Best Actress 2003

The next year I'll be doing a profile/ranking on is 2003 and the nominees were:



Keisha Castle Hughes in Whale Rider

Diane Keaton in Somethings Gotta Give

Samantha Morton in In America

Charlize Theron in Monster

Naomi Watts in 21 Grams




It feels nice not to have to upload all of those nominees pictures! Anyway, who do you think will win and who are you rooting for? P.s I'll be going on vacation until July 13th so it'll be a long time until I start reviewing. But I'll still be commenting on everyone's blogs and everything. There's a slight chance I might start it though , so stay tuned!

Ranking of the nominees and years so far

1. 1969




2. 1974




3. 2006




4. 1976



5. 1988



6. 2002




7. 1993




1. Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven (2002)






2. Judi Dench in Notes On A Scandal (2006)






3. Maggie Smith in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie (1969)






4. Kate Winslet in Little Children (2006)







5. Liv Ullman in Face To Face (1976)






6. Holly Hunter in The Piano (1993)






7. Sissy Spacek in Carrie (1976)





8. Faye Dunaway in Network (1976 )




9. Liza Minnelli in The Sterile Cuckoo (1969)






10. Glenn Close in Dangerous Liasions (1988)





11. Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under The Influence (1974)






12 Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1976)






13. Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (2006)






14. Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)





15. Valerie Perrine in Lenny (1974)






16. Jane Fonda in They Shoot Horses Don't They (1969)






17. Genevieve Ann Bujold in Anne Of The Thousand Days (1969)





18. Angela Basset in What's Love Got To Do With It? (1993)






19. Meryl Streep in A Cry In The Dark (1988)






20. Diahaan Carol in Claudine (1974)




21. Jodie Foster in The Accused (1988)





22. Jean Simmons in The Happy Ending (1969)




23. Diane Lane in Unfaithful (2002)





24. Renee Zellweger in Chicago (2002)




25. Penelope Cruz in Volver (2006)



26. Emma Thompson in The Remains Of The Day (1993)




27. Marie Christine- Barrault in Cousin, Cousine (1976)




28. Signourney Weaver in Gorillas In The Mist (1988)




29. Helen Mirren in The Queen (2006)




30. Nicole Kidman in The Hours (2002)



31. Debra Winger in Shadowlands (1993)



32. Melanie Griffith in Working Girl (1988)




33. Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation (1993)




34. Talia Shire in Rocky (1976)




35. Salma Hayek in Frida (2002)

Best Actress 1993: Final thoughts

Well, this wasn't too strong of a year or that interesting. My choice was pretty easy, despite my high rating for Angela Basset who was fabulous. Emma was great and should get more praise for her performance and Winger and Channing bring the year down by a lot. Still, not a terribly weak year, just not that great of one.


My ranking of the films:

1. The Piano

2. The Remains Of The Day

3. What's Love Got To Do With It?

4. Shadowlands

5. Six Degrees Of Separation

Best Actress 1993: The Resolution!

5. Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation:


S.D.O.S is an awful movie, and Stockard Channing's role is very one-note and she never tries to rise above or even make something out of her material. Some good moments, but, in the end, the film destroys her performance.






4. Debra Winger in Shadowlands:


Winger is overall good in the beginning, but her strange accent and her lack of chemistry with Anthony Hopkins keep her performance from being great all the way through. She also lost her connection with her character and she should have taken time to develop her better.







3. Emma Thompson in The Remains Of The Day:


Emma Thompson plays Sally with all the right notes and despite being a little shaky in some scenes and the fact her character is a little basic, she gives a excellent performance.





2. Angela Basset in What's Love Got To Do With It?:


Basset adds a lot of passion to Tina which results in highly emotional, real performance which never is brought down by her fake , predictable film.





1. Holly Hunter in The Piano:


Holly Hunter never says anything in her performance (Except in voice-over), but is still able to show all of her emotions and actions perfectly and creates a strange, striking character.

Best Actress 1993: Holly Hunter in The Piano

Holly Hunter received her third Oscar nomination and won for playing Ada McGrath in The Piano. Ada has been a mute by choice for nearly all her life and she and her daughter Flora travel to a strange island because Ada has been engaged to a powerful man (Sam Neil).


