Pointless Lists: Top 10 Portrayals of Real Women

In my last post I reviewed the 2002 film Frida (here) which is a biopic about the late Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. I gushed about how amazing Salma Hayek was in the title role. This got me to thinking about a number of other great performances of real women that have graced our screens. Of course, my next thought was where does Hayek’s rank, if at all. This is no definitive list as it is only based on movies I have seen. Still, these are my…

Top 10 Portrayals of Real Women

Honorable Mentions: 

(alphabetically by actress’ last name)

Hope Davis as Joyce Pekar in American Splendor

Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde

Mariel Hemingway as Dorothy Stratten in Star ‘80

Lynn Whitfield as Josephine Baker in The Josephine Baker Story

10. Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II

In

The Queen

(2006)

As the iconic monarch Helen Mirren brings tremendous grace and dignity to the screen. Watching her really feels like we are looking at Queen Elizabeth II wrestle with the idea of how to address her nation about the passing of Princess Diana whom she is known have her differences with. Mirren was also outstanding as Alma Reville, the wife of The Master of Suspense in 2012’s largely lackluster Hitchcock.

9. Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe

In

My Week with Marilyn

(2011)

Williams captures Marilyn’s fragility and the manner in which she wields her sexuality as the only weapon she feels comfortable using. It’s remarkable work that threatens to reduce Monroe to a caricature but manages enough humanity to make her a sympathetic figure. (Review)

8. Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher

In

The Iron Lady

(2011)

As usual, Meryl Streep keeps us engaged. She again demonstrates her ability to get lost within the character and draw out both their despair and their dignity. Like a number of others on this list, she also breathed life into another historic figure. In her case, she was delightful as culinary legend Julia Child in 2009’s Julie & Julia. (The Iron Lady Review)

7. Cathy Moriarty as Vicki La Motta

In

Raging Bull

(1980)

Moriarty quite literally came from nowhere to earn an Oscar nomination for playing the wife of boxing great Jake La Motta opposite Robert De Niro. It was a fiery performance nearly as raw and visceral as her iconic co-star.

6. Jennifer Lopez as Selena Quintanilla

In

Selena

(1997)

Lopez is simply phenomenal as the Mexican-American singer who achieved superstar status in Mexico and appeared to be on the verge of a breakthrough in the United States before being gunned down by the president of her fan club. She brings an abundance of energy to her role and makes us love her. This is still her best work.

5. Reese Witherspoon as June Carter

In

Walk the Line

(2005)

It takes a tough woman to handle The Man in Black. In Walk the Line, Witherspoon gives us that plus a whole lot more. She was ridiculous feisty and perfect all the way through. By the way, give her extra kudos for doing all of her own singing.

4. Salma Hayek as Frida Kahlo

In

Frida

(2002)

Salma Hayek is an unstoppable force of nature. She emanates an irresistible flame that torches the screen. Aided by a prominent unibrow, Hayek is simply impossible to look away from. It is a magnificent performance starting with the very first time we see her.

3. Hilary Swank as Brandon Teena

In

Boys Don’t Cry

(1999)

Swank’s role is, in my mind, the second most challenging on this list. After all, she’s playing a woman who isn’t sure she was really meant to be one. Swank does a masterful job making us feel empathy for a person whose actions eventually cause pain in others. Ten years later, Swank would also play famed aviator Amelia Earhart. (Review)

2. Angela Bassett as Tina Turner

In

What’s Love Got to Do with It

(1993)

Right before our eyes, Angela Bassett morphs from being a shy country girl from Nutbush, Tennessee to one of the most iconic women in the history of American music who also happens to be desperately trying to figure out how not to be a punching bag for the husband that made her a star. It’s a powerhouse performance if ever there was one and I will go to my grave saying Bassett was robbed of the Oscar for Best Actress in 1993. In a quieter role just one year earlier, she was also excellent as Betty Shabazz, the wife of slain Civil Rights leader Malcolm X.

1. Charlize Theron as Aileen Wuornos

In

Monster

(2003)

The one role on this list more inherently challenging than Swank’s in Boys Don’t Cry is Theron’s, here. Physically, she literally transformed herself. Always the glamorous sort with classic Hollywood beauty, she was just about unrecognizable. For the role, she gained thirty pounds and shaved her eyebrows. And that’s before all the makeup and prosthetics were applied to her. But that was only the beginning. She still had to sell us on the idea that she was a serial killer. Theron certainly managed to do just that with a flat-out disturbing performance.

I’m sure I have missed one or a dozen. Let me know some of your faves.

