My vote - Best Actress 1941

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this Best Actress year. I started it having seen only 2 of the 5 films and I ended up pleasantly surprised by this final ranking. I’ve went through all of them again (some of them twice), counted the screentime and loved each performance just a bit more the second time around. To see the post on how the 5 actresses got nominated, click here.

I also started the year presentation by almost calling it for the winner: my #1 is a favourite performance of mine in one of my favourite films ever. That didn’t change, even though some will say I am being VERY subjective about it. J Of course I am, but that’s that. #2 was a surprising but easy choice. #3 and #4 could easily switch places even though they are very different performances. #5 unfortunately makes for one of the least deserving Best Actress winners I have ever seen (and many others seem to agree), but it’s mostly the film’s fault.

So here is how I ranked them:

1. Bette Davis, The Little Foxes

The screentime: approximately 53 minutes and 4 seconds (46.7% of the film)

The film: I loved it; it’s well written & very well acted. Some thoughts on it: LINK.

The role: Bette plays Regina Giddens, a very ambitious woman, whose desire to get even richer tears her family apart.

The performance: As soon as the dinner scene started, Bette, dressed in a now-iconic black gown, stole my heart. She is everything in this film, from her look that’s both bizarre and stunning to the way she talks (non-sexual sensuality, if that makes any sense) to the confident, yet oh-so-human character she portrays. She owns the screen and you simply can’t take your eyes off her: there’s cruelty, and no tears are being shed, and yet I feel like I know this woman and by no means is she a villain.

The highlight: The final argument with her daughter, having to go up the stairs. Haunting scene.

2. Greer Garson, Blossoms in the Dust

The screentime: approximately 67 minutes and 57 seconds (69.7% of the film)

The film: What I would call your average 1940s film, nothing extraordinary, very idealized. Some thoughts on it: LINK.

The role: Greer plays Edna Gladney, a woman who dedicates her life to finding good homes for abandoned children and fighting for their rights.

The performance: It’s mostly the kind woman role that Greer got to play her entire career. What makes this one special? The surprising nuances, often of spontaneous and isolated selfishness of the character, that made me say Oh…. It’s a very dynamic performance that will not allow you to ignore it and it got better the second time: there’s so much energy to it, both in the louder scenes and strong activism, but also when the camera is on Greer and, through her very expressive eyes, you can feel the struggle inside the character.

The highlight: Either the ending or the surprising Get that child out of here party scene.

3. Barbara Stanwyck, Ball of Fire

The screentime: approximately 45 minutes and 40 seconds (41.6% of the film)

The film: A silly, relaxing comedy, with good dialogue. Some thoughts on it: LINK.

The role: Barbara plays Sugarpuss O’Shea, a singer who goes under hiding from police by befriending a group of lexicographers.

The performance: The success of the performance depends almost exclusively on Barbara’s charm. While the screenplay is good, the performance could’ve been dull, yet it’s not. It has a lot of soul and, more importantly, is has charisma and a lot of confidence. She succeeds when humour is involved because Barbara has a strong comedic timing and delivers the dialogue the right way. The character arc is visible on her expressive face. While I don’t think the performance is extraordinary, it’s very well thought through. A strong 3.

The highlight: Seducing the professors on her first visit to the house.

4. Olivia de Havilland, Hold Back the Dawn

The screentime: approximately 45 minutes and 51 seconds (40.2% of the film)

The film: Another well-written film, a drama with interesting characters. Some thoughts on it: LINK.

The role: Olivia plays Emmy Brown, a naive schoolteacher who is seduced by a gigolo into marrying him, as a way for him to get his visa.

The performance: It’s not a performance for everyone to appreciate, because the role is not spectacular, but I strongly believe nobody could’ve played it better. There’s something about Olivia’s beautiful, innocent face that makes her perfect for such a role (and Melanie in GWTW for that matter) – the performance is all in the eyes and she has to sell the audience that this woman is naive, overly enthusiastic, willing to be loved, but never stupid. It’s a job well done, and a strong 3 (I can’t believe it only ranks 4^th!)

The highlight: Being interrogated, and then putting on the glasses.

5. Joan Fontaine, Suspicion

The screentime: approximately 75 minutes and 1 second (76.8% of the film)

The film: The worst Hitchcock film I’ve ever seen and an overall unsatisfying experience. Some thoughts on it: LINK.

The role: Joan plays Lina, a young woman who rushes into marriage without realizing the loser her husband is and maybe even a murderer.

The performance: Poor Joan. Her theatricals that worked mighty fine in Rebecca feel quite out of place here and bring to light the lack of experience of this young actress. Sure, her performance is way better than the film itself and there is something appealing to it. You can tell she’s really trying to carry the film, to keep it together, and the tears are on display in all the right moments, but she does tend to overdo it. With a screenplay that’s failing almost every scene, she is fatally tempted to act more and more.

The highlight: Listening on her husband who’s back from France talking to the Police.

How did the Academy vote for the winner: I almost have no idea. Let’s start the other way around: although she is amazing & incredible, Bette was probably 5^th because she already had 2 leading Oscars by the age of 33. I would foolishly say Olivia was 4^th because the film is mostly about Boyer’s character and she doesn’t get flashy scenes. I guess Greer could’ve been 3^rd, because the performance is good – what was working against her: she wasn’t that much of a big name at that time. Which means Barbara was 2^nd – not so much because of the performance, which is fine, but comedic, but because she had an amazing year with (allegedly) great performances also in The Lady Eve and Meet John Doe. I have no idea why Joan Fontaine won, maybe because of all the faces she makes, because she had lost for Rebecca, maybe because of the disappointing New York Film Critics Circle win. But given that each of them probably had her fans, I woudn’t be surprised is even Olivia was the runner-up.

And that’s about it.

