This is kind of an interesting category because it only concerns two different type of films: three are based on women dealing with issues related to their farms and the other two are period piece films (a David Lean epic and a Merchant-Ivory literary adaptation). All at once it's both easier and harder to judge because they are somewhat similar yet you can pick your favorite against each other without judging five completely different roles. So I'm actually really interested in seeing what this year has to offer.
1984 Best Actress
Sally Field - Places in the Heart
When it came to the other three reviews to write for this film, those all were super easy to write about and I immediately had ideas on what to say. But for some reason when it came to Field's performance for which she won her second Best Actress Oscar, well, I couldn't think of all that much to say. I think for most people when they see this win all they think about is her often misquoted Oscar acceptance speech where she didn't say "You like me, you really like me!" But she does in fact give a very good performance in the film. Having seen a couple of her films in this same time frame, Field seems to pick roles that are strong independent women - or at least the character grows to become just that. In this film, she plays a woman whose husband is killed by a drunk black kid accidentally (he's a sheriff) leaving her to have to find the money to keep her house and land and take care of her kids. She takes in a black drifter and a blind veteran (Danny Glover and John Malkovich, respectively) and decides to plant and grow cotton and then sell it to keep herself afloat. It comes at the same time as a couple other Southern women dealing with issues about their farms so what does Field do that is special or great. I think her strength as an actress is playing characters who maybe start out a little meek and timid and unsure of themselves growing and maturing into fully fledged strong, independent women and making the transition look natural. It's Field's type and she knows how to make those characters work well within the story. Yeah, she might not drift too far from what she's good at and play different roles but she knows how to play a sympathetic figure without having to tug at your heartstrings and get too emotional in the roles. I feel like she reacts naturally to tragedies or challenges she faces as a person in her films like this one. She doesn't go into hysterics and play up the moments, she stays grounded and confronts things head on and it's actually nice to watch. You could say that maybe Field is too independent and strong at times when maybe she should be more emotional and vulnerable but I can't really fault her for acting that way. I think that's what I like about her roles is that she's playing real characters and not these Hollywood creations, which is refreshing to watch. I haven't seen her first Oscar win to be able to compare these wins and I haven't (as of writing this review) seen her competition in this category to compare the farm issue films/performances, so this is just my gut reaction to Field as an actress and her character in this film. As it stands now, it's not a terrible win at all and I'll see if anyone can dethrone her.
Judy Davis - A Passage to India
Again I kinda struggled to get motivated to write something about Davis while the rest of the reviews came to me easily. Maybe I just find it harder to judge and review the Actresses for some reason, I dunno. But it's not like I disliked Davis in the role at all, I actually very much enjoyed her character. She's almost two characters in one with how different the two halves of the film are. She plays a woman heading to India to see the man she might marry and to explore and enjoy India. She is appalled at how the British treat the native people and ignore the beauty and exciting opportunities to see the country. She and her possible betrothed never really click because of this, though she becomes good friends with his mother who is visiting with her. She also befriends an Indian doctor and goes to see some caves with them. An incident occurs where she gets spooked for some reason and then the other white people believe she was raped by the doctor and Davis roles with it. It's an abrupt change and I guess shows how this accepting woman can be so easily persuaded by her fellow Brits to hate the Indians she was good friends with. It's an interesting character arc that Davis does a solid job in portraying. At first you are in her corner, wondering why the British don't get to know the Indian people and are cheering her on. And then the change happens and you want her to not kowtow to the pressure and accuse Dr Aziz and are disgusted with her when she does. It's a roller coaster of emotions that Davis takes us on and the fact that we become so passionate and irritated about her behavior is proof that she does a solid job in the role. I won't go so far as saying she should win but it's strong work and she is very convincing in making us like her and then hate her character. It's good, just not one that amazes me.
Jessica Lange - Country
The second of the farm films from this year. It's similar in subject to Places in the Heart in that it's about a family who is about to lose a farm unless they can scrounge up the money to pay the bank. This film is the more realistic and less romanticized version of that reality. This is the more raw and real version of farm events in the early 80s. Lange plays a farm wife who has to deal with the bank and I guess government trying to foreclose on their farm and take everything because they aren't making enough money from their loans. This was a huge issue in the early 80s and this is the realistic family is working hard making an honest living type deal yet big bad bank/government wants to take all their money and land and equipment story. It sucks for the farmers and that is obvious but the story is very by the numbers. Lange is the farm wife for the majority of the film. She takes care of the kids, helps out around the farm, is the strong woman all farm wives should be. It's a good performance and it's yeoman's work. But like all my other issues with Lange's work, the role is super Oscar baity. Towards the end, Lange banishes her hubby (real life beau Sam Shepard) to leave the farm and takes on the fight on her own. She organizes an in person boycott of an auction and that's the big end piece. She's very serious and concerned and is good but it's also expected within the role. It's just that the performance is what you'd expect from the role and nothing more. It's not the best farm related performance of the year so Lange misses out yet again.
