcade worked. Well, besides the fact she's a bad piece of ham that's not cooked right. Her best moments are her quiet ones, these moments work because she's not doing much acting. All she has to do is give it her all in a closeup, and dammnit, Diana STILL doesn't get it right. It might not seem important but Diana Wynyard looked cross-eyed when she looked into the camera, and her full dramatic moments are blasted (or at least for me) into oblivion.
What could have been was instantly destroyed with Diane Wynyard's casting, but what's there is a thoughtful, but inconsistent performance full of ham and ridiculous moments.
Greta Garbo received her first Oscar nomination for playing Anna Christie.
For a 1930 film, Anna Christie is actually well put together, not to mention entertaining - which is surprising because of the stagy dialogue. In a way, it films like a staged play, but that's not a insult - it actually worked for me. It tells the story of Anna, who has just returned to the big city after a long (and horrible) stay in Minnesota. Slowly, she lets the secrets of her past slide out to the people around her. Of course, there is overacting, but it's all saved by Marie Dressler and Garbo.
Greta Garbo slides into Anna Christie marvelously. From the moment she enters the bar, there's an instant fascination with her - she's mysterious, lovely, beautiful, and of course, worn down looking. Garbo establishes something immediately in the role and that's that Anna has obviously experienced something traumatic in Minnesota. Garbo's weary eyes and confident, yet broken way of walking around is a great testament to her actressing abilities.
Yes, there are moments in her performance where you can tell Greta Garbo was struggling with how to establish the character, but these are very small moments where it hardly matters in the end. She makes such an impact with a role that could have been very over the top or worse, obvious. But, the mystery surrounding her character, combined with Garbo's mysterious beauty and haunting way of delivering lines takes this performance completely off the page. A terrific, if a little bitter performance.
Bessie Love received her only Oscar nomination for playing Hank Mahoney in The Broadway Melody.
The Broadway Melody is pretty much the equivalent of spending the afternoon with your grandparents. The musical aspect of it is hardly impressing, as they are very few musical numbers, and the movie mostly takes place backstage of a Broadway stage. The story of a two sisters who come to Broadway to make a name for themselves - instead they end up falling in a love triangle. The older sister is looking for a career, the younger sister is an idiot who has two buffoonish men fighting over her, one of which was in love with her older sister Hank. A Best Picture win can only be explained because it was the early talkies and their was music at hand.
Bessie Love plays the older, more practical thinking sister, Hank. Here's her motivation: Hank loves her sister and likes to look after her since she's a bit flighty. She is a bit outspoken, loves her determination to be a star, and is appropriately tough-minded. End of motivation. It's not so much Bessie Love's fault that she has absolutely nothing to work with. The Broadway Melody never gives the actors a chance to shine, only focusing on that awful music.
Her only shining moment comes at the end, but after this exhausting and forgettable experience, one scene of crying/laughing is going to save the entire performance? I don't think so. To say Bessie Love is bad in her performance is also kind of unfair too, since this was when they were slowing transitioning from silent films and hardly anyone could appear subtle on film. Bessie Love simply has nothing to do - and it doesn't help their act on the stage stunk.
Greta Garbo received her second Oscar nomination for playing Madame Rita Cavallini in Romance.
Romance is okay for an early talkie, but it's not amazing, but the story is interesting enough to keep you engaged. The story is a story within a story actually - a boy wants to marry an actress, much to the dismay of his family, so he goes to an admirable man of his, and the man tells him the story of his failed romance with an opera star, Rita.
Greta Garbo looks irresistible in Romance. It's as simple as that - the woman was incredibly beautiful and that helps out with her less then satisfying performance as Rita. It's not Garbo is bad or mediocre as Rita, but I always got the feeling she wasn't trying hard enough. Romance relies on how well the chemistry between the two lead actors are, and for the most part, the two have it, but once the story focuses solely on their troubles, it becomes very routine and she sinks beneath that.
Her best moments come in the beginning, when the romance is just budding and is about to blossom into something much more. Garbo tries too add a little humor to the part, but it's mostly her charm that gets her through the film. Well, that and her beauty, it is really something else. Which it is a very watchable, charming portrayal, but I am just not as moved by it as I wanted to be.
Helen Hayes won the Oscar for playing Madelon Claudet in The Sin Of Madelon Claudet.