Without speaking a word, Holly Hunter is able to convey so much. She captures Ada's stubborness and sadness when her piano is taken away from her and we see the soul of Ada onscreen. Hunter and Anna Paquin are superb together- totally convincing as a mother and daughter and both show their love and anger for each other. Whenever Ada plays the piano, Hunter shows us so much passion on her face and it's an odd, yet fascinating thing to watch. Another thing that works so well about this performance is that Ada always remains a mysterious woman- we learn a great deal about her, but never know her completely or why she is so strange. Her scenes with Keitell are also very interesting- She is at first disgusted by him and the fact that he wants to sleep withy her, but Hunter lets the audience know that Ada is also fascinated and even turned on by the arangement. Holly Hunter also gets Ada's odd physical gestures and movements right, which must have been difficult to do. A beautiful, striking performance which gets

Best Actress 1993: Angela Basset in What's Love Got To Do With It?

Angela Basset received her first Oscar nomination for playing Anna May Bullock/Tina Turner in What's Love Got To Do With It? Anna goes to live with her mother after her grandmother dies and meets Ike Turner (Laurence Fishbourne), a nightclub singer who discovers that she has a great singing voice and goes on tour with her and soon becomes a superstar. But when Tina begins to come into her own, Ike begins to abuse her and Tina feels trapped in the increasingly violent marriage.

What's Love Got To Do With It? is an average, predictable film but Angela Basset rises above it.Basset does a very good job in the beginning, building Tina's character arc from a shy person who is immediately wooed over by Ike's charms to a confident, talented singer, never making it seem like an imitation. Her scenes with Fishbourne are great, with both actors adding raw emotions to their roles which makes Tina and Ike seem especially real. When Basset performs, she is volcanic- Her presense on stage is a big plus as she feels the songs she's performing as well as performing them. Basset always hits the right emotional cords of Tina and her dramatic moments are brilliantly played and always honest. The material gets repetive towards the end, but she still gives a great, passionate performance which gets

Best Actress 1993: Emma Thompson in The Remains Of The Day

Emma Thomson received her third Oscar nomination for playing Sally Kenton in The Remains Of The Day. Sally goes to work at Darlington Hall and meets M.r Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) and they soon befriend each other, despite not getting along at first.

Emma Thomson always plays Sally right- Emma gives Sally her usual trademark warmth and personality, but it never feels like she's just giving the same performance she always plays. Emma shows that she is an honest woman, that she knows how hard life can be and how she does not want to be alone. Emma and Anthony Hopkins work great together- Both of them play each other off very well and show that the do have feelings, but can never express them fully. Thomson also perfectly shows Sally's internal conflict between (Spoiler alert!) marrying another man or staying at Darlington Hall. At the end when the two finally see each other again, Thomson is especially great, showing that she doesn't know that she made the right decision or that she is right now. But there a few moments when she falters, such as delivering her lines in an over done way and sometimes her character seems a little to predictable. But Emma Thomson surely delivered a great performance and left her own beautiful mark on the role of Sally.

Best Actress 1993: Debra Winger in Shadowlands

Debra Winger received her third Oscar nomination for playing Joy Gresham in Shadowlands. Joy is a poet from the United States who goes on a trip to England with her son and meets famous author C.S Lewis (Anthony Hopkins) and the two begin to befriend each other and soon marry, but only because Lewis wants to make sure she can stay in England. But when she gets sick, the marry again for love, although they both know that it won't last.

In the beginning, Debra Winger captures Joy's tough, outspoken behavior and makes it very entertaining. We can see how taken aback Lewis is by her personality and how he comes to care about her. Winger also adds a lot of depth to Joy, showing that Joy is a sad woman with a somewhat bitter outlook on life, and how her her life begins to change when she meets Lewis. This could have been a great performance, but sadly, Winger doesn't seem to control her character very well. First of all, her accent ruins a lot of her performance, since it is unconvincing and goes in and out, not to mention is overdone and strange . There is a scene when Winger is talking to Lewis normally, but suddenly gets very angry with him and this is a badly written scene to begin with, but Winger makes it worse with her accent and by making it too abrupt. After this, her greatness in the beginning fades and though she is good in most of the scenes, I never connected with Joy like I did in the beginning. Another problem is that Winger never makes it believable that Joy is in love with Lewis (Although that might be more the scripts fault and Hopkins) and she and Hopkins have barely any chemistry. She is excellent when she tells Lewis that she is going to die and when she is on her deathbed , but it still isn't believable when she says she loves him in the latter scene. A performance that could have been much better had Winger hadn't stumbled so much in the second half and had made her accent work. A good, but mostly failed effort.

