Category Archives: Glennies

2008 Glennies, Part 3: Best Actress

Posted on by

Top 5 Lead Actresses:

#5: Frances McDormand – Linda Litzke, Burn After Reading


mcdormand
A fun and fluffy performance in a fun and fluffy movie. This film has no grand statement to make (the last scene all but confirms this), but the actors and filmmakers clearly had a great time making it. Litzke may turn over-the-top and cartoonish about halfway through the film, but McDormand completely sells it.

#4: Rebecca Hall – Vicky, Vicky Cristina Barcelona


hall
Rebecca Hall first got on my radar from a delightful British comedy called Starter for 10, and this film is her strongest performance yet. It never fails to impress me when an actor manages to emote convincingly and fake an accent. Vicky, the down-to-earth American girl, is, by a slim margin, the more sympathetic character, and she could not have been given a more nuanced, emotional performance.

#3: Lina Leandersson – Eli, Let the Right One In


leandersson
Boy meets girl, girl turns out to be a vampire. This Swedish pre-adolescent romance and coming-of-age tale was easily one of the best and most effectively creepy films of 2008, and Leandersson’s understated performance is the strongest of the film. If you have any desire whatsoever to see a vampire film this year, stay far, far away from Twilight, and see this film instead.

#2: Cate Blanchett – Daisy, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


blanchett
I hate to digress, but it must be said… Cate Blanchett is just gorgeous in this film. And the sheer range of ages that they manage to convincingly make her convey is a testament to the makeup and digital artists that made this film happen. That said, Daisy is far more than a mere technical feat… She is the emotional center of this film, and despite Brad Pitt’s genuinely good turn as a hollowly written character, it is Blanchett that makes the film’s central romance seem believable. Daisy is a breathtaking testament to life in an otherwise bleak and lifeless film.

#1: Meryl Streep – Sister Aloysius, Doubt


streep
I once heard someone call Meryl Streep “the female Al Pacino”, who had made her recent career through over-the-top roles in films like The Devil Wears Prada, Mamma Mia!, and Adaptation. This film has proven that Streep still knows how to give a brilliant performance of a more realistic character. The four central performances are essential to this film’s effectiveness, and Streep’s is easily the strongest. She never wavers in her certainty of Father Flynn’s guilt, and her unforgettable scene with Viola Davis adeptly conveys this (see Part 2: Best Supporting Actresses). The final confrontation between the two leads is well worth the wait, and Streep’s pained delivery of the final line of the film will leave you haunted as you wonder what you really believe about what has taken place.

Honorable Mentions:


Jess Weixler – Teeth (yes, really)

2008 Glennies, Part 2: Best Supporting Actress

Posted on by

Top 5 Supporting Actresses:


#5: Taraji P. Henson – Queenie, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button


henson
Oh, Ben Button, you hapless, eponymous bastard, what a curse you have, to be constantly surrounded by more interesting and better-acted characters than you. Your adoptive mother is among the best of these, providing a secondary emotional center for your otherwise cold and lifeless biography.

#4: Mila Kunis – Rachel Jansen, Forgetting Sarah Marshall


kunis
I’m surprised to be putting Mila Kunis on a best actress list, being that I only knew her previously as “that hot, dumb girl from That ’70s Show“. Jason Segel’s script casts Rachel as his version of the perfect rebound girl. The wrong spin on this character could have turned Rachel into the random front-desk hottie (a role that anyone could’ve believed Mila Kunis in), but her performance completely elevates this character. She is likeable, down-to-earth, far from perfect (she nearly provokes a fistfight with her ex), but completely sympathetic. It is Kunis’ performance that sells this relationship, and the strained emotional bond that develops between her and Segel’s character is what elevates this film from merely one of the best comedies of the year to also one of the best romances of the year.

#3: Marisa Tomei – Cassidy, The Wrestler


tomei
Could Cassidy be called a “stripper with a heart of gold”? Not exactly… But she does make a fascinating counterpoint to Mickey Rourke’s aging pro wrestler. Much as Randy “The Ram” Robinson pretends to put on a show of violence, Cassidy pretends to put on a show of sex. They made their living in the pretense of our most primal interests, and now they’re getting too old… It’s no surprise that they seem to forge a bond. But how much of this bond is just Cassidy’s smile and work ethic? Hard to say, but the ambiguity is there, and Tomei completely sells it. As Randy wonders if there’s anything real in his life, Tomei does a fine job of never definitively answering that question.

