Sometimes you have to look at the previous years when a nomination doesn't make sense or seems to come out of nowhere. Like last year for me (1986) where Kathleen Turner is nominated for Peggy Sue Got Married. Inspired choice by the Academy and pretty fun film. But then you see she was the lead in Prizzi's Honor this year and her nomination in 86 seems like a make up. I mean, Anjelica Huston and Jack Nicholson and William Hickey and the film itself were all nominated. Hell, even Robert Loggia was by way of Jagged Edge. So Turner was the odd woman out. And I really feel like the Academy nominated her in 86 as an apology. Sometimes understanding nominations is as simple as looking at the year or two before and seeing what was nominated. There is no doubt that that is the reason Turner was nominated. You get that this year too with Geraldine Page. This was her 8th nomination so the Academy was itching to give her an award. I've only seen Whoopi and I know she's great so I'll have to see if Page deserved it or not.
1985 Best Actress
Geraldine Page - The Trip to Bountiful
There is certainly a ton to talk about for this win and nomination. The most obvious, which I already alluded to above, is that this was the Academy finally giving Page her overdue win on her 8th nomination. A career/veteran win for an actress that was clearly beloved by Hollywood who wins over a black actress that most feel gave the better performance and who would have made history in the process. There is a tinge of racism attached to this win whether real or not that adds up, along with many bloggers hating this performance, to me becoming convinced I would hate it and excoriate it, too. Well, I'm here to say that Page is quite good as old Mrs. Watts. No doubt that she goes all in herself to get that elusive Oscar and yes, you could classify this as sentimental Oscar bait. All of that applies but Page still gives quite an effective performance as the old woman who wants to escape the boring house and city she lives in with her son and overbearing daughter-in-law to return once more to her old home and birthplace - Bountiful, Texas. She is able to escape and meet a bunch of different people on her journey and we see how nice and caring this little old lady truly is. I get why it has a negative appeal for some folks but that doesn't equate to her giving a bad performance at all. A lot of the older actors in their later films stick to the old ways of acting, but Page comes off very natural and not as if she's stuck in a bygone era. This isn't The Whales of August. Page holds her own and makes you really invest in her character because she gives you reason to. I would wager to bet that most of those that put this performance or film down have never actually watched it and just parrot what others say because of its perception. Now, as of right now I can't say whether or not Page deserves the win. I know Whoopi is great but the rest are wildcards yet to be seen. All I know is that this wasn't nearly as bad as I was lead to believe. Page carries the film well and it's a strong performance regardless of it being Oscar bait. Side note, this film reminds me a whole lot of Nebraska and I swear that film steals a shot of Page walking into her old rundown bedroom on the second story and seeing a decaying old bed. Wouldn't be surprised if it was an inspiration for Alexander Payne. The big takeaway from this performance is to not rely on others to think and make opinions for you. Watch the films and performances and judge it for yourself.
Anne Bancroft - Agnes of God
Maybe I'm just in a rut or maybe I'm watching too many performances or films that leave me not really caring either way about them or maybe that's just 1985 for me. But Bancroft is entirely forgettable to me. Maybe that's because Meg Tilly overpowers her the entire film or Jane Fonda has the more interesting role. Bancroft plays the Mother Superior at a convent where Tilly has had a baby that is dead and now authorities are trying to figure what happened and by whom. I don't feel like Bancroft does anything memorable or different for the nun role she's in. She plays the Mother Superior like a bully and also like a mother hen at different times. Of course she's going to protect her own interests and try to stave off Fonda the psychiatrist from digging into her little kingdom. I just wasn't impressed with what Bancroft did with her character. It's exactly what you think a head nun would be like in these circumstances and doesn't offer up anything rewarding in the performance. I feel like you could drop any other actress into the role and get at least the same result. Sure, Bancroft looks the part fine and does a good enough job being the head nun and being firm and authoritative when necessary, but I need a lot more than that for a Best Actress nomination. I need something that shows me why exactly the Academy gave Bancroft her 5th Oscar nomination and I just don't see it. Is this because she's a comfort choice for the Academy since she is a previous winner and is Mrs. Robinson (and Mrs. Mel Brooks)? I don't even think Bancroft is the true lead of the film, that's Jane Fonda. She feels more supporting like Meg Tilly to me. She's there to sort of argue the other side of Jane Fonda's psychiatry point. True faith versus skepticism and to shield the vulnerable Tilly from the outside world. That idea is really compelling but the performance itself is not. Like I said, I need a lot more from a Best Actress performance than Bancroft gives us here.
