Best Supporting Actress 1988

[flipp525]

I think Sandy Dennis is near perfect in her one scene in Another Woman, playing the former best friend of Gena Rowlands' character who, over a late-night drink and a reunion of sorts after years of absence, confronts her friend Marion with the accusation that Marion used her intellectual wiles to steal her one true love's affections. But neither she nor the brilliant Rowlands could crack either of their respective races which were decade highs, in my opinion.

Michelle Pfieffer is serviceable in Dangerous Liaisons using her beauty to great effect, but I see this as probably the least impressive of her nominated work. Frances McDormand is fine as the abused wife in Mississippi Burning but there are several nominations to come in this category where she's even better. Joan Cusack is absolutely hysterical as Cyn in Working Girl, an Eve Arden for the 80's. Her comic timing is impeccable and, my god, does she capture the bridge and tunnel crowd to an absolute tee.

But there are really only two performances that this race comes down to.

Sigourney Weaver is excellent in Working Girl, not just the "bitch supreme" a lesser actress might've easily played the role as (especially with some of those killer lines; yes, Greg, her "I am, after all, me.” is a classic.). Her Katherine Parker has a power that burns from within, but, like others have said, she never devolves into the traps of villany. I also love the little wink to her duel work that year in Gorillas in the Mist when Katherine brings back a stuffed gorilla over her shoulders. She's such a good sport in the movie. (And as for line readings, this one is fun, too: "Dear Sister: it's hard to believe that it's been eight years since we said goodbye to Wellesley. But, of course, we never really say goodbye. And on behalf of the Alumni Giving Fund, I am writing to you to ask. To ask... to ask... I am writing to you... to ASK..."

Geena Davis' Best Supporting Actress win for the The Accidental Tourist is definitely one of my favorite Cinderella surprises of the Oscars. Her performance is quirky, luminous and heartbreaking. I also think that the film itself is severely underrated (and I would definitely have nominated William Hurt that year in lead making him a four-years-in-a-row Best Actor nominee). Ann Tyler's novels are always enjoyable. Damien, you might want to re-read the book because Davis nails Muriel Pritchett. The moment that sticks out for me in particular is the look of sheer joy on Muriel's face when Macon slows down the cab to pick her up in Paris at the end of the film. It's truly magical.

My shouldabeens for Supporting Actress for 1988 are:

Joan Cusack, Working Girl
Geena Davis, The Accidental Tourist*
Sandy Dennis, Another Woman
Sylvia Sydney, Beetlejuice
Sigourney Weaver, Working Girl



Edited By flipp525 on 1286919273

[Snick's Guy]

So far I am the lone vote for Cusack. Though a smaller role than Weaver, she was the highlight of the movie for me, and transcends the small role she was given.

Weaver would be my second choice.

I am lukewarm on Davis.

[The Original BJ]

Not a bad lineup, but also one that comes with several caveats, for me at least. First, while I think all of these actresses are what you'd call unique, "special" performers, I don't think anyone hits a career high with her nomination here (often a factor that I've noticed influences how I vote.) Second, there was quite a strong group of also-rans -- Olin, Hershey, Bujold, Venora -- and their absence, even in a bountiful year, bums me out a little.

Of the nominees, I think McDormand is the weakest. I found Mississippi Burning pretty bad, and McDormand is saddled with the most actor-ly, theme-mallet monologues in the film. I do think we see hints of the great character actress she would become, but there are far better films later on for which she should be recognized.

I adore Michelle Pfeiffer, and I think her strong technical abilities are put to fine use in Dangerous Liaisons. But I wonder if she isn't a little miscast in her role. The actress seems almost too intelligent for a character as wide-eyed and clueless as Madame de Tourvel. And while I praise Pfeiffer's effort, I wonder if, ironically, a less skilled, more vapid actress might have actually been a better fit for this part. Pfeiffer almost seems to overthink a character who, at heart, is rather aloof.

Joan Cusack is a joy in a role that does fit her abilities very well. It's not often the kind of part that gets recognized -- most of her zingers come from the sidelines -- but she's very funny and I don't begrudge her the nomination. Still, it's not really substantial enough work to garner win consideration.

So, for me it comes down to Davis or Weaver, and I'd be fine with either choice. I haven't read Accidental Tourist to know whether or not Davis nails the character as written, but I thought she fit the film rather well. The tone of the movie is both humorous and melancholy, and I thought Davis's appealing charm and wistful sadness provided an appropriate counterpoint to Hurt's sad-sack mourner. I do think aspects of Davis's performance rely on a little too much quirk -- at times you can feel a desire for audience affection -- but a lot of that affection is genuinely earned, and that smile at the end of the film is perfectly played.

But, in the end, I voted for Weaver. Her role also seems built for the audience to love to hate her, and her character is not necessarily what you'd call complex. But I think she's just a scream in Working Girl. She's totally hilarious without being, as Damien says, obviously evil in her villainy. And some of her line readings are priceless: Greg mentioned "I am, after all, me" but I also love "Today's junior prick, tomorrow's senior partner" and "Two-way street, remember?" Working Girl obviously doesn't come close to showcasing Weaver's great dramatic abilities, but the actress makes a humorous, memorable impression nonetheless, and a win for her here wouldn't have been undeserving.

It's been over two decades since Weaver's double Oscar bid in '88, and over a decade since she was even in the conversation for an Oscar nod (for excellent work in Ice Storm & Map of the World), but Weaver does work regularly, and in mainstream projects, so I hold out hope that one day soon she will get another crack at the trophy which eluded her in her heyday.

[Greg]

Voted for Weaver. Like 1987, my choice for Supporting Actress was sealed by one great comic line. "I am, after all, me."



