If you, like us, have started to make your Oscar’s ballots, you would have probably noticed that the Best Actress category is a tough one to decide.
There is Meryl Streep, who has been nominated 16 times thus far but only won two (for her roles in Kramer vs Kramer and Sophie’s Choice). Her stellar depiction of Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady has the sympathy of critics like David Gritten, who commented at The Telegraph; “Awards should be coming Streep’s way; yet her brilliance rather overshadows the film itself.”
Another heavyweight is Glenn Close, who co-produced, co-wrote and even composed the original song of Albert Nobbs. In it, she plays a 19th Century butler who disguises herself as a man in order to prosper in society. At her favor plays the fact that Close has been nominated five times but has never won.
Michelle Williams is up for the prize with two previous nominations (for her supporting role in Brokeback Mountain and leading role in Blue Valentine). Her impersonation of Marilyn Monroe in My Week With Marilyn has the critics approval although the movie itself hasn’t stirred up the same reaction.
Viola Davis is Aibileen Clark, a housekeeper in Mississippi during the 1960s that befriends a white journalist in The Help. Her performance is tearjerking and she has one nomination for best supporting actress in Doubt, where, by the way, she shared the screen with Meryl Streep.
Not to underestimate newcomer Rooney Mara. Her performance in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo as Lisbeth Salander, a hacker who joins forces with a journalist to find a woman who has been missing for 40 years, has been much acclaimed.
Find the articles below.
Newsweek, December 2011
Glenn Close
Palm Springs Life, January 2012
Viola Davis
Elle, November 2011
Michelle Williams
Newsweek, November 2011
Rooney Mara
Back Stage, December 2011