#2: Viola Davis – Mrs. Miller, Doubt


davis
I almost didn’t include Davis in my list, because she only appears in one 10-minute scene of the film. But in those 10 minutes talking with Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep) about her son, she manages to make you believe something truly shocking. Her reaction to the Sister’s suspicions is so far removed from what you would expect, your jaw will hit the floor. And the scene gets even more unnerving as she starts to convince you that she might just have a point. All of the subtext of the film’s central conflict comes out in this brilliantly written scene, and it owes entirely to Davis’ performance.

#1: Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona


cruz
Like I said, there’s something incredible about a well-written and well-acted psychopath. No description that I give can do this performance justice. Just see the film, and do your best to take nothing seriously. It’s laughable and fun and you’ll be unsure by the end whether it was comedy or tragedy.

Honorable Mentions:


Tilda Swinton – Elizabeth Abbott, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Amy Adams – Sister James, Doubt
Gwyneth Paltrow – Pepper Potts, Iron Man

2008 Glennies, Part 1: Best Supporting Actor

Posted on by

After realizing just how many new movies I saw this year (despite being out of the country for 3 months), I decided to do my own movie awards, in the form of Top lists, starting with the Top 5 supporting performances, male and female.
And as for the “Glennies”… Yes, I know it’s horrific. You’ve got Becca to thank for that 🙂

Top 5 Supporting Actors:

#5: Robert Downey, Jr. – Kirk Lazarus, Tropic Thunder

downey
If there is one actor who has proven his versatility and talent this year, it is Robert Downey, Jr. It is a testament to both Downey’s performance and the writing of the character that he managed to dodge all controversy regarding his blackface-sporting method actor persona (in favor of Ben Stiller’s use of the word “retarded”). Despite being perhaps the most absurdly over-the-top character in the film, his performance actually grounds the film from some of the absurdities of the other actors. In a film that I entered with high expectations (a rarity for me when I’m walking into a comedy), Downey’s performance was easily the most memorable.

#4: James Franco – Scott Smith, Milk

franco
His Spiderman years notwithstanding, James Franco has consistently turned in good work, and his performance in Gus Van Sant’s biopic is one of the best in a film filled with strong performances. While the film only does a minimal job establishing his relationship with Harvey Milk (they meet completely randomly on a staircase), it is Franco’s performance that makes you believe it. As the film goes on, Franco provides a subdued counterpoint to Diego Luna’s performance as the unstable rebound love interest, and proves himself an essential figure in both Milk’s life and the events depicted.

#3: Aaron Eckhart – Harvey Dent, The Dark Knight

eckhart
Somehow, Eckhart’s performance was lost in the torrent of praise for the acting in this film, and yet his scenes were among the most affecting for me. At the risk of sounding redundant… I believe in Harvey Dent. Because that is what is required of the audience for this character. You first have to believe in his goodness and incorruptibility. Then you have to see that goodness shatter, and realize the sheer tragedy of this character as he screams at Batman and Jim Gordon about how cruel the world is, and why he must do something terrible. I believe in Harvey Dent, and the final scene of Eckhart’s portrayal is heartwrenching for me every time.

#2: Heath Ledger – The Joker, The Dark Knight

joker
What can I say about this performance that hasn’t already been said? There is just something incredible about a well-written and well-acted psychopath. It’s why we loved Javier Bardem in 2007, and it’s why we loved Heath Ledger in 2008. It is his performance that makes the Joker seem real – plausible and terrifying.

#1: Philip Seymour Hoffman – Father Brendan Flynn, Doubt

hoffman
For a film that I shrugged off as “the sodomy movie” when I first saw the trailer, it ended up being so much more, owing entirely to the strong performances of its four central characters. Whether giving a rousing sermon, arguing vehemently with the headmistress, or sharing minor interactions with his students, it is Hoffman that makes this character both suspicious and sympathetic. The film thrives in the ambiguity surrounding this character, and Hoffman completely pulls it off.

Honorable Mentions:

Russell Brand – Aldous Snow, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Anil Kapoor – Prem Kumar, Slumdog Millionaire
Christopher Mintz-Plasse – Augie Farks, Role Models
John Malkovich – Osborne Cox, Burn After Reading
Shaun Toub – Dr. Yinsen, Iron Man Continue reading →