Leading Actress 2006

Even though I haven't seen 3 of these performances yet, I'm not all that excited by the choices. Hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised and enjoy a banner year like the rest of the categories. However, I am worried that this category might drag on if the films themselves turn out to be boring - which I know isn't very fair to say - but none of these stand out like in the other categories. I will keep an open mind, though, since that's what this project is all about!

2006 Best Actress

Helen Mirren - The Queen

Even though she plays The Queen and is the main focus of the film, Mirren at times seems to try to purposefully lose herself in the background to show just how stoic and reserved Queen Elizabeth actually is. It's a remarkable way to present her character and while it's near impossible to achieve we can understand the idea that Mirren is going for. She's a woman that has years of expectations, policy, and breeding that forms her royal visage and outlook. It has not prepared her well for the modern world that confronts her when Diana dies and her nation and people expect her to treat Diana as one of her own. She is out of touch with the public and she comes off so cold. But eventually she realizes she must adapt to an ever changing world and not the other way around. Mirren keeps the reserved Queen Elizabeth as still being reserved in her performance and refrains from any over the top moments that most biopics seem to demand. I feel that Mirren's performance would have been easily lost if she went full Oscar bait-y, so the subtlety she exhibits is absolutely refreshing here. Mirren is methodical, deliberate, and fascinating to watch not only as Queen Elizabeth but as an Actress in general and her win here comes as no surprise.

Penelope Cruz - Volver

Here's a pro tip: don't try to watch a 2 hour, subtitled foreign film with an actress you generally don't care for after a night of drinking because it's going to be super confusing and the subtitles are going to seem to go by way too fast. On my second attempt, I was able to cogently follow the plot and subtitles and actually review Cruz's performance (amazing how that works out!). Cruz is actually pretty good in this film, much to my surprise. The film itself is a bit weird until the ending where all was revealed. I'm not sure how it would have played over here but it definitely felt like more of a Spanish concept than anything. Back to Cruz, who I wasn't rooting against by the way, she scales back the Spanish sass and big acting to deliver something more universal and calmer. A couple of the actresses in this film were on par with Cruz but they had more supporting roles so Cruz gets the nod here. It's not exactly a powerhouse performance and doesn't overly wow us but we can understand why exactly she's an international star besides her good looks. That's to say, for me, Cruz isn't the standout, just one of the key parts to a great ensemble. What I especially liked is that Cruz finally looked natural in a movie of hers that I've seen. Acting in her native tongue, in a film who's story probably connects a bit more personally than say her work with Woody Allen, really let's her shine - even if it's not as bright here as others seems to think. I look forward to seeing more of her earlier work outside of Hollywood to see just how good an actress she really is.

Judi Dench - Notes on a Scandal

Within the first few minutes of watching this movie, you can tell that Dench is pumping life into every scene. She does a very convincing job as the old, academic spinster who is super nosy about all the goings on in her school. She's a lesbian (we assume, anyway) and grows to like Cate Blanchett's character, almost obsessively so. What I do love is how she narrates like the history teacher she is. It might be missed by most but it's as if she's recounting the events for some history textbook. She's almost like a Hitchcockian character who sees a potential victim. She obsesses over Sheba to the point where she overlooks Sheba's indiscretion with a student in hopes that it will bring her closer to Dench. Dench turns into almost a horror figure by turning into the neighbor that peers through the blinds and knows everything about your secrets. She obsesses over women she meets that are friendly to her and begins these delusional relationships in her head, concocting absurd ways to trick them into being with her. You half expect Dench to kill Blanchett in the end to complete the character arc. The movie itself isn't very good and tries to be many different things that it most certainly is not. Dench is able to overcome that through her star power alone and delivers something interesting despite the missteps of the rest of the film.

Meryl Streep - The Devil Wears Prada

Another year, another iconic character created by Meryl Streep. This time we get Miranda Priestly, the head of a fashion magazine who is ice cold and razor sharp. She is the titular Devil in the film's title and she certainly plays her role as if she has sold her soul. Meryl is acting royalty and here she plays fashion royalty and is the complete opposite of her real world self. If Priestly was how Streep acted in real life, I don't think many people would bat an eyelash since she is widely considered the greatest living actress today. Streep is in absolute command of her craft here. Her calm, whispered speech belies her ruthless, relentless demeanor. Her performance is both loud and not loud at the same time. It's subdued but Streep has the natural gravitas to take over every scene she's in without overacting. It's quite wonderful to watch her work because it's so methodical and deliberate that it's like watching an acting class. I found myself wishing Anne Hathaway (Oscar winner! blech) would get off the screen so I could see more of Streep and Stanley Tucci. Streep is every adjective in the book that you can throw at her and this performance doesn't let us down whatsoever. That's all.

Kate Winslet - Little Children

Sitting here trying to come up with what to write about Winslet's performance and all I can think of is that yup, this was a Kate Winslet performance. She just consistently pumps out these roles with a seeming effortlessness because they are never bad and always nominated. Maybe she gets nominated for her name at times more than for her efforts and maybe because she's so beloved that her work is trumpeted to be more amazing than it really is. So that's why I sit here trying to figure out what to write. Her role here as a bored mother and housewife longing for some adventure and excitement in all areas of her life doesn't seem too far fetched from what we might think the real Winslet could be like. Meaning her performance does indeed seem natural, if a little too easy. I'm sure the performance hit home for many of the women who watched it. What I really didn't like about her character was how she was in such a loveless marriage that instead of divorcing her husband and allowing herself to be free to have an actual life she enjoyed, she just maintained the status quo which is I guess more true to life. Yes, she had an affair and wanted to run away from her life with the guy, but it just seemed more like a mid life crisis than a real life changing event. That her character might have run away for 2 weeks or so before limping back to her boring life seemed likely. Winslet does a good enough job of showing the complexities of going after something forbidden while wrestling with the notion of whether to stay or go. For me, this is a typical Kate Winslet performance: above average and workman-like.

Best Actress continues it's (backwards for me) trend of being good, but not great. All of these women have been nominated multiple times (though Cruz would later score 2 more, winning 1 Oscar, after this her first nomination) and as such is an incredibly experienced group. All of them are also winners, which I imagine is somewhat of a rare feat in itself. Cruz was only the second Spanish woman to be nominated for this category which seems a little surprising to me. It almost feels as if during these few years, these women (minus Cruz) took turns winning Oscars and being nominated. Which I think says a lot about how strong they are as actresses but also that the Academy likes going back to the same few women and not leaving their comfort zones. Because there are certainly other great female performances that seem to get overlooked. There are  no bad performances in this group. I think Winslet's is the weakest and probably could have been replaced with someone else since it just didn't do much for me. Then I think you could say the other 4 women are about equal in my estimation. Dench played a different character than I'm used to for her and was good. I'd give a slight edge to Cruz who absolutely convinced me there is more to her acting abilities. It's a toss up between Streep and Mirren so I'd go with the Academy here. I'm sure by the time I get through all of Streep's nominations, I'll have given her about 10 Oscars anyway. No one stood head and shoulders above the rest which hopefully becomes less and less true as I go back in time because I'm really wanting to be wowed by this category!

Oscar Winner: Helen Mirren - The Queen
My Winner: Helen Mirren - The Queen
Meryl Streep
Penelope Cruz
Judi Dench
Kate Winslet