Oz the Great and Powerful

The Dellies - 2012 Best Actress

With my first award, I merely confirmed the Academy's choice for Daniel Day-Lewis as Best Actor. I assure you that won't be the case with all of the awards.

Before moving on, I have to get into semantics. The lines between an actor in a leading role and one in a supporting role is blurred by the Academy. My first instinct is to say that anyone who is not the protagonist is in a supporting role. However, that isn't quite right. For instance, Jennifer Lawrence received a nod for, and won, Best Actress for her work in Silver Linings Playbook though she doesn't play the main character. That leads me to my prevailing notion which is that the words "lead" and "supporting" are gender specific. In other words, Lawrence is the lead female in SLP. However, that doesn't really hold water since Helen Hunt received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Sessions even though I would say she is the lead female character in that movie. Still, the latter is the definition I prefer so that's the one I'll go with. In other words, Two of the ladies below were actually nominated for Best Supporting Actress. You should already know who one is, I'll give you one guess as to who the other is. Forget about it, let's just get on with it...

Best Actress

The Real Nominees: Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty), Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook), Emanuelle Riva (Amour), Quvenzhane Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wilds), Naomi Watts (The Impossible)

My Nominees:

Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

As Maya, Jessica Chastain is nothing, if not fierce. Her ferocity is drawn from unwavering conviction. She is the type of person we viewers might not like if we had to work with/for her, but we’d appreciate her and be glad she’s on our side.

Sally Field, Lincoln

In the role of First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln,is nearly her leading man's equal, coming apart at the seams one moment and the very picture of composure the next.

Helen Hunt, The Sessions

The flip side of John Hawkes’ restraint is the unshakable bravery of the work done by Helen Hunt.

Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Again proving herself a superior talent, Lawrence’s portrayal is note-perfect all the way through. Always at the appropriate times, she’s stand-offish, emotional, manipulative, confident and never quite stable.

Michelle Williams, Take This Waltz

As has become the norm, Ms. Williams turns in a tremendous performance making us feel every emotion with her.

Honorable Mention:
Marion Cotillard, Rust and Bone
Judi Dench, Skyfall
Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wilds
Emma Watson, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Real Winner: Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

And My Winner Is...

Helen Hunt, The Sessions

Not least of the reasons her performance has to considered courageous is because most of her screen-time is spent naked. Her character’s job description is pretty much being a sex object. The genius of the directing, the writing, and finally, Hunt herself, is they all refuse to let that be all there is to her. She’s a fully formed being grown from the Hollywood archetype of the hooker with a heart of gold, but is so much more.

Click Here to See All of the Dellies!

Synecdoche, New York

Directed by Charlie Kaufman.
2008. Rated R, 124 minutes.
Cast:
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Samantha Morton
Michelle Williams
Catherine Keener
Tom Noonan
Jennifer Jason Leigh
Hope Davis

Caden (Hoffman) is a theater director who’s life is quite literally falling apart. After winning a prestigious grant he sets out to create the play of all plays using what eventually becomes a life-sized model of New York. Director/writer Charlie Kaufman is also the man who wrote Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and this is similarly odd in execution. We also get treated to another great performance by Philip Seymour Hoffman. However, I must admit I’m a big fan of his. I’d probably enjoy him reading the phone book. Michelle Williams also does an excellent job as Caden’s second wife Claire, as does Tom Noonan as Sam, who gets hired to portray Caden in the play. Oh, and kudos to Kaufman for using women in his cast that look like, well, real women.

The problem is the movie is made up of metaphor upon metaphor upon metaphor upon…you get the point. What the directors (both the real one and his fictional counterpart) are trying to do is fairly simple but the method is ridiculously convoluted. Any tangible ideas are buried beneath mounds of symbolism. It’s a classic example of why great writers shouldn't necessarily direct their own screenplays. With no one to rein him in, it seems he took every “deep” idea that he had and threw it up on the screen. To top it all off, he completely failed with all those “real” looking women. The very basic question is why on Earth would seemingly every woman he comes into contact with, except first wife Adele (Keener), be madly in love with or be sexually attracted to this guy? Not only is he coming apart at the seams, both physically and emotionally, everyone can plainly see that he is. He's rather repulsive and doesn't exactly ooze sex appeal. Finally, I’m going to need someone smarter than me to explain the constant fire in Hazel’s (Morton) house.

Fans of the aforementioned Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind should give this a look. The truth is, even though I’m a big fan of both those movies maybe I just didn't get this one. You might, and hail it a great artistic achievement. For the rest of us, not so much. It’s definitely original and quirky, but often frustrating to watch.