The Sin Of Madelon Claudet is a very dated, yet entertaining old film about a woman who leads one tortured life. A woman who falls for a man who leaves her before he knows she became pregnant by him - she must find some way to support herself, so she takes up with a jewel thief, which leads he to being arrested. Eventually, she becomes a prostitute in order to provide college for her son, who doesn't even know her. It sounds like a heartbreaking story, and with Hayes performance it enters different territory.
The fact is the performance could have went purely melodramatic and became cliched, but with Helen Hayes we get a great portrayal that is free of very stagy acting. Every turn of the story is perfectly handled by Hayes, who knows not to overplay the character because the story itself is already over handed. She is a tragic figure, and Helen Hayes almost asks the audience for their sympathy, but it's hard to not pity her.
She has many believable, realistic scenes especially the one when she is released from prison and feels the exhaustion of her life. Hayes is so magnificent while doing so much, yet so little with her character. It's easy to see why someone could accuse it of just being melodramatic, but I take alot more away from her performance then that. She is terrific at underplaying most of the pain of Madelon, and she is able to overcome of all of the cliches that could have been ridden within her performance. A natural, even heartbreaking performance.
Jeanne Eagels received her only Oscar nomination for playing Leslie Crosbie in The Letter.
This version of The Letter is rightfully forgotten. I myself sometimes find it enjoyable to see films from other times just to give myself some kind of balance, but when you are a given a film that was made in 1929 that is both unwatchable (almost literally, since I found it online and the sound was not the best, to say the least) and unnecessary. If you want to see a great version of the story, look no further then the 1940 version. But anyways, the story of The Letter goes something like this: a woman kills her secret lover, who she claimed tried to rape her, and must prove her innocence.
Jeanne Eagels died of an unfortunate overdose after The Letter was released, making her the first posthumous nominee in the history of the Academy Awards. She plays Leslie Crosbie, a seductive, mousy looking woman who tries to defend her innocence. At every turn of The Letter, Eagels tries to put power in every move and line - as this was the very early talkies, Eagels does incredibly well with the lines. To be perfectly honest, Jeanne Eagles gives one of those performances that goes through the motions until some critical points in the story.
When she is on trial and is clearly lying, she is terrific, showing how trying to convince the jury is just as hard as convincing the audience. And the final confrontation scene is just incredible! It's unbelievable such a well acted scene could be possible in the film. However, Eagels still has this bad aura around her performance, especially considering she moves at every possible moment, seeming fidgety and nervous (addiction showing it's causes, perhaps?). But, Jeanne Eagels' ghostly presence is intense and for a film from 1929, definitely wonderful - there's just too many cricks in it.
Marie Dressler received her last Oscar nomination for playing Emma Thatcher Smith in Emma.
With the help of Marie Dressler, Emma becomes a surprising, terrific little movie. I wouldn't go in it expecting something revolutionary, but if you're looking for a very entertaining, interesting movie, you'll find it with Emma. The story of a kind, dominating woman who helps out a widower with his 3 kids. She helps him out for 32 years, and in the heat of the moment, he asks her to marry him. He suddenly dies, and must fight with his ungrateful kids over his money.
Marie Dressler was simply one of the most interesting actresses to ever be labeled a star, and in Emma all of her natural acting talents show. Emma is a wonderful character, always interesting and engaging, no matter what she is doing. From the very beginning, we see her as a relentlessly caring nanny who will do anything for the children she is in charge for, and we always feel that love between her and her boss, but Dressler fabulously shows it's just a platonic kind of love, until he pops the question. Her performance enters new territory in the second half of the film.
Emma sees the kids she took care of all of their lives turn against her and Dressler perfectly shows the pain and yet understanding of this woman. She is self-sacrificing and won't deny her own needs, or theirs. And to top everything off, Marie Dressler's natural comedic talents are also present in Emma, including some hilarious scenes involving a airplane.
Overall, it's a terrific performance that Marie Dressler completely shines in. I can easily see how her acting style can be not for everyone's taste, but here, she's irresistible, at least for me.
Mary Pickford won the Oscar for playing Norma Besant in Coquette.
