Leading Actress 1994

This starts a string of Best Actress categories where I haven't seen any of the nominees, although a mayyyy have seen Little Women? Don't really remember. In any event, I'm excited to find a hidden gem or two. Hopefully, anyway.

1994 Best Actress

Jessica Lange - Blue Sky

This film has an interesting history to it. It was filmed during the summer of 1990, completed in 1991, and then was shelved for three years because the studio that made it went bankrupt. It then was released in 1994 and got Lange her second Oscar. The other interesting thing is that it co-stars Tommy Lee Jones, who hadn't even been nominated for his first Oscar when this was made. He would go on to win for his second nomination all before this film was released. It creates a crazy what might have been for the 1991 Best Actress race where Jodie Foster won her second for Silence of the Lambs. Would Lange have won that year? Doubtful given how loved Foster's film and performance were that year. Would Lange have even been nominated? Hard to say until I get to 1991, but some fascinating things to think about all before even watching this film. I haven't seen much of Lange's work besides her turn on American Horror Story, but I know she's one fierce woman. She has presence and I was excited to see her Oscar winning performance. She plays an Army wife to Jones, who is a bit of a wild woman, an ingenue, a free spirit. That causes problems for Jones because the Army doesn't like her ways and it strains the relationship the two have. It's evident from the beginning that she is equal parts Marilyn Monroe and damaged woman, a hothead, a woman who would fit right in in a Tennessee Williams film. Her performance hearkens back to the time the film is set, the 1950s. I could easily see her as a volatile actress in one of those steamy, sexy films that starred Elizabeth Taylor or Vivien Leigh. The role gives Lange the freedom to act loudly and purposefully because it fits within the narrative. Lange's character is supposed to be impulsive, shocking, tempestuous, and flighty. She's like a young girl that never fully grew up, instead acting like the women she sees in the movies and magazines. There's times where her behavior was annoying and I sympathized with Jones having to deal with her causing professional and personal problems for them. In that respect, Lange did a great job in making her character so convincing as a misguided woman. I enjoyed the performance for what it was but I feel like I'm still figuring out if I love it and think it's a good winner. Probably a good thing that this got pushed back a few years so that Lange was able to win another Oscar in what appears to be a mediocre year for the category. I might not love the character but I know that Lange is a quality actress and it showed in this performance.

Jodie Foster - Nell

After watching this and reading some reviews, the consensus seems to be that this was an awful film with a brilliant performance by Foster. I'd say the truth is a little more in the middle. The film itself isn't the best. It's predictable and doesn't have anything convincing to say about Foster's character. By that I mean it treats her character like she is this pure, untouched, almost perfect representation of a person because she's been isolated. Jodie Foster plays the wild child, Nell, whose mother dies and is discovered all alone in a cabin deep in the forest. Liam Neeson wants to help protect her from scientists who want to study her. Nell has her own made up language that Neeson eventually cracks but most of the film is spent trying to figure it out and reach out to Nell on a personal level. Foster is intense, giving 110% of herself to the performance. I understand why everyone calls it brilliant and accomplished because it is. It's a masterclass of acting when it comes to Oscar bait. I kinda hate to call it Oscar bait because it feels too good for that but it really is Oscar bait. It's like a pitcher who dominates and throws a complete game but still gets the loss, that's what it feels like. Thing is that I don't feel as if Foster elevates the material at all. She doesn't make it a better film, just keeps it from being truly awful. She speaks in a made up language for the entire film which is dedication and portrays the feral woman with wide eyed wonder and violent, scared outbursts. It could almost be a horror film if it were edited differently which is how the performance comes off at times, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Just that Foster brings an intensity to the character that's not matched by anything else in the film. It's almost trying too hard. Foster deserved a better film around her for the type of performance she gave. And honestly, do you think the Academy would have given Foster a 3rd Oscar in 3 tries in just 7 years? Not for this kind of film.

Miranda Richardson - Tom and Viv

This is not that great of a film, at least for me it's not all that interesting. It's about the relationship between T.S. Eliot and Vivienne Haigh-Wood, which actually after I read up on it sounded a little more interesting than what this film showed us. That's partly why I don't care much for the film but it's also such a minor subject. So if you are going to do it, it has to be strong. Richardson does her best to make it a strong film because she does put in the effort needed for her character. She is the Viv in the title and Viv is a very temperamental woman. She has these wild mood swings and she gets frequent heavy menstrual cycles. It's explained as simply being a possible hormonal imbalance at the end of the film years after the relationship. But she does get into these moods of despair and she's embarrassed by her periods and wonders if Tom is disgusted by her. She takes some medications but they make her loopy and exacerbate the mood problems. It's an interesting role for sure and Richardson is up to the task of balancing out all the different things needed of her character. From being loving and friendly to being talkative with no filter to hysterics to despair to other mental issues. It's a tough role that Richardson excels at and makes Viv into a believable character. But it's still kinda not enough. Yes, she's moody and temperamental but we never really get to dive into the character herself. Viv comes off and wickedly smart and a good writer, or at least editor, for Tom and we don't get a fully formed Viv. Richardson tries her damnedest to give us something to go off of but ultimately it circles back to she's kooky and needy. I feel also that the film rushes things too much. In the beginning we get a brief scene of their quick romance together before they are married and having issues. At the end when she's put into the institution we don't get enough explanation of what's going on with Viv. It rushes to being years later and not telling us much of importance about the two leads and how everything has affected Viv. Basically I believe the performance could have been much stronger if the story and the details of the film were fully fleshed out. Richardson was as good as she could be with the material she had to work with and that's pretty commendable. I wish we could have gotten a better film to showcase her.

