5. Susan Hayward, With a Song in My Heart
IN CONCLUSION
Shirley Booth takes the top spot as my personal win for 1952! This marks a record fourth consecutive year to which I've aligned with Oscar's decision, and the ninth time we've aligned overall. (For what it's worth, there's hardly a discrepancy between the women and the men - with Cooper, I've aligned with Oscar for a total of eight times).
Some may find Booth's performance to be grating, but I'm a sucker for a character that endears and invokes pity. Much like Judy Holliday's work in Born Yesterday, this is a performance that commits in its affectedness, to the point where it stays with you as a benchmark. What little I've sampled of Joanne Woodward as Lola simply has not roused any sort of inspiration out of me, and I think this attests to Booth's command of the part.
Crawford comes in second -- and while I still feel that her two stellar scenes in Sudden Fear are the most potent examples of acting amongst this bunch, but what lies between the rest of that performance does not balance out against Booth's consistency. Harris was a tough conclusion to make -- ultimately, I respect the sheer bravado she brings to The Member of the Wedding, but the performance as a whole trips too viscerally between "staunchly committed" and "crazy" for me to rank it any higher.
"Crazy" can also describe Davis - a higher-brow cinephile might rank her last, but I'm going with Hayward as my least favorite simply because she's so horridly unchallenging in With a Song in My Heart. Overall, this particular batch of contenders weren't nearly as bad as I was led to believe!
OMISSIONS & OVERSIGHTS
My hunch for sixth place goes to the Golden Globe-nominated Olivia de Havilland in My Cousin Rachel. This is sight-unseen guesswork (I have it on my list to watch this in the coming week), but given that 1) she was a favorite of Oscar's the decade prior, 2) she was starring in a prestige Daphne du Maurier adaptation and 3) Richard Burton had received a nomination for the film, I imagine de Havilland was very much in consideration. This would inevitably be de Havilland's last real shot at an Oscar nomination - she'd relocate to Paris not long after and begin her transition away from the silver screen. One wonders how things would have netted out had she maintained some of that momentum from the 1940's - perhaps she'd have locked in a few more accolades and nominations a la Bette Davis?
Otherwise, I imagine Maureen O'Hara was also in the running for her work in The Quiet Man. Former winners Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers, who both lost to Hayward at the Globes for Actress in a Comedy/Musical, likely picked up votes for Pat and Mike and Monkey Business. Had it not been for With a Song in My Heart, Hayward herself might've also gotten in for her devoted-wife-esque role in top-grosser The Snows of Kilimanjaro. And I'm sure Debbie Reynolds got some attention for her part in Singin' in the Rain. While they didn't have a shot at a nomination, I plan on giving Ingrid Bergman in Europa '51 and Simone Signoret in Casque d'Or a watch.
Oh, Allen...I hope I wasn't one of those naysayers but I really do think of this as one of worst if not THE worst list of nominees in the category's history. Davis and Harris would both be tied for fifth on my list because I don't just dislike the performances, I detest them. Hayward was just bland. Crawford had a couple of moments but I must say that even when she's overly melodramatic I always find her entertaining. Booth is the only one who deserved her nomination/win and you absolutely nailed why. Lola can be grating but Booth also endears her to us, which is memorable (I watched it again after reading your review).
ReplyDeleteI think Hepburn and O'Hara should have been nominated instead of the bottom three. 'The Quiet Man' is a great film and 'Pat and Mike' has one of Hepburn's most casual and disarming performances. If you haven't seen them, they're worth a look.
1953 isn't all that much better for Best Actress, in my opinion, but you liked the 1952 group better than I did so you might be pleasantly surprised. Don't go by me!
That's fair! I fully understand how one might really detest Davis' performance -- I just so happen to be more tolerant of its campy theatricality. Harris seems to be divisive as well.
DeleteI finished The Quiet Man the other day - it's a gorgeous, lovely movie, and I can envision a situation that would have O'Hara nominated...but I don't know that I liked her performance that much. Perhaps I need to sit on it for a bit, but Mary Kate was a bit spastic for my liking. Pat and Mike is on my list!
As for '53 - we'll see. I'm curious about McNamara and Kerr, though nothing I've read on them has indicated that I'll be floored. I have no high hopes for Caron or Gardner, but stranger things have happened.
And glad you felt like revisiting Sheba after my post! Did you like/dislike her more this time around?
DeleteAllen, I definitely liked Booth more this time. In my initial viewing I came away thinking she was a talented actress without thinking the performance was great. After reading your viewpoint I was intrigued because you mentioned things I think I noticed but forgot, so when I re-watched I noticed them again but also really connected with Lola's kindness and vulnerability. It's a memorable performance and thank you for reminding me.
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