Coquette is so bleeping awful, I'm surprised the TV didn't spit up green soup for making me play it. It's not so much the actors are practically wandering around, waiting for a line reading, it's the fact there even actors at all. If you go into Coquette expecting some miracle, look away, because this is 1929 and talkies are just beginning. Actually, the material originally started on the stage, and it's obvious. Especially one boring sequence where everyone stands around a chair (apparently a sound machine) and has a conversation for 8 minutes. The story follows a Southern flirt who can have any man she wants. Her flirting gets her in a whole mess of trouble!
Noticeably, Mary Pickford was too old to be playing a young Southern belle, but she was so used to playing young in her silent films, she actually doesn't show her age. What she does show is her silent roots, which are ridiculously bad. Pickford tries to stretch out her face with alot of strength like she's just in a silent film, but this is a talky, and she makes look Norma look strange, with her wide eyed looks in the camera and her loud mannerisms. There's also her fake sounding voice when she is flirting.
The courtroom scenes, as ridiculous as they may be, are her best moments. She finally lets her guard down, and delivers a natural sounding, mannerisms-free performance that reminded (at least me) of what could have came of Mary Pickford had she been a better talky actress. And she tries her best to invest some life into the character of Norma, but again, it's hardly much.
To put it quite perfectly, I appreciate the fact Mary Pickford took a risk and tried the talkies which I'm sure were risky for someone who had an entire silent film reputation. I don't hate her performance as much as others do, but then again I was not impressed with it, at all.
Claudette Colbert received her second Oscar nomination for playing Dr. Jane Everest in Private Worlds.
Private Worlds is certainly an interesting film for the the early era. The straight forward story of misogyny and mental illness in a psychiatric hospital. The amazing thing about the film is that it doesn't feel dated - it really does feel modern handling it's subject material. A female doctor is subjected to sexism when a new supervisor feels a woman shouldn't have anything to do in the medical profession.
Claudette Colbert plays Dr. Jane Everest, a determined, workaholic who is very shocked at the concern her new supervisor has for her. The role is terribly simple, but Colbert was able to add the much needed details and life to the character of Jane. We eventually realize why Jane throws herself into her work so much - she was in love with a man who has died. She's a modern woman in a man's world, and no one understands that. Most even criticize her for not being a housewife and mother.
Colbert is able to overcome the melodrama of her material as well - even though everyone gets to experiment with mental subplots, Claudette Colbert manages to come across as the most believable with her "tough" woman role. It only bogs down at the end when that horrible plot twist comes into play, and it's become obvious why the film is largely forgotten. What was promising soon becomes awful, and Colbert can't really save that. It's the early stuff that she is really terrific in. Successfully overcoming is a hard challenge, especially during this era, but Claudette Colbert was able to do just that.
Lynn Fontanne received her only Oscar nomination for playing simply The Actress in The Guardsman.
The Guardsman, while having an interesting story, is slow, very slow, and never comes to live on screen. The two actors - Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne have chemistry with each other, but neither one are hardly fascinating. The story follows the two married actors, as they insult each other into oblivion. He finally gets the feeling she is cheating on him, so he disguises himself as a Russian to see if she will fall for his advances. The story is all over the place and the acting is pure theatrics.
Lynn Fontanne plays The Actress in a hysterical way - not only does she have the diva like quality of an actress, but she also has the theatrical stereotype of an actress. She's always moving her arms, always dragging out the words so everyone can her, always making a big deal out of everything to prove to the world she knows her game. The Guardsman would like us to believe it's a charming comedy, but it's not that either, since where is it? Lynn certainly didn't have anything to work with, other then those annoying stereotypes.
Lynn has a natural quality to her, but her silent roots are visible in the part. Like this interesting smile she gives near the end of the film, it's both strange, but entertaining, as we soon begin to learn she may have been in on the secret the entire time.
An interesting performance in an interesting story, that both fail to shine as they should.
Marlene Dietrich received her only Oscar nomination for playing Amy Jolly in Morocco.
Morocco is a boring, endlessly uncharismatic film about the Foreign Legion who takes up in Morocco. A young, naive man in the Legion sees an act by a seductive singer from Paris. The two share a careless relationship with each other until they figure out they can't live without one another. The film is visually appealing, but overall the story is so boring and the cast is all over the place, which makes the film a challenge to get through.