My Week with Marilyn

Directed by Simon Curtis.

2011. Rated R, 99 minutes.

Cast:

Michelle Williams

Kenneth Branagh

Eddie Redmayne

Dominic Cooper

Judi Dench

Zoe Wannamaker

Emma Watson

Julia Ormond

Toby Jones

Dougray Scott

The first time Marilyn Monroe (Williams) went to London it was on a business trip. Accompanied by her husband of three weeks, famed playwright Arthur Miller (Scott), and a number of handlers, she went to film what would become The Prince and the Showgirl. Her co-star and director is the legendary Sir Laurence Olivier (Branagh). During what was a very trying shoot, Marilyn befriends Third Assistant Director Colin Clark (Redmayne). As the title suggests, this is the story of their tumultuous week together.

Predictably, the notoriously troubled Marilyn is the center of attention. She frustrates Olivier to no end. She suffers wild mood swings, is ridiculously insecure and often hopped up on various pills. Williams’ performance is a near-perfect impersonation of the icon. More than that, she captures Marilyn’s fragility and the manner in which she wields her sexuality as the only weapon she feels comfortable using. It’s remarkable work that threatens to reduce Monroe to a caricature but manages enough humanity to make her a sympathetic figure.

No less brilliant is Kenneth Branagh as Olivier. He, no doubt has the showier role with many loud-voiced tirades and even an angry Shakespearean soliloquy. He balances this with heartfelt admissions as the movie wears on. He hits every note perfectly as does Judi Dench as Dame Sybil Thorndike, popping in on occasion to provide encouraging words to Marilyn.

Through the two leads, MWwM gives us wonderfully contentious moments between legends. We learn very early that Marilyn’s lack of training, acting ability and, perhaps most of all, professional etiquette offends his very soul. However, her raw sex appeal and presence are simply too much to be denied. Marilyn suffers the brunt of his verbal attacks making her even more unsure of herself than she already is.

While the fireworks between Marilyn and Olivier drive the movie, it’s the relationship of she and Colin that gives us its most touching moments. In him, we see a young man getting in way over his head but we can’t help admiring the tenderness with which he treats her. We truly feel his longing to save her. What we wish he’d understand is that she doesn't really want to be saved. Her manipulations are transparent to us, but not to him. How could they be? Imagine yourself a 23 year old straight male and the most beautiful woman in the world coming on to you.

The end result is a delightful movie filled with wonderful performances. It’s fairly light on offering any new insight into Ms. Monroe, but it does humanize her enough for us to grab hold of. It helps that, despite her forwardness, her relationship with Colin maintains a sense of innocence. It gives the impression of a story of puppy love while treading in some rather adult waters. That said, don’t come into MWwM thinking all the mysteries of Marilyn’s demise will be solved. It’s an entertaining, but small, chapter in the ill-fated star’s turbulent life.

Take This Waltz

Directed by Sarah Polley.

2012. Rated R, 116 minutes.
Cast:
Michelle Williams
Luke Kirby
Seth Rogen
Sarah Silverman
Jennifer Podemski
Diane D’Aquila
Graham Abbey
Vanessa Coelho
Aaron Abrams

When Margot (Williams) meets Daniel (Kirby) during a plane ride home the two hit it off immediately. They even decide to share a cab leaving the airport only to discover they live across the street from one another. Margot also makes it clear they cannot act on their obvious chemistry because she’s married. When we meet her hubby Lou (Rogen), it appears they have a great relationship. However, we soon discover that something is just a bit off. They obviously love each other but the sparks aren’t quite flying anymore. This issue is heightened because Margot is pretty fragile, emotionally. Our heroine flirting with Daniel, becoming more infatuated with him yet still trying to reignite the flames of her marriage ensues.

Despite what you’ve just read, this is no romantic comedy. This is a drama, and certainly qualifies as romantic but there are no easy answers here. That’s how Take This Waltz separates itself from the pack. Intensely told mostly through Margot’s eyes, it’s narrative can be brutal and certainly takes us on an emotional rollercoaster. It also avoids making either of the guys the hero or villain. Lou is not some horrible husband we beg her to leave. He’s a guy who loves his wife very much. Unfortunately for the two of them, they suffer from something a lot of couples do. To oversimplify, because there’s much more to it, when one’s in the mood the other usually is not. At times, Lou seems like Margot’s very best friend. At others, she’s frustrated by him. There are even times when she’s bored with him. Though that last thing is what makes their relationship the most vulnerable, Daniel is no knight in shining armor. He sends mixed signals. After he’s spent all day sweeping her off her feet and has her seemingly ready to give in to her most sinful desires he literally sends her home. He wants to present himself as respectful of her vows, but it makes him seem manipulative.