Whoopi Goldberg - The Color Purple
When you read about this category for this year, all you hear about online is that Whoopi was robbed (which was made up for later) and that Page is a bad winner. I had to watch this in high school and vaguely remembered Whoopi's performance but I was definitely not a film guy back then. Having watched this again, Whoopi really is worth all the praise I've read about. I'll get to all the rankings down below so as to focus on Whoopi here but I didn't realize this was her film debut. We all know Whoopi as this big personality nowadays, telling crass jokes and being loud and crazy and being an Oscar winner and host. She's obviously known much more for her comedy than for her dramatic chops but she is so good as Celie in this film. Celie is of course the main character and we follow her life as she is raped and abused and held down by the men in her life. It's a dark story that Spielberg mishandles but luckily Goldberg is up to the task of making Celie into a three dimensional character. At first she is this meek woman who doesn't really say much at all, just goes about doing her duties as wife and mother to a bunch of rotten kids. But eventually the true Celie peeks out every now and then like when she watches Danny Glover try to prepare breakfast and accidentally hits him on the head with a pot and then plops a chair down in the middle of the kitchen to watch him frantically rush about. The most memorable scene is obviously the one where she blows up at dinner at Glover and everyone else and it's so contained within Goldberg. It's so real and so appropriate and so good. It's not over the top or too much, the anger is believable and even relatable. Once that all goes down, the film lingers a bit too long but the ending is satisfying in that we see Goldberg come into her own and reunite with her sister and children. It's sentimental, yes, but it's a touching moment that Goldberg plays to perfection. Goldberg's trademark smile is used to great effect for Celie as well since she doesn't talk all that much so it becomes like a voice for her. It's a hell of a film debut for Whoopi and certainly leaves a lasting legacy for her. If only Oscar could have rightfully rewarded her instead of insisting on giving Page the win for whatever ridiculous.
Jessica Lange - Sweet Dreams
Okay, so I've seen enough Jessica Lange performances to know that almost everyone has had the air of her super gunning for an Oscar. At this point, she already had one for Supporting in Tootsie so maybe she was really gunning for one in Best Actress? But it's so obvious in everything I've seen of her so far that that is her ultimate goal. Look, I love her as an actress and think she's really great, but I hate when people make it obvious that all they care about is an Oscar. I get that she only has 6 nominations but I'm talking of the films she wasn't nominated for that I've seen on this project and otherwise. Anyway, Lange plays Miss Patsy Cline, a country singing legend. Cline is a singing country legend right? So why do we only get like two songs when Patsy is up and coming in the first hour? From that point we get maybe another 2 or 3 songs? When it comes to Cline's life I think we'd want more of her musical aspect included in her story. We want to hear the songs and see her inspirations for them or at least see her first sing them. I get that her life is tragic but we need her celebrity to carry us through. All I know of Patsy Cline is her Crazy song. We don't get that until a good 3/4ths the way through. All the rest is boring. The ending is unsatisfying because the plane crash could have been done better. The acting is really great but it is held back by a really shitty movie. Lange is dedicated but there is a lot missing from the performance. It feels labored and that seems that it's because Cline is bigger than Lange. She can't fully pull off Cline and that's okay. She's just not an Oscar winner for this performance and she's been much better in other roles.
Meryl Streep - Out of Africa
I write this review just a few days after Streep was nominated for her 20th(!) nomination by the Academy. That's insane. And at this point, I can't blame anyone for having Streep fatigue because this is my 14th review of hers and I feel like I'm running out of things to say about her. I'm at least happy to know that some of her strongest and most beloved performances are still to come for me. So how is she in this film? As per usual she is extremely talented and gives a really strong performance. We again get to see her showcase her ability to do a pitch perfect accent - this time a Danish accent that is quite convincing. The thing is about this performance is that she is the main focus of the film and has to carry it throughout it's just under 3 hour run time, which is honestly impressive. You would think you'd get sick of her in all that time but you never do. Maybe it's because there is a lot happening to her character as she goes to Africa after marrying a Baron she doesn't quite like. She has to adjust to living and working in Africa and dealing with her feelings for her absent and cold husband. She has to deal with his cheating and giving her syphilis as well as meeting Robert Redford's big game hunter and falling in love with him all while keeping her plantation afloat and trying to help educate the native Africans. There's a lot going on and Streep never falters, easily dealing with everything that is thrown at her character and never looking out of place as the wealthy socialite or the determined head of the plantation or the woman trying to navigate through the minefield that is love. Streep holds her own even as the film moves at a glacial pace. She absolutely deserves her nomination here and I think as we go back even more into Streeps beginnings, you can't really say she doesn't deserve her recognition. I feel like this is classic Streep, the performances and roles you point someone to as a starting place. While the film might be a bore, Streep is the main thing keeping it from being a chore to get through. She is definitely in the running for the win.
This is definitely not as bad as I was expecting it to be which is always a good thing! I'm firmly in the camp that thinks Whoopi should have won Best Actress. I don't care much for sentimentality and giving an Oscar to an actress because she's been nominated so many times already and is old is fucking absurd to me. Oscars are a legacy and should represent the best of acting yet what do people remember about this year? That Page won for a performance many people don't think is as good as Whoopi's. Everyone talks about Whoopi and her great performance still and not the other way around. I even like what Page did with her character and it's not awful by any means. It's just that history has shown that Whoopi is better. Hell, I'd probably put Streep above Page because she has to carry such a long, slow film and she doesn't suffer one bit for it. I do think Page is slightly better than Lange only because I don't see Lange as Patsy Cline, she's just Jessica Lange. Bancroft is basically an afterthought at 5th. She should be replaced by anyone else because she's entirely forgettable. So despite the controversy at the top it's not too bad of a category. Neither Bancroft or Lange are bad, just are either uninteresting or not really right for the part (in my opinion). Glad to be done with this one.
Oscar Winner: Geraldine Page - The Trip to Bountiful
My Winner: Whoopi Goldberg - The Color Purple
Meryl Streep
Geraldine Page
Jessica Lange
Anne Bancroft
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