This was quite a great year for movies as well as for great actresses and whom did they choose? A long-winded movie with a boring actress. Anyway, here are the Best Actresses for 1943, the one who won, the one whom, I think, should have won and the one who was not nominated.
1. JENNIFER JONES IN THE SONG OF BERNADETTE
Jennifer Jones, a young, beautiful girl, in what the studios claimed was her first film ( she was in 2 other films under her real name, Phylis Isley) starred as Bernadette, the saint. So, before she became a saint, Bernadette saw the image of Mary in a grotto. Soon the grotto has healing powers and helps cure people when they partake of the waters. She enters the nunnery, pious and virtuous despite others not believing in her and in what she saw. This was a loooonnnng movie and I found it, boring. Jennifer was nice but was just blah. Frankly, I think she excelled in later films but not her first as Jennifer Jones. I believe her “attachment” to David O Selznick helped her achieve this stardom and her Oscar….just saying.
2. JEAN ARTHUR IN THE MORE, THE MERRIER
I recently rewatched this funny and sweet romantic comedy that stars Jean Arthur as a regular gal who has a large apartment and decides to rent out the one bedroom since there is a housing shortage. Enter Charles Coburn, a millionaire whose hotel room is not available, so he sees the advertisement for the room in the paper and, after much tribulation, Arthur agrees to let the older man sublet. Before you can whistle Dixie, the older man meets a young, new soldier, played by the ruggedly, handsome Joel McCrea, who needs a room for a week before being shipped out to Africa so, he sublets his half of his room. This creates some chaos for the rule-oriented Arthur but they all do their best to get along. This is a funny and engaging comedy. Arthur is brilliant as the uber-time management, tense gal who has no problem showing herself with cream on her face, mouth full of toothpaste and awkward in her style. She makes her character believable and funny while falling in love with McCrea. She has perfect timing as well as showing herself tenderness. I do think she should have won.
3. INGRID BERGMAN IN CASABLANCA
Ingrid Bergman was nominated this year, but not for her stellar performance in Casablanca as Ilse but for the film, “For Whom The Bell Tolls” as guerrilla fighter, Maria. Amazing that she was not nominated for her sublime performance as the beauteous Ilse who shows up Rick’s Cafe with her Husband, Victor Lazlo, played by righteous Paul Henreid. There, she sees Rick, played by cynical Humphrey Bogart, whom she feel in love with when living in Paris. Now, Rick has the letters of transit which will allow 2 people to leave Casablanca and travel out of Nazi controlled countries. I love this film with all the characters, the intrigues, the humour..it is perfect in every way. In fact, if Bergman would have been nominated for this role and won, I would not have an issue with it but I still give it to Arthur. Bergman played a role that could have been one dimensional but she puts all these nuances into her role to make her character believable.
So, have you seen any of these films? Do you agree or would you choose another?
Oh, for anyone who loves old films, actors and scandals, you should go to YouTube and watch this podcast called, “From Beneath The Hollywood Sign.” It is a great podcast with 2 people who just love film and discuss the films the people made plus some of the scandal like Thomas Ince’s death. They have a star of the month and this month, they chose Linda Darnell. Joel, I think you would love this and should check it out.
Of course I've seen Casablanca. Didn't they remake The More, the Merrier in the '60s? With Cary Grant in the old guy role? Run, Don't Walk. The housing shortage was due to the Tokyo Olympics (where the movie was set). Have you seen it?
ReplyDeleteWe’ll always have Casablanca.
ReplyDeleteHi Birgit!
ReplyDeleteFirst thanks for that tip about the website!! I'll have to check it out when I get the chance.
As far as this year's race the absolutely wrong person won! There is no question that Jennifer Jones won because she was banging Selznick. A mechanical actress at best, I have seen all her films but mostly because of her connections they are by and large prestige productions except for a few of her later films which I watched out of completeness. Only in "The Towering Inferno" did I think she gave a credible performance, probably because it only required her to be dignified and game. She is puerile and unctuous in "Bernadette" and the film ponderous.
I think Jean Arthur is terrific in "The More the Merrier" and deserving of the nomination, but I wouldn't give her the win for one simple reason. She is not the most memorable person in the film, that honor goes to Charles Coburn who absolutely was the right winner in Supporting Actor this year.
No question Ingrid was nominated for the wrong film. "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is a bore and Ingrid's Maria a weak character, only Katina Paxinou stands out in the film. If she had been nominated for her inimitable Ilsa Lund with the rest of the lineup unchanged she would have been my easy winner.
However there are two actresses that didn't make the shortlist and most definitely were superior to anyone who did. The first is the great Ida Lupino as the scheming, ruthless Helen in "The Hard Way" and the second is Teresa Wright in "Shadow of a Doubt" who had she been nominated would have won even over Ingrid. I think her three previous nominations (and win) for her first trio of films cost her with the Academy. They seem to have felt she was acknowledged enough I suppose since she also missed a few years later for "The Best Years of Our Lives."