Best Actress 1993: Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation

Stockard Channing received her first Oscar nomination for playing Louisa Kittredge in Six Degrees Of Separation. Louisa and her husband are rich, high class people who are conned by a charming young man named Paul (Will Smith) and soon discover that there are other people who are being conned by the same person they were.

Six Degrees Of Separation is a simply AWFUL movie. It has a terrible script which is insufferable to listen to, since most of it's characters are shallow, rich people who are completely full of themselves. The plot is ridiculous and totally unbelievable and as I've said, unbearable to sit through. Unfortunately, Stockard Channing's performance is nearly destroyed by the mediocre material. For most of the film, all she gets to do is be a rich socialite who is stuck in a bad situation. She stays on this note for most of the time and as I've said, the material is so bad that she never seems to be above it or even tries to make something good out of it. There are a few good scenes though such as when she is telling her daughter that there are six degrees of separation between people and when she is on the phone with Smith, telling him that they will be happy together. And at the end, when she is telling her husband that Paul was something good in they're lives (But her voice has a weird tone to it that ruins the effect of this scene). In these scenes, Channing taps into the emotions of her character very well and is sometimes very moving. Despite this, she just can't save her performance from being sunken by the horribleness of the film or from getting

Best Actress 1993

The next year I'll be doing a profile/ranking on is 1993 and the nominees were:


Angela Bassett in What's Love Got To Do With it?

Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation

Holly Hunter In The Piano

Emma Thompson in The Remains Of The Day

Debra Winger in Shadowlands





















So, who do you think will win? Who are you rooting for?

Ranking of the nominees and years so far

1. 1969

2. 1974

3. 2006

4. 1976

5. 1988

6. 2002


1. Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven (2002)

2. Judi Dench in Notes On A Scandal (2006)

3. Maggie Smith in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie (1969)

4. Kate Winslet in Little Children (2006)

5. Liv Ullman in Face To Face (1976)

6. Sissy Spacek in Carrie (1976)

7. Faye Dunaway in Network (1976 )

8. Liza Minnelli in The Sterile Cuckoo (1969)

9. Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under The Influence (1974)

10. Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1976)

11. Glenn Close in Dangerous Liasions (1988)

12. Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (2006)

13. Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)

14. Valerie Perrine in Lenny (1974)

15. Jane Fonda in They Shoot Horses Don't They (1969)

16. Genevieve Ann Bujold in Anne Of The Thousand Days (1969)

17. Meryl Streep in A Cry In The Dark (1988)

18. Diahaan Carol in Claudine (1974)

19. Jodie Foster in The Accused (1988)

20. Jean Simmons in The Happy Ending (1969)

21. Diane Lane in Unfaithful (2002)

22. Renee Zellweger in Chicago (2002)

23. Penelope Cruz in Volver (2006)

24. Marie Christine Barrault in Cousin, Cousin (1976)

25. Signourney Weaver in Gorillas In The Mist (1988)

26. Helen Mirren in The Queen (2006)

27. Nicole Kidman in The Hours (2002)

28. Melanie Griffith in Working Girl (1988)

29. Talia Shire in Rocky (1976)

30. Salma Hayek in Frida (2002)


And now we're at 30 nominees. It's been very interesting and very fun to see and rewatch all of these performances and I will continue it all thorough the year. Julianne Moore's amazing performance in Far From Heaven is still at the top of my ranking, while Salma Hayek's dreadful work in Frida is still at the bottom. The strongest years I've done so far are obviously 69 and 74. Both were incredibly strong years, but I would say 69 was a little stronger, even though I think that the films from 74 were more interesting. The weakest year so far has been 2002, although by default, since I don't really think it was very weak.

Best Actress 1976: Final thoughts

This was a very strong year. Not as strong as 74 and 69, but still very strong anyway. The fifth and the fourth nominee were easy to rank, but I had a very hard time deciding between Ullman, Spacek, and Dunaway. All of three them gave fantastic performances that are all unique and exceptional . I'm not even 100 % sure that this will be my final ranking, but if I change my mind I will change it.


