It's rare that this category gets so many strong films (on paper, anyway) and ones that were nominated for Best Picture. So in seeing that, I'm hoping that we will get some really good performances out of the bunch.
1976 Best Supporting Actress
Beatrice Straight - Network
Blink and you'll miss it. I believe that Straight has the shortest amount of screen time for an Oscar winning performance at just over five minutes, which is pretty incredible to think about. Although, when it comes to this film, Ned Beatty only worked on the film for one day and still got a nomination out of it. Straight plays the wife of William Holden's character and legit has only two scenes, I think. The first one was just a very brief moment in bed and then came the moneymaker. Straight gets to deliver her dramatic shouting scene as Holden tells her he is in love with Faye Dunaway's character and not with her. I feel like Straight uh, plays it straight. She delivers what is necessary for an emotional, shout-y, personal moment of reacting to someone you've known for a quarter century. It has the right intensity, doesn't go overboard in hysterics, and feels like a genuine moment between a husband and wife. It's good work for a hugely cliche role but then that work is trampled over when the writing gets too on the nose and Holden's character narrates their little scene as if it's part of some television program and then the two immediately have a laugh at the absurd nature of what's going on. That's where the satirical nature of the film lets down a character like this that would have trouble getting a foothold even in a purely dramatic film. It's not for lack of ability or trying by Straight - she does what she can with a role that doesn't have much purpose in the film itself. And I feel like you have to measure these short winners by the impact their performances leave on the film and Straight unfortunately is betrayed by the writing because you never really care about her character once she's gone. I do feel it's a little strange she won but the film did seem to strike a chord acting wise with the Academy so maybe it just got swept up in the voting. I was just never left wanting more of her so I'll have to see where she ranks with the rest of the group.
Jane Alexander - All the President's Men
I have enjoyed both of Alexander's performances that I have seen so far. She blew me away in Testament and I just loved that performance. I wasn't as blown away by her Kramer vs. Kramer role but understood it was still good and came along with the film. I was intrigued by this nomination because I knew this was a short one. That's all anyone talked about when she was brought up. She has about eight minutes of screen time and is only listed as Bookkeeper which was part of the intrigue. She basically has just two scenes: one answering questions from Hoffman's Bernstein and the other answering more questions from Woodward and Bernstein together. But I felt she, as the only real female character in the film of any importance, nailed her scenes. She plays a reluctant bookkeeper of an accounting firm tied to the Committee to Re-Elect the President and doesn't want to talk at all because she's been advised not to, yet Bernstein persists and eventually finds that she knows a ton about the illegal dealings that helps point them to bigger leads. I love that she is so hesitant and her face is a roadmap of worry and fear and anxiety and reluctance and calmness, too. She's so calm but nervous at the same time which sounds stupid to describe but Alexander captures that dichotomy perfectly. I think she knew speaking was the right thing because of what transpired but was told to be quiet so she's super fearful. But the men get her to reveal information without fully revealing things and putting her more at ease and it's just a wonderful give and take by all three and shows how a witness interrogation can not really be an interrogation. Hoffman is prodding for facts but does so in a delicate manner that Alexander responds to and thought the first scene is a bit tense, it has it's release in knowing that she is doing the right thing. I do think that Alexander being the only real female character makes her scenes feel more important than they probably should, but there is no denying she adds a dynamic to the film that is missing and needed. I think she's good in her brief scenes but can understand why others might be hesitant to vote for her. It will be interesting to see where she ranks with me.
Jodie Foster - Taxi Driver
There is a lot to this actual nomination. I guess I should briefly mention that Foster was the obsession herself in real life by a deranged man who went on to almost kill President Reagan which of course mirrors part of this film. I think people forget that there was an assassination plot of a Presidential candidate in this film which is why the synergy of the two events is crazy. But about Foster herself - she was twelve years old in this film and I dare you to watch that film and actually think of her as twelve years old. She comes off as incredibly mature and that's not just the script or her acting, that's just her as a person. So she seems much older which the role needs for you to believe her character could be a hooker that Travis Bickle wants to save. Now, I'm on record as loathing child performances but this is no child performance. This is the performance of an actress who knew what she was doing and could interpret her character as she saw fit. By that I mean, she wasn't just memorizing lines in a cutesy, precocious way or pretending to be an adult when she clearly wasn't - all those pet peeves that bug the hell out of me. No, Foster delivers a fully realized performance at age twelve and is even able to milk sympathy out of Travis, as pathetic as he is. She goes toe to toe with De Niro, who at that time was a super dedicated method actor and even rehearsed the diner scene with her days and days for hours at a time. The fact that she put up with that tells you about her own dedication and obviously we know she became an accomplished actress with two Oscar wins and it all started here. This may not be my winner right now, but she sure is up there for a vote because who else can contend with an actual performance like hers so far? She's a plausible person who ran away from home and then was manipulated by her pimp into thinking he loved her and that she should turn tricks for him. It's not just a twelve year old playing twenty-two, it's a girl who is in over her head and trying to deal with things with a confidence that wavers. It's easy to see how Foster would go on to be a huge actress.
