Kathleen Turner in Peggy Sue Got Married

Kathleen Turner received her only Oscar nomination to date for playing Peggy Sue, a woman going back in time during her high school reuninion in Francis Ford Coppola's movie, Peggy Sue Got Married. Many thought that Turner was going to win the Oscar as she was a great star, previously snubbed many times. However, she had only won the NBR for Best Actress. I guess the thing why she didn't win is that the role was too lightweight. I think she was either second or third. The Academy seeming didn't like Kathleen Turner as much as the audiences at the time.

Peggy Sue Got Married is too much like Back to the Future, except it's much less original and it lacks the brilliant humor of the latter. It's really one of the lesser efforts of Francis Ford Coppola. I mean how could you compare this to The Godfather trilogy, for example. I don't like that he always gives roles to the members of the family as they are not that great actors, I think. Nicolas Cage is really weird as Peggy Sue's (future) husband, Charlie. He's way too mannered for me. This movie is quite interesting, though, and it's mostly because we can see future stars and/or Oscar nominees in minor part (Jim Carrey, Joan Allen). Still, there are some great things about this movie and it's quite entertaining.

I haven't seen many of Kathleen Turner's movies but I think she's a really great actres and she really has a great voice. I felt she was really great in Body Heat and Prizzi's Honor and that she was brilliant as Chandler's father on Friends. So I have only had good memories about her so I was really looking forward to watching the only movie for which she received an Oscar nomination. She was one of the biggest stars of the eighties and she got the best roles back then. I wonder why she isn't that popular now.

Turner's performance in Peggy Sue Got Married really divides people. Some call it weak and insignificant, some say that Kathleen was robbed of the Oscar. Therefore, I was wondering what I would think about her. To tell the truth, I'm somewhere between those groups. While I think that she was really good as Peggy Sue, I don't think that this really was Oscar-worthy material. It's very entertaining and it serves its purpose well but I didn't feel that she was really amazing.

My first problem is that I didn't see any development in Peggy Sue or if there was any, it didn't make any sense. She always goes one step forward and goes two steps back and I never felt that Peggy Sue wasn't going anywhere. First, she feels like going out with that weirdo kid and then she goes mad about Charlie and it's all so strange and not really believable. I thought that the relationships were not very carefully developed and that's also the fault of the director. I mean everything becomes so shallow and the real emotions are never present. Sometimes I felt the necessary emotions in Kathleen's performance but somehow the whole thing never worked.

Moreover, some humorous parts weren't that well acted by Turner, either. There are so many missed opportunities and as a result, I started to feel quite uncomfortable. I felt that I cared about Peggy Sue but I wasn't that excited about her. I mean the sympathy was there but not that much of it. I guess that's another problem even though it didn't bother me while I was watching the movie.

The best scenes were the ones where Peggy Sue was visiting her grandparents. I felt that she handled those scenes the best. All the emotions were present and Kathleen handled them all very nicely. Moreover, the ending was quite touching and that was also quite good.

Wow, I thought I'd like her more and yet I feel quite disappointed. When I started writing, I thought I was impressed but after taking a closer look at this performance, I found Kathleen Turner less than satisfying in Peggy Sue Got Married. This works looks really good on the outside but there are big problems that cannot be overlooked. Still, an enjoyable performance.

What do you think? It's time for the last predictions! :)