What’s next: Another DRAW (!!!). :D Since I’m still in old movies mood, the draw will be from the 1950s and the 1960s. The 16 years entering the draw will be 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1967, 1968 and 1969. [1950, 1957, 1965 & 1966 already discussed].

After announcing the new Best Actress year, I will post my very early predictions for Oscars 2015.

To see other BEST ACTRESS years discussed so far, they’re on the column on the right.

An introduction to BEST ACTRESS 1941

There was a draw that took place (video at the end) and destiny chose Best Actress 1941 for me. At first, I wasn’t sure how to feel about it, but then, looking again at the list of 5 nominees, I started to get excited: it’s an interesting line-up of performances from rather young actresses who had already proven their talent. More so, this is a historical year for this category: the first Best Actress line-up not to include any first-time Oscar nominees (other such years were 1944, 1994 & our recent 2013).  

I enter this race having seen only 2 (The Little Foxes & Ball of Fire) of the 5 films, and I am quite curious about at least 1 of the other 3. It was also the first time (and only time?) 2 sisters competed against each other in this race: I’m talking of course about recently departed Joan Fontaine (who ended up winning for Suspicion) and Olivia de Havilland, who is still with us.

I will watch the films, then for a second time while counting the screentime. Of course I have a favourite, but I am open to any change of mind.

The 5 ladies that Oscar had chosen for 1941, in alphabetical order:

Bette Davis as Regina Giddens, in The Little Foxes

Olivia de Havilland as Emmy Brown, in Hold Back the Dawn

Joan Fontaine as Lina, in Suspicion

Greer Garson as Edna Gladney, in Blossoms in the Dust

Barbara Stanwyck as Sugarpuss O'Shea, in Ball of Fire

Greer Garson is the only one playing a real life person. With the exception of Ball of Fire, the other 4 films were all included in the 10 nominees for Best Picture of 1941.

This is before even the Golden Globes existed, so it’s hard to guess / order them by the chance of getting nominated. But I’ll give it a try. Let’s put them in context: I imagine Bette Davis had the nomination locked. At that time in history she was the reigning queen of Hollywood and The Little Foxes was one of the hottest films of 1941, with a total of 9 nominations. Bette wasn’t doing so bad herself: this was her 5th Best Actress nomination (if we don’t count the write-in for Of Human Bondage; in 7 calendar years!!) and her 4th consecutive one. By 1941, she was 33 years old and had already won the Oscar twice: for Dangerous (1935) and for Jezebel (1938). I guess you can see now why this nomination was no surprise. [Not to mention she’s excellent in it].

From here on, it’s all arguable. I would say Joan Fontaine was next, because she had won for Suspicion the only American critics’ award that recognized actresses at that time in history (the New York Film Critics Circle Award). And since she ended up winning the Oscar for it, it’s fair to say actors did enjoy her performance. Only 24 years old at the time, she entered the race with some popularity among her peers: I’m sure many felt she should’ve won the previous year for Rebecca (which made for her 1^st Oscar nomination).

Barbara Stanwyck had four films opening in 1941, with this one, Meet John Doe and The Lady Eve being all very popular. Not sure how much of a lock this nomination was, since she was giving herself a lot of competition. This was her 2^nd Oscar nomination, she had previously competed unsuccessfully with Stella Dallas (1937). Unlike Bette Davis who was already a major star, I think Stanwyck was just gradually becoming a popular actress of that era, maybe a bit more on the comedic / seductress side.

Despite her age, Greer Garson was somewhat at the beginning of her film career; this was only her third year of acting in movies, but she had started on the right foot: her first film Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939) had won her an Oscar nomination. This was her second, and would be the first in line of 5 consecutive ones. She would end up a big movie star, for playing a lot of “decent women”.

I would (almost randomly) say Olivia de Havilland was 5^th by nomination chance, just because the film doesn’t seem to be focused so much on her. Contradicting me is the fact that she was already a film star by then: from plenty of adventure films and mostly because of Gone with the Wind, for which she had received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. This was her second Oscar nomination, and the first one in the Leading category (during her career she would end up winning 2 Best Actress Oscars).

Also difficult to figure out is who the runner-ups were. I managed to put together a list of names.

Possible runner-ups:

Barbara Stanwyck, The Lady Eve (in case she didn’t make it for Ball of Fire)

Irene Dunne, Penny Serenade

Jean Arthur, The Devil and Miss Jones

Joan Crawford, A Woman's Face

Carole Lombard, Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Dark horses?

Barbara Stanwyck, Meet John Doe

Vivien Leigh, That Hamilton Woman

Merle Oberon, That Uncertain Feeling

Bette Davis, The Great Lie

Mary Astor, The Maltese Falcon

Marlene Dietrich, The Flame of New Orleans

Greta Garbo, Two-Faced Woman

Other eligible leading performances of 1941:

Wendy Hiller, Major Barbara

Ginger Rogers, Tom Dick and Harry

Maureen O'Hara, How Green Was My Valley

Joan Crawford, When Ladies Meet

Barbara Stanwyck, You Belong to Me

Olivia de Havilland, The Strawberry Blonde

Margaret Lockwood, Night Train to Munich

Gene Tierney, Sundown

Ida Lupino, Ladies in Retirement

Margaret Sullavan, Appointment for Love

Margaret Sullavan, So Ends Our Night

Claudette Colbert, Skylark

Ann Sothern, Lady Be Good

Priscilla Lane, Blues in the Night

Merle Oberon, Lydia

Martha Scott, One Foot in Heaven

Martha Scott, Cheers for Miss Bishop

Evelyn Keyes, Here Comes Mr. Jordan

Bette Davis, The Bride Came C.O.D.

The ranking will be posted... this spring. J

...ah, yes, and here’s the proof I didn’t cheat. Pointless video.