Vanessa Redgrave - The Bostonians
I guess before I get into the performance I should note the interesting tidbit about this role is that it was originally Glenn Close's but she had to turn it down because she was going to make The Natural. It worked out for both involved because they each got an Oscar nomination this year out of the deal which is pretty interesting. What is not interesting is Redgrave's performance. Now, that might just be because of what the character is but there was nothing for me to grab onto in this performance. She plays Olive Chancellor, a feminist in Boston who is cousins with Christopher Reeves' Southern lawyer. They both take an interest in a young woman who who makes feminist speeches in the late 1800s. Both compete for the attention and affection of the young woman and so the feminist movement and women's roles all are put on blast in this interesting Henry James story. Redgrave's character is so serious and solemn throughout the film which is probably why I can't relate to her in any way and have nothing to latch onto as far as the performance goes. Redgrave isn't all that prominent in the story but is part of the triumvirate of characters so I guess that's why she qualifies as leading. She tries to keep the young woman away from getting married and staying with the cause and delivering speeches because she's good at it and that's basically what the character is there to do. There's an obvious lesbian angle to the character that isn't really explored but is understood that that is why she takes such a keen interest in the woman and not just for her politics. Redgrave plays it as the story needs, I guess, but it is so solemn that it borders on uninteresting for me. There's no real big moment until the very end when Redgrave steps into the pulpit to give a speech on women's rights but it's not fully explored and she gets cut off for the end of the film. The character and Redgrave's performance could have been more memorable but it never got the chance. I know I would never have nominated this performance because there's just not enough going on in it. I feel like you could tweak James' story and delve into the relationship between Redgrave and the young woman and explore that and it's implications and get something very provocative and interesting. Instead we get a dull performance, sadly.
Sissy Spacek - The River
This is the third farm related film in this category and I'm all farmed out. Though I could go for a good farm film in 2017, no lie. Anyway, The River just has a connotation with it that screams big adventurous type film. But this film is more like an amalgamation of the other two where a family has to survive bank foreclosures, a flooded river destroying their crops, and all sorts of hardships that show the struggles farmers have to deal with. This film has the added layer of the man of the household (a young Mel Gibson) having to work at a steel mill as a strikebreaker to make ends meet for the farm and his family. Spacek, who I have grown to really enjoy after not liking her for some reason, plays the farm wife. She doesn't get a whole lot to do, same as like Lange in her film. She plays the strong farm wife and mother and supports her family and husband. The director cast her because she looks and sounds like the quintessential Southern woman and I'd agree for the most part. She fits the character and does a good job but there's just not enough of an actual performance there. The focus is on Mel Gibson and the farm and Spacek is more for support even though she is the lead. She has one scene that's pretty good where she gets her arm caught in some big farm machine and is trying to get it out and she eventually antagonizes a bull that wanders over to help move the machinery so she can free her arm. But that's really just one scene and the rest of the film is her being supportive or familial. This seems like a filler nomination honestly. I mean, the Academy nominated three performances that are basically all the same with some minor variances. Spacek doesn't stand out among those and she's won for a much better performance so here the nomination is the reward itself. This is probably the best of the three farm films, so it at least has that going for it.
Such an unusual year where you have three almost identical performances from farming related film and then two period piece dramas based on acclaimed books. So from the period piece dramas, Davis is the clear winner. I don't understand at all why Redgrave was even nominated. The performance is boring and the character doesn't do much and the film isn't that great. I guess it's all about name recognition and being in a respected acting family. She is the worst of the five easily. Then when you look at the farming films, Field is the clear cut winner there. Both Spacek and Lange don't have much to do other than be farm wives and be supportive. They individually have some decent scenes but it's not enough of a performance for either one. I slightly like Spacek more. So between Davis and Field, Field is the winner. I think Davis' story suffers and she can't quite make it fully work with the character while Field is solid all the way around. Like I said, a weird year where I wish there was a couple different nominees.
Oscar Winner: Sally Field - Places in the Heart
My Winner: Sally Field - Places in the Heart
Judy Davis
Sissy Spacek
Jessica Lange
Vanessa Redgrave