Marlene Dietrich is an interesting actress - she is most admired and praised today for her beauty. When I watch her in films, I see the beauty, but hardly any acting ability. Morocco was her American debut and it really shows. Her Amy has just come to the town in Morocco to escape some kind of scandalous past in Paris, she knows she can captivate an audience, and decides she should be an entertainer there. In fact, Morocco is mostly remembered for a 2 second kiss between Dietrich and a woman during her first act. This character is so thinly written, that it seems like the only reason she is there is so Dietrich could be in a movie.
With her accent and her silent roots which show like a sore thumb, there is nothing to admire in Marlene Dietrich's interpretation of Amy. We know she has been jaded by men and really doesn't enjoy being solicited by them, yet we never get that feeling with Marlene. She's sexy, but merely a prop for the sexiness that the film wants to portray. Even when Amy gets to deliver a charming zinger, Marlene ruins it with a fake sounding voice and not knowing the line between being funny and being annoying. There's no depth, more like a picture - nice to look at, but there's nothing to watch or admire. It's part of having a badly written character and part Dietrich really did not know how to handle the character and bring her off of the page.
Norma Shearer received her second Oscar nomination for Lally Marlett in Their Own Desire.
Their Own Desire is a typical early talky melodrama that is a bit entertaining. A little too theatrical, but it's early melodrama, so if you go into this expecting some modern day take on storytelling, look elsewhere. The story follows a daughter whose father is divorcing (gasp) his wife and leaving her for another woman. She begins to hate men, until she takes a vacation where she falls in love with a man who ends up being the son of the woman her father left her family for.
Norma Shearer was such a fascinating actress - I could easily see how some could criticize her, but for me, she is a force of nature of screen, especially in these kinds of projects where she shines. Shearer captures Lally's youthful innocence and wisdom wonderfully - she brings smiles and humor the role that are wonderful in it's simplicity. When the drama approaches, Shearer never goes over the top with her performance, which is amazing because the role called for her to go spastic, yet Norma underplays most of the character's emotions. One could call it underwhelming, but for me, it worked.
She works so incredibly with the character - making her fascinating with her emotions.
At the top of her game, or just beginning? Norma Shearer proves herself very early, to have a great presence on the screen. She slides through the role with a cool and an ease that is amazing for a 1930 film - it's supposed to be controversial for it's time, but comes off as melodramatic. The only thing that holds it together is Norma's tough, yet vulnerable performance.
Katharine Hepburn won the Oscar for playing Eva Lovelace in Morning Glory.
Morning Glory is just an average film, that works well if Katharine Hepburn works well. The story is interesting, it's well made, but the supporting cast seem a little out of place and searching for something to do. It's all about Katharine Hepburn, and rightfully so.
I have been very critical of this performance in the past, but, I've recently become very impressed with it. If you take it for what it is, which is a very intentional theatrical performance. She plays Eva Lovelace, a smart young, but impressionable aspiring actress. She is full of vibrancy and excitement to the people around her, but it's the nervous ambition that drives her to put up a fascinating facade. She is fascinated by acting...she wants to live the dream of being fussed over constantly and having her life lived out on the stage.
It is true - Hepburn overacts here. But, that doesn't mean it's bad or unfitting, because Eva is always trying to bring attention to herself. It's very theatrical, and purposely so. Kate adds so much dominating charm to the character of Eva, she lights up the screen. Eva's personality is so perfectly realized by Hepburn, that when we see the weakness show throw her fascinated facade, we feel a deep sympathy for her.
It's definitely a divisive performance, and I've been in that front of that criticizing line, but now I appreciate the work on display by Katharine Hepburn.
Since this is the era where the nominees lay that I have yet to see (or are completely forced too in some circumstances) then I thought it would be fun (and alot more easier) to do the years all together.
