The Final Conclusion - Best Actress 1986

1986

So the much anticipated ranking is:

5. Kathleen Turner in Peggy Sue Got Married

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.

4. Sissy Spacek in Crimes of the Heart

Although I feel that Spacek is really great as Babe Magrath, I think that this is not a fantastic or mindblowing performance and it's not one of Sissy's best. I really liked it and enjoyed all of the scenes but I feel that Sissy could do way better. She got everything out of this character that she could, it's just that I felt that she had way better works. Still, she's great.

3. Marlee Matlin in Children of a Lesser God

This is great work by Marlee Matlin who didn't make Sarah the "ordinary disabled character" but she played her as a real human being instead. She beautifully portrayed all of Sarah's emotions and this was really a beautiful performance. Excellent, thought-provoking work. A bit incoherent, but otherwise great.

2. Jane Fonda in The Morning After

This is a fantastic performance by the amazing Jane Fonda. I know I'm not supposed to like this work that much and I might be biased but I was really blown away by Jane's work as Alex Sternbergen. This character is over-the-top and she's almost like an animal and yet Jane made me care about her and think about her.

1. Sigourney Weaver in Aliens

Sigourney Weaver is astonishing in Aliens giving not only the best action performances but also one of the most memorable performances evers. She's a real treat not only for Oscar maniacs but also for film buffs and everyone else on this planet. Sigourney created a beautiful, wonderful, strong character that is for the ages. It's really fantastic work by an amazing actress.

So I can proudly announce

that the winner is...

Sigourney Weaver

in

Aliens

Get away from my Oscar, you BITCH! :)

Congrats to Fritz on his great predictions! :)

The prize: Fritz can pick the next year that I'll do after the next one. :)

Final thoughts: Not a great, but a VERY interesting year. I truly-truly loved doing it. Siggy Weaver had an easy win and I expected it. I LOVED Jane as always, I think if The Morning After had been better, she could have rivalled Siggy. I liked the others very much, too, especially Marlee even though I feel I overrated her initially. Sissy was very good but somehow I didn't like her as much as I usually do. Still, I liked her. As expected, Kathleen Turner was the weakest link. It's not that I didn't give her a chance, she was just the weakest one, that's all. But what I loved the most is that you seemed to be really interested in this year and I was incredibly happy that we could discuss so much. Thanks, again.

About the next year: You seemingly like less discussed years, so the next two ones will be two of them. I know I solemnly promised to do 2003 but I'll still have to wait for In America. I won't make any more promises about when I'll do that year. I'll do my best. However, there are clues about our next year:

• This is one nutty hospital.

What do you think?

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! :)

The Next Year

1986

So the nominees were:

• Jane Fonda in The Morning After
• Marlee Matlin in Children of a Lesser God
• Sissy Spacek in Crimes of the Heart
• Kathleen Turner in Peggy Sue Got Married
• Sigourney Weaver in Aliens

This year is never talked about. OK, almost never. So it will be really interesting. I can barely wait.

What do you think? What's your ranking? What do you predict for my ranking?

Note: I know I posted 2003 already but it turned out that I have to wait a little bit more for In America, so I'm really sorry. I solemnly promise to do that year as soon as I can! I decided to pick 1986 because all the movies were readily available for right now. Sorry again.

The requested years that I've had: 1938, 1945, 1970, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2008. From these, 1938, 1945 and 1970 fall into the almost impossible category (1970 is the most likely). 1981 and 1987 could happen but I have to get Anna and Only When I Laugh somehow. However, I'll probably have access to all of the movies of the other years.