The Final Conclusion - Best Actress 2010

2010

The much anticipated ranking:

5. Annette Bening in The Kids Are All right

I would be quite upset if Annette won in a shocker. Not because I hate her, I just don't feel that this is something that is worthy of an Oscar with such a competition. It's true that Bening has her great and memorable scenes, but this is not an amazing performance by any means. It's just very good, proper acting in a fine movie.

4. Nicole Kidman in Rabbit Hole

I can say that Nicole Kidman gave a very heartbreaking and beautiful performance as Rebecca Corbett. Although it did not blow my socks off, it was a very emotional and wonderful experience for me. Nicole approached this character very subtly and as a result, we got an excellent performance by her.

3. Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone

This was a very exceptional performance by a young actress, which may not be amazing or mindblowing for the first time but it's very intense and memorable work. Lawrence took the character of Ree Dolly and created a real character. I really appreciated this achievement because of its fierce nature.

2. Michelle Williams in Blue Valentine

This is a terrific, very unusual performance that is extremely memorable and haunting. Michelle Williams took a very ordinary character and made her something very interesting. It may not be for everyone, but it's surely breathtaking breathtaking once in a while. A real treat for Best Actress fans.

1. Natalie Portman in Black Swan

I can say that Natalie Portman, an actress whom a did not consider a real talent, kicks ass as Nina and gives a performance that has the strength of Mo'Nique in Precious, Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose. If she wins, it will be hard for the next winner to live up to the standard she showed. A terrifying, brilliant performance after which you feel being hit by a full-guided tour bus.

So I can proudly announce

that my winner is...

Natalie Portman

in

Black Swan

You won at least this one, Natalie! :D

Final thoughts: Wow, ranking is rarely so easy. I must say that this year is not THAT fantastic. Only Natalie and Michelle fall into that category. Nicole is very great, so is Jennifer, Annette is very good. I hope that if anyone upsets that will be Michelle or Nicole though that's almost impossible. Personally, I would hate a Bening win and her chances are getting bigger and bigger (please tell in the comments that Natalie will win). Sorry fans, I don't want to offend anyone but that performance was not something I would call the best. I really enjoyed this year anyhow.

Omissions: I can't think of any. Maybe Julianna Margulies in City Island though I would consider her supporting. Many say she's leading. I don't really mind the Moore snub. I feel, though, that the comparisions between Annette and Julianne are inevitable and that will take a lot of votes away from Annette.

And there's also a winner of the predicting contest: Malcolm, congratulations on your great predictions! :)

The ranking of the already reviewed years:

1. 1969
2. 1974
3. 1989
4. 1959
5. 1939
6. 2010
7. 2009
8. 1980
9. 1941
10. 1963
11. 1966
12. 1973
13. 1990
14. 1978
15. 1954
16. 1948
17. 2002
18. 1940
19. 1998

About the next year: Wow, again, I couldn't decide so I let you decide, which should be my 20th reviewed year (I was thinking about 1968 as it's so historical, but I'd really like to do the other two, too). There's a poll on your right. Happy voting!

Note: Unfortunately I will have to create a new poll as I won't be able to do 1971, because Sunday, Bloody Sunday was removed from Youtube. Sorry to everyone who voted for that year. I included 1977 instead and there's a brand new poll.

Nicole Kidman in Rabbit Hole

Nicole Kidman received her third Best Actress nomination for playing Rebecca Corbett, a grieving mother in the movie Rabbit Hole. Nicole is already an Oscar winner and she did not win any precursor awards for this performance (though she could have, I think), so she doesn't have much chance of winning that Oscar on 27th February. Actually, she doesn't seem to be very obsessed with winning. She's now very relaxed at the award shows and I think she is totally aware that she's not going to win. I admire her for this.

Rabbit Hole is an excellent, excellent movie. It might seem to be boring for the first time, but in fact, it's one of the best movies that I've seen in 2010. It's a very tough and heartbreaking experience though there's stil so many beauty in it. It's based on a very successful Broadway play and the screenplay is simply brilliant and should have received an Oscar nomination. The actors all give excellent performances, especially Aaron Eckhart, Sandra Oh and Dianne Wiest. It was especially delightful to see the return of Wiest to movies. I think she's such a great talent and we should see more of her.

Nicole Kidman (I dare say) gives one of her finest performances here. I always loved her as an actress as she has that special radiation that comes from the stars of the good old days (I think she's very much like Ingrid Bergman, my favorite actress). I love that Nicole's performances are always so subtle, gracious and dignified. She never plays the traditional Oscar baity roles and yet she's obvously someone whose performances are loved by the Academy. Quite probably because she reminds them of the golden days of Hollywood.