1929-1935
And the nominees to be reviewed are:
Jeanne Eagels in The Letter Bessie Love in The Broadway Melody Mary Pickford in Coquette Greta Garbo in Anna Christie Greta Garbo in Romance Norma Shearer in The Divorcee Norma Shearer in Their Own Desire Marlene Dietrich in Morocco Marie Dressler in Min and Bill Irene Dunne in Cimarron Norma Shearer in A Free Soul Marie Dressler in Emma Lynn Fontanne in The Guardsman Helen Hayes in The Sin Of Madelon Claudet Katharine Hepburn in Morning Glory May Robson in Lady For A Day Diane Wynyard in Cavalcade Claudette Colbert in It Happened One Night Grace Moore in One Night Of Love Norma Shearer in The Barretts of Wimpole Street Claudette Colbert in Private Worlds Bette Davis in Dangerous Katharine Hepburn in Alice Adams Miriam Hopkins in Becky Sharp
So, that makes nine nominees I still have to see - and I won't be reviewing the first year, at least not right now. They will be reviewed completely randomly and I'll update my ranking after each 5 nominees.
Well, I can barely believe it myself, mostly because it feels like I just started and have just scratched the surface of this incredible film experience.
200 performances...
Look at all the women and the variations on a singular character they are playing. Whether it be a housewife, a queen, an artist, a prostitute, a waitress, these women all portrayed characters that are both interesting and enlightening. Even if the performances aren't quite good, don't you find it thrilling to watch films & characters that throw you to another time and another place?
These women are the highlights of cinema - like I said before, even if their performances aren't good, these are still fascinating people who lingered on screen. To see how the actresses changed, yet the fascination was still there was incredible. Honestly, how can you compare people like Norma Shearer and Jane Fonda together? How can you choose between Bette Davis and Katharine Hepburn? Who would you rather watch, Meryl Streep or Anne Bancroft? The questions cannot be answered since every actress, in their own way, are wonderful and terrific.
I don't explain or defend my choices, I just name the nominee that impresses me most. But, I am very proud of my current Top 10 - these really are what I think the creme da-la creme so far are. They are both thrilling, provocative, artistic, entertaining, enlightening, wonderful, scary - every other impossible adjective you can throw at them.
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I've decided on this go around to focus on the women who get praise from me, but never the Academy.
Honorable Omissions
Of course, it would be ridiculous to try and name all of the performances that have impressed me in these given years - but I've decided to review 10 of what I think are the best of the years I've already covered.
10. Jodie Foster in The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane
"1976 was a banner year for Jodie Foster - she hadn't even achieved iconic fame yet and 1976 surely shows her abilities as an actress. She received an Oscar nod for one of the best films of the 70s, showed her comedic abilities in a Disney classic, and eventually showed more of her range in the drama/horror film "The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane". Foster plays Rynn, a teenager who seems to be hiding her life from everyone - when her secrets begin to be revealed she begins to kill, unbelievably she's the sympathetic protagonist of this story."
9. Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest
"Largely ridiculed, killed Dunaway's career, and even won a Razzie - but unforgettably magnificent in my eyes. Honestly, can anyone even separate Joan Crawford from Mommie Dearest and Faye Dunaway after they see this movie? Dunaway makes such a huge impression constantly playing up the campiness of Joan Crawford herself. Could it be bad acting? Perhaps, but that's not going to stop me from praising it."
8. Jennifer Jason Leigh inFast Times At Ridgemont High
"When someone remembers Fast Times At Ridgemont High, they usually either think of Sean Penn being a stoner or Phoebe Cates possibly having the sexiest moment ever captured on film. But when I think about it, I remember the touching work of Jennifer Jason Leigh. She has long been an underrated actress, and this is possibly the best work I've seen from her. Her character wants sex, but unfortunately she learns her lessons the hard way. It's both heartbreaking and even naturally funny in the beginning."
7. Glenda Jackson in The Music Lovers
"It's no secret around here, I love Glenda Jackson. She may not have Meryl Streep's career or the longevity of Katharine Hepburn, but her screen presence fascinates me. The Music Lovers was made after Women In Love and it's amazing to know that because her character in The Music Lovers seems so much younger then her Gundrun. Playing the nymphomaniac, crazy wife of Tchaikovsky is no easy task, yet Glenda pulls it off with natural ease - making all the weirdness seem even more incredible."
6. Kathy Bates in Fried Green Tomatoes
"When someone thinks of Kathy Bates, do they immediately go to Annie Wilkes, or remember Bates famously crashing into someone's car screaming TOWANDA. A fabulous character if there has ever been one - she goes from fragile, uptight cracker to a strong, powerful force no one can mess with thanks to her new friend's stories. I love the movie, and Bates has long been my favorite part of it. If you loved her nude scene in About Schmidt, her saran wrapped nude scene will not disappoint you here."
