Beauty vs Beast: Sibling Rivalry
Monday, February 5, 2018 at 11:57AM Jason from MNPP here wishing us all the happiest Lovely Laura Linney Day! Today Linney is celebrating her 54th birthday, which means we're celebrating as well because she's a national treasure that one. But that happiness and celebration might not last long, I ruin everything, because I'm about to force a horrible choice on you with this week's "Beauty vs Beast" contest and ask you to consider choosing between the siblings of Kenneth Lonergan's 2000 sibling masterpiece You Can Count On Me -- Linney's hometown mama and boss-schtupper Sammy versus Mark Ruffalo's home-crashing money-grubbing seatbealt-wearing Terry. Vote and then tell us why you voted how you voted down below in the comments!
PREVIOUSLY Last week's Best Actor contest handed Timothee Chalamet a win as sound (to the tune of 87% of the vote!) as his trounced competitor Gary Oldman's eventual win at the Oscars next month is assured, so let's just enjoy us getting it right anyway. Said hepwa (and this is a fine list that I'd love to hear if anybody has any of their own to add to this list, too):
"There are five great young male performances in the past forty years, in chronological order: Dennis Christopher in "Breaking Away", Michael O'Keefe in "The Great Santini", Timothy Hutton in "Ordinary People", River Phoenix in "Running On Empty" and now Timothee Chalamet in "Call Me by Your Name"."
Reader Comments (20)
No, no, no. This is just too cruel. I can't and won't vote. I love them both. You can't have one without the other.
I love them both - but only Terry catches a moth on his hand mid-scene and keeps it going.
Best Actress 2000 was an absolute bloodbath. When Laura Linney in YCCOM finishes a distant third and Joan freaking Allen is fourth (probably), that is the definition of stiff competition.
Best Supporting Actor was just as stacked. Everyone says Ruffalo was snubbed (because he was), but who do you get rid of to make room? Phoenix? Bridges?
I will always be a Burstyn 2000 supporter, but Linney's scene in the car after she sleeps with her boss (spoiler alert, I guess) is marvelous.
It’s too bad there are no female performances on that list of five.
I HAD to vote for Sammy (I had to vote for ANYTHING Linney) - I have always loved her line when he asks her if she wants to get high. She says; "No - do you got any" One of my favorite lines of all time - I use it whenever the opportunity presents itself!
I pride myself in being responsible, so of course I'm on Team Sammy.
I'm team Sammy b/c she always makes me cry at the end on the bus bunch. But Terry is wonderful too. Linney and Ruffalo have each never been better than in this movie, imho
Richard - it is the list of "great young male performances in the past forty years" so it's not really that surprising there aren't any females on it :)
I just can't. Two of the besf performances ever.
Here are five more great young male performances of the past forty years: Kelly Reno in The Black Stallion, River Phoenix in The Mosquito Coast, Lucas Black in All the Pretty Horses, Anderson Ballesteros in Our Lady of the Assassins and Morgan Marinne in Le Fils.
As for this week's vote: well, I'll vote for Sammy/Laura Linney, if only because I'm saving up a vote for Mark Ruffalo if Foxcatcher ever comes up!
Always gonna be Team Linney. 2000 was indeed a bloodbath. Bjork couldn't even get a nomination. Though maybe that had something to do with the swan dress.
This is really a Sophie's choice. Performance-wise, it's a draw. But in terms of who I identified with more - well, I'm a Sammy, so there goes my vote.
I adore this movie.
He was cute but obnoxious
Of cos its Linney!! She's the ME in You Can Count on Me!
U can count on her to sweep this survey 😁
Ditto just about everything already noted. One of the all time great screen pairs -- both so flawed, both so connected to each other. Lonergan's uncomfortable (for me, maybe not for him) commitment to Casey Affleck aside, he deserves enormous credit for providing such rich writing and understated directing to two amazingly talented performers. (Oh, but I voted for Linney. Duh.)
Everything is so hard for Sammy. She needs us to vote for her.
Linney, although they were both marvelous. She would also have been my pick for the Oscar that year.
Re: Ruffalo--he was totally robbed of a nod! I love Phoenix, but I thought he was actually kind of terrible in Gladiator.
it took me a while to respond to this as choosing between my favourite actress and my favourite actor made me pass out repeatedly
i would have put ruffy in lead at the oscars and he still would have won over the real nominees or mine [bardem, jamie bell, michael douglas - wonder boys, mike white - chuck & buck]
i occasionally fool myself that i'm living life like terry but i'm way more sammy
and as if i'd ever vote against the lovely laura linney and her two handed wave
Realize how great (and funny) Linney was in the role (and the final scene at the bus stop is unforgettable due to both actors' conveying the unshakable bond between these siblings), but Ruffalo knocked me out as few performances have. Still waiting for him to get his Oscar for this.