When I think of Nicole's work as Rebecca Corbett in Rabbit Hole, one word comes to my mind: dedication. In fact, Nicole was so dedicated to this film and character that it deserves some credit in itself. In every second of the movie, I feel that Kidman believes what she's doing and she's doing this not becuase of the possibility of acclaim and awards. She acts the way she does because she believes in this movie and believes in its message and I can so respect that.

Most of Nicole's performance as Becca is very quiet and subtle but there's so much force inside her and Rebecca's pain is so excellently portrayed by her. This tension throughout the movie is so obvious and it's so captivating. There are some huge outbursts and they are so wonderfully placed in the movie. Whenever the pain becomes undbearable, there's some shouting and it's so comforting for the viewer, I think. This makes the suffering and grief of Rebecca so understandable and real. I bet this wasn't a very easy role for Nicole emotionally and technically.

Although I preferred the more quiet moments to the loud ones, the loud ones are not bad either. Her fight scene with Aaron Eckhart over that video is so heartbreaking. We see a more sensitive side of Rebecca and her emotions are erupting just like a volcano and it gives the scene some really heart-wrenching weight.

As I said, those quiet moments are just brilliant. First of all, Nicole works so well together with Miles Teller (the guy playing Jason). Their scenes at the park are so great in their subtlety and calmness. Those subtle emotions and faces they give us are just remarkable. It's so interesting that Becca is full of rage and anger but she still has some kind of a relationship with the person who caused her son's death. Also, Nicole's scenes with Dianne Wiest are just excellent. That laugh between them was so incredibly natural and deeply human. I loved when Becca asks her mother if the pain will ever disappear. That moment is one of the most emotional scenes in this movie.

Still, the scene that absolutely kills me is the one in the car where Becca recalls the death of her son and starts sobbing and crying. Nicole's chilling there and it's an extremely heartbreaking moment. Although I wouldn't say that the whole performance blew me away, that scene most certainly did.

So, I can say that Nicole Kidman gave a very heartbreaking and beautiful performance as Rebecca Corbett. Although it did not blow my socks off, it was a very emotional and wonderful experience for me. Nicole approached this character very subtly and as a result, we got an excellent performance by her, which is not only for her fans. Exceptional work.

This is the best rating for her.

What do you think?

Annette Bening in The Kids Are All Right

Annette Bening received her fourth Oscar nomination for playing Nic, a lesbian doctor in The Kids Are All Right. If Bening wasn't nominated, I would say that Natalie is totally locked for that Best Actress win. Bening is really considered overdue, she married well and she's quite respected in the industry. However, there's one serious thing against her. Voters (presumably) watch the screener of the movie and if they see it before or after Natalie Portman or Michelle Williams, I just cannot imagine that they vote for Annette. Yes, she's a straight actor playing gay, but they love this with men and only if there's a message in the movie. So, I guess Annette will have to wait for that Oscar (hopefully).

The Kids Are All Right is a pretty average movie at a second viewing. When I first saw it, I was totally captivated by it and I so loved it. I felt that it was entertaining, loveable, funny, emotional and everything. However, my views have changed about it. This time I found it quite boring (is it me that I think that most of this year's Best Picture nominees are damn boring) and quite one-dimensional. That screenplay, which is quite impressive at first sight, has some really stupid faults. Mark Ruffalo gives a very good and proper performance, but I don't think he was good enough to be nominated over Andrew Garfield. Although many people complain about the snub of Julianne Moore, I don't think it's such a tragedy as this is not her best work.

Unfortunately the same goes for Annette Bening (or her majesty as she's called on a certain blog). First of all, I don't really like Bening's off-screen persona. She can annoy the hell out of me with that wide smile and twisting of her head. Moreover, I don't think either, that she's such a brilliant actress as some say. Could anyone say a performance of hers that's totally amazing and mindblowing? If you're really honest, the answer is NO (OK, maybe American Beauty). She's great at best. Still, great is great.

Annette Bening plays Nic, a very serious and perfectionist lesbian doctor who just loves being in control of what's happening in her life. She's strong-willed, a bit conventional (yes, I think she is) and quite possessive. There's so much tension going on between her and her partner, Jules. Jules is a much more free-spirited, carefree person and the two are really polar opposites of each other. Nic doesn't really develop in the story (nobody does) but there are some scenes where she almost does thanks to Annette Bening. When I first saw this performance, I was completely mesmerized and effected by her but now my love cooled considerably.