Lee Grant - Voyage of the Damned
What you should know about this nomination is two things: Lee Grant was a previous Supporting Actress the year before for Shampoo in 1975 and that this film was filled - I mean filled - with famous people cameos. Lots of famous actors were in this film. Some I know by name and others I don't recognize at all but IMDB tells me they were famous. This film is about the ship that left Germany with hundreds of Jewish refugees but was denied port at many places and eventually had to disperse it's occupants to different countries. This is a real thing that happened and history and is pretty sad to think about. Thing is, Grant is singled out because she had just won and represented a film that had Max von Sydow, Faye Dunaway, Orson Welles and many others. It's not a particularly good film, however. It's long and poorly written with characters that aren't anywhere close to being fully fleshed out. Grant is a married woman with a husband who is sick and a daughter that is shy, who she tells to go make friends on the ship. I tell you this because tragedy occurs to both of them and Grant gets what is probably the one big Oscar scene where she cuts her hair in desperation and grief and atonement. It's also a bit schlocky. And shows the over the top nature of the film and performances littered throughout it. I always feel like Grant is going through the process of acting, trying to find the right emotion and thought for the character. Never does it feel like she really is the character, just an actress still trying to fine tune a performance. Which matches the rest of the actors in the film who don't even bother putting in any effort or are too involved in looking like they are acting. The cast gives such a wide range of different performances so Grant still fine tuning hers comes as no surprise here. Overall, it's an entirely forgettable performance for a film that deserved better in every facet of itself. It's an interesting look into the 70s and actors of the time if you are ever curious, though.
Piper Laurie - Carrie
I have stated in past reviews that I'm not a big fan of horror films and most of that is just how derivative they all are. But if a horror film is able to make it into the Oscars that usually means it's pretty great and/or unique. Carrie would certainly rate as being unique, though I would question how great it really is. It's a short film (hour and a half) about a girl with a super religious mother who keeps her in fear about the world and her own body. The girl gets bullied at school and it goes so far as for them to have the hot guy at school ask her to prom where she is crowned Prom Queen and then they dump pigs blood all over her. We all know the scene. Carrie then unleashes her telekinetic powers and kills almost everyone in the school before killing her mother and herself. Really quick, simple story. The religious mother is Piper Laurie and her performance is way over the top. Now, I know there are a lot of people who think this is a glorious performance and just overall great and fantastic and amazing but it's not. Laurie herself thought that the film was going to be a dark comedy and even when assured it was a horror film, she still felt her performance was more black comedy than horror. If Laurie says her performance was over the top and completely ridiculous and was laughing in between takes because the dialogue was cringe worthy, then maybe don't take this performance so seriously, either. By that I mean, Laurie is very effective as the crazy religious nut of a mother she portrays and does deliver something memorable, but let's not conflate it's importance as being some kind of all time performance. The over the top nature of the performance suits the film well because it's a pretty ridiculous story anyway and it really hammers home the evil nature of the mother and that leads to Carrie's breaking point. I think it's a fun performance to watch but I'm not on the boat that things this is some superior acting class. I think Laurie's final monologue scene where she talks about Carrie's father and liking his whisky breath really sells the performance as not being a complete disaster. So there is some good to find in the performance but don't pretend it's not a bit goofy as well.
Not as awesome as I was hoping this group would be, but it could have been worse. Grant was the sole representative for a film stuffed with famous actors that was pretty bad for the most part. I never felt like she found the character and was just trying things out. Just not much there. Laurie at least knows she is playing an absurd character and makes the most of it with an over the top performance that is a little bit fun and menacing, too. Even Laurie thought her performance was pretty out there so she can't be higher than fourth for me. I put Straight in the middle because if you remove her from the film, no one would notice or care. It's an unnecessary character and plot element that is extremely short, though Straight herself isn't bad at all. It's just why would you vote for her to win for that kind of performance? I really thought hard about putting Foster as my winner as she is mature beyond her years and gives a fully formed performance for a character that should probably be super cliche. She doesn't get the win because she's young and would give better performances later on in her life. Alexander is almost a default winner here though I really enjoyed the subtlety she brought to her role. She doesn't want to talk explicitly about what she knows but she also kinda does and just that inner turmoil being expertly portrayed by Alexander sets her apart for me. I think she delivers something worth watching there. All in all, this group should have been better but it wasn't the worst ever. As always, I'm hoping the next year is better.
Oscar Winner: Beatrice Straight - Network
My Winner: Jane Alexander - All the President's Men
Jodie Foster
Beatrice Straight
Piper Laurie
Lee Grant
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