My ranking of the films:

1. Network

2. Carrie

3. Cousin, Cousine

4. Face To Face

5. Rocky

Best Actress 1976: The Resolution!

5. Talia Shire in Rocky:


Talia Shire gives a bland, nothing performance in which she never tried to expand her character, but instead gave in to the limits of the script.






4. Marie -Chrisine Barrault in Cousin, Cousine:


Although her character is a little too simple, Barrault still gives a subtle, wonderful portrayal that is very enjoyable.






3. Faye Dunaway in Network:

Faye Dunaway is superb as Diana, making her a fascinating, exciting character that never becomes a stereotype.





2. Sissy Spacek in Carrie:


Sissy Spacek gives a low key, beautifully portrayed performance that is simply a marvel. Brilliant work!






1. Liv Ullman in Face To Face:


Although it's never fully explained why Jenny becomes crazy, Liv Ullman doesn't let that bring her down. She gives a devastating, amazingly convincing and realistic performance that never goes over the top.

Best Actress 1976: Sissy Spacek in Carrie

Sissy Spacek received her first Oscar nomination for playing Carrie White in Carrie. Carrie is an outcast at school, bullied by both the students and the teachers alike. At home, she is harassed and tortured by her fantatically religous mother (Piper Laurie). But soon she discovers that she has special powers and that she can control them and she decides that she wants to fit in with everyone else. When a boy asks her to the prom because his girlfriend asked him too, Carrie is at first skeptical, but then she is very happy about it, but things go horribly wrong at the prom and even worse consequenses are to come. Sissy Spacek delivers a beautifully executed performance in Carrie. She doesn't have a lot of show moments, but instead, subtly makes her character work. She is completely believable as a teenager and the eyes and facial expressions are a big asset, as we see what she is thinking and how she must feel being teased by everyone all the time. Her scenes with Piper Laurie are great as well, even though Laurie gets the showier part, Spacek holds her own against her. She is also entertaining in some scenes, handling the black humor very well. When Carrie starts opening up and being herself, Spacek is truly radiant. Of course I'm talking about the prom scene (Which I watched a little on Youtube before I saw the whole film), and Spacek wonderfully shows Carrie's joy at finally being popular and being happy. I won't spoil what happens afterwards for those who haven't seen it, but Spacek is scary and very convincing towards the end. Sissy Spacek took a simple, real approach to Carrie and the result is an outstanding performance that gets

Best Actress 1976: Talia Shire in Rocky

Talia Shire received her second Oscar nomination for playing Adrian in Rocky. Adrian is a shy woman who lives with her brother and works in a pet store. She goes on a date with Rocky Balboa (Syllvester Stalone) and she falls in love with him and when he decides to fight in a boxing match that he is sure to lose, she helps and supports him during his training. Rocky is an uninspired, boring film which isn't very special, and the same goes for Talia Shire. First of all, her role is a Supporting one, not a Leading one, since Adrian isn't really that much of an important part and she doesn''t lead Rocky anywhere. Her role is very underwritten, and she's given pretty much nothing to do in this movie, except support Rocky through all of his troubles and to love him no matter what. She has one great , if short, scene when she confronts her brother when he is yelling at her and Rocky, but this isn't anything incredibly impressive. Talia Shire gives a dull, nothing Oscar-worthy performance which gets

Best Actress 1976: Marie- Christine Barrault in Cousin, Cousine

Marie-Christine Barrault received her first Oscar nomination for playing Marthe, an unhappily married woman, in Cousin, Cousine. Martha meets a man (Victor Lannox) whom she starts to have a relationship with, but they decide to keep it as friends, but they eventually end up together. This isn't a showy, Oscar-like performance at all, but is instead a subtle, engaging one. Barrault uses her charm and personality a lot in this performance and she shows her characters sadness and her longing to have someone to talk to. Her scenes with Victor Lanoux are beautiful and the two really make their relationship completely natural and real. She is luminous and I enjoyed her when ever she was on screen. There were some scenes though(Especially towards the end) where I wasn't paying attention and I finished it a long time after I started watching it, so I might have missed something, but I wanted more out of her performance. I had no problem that her performance was quite and charming, but I wish more had happened with her character and that the story hadn't been so simple. But still, a radiant, beautiful performance that gets