First of all, the screentime is really working against Annette. Actually, the movie is mostly an ensemble picture where one really should be the standout to be singled out. In fact, Bening stands out of the cast, however, that's not a big achievement. All the roles (including Nic) are quite one-dimensional and as I said they don't really develop and they don't have any real depth. I guess goal of entertaining overshadowed the point in this movie. The whole meaning of the movie (or what it should have been) is in Annette's performance.

Bening's performance as Nic starts out quite slowly and so usually that you would never expect that she would be anything special. For the most of the movie (until the dinner scene), Nic doesn't have a very important part and she's just there being grumpy with the other members of that family. To tell the truth, it's not much, but Bening is really fine in these moments. Nothing interesting happens with Nic and nothing interesting happens in the performance. It's too bad actually because this way her performance becomes a bit uneven.

However, after the dinner scene, the performance becomes a bit more dynamic and finally something is happening. It's a very memorable moment when Nic finds Jules' hair. Annette acts so brilliantly with her face there. Again, the confrontation scene between her and Julianne Moore is just fantastic. She delivered the line "Did you take a nap, too?" so shraply and brilliantly that it really took my breath away. I said to myself, yes, the whole performance should have been like this. She's also great during the huge monologue of Julianne Moore. Those are quite great moments.

So, to sum up, I would be quite upset if Annette won in a shocker. Not because I hate her, I just don't feel that this is something that is worthy of an Oscar. It's true that Bening has her great and memorable scenes, but this is not an amazing performance by any means. It's just very good, proper acting in an average movie.

I'm a bit too harsh on her I think, this is really how I feel.

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

Michelle Williams in Blue Valentine

Michelle Williams received her second Oscar nomination for playing Cindy, a woman having serious marital problems in the very unusual movie, Blue Valentine. Williams' nomination wasn't a very sure thing, quite frankly. Not because she did not deserve it (she did) but because her movie is so unusual and indie, actually not many thought at the beginning of this season that she would get so far. Therefore she doesn't have much chance of winning in two weeks' time, in her case it's true that it's an honor just to be nominated.

Blue Valentine is a very unusual and innovative movie in many ways and yet it was a bit disappointing to me. It might be probably because I've heard such good things about it everywhere that I had super-high expectations from it. The screenplay is just excellent and I'm quite shocked that it was not nominated in the Best Original Screenplay category as they just love those indie screenplays. Ryan Gosling gives a very good though and a nomination would have been very deserved for him. I'm not that upset, though that it did not happen.

Michelle Williams is such an interesting actress. She's definitely the best actress of her generation. She has a unique, beautiful presence on the screen and one can so easily relate to her characters. Her acting style is so uncanny and impressive, she always takes my breath away. Moreover, she's also incredibly versatile. One day, she will definitely become an Oscar winner, I think though she might have to wait a couple of years to get the award.

Her performance in Blue Valentine is something that isn't mindblowing while you're watching it, but grows on you in time and haunts you. At first glance, it might seem to be another audience-pleasing weirdo-girl performance, but it's something much more than that. Cindy is a very ordinary woman/girl coming from a lower middle-class family. She did not have a very easy life, she had many boyfriends. The only person with whom she has a decent relationship is her grandmother.

Michelle Williams approached this character with such subtlety and I always felt that she understood all the problems of this character. Furthermore, Williams is so damn fearless and she's never afraid of looking ugly and being unlikeable on the screen. Although it's easy to relate to the character, Cindy is never really likeable. In addition, Williams added so much mystery to Cindy. I could never find out her intentions and I became so puzzled but in a very good way.

The only complaint of mine about this performance might be its pace. It starts out quite slow and I felt that it should have been a bit more dynamic. It might also be that Michelle only wanted to develop the character more carefully, this was just a bit odd, I think. However, with some little gestures and nuances, I got much closer to Cindy and I was impressed by Williams' performance more. There are small pictures and movements that are now ingrained in my memory. Like her smiles in the scene on the bus where she's telling a joke to her boyfriend. It's such a realistic and natural moment and I felt like being there. It was excellent. The other is when she runs to the bathroom at the hotel and starts crying and sobbing. It was just breathtaking to watch.

Williams basically plays two characters in this movie: the young Cindy and the more mature Cindy who are basically polar opposites. Williams was not given a chance to develop her throughout the movie from one scene to another and yet the decelopment of Cindy is clearly visible. All the emotions are so superbly displayed by Michelle.

The highlights of her whole performance are quite probably the fight scenes at the hospital when Ryan Gosling is raging and yelling and she's shouting at him. I was so blown away by those moments. The chemistry between them worked so brilliantly and they worked together so thrillingly. Those were one of the finest moments I've ever seen in a movie.