5. Judith O'Dea in Night Of The Living Dead
"Oh boy, what a movie, what a performance. With probably only 2 pages of dialogue, Judith O'Dea never escapes my mind when I remember Night Of The Living Dead. Once her famous attack is over, she becomes a catatonic mess - utterly shocked and exhausted with the events taking place around her. One wants to either slap her or try to hug her, aggressive and fourthly maddening. Actually, isn't Barbara the scariest thing about the zombies?"
4. Heather Matarazzo in Welcome To The Dollhouse
"Oh boy, what a movie, what a performance (x2) - Heather Matarazzo perhaps shows the most painful creation of teenage angst ever shown on screen. Is she a victim or does she truly deserve all the harsh things that come her way? In most scenes her resentment becomes intensified and she becomes nearly unlikeable, but considering everything Dawn puts up with during Welcome To The Dollhouse, who can blame her. The unforgettable lines, the pathetic sad face, and the incredibly ugly clothes all make for one masterpiece."
3. Divine in Pink Flamingos
"Oh boy, what a movie, what a performance (x3) - forget category confusion, what about gender confusion! Yes, I do consider this to be a female performance, no matter what anyone says. Pink Flamingos is certainly not a place to look for art and most people would turn it off after the first 10 minutes, but Divine as filth queen Babs Johnson has long been one of my favorite creations. Bold, in-your-face, never seen like this, what can you say about a performance that includes such monologues about being the filthiest person alive?"
2. Gini Eastwood in Pickup
"Never heard of it, don't feel bad - Pickup was mismarketed as a grind-house film when it was released back in 1975, however it is hardly an exploitation/horror film. The story of two young women who are picked up by a passing driver in an RV - what follows is one of the strangest and exhilarating experiences I've ever had in a movie. Gini Eastwood is possibly the most stunning woman I've ever seen, and luckily her performance is unforgettably perfect. Playing a tarot reader who long forecasts doom on the horizon of the trip - how can you even begin to describe a performance that includes a Satanic clown, a sex scene with the god Apollo, and Eastwood burning herself for about a minute. It's beautiful, amazing, intense work."
1. Ruth Gordon in Harold and Maude
"It's probably the performance I've seen most in my all-time favorite film. It's hard to even begin to describe how perfect Ruth Gordon is. Witty and charming doesn't even begin - wonderful, amazing, funny, heartwarming, I don't even think there is a word for it. Every moment is so naturally handled, how can you not fall for her? It's not just because she's a cute old lady, it's her spirit. Again, she leaves me absolutely speechless...."
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So, here's to the next and final 200 performances of this incredible race and category!
Lady For A Day is another typical Frank Capra fairytale, full of depression era hope and romance. The good thing is, the usual Capra-corn that is existent in so many of his films (and is unbearable) is not showing in the film - yes there is a certain amount of sentimentality showing throughout, but it is mostly a charming story that keeps the viewer interested even in the creakiest situations. The story of a street peddler who sends all the money she makes to her abroad daughter who is living a luxurious lifestyle. Suddenly she writes and says she's going to visit her in New York, and Annie has to find a way to make herself believable as a rich socialite.
A Free Soul is nothing special. I'm sure without the top star cast and the controversial (for the time) subject matter, the film would have hardly made an impact in it's time or today. But the cast is interesting to see: Lionel Barrymore in a good performance, Clark Gable before he became a star, and her featured actress. The story is a bit ridiculous: a mobster stands charges of murder and an alcoholic defense lawyer takes his case. His daughter breaks her engagement to a "good" guy and has a liaison with the mobster. He ends up killing her fiance so he can have total grips on her, and now it's up to her dad to defend him for murder. He is a regular Prince Charming.
The Broadway Melody is pretty much the equivalent of spending the afternoon with your grandparents. The musical aspect of it is hardly impressing, as they are very few musical numbers, and the movie mostly takes place backstage of a Broadway stage. The story of a two sisters who come to Broadway to make a name for themselves - instead they end up falling in a love triangle. The older sister is looking for a career, the younger sister is an idiot who has two buffoonish men fighting over her, one of which was in love with her older sister Hank. A Best Picture win can only be explained because it was the early talkies and their was music at hand.