All of this adds up to us traversing some dark roads with our heroine. It’s not brilliantly torturous to the viewer like Blue Valentine, another movie about a tough marriage starring Michelle Williams, but it’s still pretty raw. This is because we understand she probably won’t completely shake sad feelings no matter which guy she ends up with. As in BV, Williams turns in a tremendous performance. As our suitor, Luke, Kirby is also very good. He doesn’t have the magnetism and sheer movie star quality of Ryan Gosling, Williams’ co-star in BV, but he does have a certain charm about him that works perfectly, here. Surprisingly, Seth Rogen plays it nicely understated. He’s still a goof-ball, but you can tell it’s a silliness once shared with the woman he loves and possibly why they got together in the first place. In small doses, as Lou’s sister, Sarah Silverman is also quite effective.

Things get a little strange over the last 20 minutes. This portion of the movie drags on a bit and it feels like a healthy chunk of it could’ve been left out without changing the movie one iota, and better yet, tightening the story. This includes Silverman’s big scene. I know I just praised her work, but it wasn’t necessarily needed and only serves as a way to get one more shot of Margot crying. The feelings conveyed during this scene are already explicit by the time this little event plays out, making it completely redundant. Speaking of explicit, the other thing that seems forced and over the top is the sudden soft-core adult flick that breaks out during this time. Far be it from me to complain about getting to see Ms. Williams in action, so to speak, but at least part of what happens confuses the matter (or maybe just me) and feels out of place. Further thought reveals what the director was trying to do, but I think the actual ending shows this without the sudden, and unexplained, involvement of other people.

Despite the overdone section near the end of the film, Take This Waltz is very much worth your while if relationship movies interest you in the least. It’s not really concerned with appealing to your carnal desires. Instead, it is more about what these people find sexy and, just as importantly, when they find it that way. And just how important is sex to our relationships? As I said, don’t go looking for the same answers you’ve gotten from other movies.

Blue Valentine

Shutter Island

Directed by Martin Scorsese.
2009. Rated R, 138 minutes.
Cast:
Leonardo DiCaprio
Mark Ruffalo
Ben Kingsley
Max von Sydow
Jackie Earle Haley
Michelle Williams
Emily Mortimer
Patricia Clarkson
Ted Levine
John Carroll Lynch

It’s 1954 and federal agent Teddy Daniels (DiCaprio) is sent to Shutter Island to investigate the escape of a patient from the mental institution. Actually, that’s redundant. The entire island basically serves as the mental institution. We learn that it’s where they keep the criminally insane. Though the faculty seems to want the issue resolved, they put up various walls of resistance. Our hero is having a hard time getting results.

Agent Daniels also has ulterior motives. It seems he’s had prior dealings with a mysteriously inconspicuous patient and is quite suspicious of what might really be going on in this remote location. He vows to his partner Chuck (Ruffalo) to get to the bottom of things.

As we follow the proceedings, we’re sucked in and wondering how our hero is going to save the day. We get hints along the way that saving the day may be impossible. We can eventually guess where this is all going. That’s normally a death knell. Here, it’s fine because it does something lesser movies don’t. It defiantly straddles the fence, not choosing either of the two possible outcomes it gives us. Neither is very pleasant. Yet, we still feel the need to decipher what we’ve seen, trying to extract the film’s truth. To be, or not to be really is the question. Supporters of both will have plenty of evidence to support their interpretation.

Once again teaming up with director Martin Scorsese, DiCaprio turns in another great performance. For Scorcese, it’s a departure from the norm. This is no gritty urban crime drama, but his storytelling is as effective as ever.

The drawback is that it runs too long. There is a scene in which the movie climaxes by giving us the two options to decide between. The next two or three minutes flesh out one of them. If the Coen Brothers had directed this, it would’ve ended right there, probably without those few minutes but abruptly stopping right when…I’ll let you see it. Scorcese drags it on too long after that, almost explaining too much.

“SI” is a top notch psychological thriller. It diminishes its own predictability with a heavy dose of ambiguity. It also plays with our heads by using lots of smoke and mirrors, but in a good way. This isn’t your uncle pulling a penny out of your ear, it’s a really slick sleight of hand David Blaine would be proud of.

The Opposite View: A.O. Scott, New York Times

What the Internet Says: 8.0/10 on imdb.com (7/16/10), 67% on rottentomatoes.com, 63/100 on metacritic.com

8.5/10