So, to sum up, this is a terrific, very unusual performance that is extremely memorable and haunting. Michelle Williams took a very ordinary character and made her something very interesting. It may not be for everyone, but it's surely breathtaking breathtaking once in a while. A real treat for Best Actress fans.

A very strong 4,5.

Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone

Jennifer Lawrence received her first Best Actress nomination for playing Ree Dolly, a girl who's desperate to save her home in Winter's Bone. It's quite common nowadays that the Academy gives a nomination to very young actresses who usually don't win. However, after this, they either become major stars or they disappear and become one role wonders. I hope that Jennifer Lawrence will not fall into the latter and I think she won't. She really has some potential in her.

Winter's Bone is an excellent movie, which had such a huge effect on me as I was watching it. However, after I finished it, I felt that it lacked something very crucial. For instance, a bit better ending. I mean, the whole film was very realistic but the ending was a bit dumb and unreal, in my opinion. Still, I think that all of the nominations were richly deserved. The screenplay and the story is quite fierce and cruel, the directing is very good. So are the actors, especially the great John Hawkes. I expected something more terrifying from him but his performance was terrific anyhow. Although I don't know if he gets my vote (Bale and Rush are also great), his win would be extremely deserved (not gonna happen). I must also add that Dale Dickey also gives a very fine and effective performance (she was a bit like Melissa Leo in Frozen River).

Watching Jennifer Lawrence in this movie was quite interesting. First of all, I did not really know what to expect from her as I hadn't seen any of her other movies previously. I heard many things about her: everyone praised her, some loved her very, some not that much. I'm not really into these "typical" indie movies and performances. I know that this sounds very biased but that's not the case. I knew (by and large) what I will get from it though I was also sure that it would be something very unique.

Actually, it wasn't that unique. I've seen such realistic acting on screen many times (and much better acted, just see any of the Italian movies from the age of neorealism), so her fierce acting wasn't that surprising or very original. Although I was very impressed by her, I must underline that I did not get something new and uncanny. Still, I think she was quite exceptional and I loved how confident Lawrence was while acting. I never saw obvious acting, she seemed quite experienced for me. Although younger actors usually tend to deliver their lines so solemnly, I never spotted such flaws in the performance of Jennifer Lawrence. She had a very strong presence and kept it throughout the movie.

Ree Dolly seems to be a very determined person, a very responsible and serious adult. However, she's actually a scared and desperate girl who's torn apart by fear and doubts. Ree so staunchly protects her siblings and her family, she's a 100% tough mountain girl who's not afraid of taking action. I was so pleased that Lawrence was able to show both sides of this girl so well: the performance becomes very intense as a result and it was just great to watch her.

Another thing that I loved about this performance is that it's so authentic. She's just like Jessica Lange in Music Box: there, I always so the stubborn Hungarian woman and here I saw the tough Ozark Mountain girl. I'm not sure how this comparision came to my mind, but I think it makes some sense as both performances are memorable because of their realism and strange effect. Neither of them is amazing by any means and yet the impress me so much. Actually, I feel that the two actresses are quite similar in their whole acting.

There was really one bigger problem with this performance and that's the fact that Lawrence is quite overshadowed sometimes by John Hawkes and the directing. Both of those works are so intense and great that you tend to focus on them and not Lawrence's quiet, subtle acting. Still, there are many brilliant scenes that make up for this: the first one is when Ree's talking to her mother and then starts crying, the second one is when she talks about being a real Dolly (Oscar clip!) and the very harrowing and creepy scene in the boat. OMG, Jennifer's acting with her face was so great there and it expressed so many emotions. I was quite blown away.

So, all things considered, this was a very exceptional performance by a young actress, which may not be amazing or mindblowing but it's very intense and memorable work. Lawrence took the character of Ree Dolly and created a person you care about and root for. I really appreciated this achievement because of its fierce nature. Very great job.

I think this is a fine rating for this work.

What do you think?

Natalie Portman in Black Swan

Natalie Portman received her second Oscar nomination (the first one in the Best Actress category) and has an excellent chance of winning her first Oscar for playing Nina Sayers/The Swan Queen in Darren Aronofsky's Best Picture nominated movie, Black Swan. Natalie won tons of awards for this role and many consider her a sure thing for the win, since everything is for her (lots of awards, lot of movies coming out this year, pregnancy, they LOVE pregnant actresses). And yes, it would be awesome to see her win, however, I will only believe it when I see.