Winona Ryder - Little Women

Little Women is a nice little film. I wanna say I saw part of it, if not all of it, while in elementary school or maybe middle school. It's the type of film that does get shown in school because it's based on a book that gets taught and is for the most part a gentle ride. The story does get a little depressing towards the end when it becomes almost a lamentation on growing up and growing apart from friends and family. Of course, it rounds itself off and goes back to being the nice little film with a happy ending. Ryder plays the main little woman, Jo, who is the second oldest and an aspiring writer and we go through life with her as our guide. That's essentially what Ryder is: a guide for the viewer. She escorts us through scene after scene and is the one sister we become the most familiar with. But this film is most definitely an ensemble picture and the other sisters are all equally good and entertaining. We may not get to know them as deeply as Jo but they are nonetheless ever present. I would say they help Ryder look better because they are all accomplished actresses. You've got a young Kirsten Dunst, Claire Danes, and Susan Sarandon as the mother which is good company to have in a film. Plus a young Christian Bale gets to interact with the sisters so there are lots of chances for some very strong acting. I say all this because I don't really think Ryder stood head and shoulders above the rest of the group, just that her character was the main one we follow around for the entire film. I think that helps her get a nomination here as does her being nominated the year before and the Academy loving the chance to crown another young actress. Ryder was in her prime so it makes sense they wanted to reward her because it makes themselves look good, too. The performance is fine, she definitely gives it her all and it makes for a pleasant experience. It just doesn't quite have the requisite power to pull off the win. She's a spunky child who grows up in a loving family and powers through the difficulties she faces in life and it's all a nice sentiment. It's just not strong enough to win.

Susan Sarandon - The Client

This was towards the end of the Academy's love affair with Sarandon that culminated in a Best Actress Oscar the next year. Just as Lange was rewarded this year, it was Sarandon's turn in 1995. Once you start closely following the categories these things jump out as being so obvious. There's a lot of times where you'll see an actor or actress nominated a couple times before finally winning. Just another one of the Academy's idiosyncrasies. Sarandon plays a lawyer who takes on the case of a boy who sees a guy kill himself after telling him the location of a body. This sets in motion the story of the mobsters wanting to shut the boy up and the DA in Louisiana (Tommy Lee Jones) to come after him for the information he was told. Sarandon takes the boy on to protect him from the unscrupulous DA who doesn't care what it means if the boy talks, just that he'll look good with another conviction. It's a strong, successful, independent woman role for Sarandon and while I do enjoy seeing those kinds of roles, it's almost a cookie cutter character. It doesn't really matter that Sarandon played her since the lawyer could have been portrayed by any woman to the same effect. That's not to denigrate Sarandon as she is more than capable of giving a good performance helped along with her Southern charm and charisma. It's also probably a familiar role because it's based off a John Grisham book, so it's not as if the character breaks new ground. Like I said, Sarandon is perfectly fine as the lawyer and I enjoyed watching her thrash the other hotshot men with her legal acumen. It's a good role model type of performance and one that I can't really put down because it makes the story a lot more interesting than say if it was a man as the lawyer. Part of that is because Sarandon is such a good actress and is able to give the performance a little more energy. She's also kind of a badass which is nice to see from a leading actress performance. Definitely don't get enough of those. It's a good performance and a very 90s performance.


This isn't a group that really inspires me. I wasn't really super into any of these, though none of them were bad. Just kind of a meh year overall. I guess the 5th for me would be Richardson because the film is meh and even though she tries to do a good job in a difficult role, it just didn't do much for me. Again, not bad just not anything that made me excited. Ryder would be the 4th because it's more of an ensemble picture and she doesn't exactly shine above the others. Sarandon would be in the middle but I think I like her performance the most even though it's a slight one compared to the other two. It's not worth a win, just a watch. Foster is Oscar bait so that's why she's my number two. Lange stays the winner because there is no other performance that could really top it, so might as well keep her there. Not a glowing indictment, I know. I dunno, just not a year where I was super into any of the performances or films, really. Hopefully 1993 gives me something to get excited about.

Oscar Winner: Jessica Lange - Blue Sky
My Winner:  Jessica Lange - Blue Sky
Jodie Foster
Susan Sarandon
Winona Ryder
Miranda Richardson