Edited By Greg on 1286896072

[Reza]

Voted for Weaver here.

My top 5 of 1988:

Jodie Foster, Stealing Home
Sarah Miles, White Mischief
Sigourney Weaver, Working Girl
Joan Cusack, Working Girl
Barbara Hershey, The Last Temptation of Christ

[ITALIANO]

I hated this year. The show itself was famously terrible, but even before the show I had hated most of the nominees - or at least most of the Best Picture nominees. The only one I had liked didn't seem to have a chance (no Best Director nomination - this was before Driving Miss Daisy) - and as all the Supporting Actress nominees came from those same movies, my enthusiasm for this category was close to zero. Except, of course, for that one movie...

Working Girl seems to be adored on this board but, how shall I put it, I think it's such a light, commercial effort that even back then I couldn't understand why it was taken so seriously - except that it had been made by a much-admired director. It's not badly acted, but is Weaver's intentionally superficial character really Oscar-worthy? I doubt. I honestly think Cusack is better, or at least funnier (even so young, she was already a gifted comic actress), but her one-note small role doesn't allow her to do much.

The Accidental Tourist is probably a bit deeper but it's not a better movie. I wouldn't say that Geena Davis was bad in it, but once you lose interest in a movie you lose interest in its characters, and despite her life-affirming role she wasn't lively enough to provide the story with much-needed energy. It was a surprise when she won, and for a while she became a very popular actress (the Oscar in her case certainly helped); I haven't seen the supposedly dreadful movies that quickly made her fade into obscurity, but I'd say that she had some talent and her talent could have been better used.

Mississipi Burning is another bad, bad movie. Absolutely not worthy of the complex social context it tried to explore. Still, I won't deny that Frances MacDormand did well with her role - the only character with a human aspect, and of course she was a very good actress and handled her big monologue well. She'd be my second choice.

But as you certainly guessed, by far my favorite movie here is Dangerous Liaisons, and Michelle Pfeiffer is definitely my pick. I have never voted for her as a Best Actress, but she is (or was) an Oscar-caliber performer, and in this movie her pale, frail beauty is combined with a well-written character - the emotional side of the story - and the result is a very competent and even affecting performance. Great? Maybe not really, but the best of these five.

[mlrg]

Geena Davis - The Accidental Tourist

[Damien]

Geena Davis's win was genuinely shocking both because Oscar history mandated that the person nominated in both the lead and supporting categories wind here, and also because Davis was godawful in that dreary movie. It's been a quarter century since I've read The Accidental Tourist, but I loved it in the day. And was stunned at how Lawrence Kasdan ad completely missed its tone and textures and made a miserable slog of a film. (In retrospect, I shouldn't have been surprised as I've strongly disliked everything he's ever done.) And I particularly recall wincing at how Kasdan and Davis had completely gotten her character wrong. (Since it's been so long, I can't recall the specifics of their miscalculation.)

Plus, Weaver is terrific in Working Girl -- nice comic timing and delivery and an ability to make her character not stereotypically hateful but recognizably human.

Joan Cusack is also notable in the film and I was delighted with her nomination, but Weaver's has both a larger and more complex role.

Pfeiffer is very good, and MacDormand perfectly competent in an Oscar-bait role.

Weaver gets my vote.

My Own Top 5:
1. Claudia Karvan in High Tide
2. Martha Plimpton in Running On Empty
3. Patricia Hodge in Sunset
4. Lesley Ann Warren in Cop
5. Jan Adele in High Tide

[Precious Doll]

I voted for Sigourney Weaver in what is a good but not great line up, though I could have done without Joan Cusack.

My choices are:

1. Glenda Jackson for Salome's Last Dance
2. Mercedes Reuhl for Married to the Mob
3. Tina Bursil for Jilted
4. Heather Tobias for High Hopes
5. Sandra Bernhard or Track 29



Edited By Precious Doll on 1286862831

[dws1982]

Weaver. She's funny without trying really hard to be funny, and she doesn't go headlong into the total-bitch thing like she easily could have. I like all of these actresses, but I'm not, for the most part, crazy about them in these roles.

My picks:
1- Diane Venora, Bird
2- Lena Olin, The Unbearable Lightness of Being
3- Sandy Dennis, Another Woman
4- Genevieve Bujold, Dead Ringers
5- Martha Plimpton, Running on Empty (and Another Woman)

[Big Magilla]

This was a near perfect line-up. I can't fault any of the nominations, although I would have preferred to see Genevieve Bujold nominated for Dead Ringers over Joan Cusack.

Others that might have been nominated include Barbara Hershey in The Last Temptation of Christ, Mercedes Ruehl in Married to the Mob and Lena Olin in The Unbearable Lightness of Being. It was a rich year for the ladies in both categories.

Of the actual nominees my favorite is Sigourney Weaver's royal send-up for the boss from Hell in Working Girl. Weaver was the fourth actress nominated in both categories in the same year and the first to fail to win in support, an irony for me because she was the first so nominated that I would have given the award to. I had preferred Beulah Bondi in Of Human Hearts to Fay Bainter in Jezebel, both Agnes Moorehead in The Magnificent Ambersons and Gladys Cooper in Now, Voyager to Teresa Wright in Mrs. Miniver and Glenn Close in The World According to Garp over Jessica Lange in Tootsie.

That said, Geena Davis was a perfectly acceptable winner for her daffy dog trainer in The Accidental Tourist, while Michelle Pheiffer as the victim in Dangerous Liaisons and Frances McDormand as the battered wife in Missisippi Burning were both memorable in star-making roles.