Black Swan is a great movie by which I was totally blown away for the first time. For the second time, I found it a little bit boring. It was still awesome in many ways and I loved almost everything about it but for the first time it's much-much better. It richly deserved all its nomination and if there was real justice Darren Aronofsky would win Best Director and Matthew Libatique would get Best Cinematography. It would be just awesome to see this movie sweep. It won't happen, though. The supporting ladies (Mila, Barbara, Winona) are all very-very good, though none of them would have deserved a nom. Only Barbara Hershey, maybe. Her mother/monster is just terrifying.

I always felt that Aronofsky's movies are a bit about providing the lead actors with great roles and possibilities (see Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream or Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler). I feel the same here, too. Everything about this whole movie depends on the performance of the leading performer who's Natalie Portman in this case. To tell the truth, Natalie is not an actress I would have picked for such a complex and strong role. I used to feel that she was kind of limited and very well may be, however sometimes limited actresses give the most knockout performances. We'll see if it's true. Only time will tell. Plus, I have to judge only this work of Portman.

The role of Nina is so complicated and she's quite difficult to handle for the first time. Personally, I expected something very loud and over-the-top but the performance of Natalie Portman is extremely subtle for the most of the time. There are a couple of shouting scenes but those are probably the outbreaks of the Black Swan in Nina. Natalie so thrillingly inhabited Nina Sayers and this is one of those cases when I see the star totally disappear into the role. She's so fabulous and there's something so divine and superior about her. Nina is so full of anxiety and fears and Natalie so terrifyingly shows the dark sides of Nina.

In the beginning, Nina acts as if she was twelve or something. She has this very close and, I dare say, sick relationship with her mother. The interactions between Natalie and Barbara are mindblowingly great. I mean, in those scenes, I got to know the motives and emotions of these two characters so well and I also got to see how miserable and lonely they are together. They are like little giggling girls. Erica definitely wants that and I think, deep inside, Nina also wants to get on with this relationship. There are two very exceptional scenes that totally ingrained in my memory. The first one is when Nina calls her mom after getting the part of the Black Swan. The second is where Erica discovers the scars on Nina, rips off her clothes and drags her into the bathroom. There's so much humiliation and fear inside Natalie in that scene that I dare say it is one of the best acted scenes ever in the history of this category. I felt so deeply sorry for Nina there. Natalie instantly won my sympathy and that's a really great achievement.

There's another scene which so thrillingly shows how (sexually) frustrated and coward this girl really is. Yes, that's the very frequently talked about masturbation sequence. Again, a terrific moment as Natalie shows so much of this character: her narcissism, her fear of sexual intercourse with another person. If you put a black piece of paper on the screen under her, you would think she's having sex. She's indeed having sex with herself, her Black Swan self and that's quite probably one of the first encounters between the White Swan Nina and the Black Swan Nina. Portman's presence throughout the scene (and the whole movie) is so suggestive and expressive that I could analyze her character much-much longer.

Talking about expressive: her dancing is just mindblowing. If we forgot everything else and concentrated only on her ballet scenes, we would still get a terrific performance. Her movements always fit the given scene and the Black Swan dance is so hard to write about without giving the pleasure away. It's brilliant, I may say.

Natalie so brilliantly developed the character of Nina until the real breakdown. That "It's MY TURN!" fight scene is a brilliant symbol of that. Nina becomes so obsessed and crazy about this role that she does something with terrible consequence. NOW STOP READING THIS REVIEW IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE! STOP! STOP! STOP! When she gets that piece of glass out of her stomach, Natalie is so damn mindblowin. The timing of her tears is so flawless and so well executed that it gave me creeps, literally.

YOU CAN GO ON READING NOW!

So after all, I can say that Natalie Portman, an actress whom a did not consider a real talent, kicks ass as Nina and gives a performance that has the strength of Mo'Nique in Precious, Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose. If she wins, it will be hard for the next winner to live up to the standard she showed. A terrifying, brilliant performance after which you feel being hit by a full-guided tour bus.

Rather easily.

I know I said that her review comes in two weeks, but I decided to do this NOW. I will rewatch her then so...

The Next Year

2010

So the nominees are:

• Annette Bening in The Kids Are All Right
• Nicole Kidman in Rabbit Hole
• Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's Bone
• Natalie Portman in Black Swan
• Michelle Williams in Blue Valentine

Seems to be a great year. We'll see. What are your predictions for my ranking and for Oscar's preference (Natalie seems to be a shoo-in, but Annette might surprise)? The predicting contest is on.

I'm saying right now that Natalie's review comes on 19th February.