Smackdown '94: Uma, Dianne, Jennifer, Helen, and Rosemary

Presenting Oscar's Chosen Supporting Actresses of the Films of 1994.

THE NOMINEES: The Academy wrapped up their love affair with a previous winner (Dianne Wiest) while starting a new one with a future winner (Helen Mirren). Two fresh-faced delights (Uma Thurman, Jennifer Tilly) and an esteemed veteran (Rosemary Harris) were along for the ride.

In a rare turn of events the shortlist leaned far away from tears and dove headfirst into stylized fun or outright belly laughs (Rosemary Harris was the only player in a traditional drama). A quick list of the roles sounds like a joke set-up or at least a wild party: A fertile queen, a pompous diva, a wealthy society matriarch, and not but one but two trouble-maker gangster molls who moonlight in acting. 

THIS MONTH'S PANELISTS   

Here to talk about these five nominated turns are, in alpha order: Erik Anderson (Awards Pundit), Nick Davis (Professor),  Itamar Moses (Tony-winning Playwright), Alfred Soto (Editor/Critic), and your host Nathaniel R from The Film Experience. [Apologies but the sixth announced panelist Sheila O'Malley -- who previously provided brilliant insight in our 1984 discussion -- had to attend to a last minute emergency so we'll have to catch up with her again down the road.]

Readers form the collective panelist each month (though there were weirdly fewer votes this round for such a recent year!). You broke the panel tie to determine the winner this time around. Now it's time for the main event... 

1994
SUPPORTING ACTRESS SMACKDOWN  

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Vintage '94: Vampires, Gumps, and Serial Moms

The Supporting Actress Smackdown 1994 Edition arrives in just two weeks (Sunday June 24th) so as we approach and you vote (hint hint), let's talk context in movies and entertainment.

Great Big Box Office Hits: 1. Forrest Gump 2. The Lion King 3. True Lies 4. The Santa Clause 5. The Flintstones 6. Dumb & Dumber 7. Clear and Present Danger 8. Speed 9. The Mask and 10. Pulp Fiction just barely beating out Interview with the Vampire to complete the top ten. 

Oscar's Best Picture Nominees: Forrest Gump  (13 noms / 6 wins), Pulp Fiction  (7 noms / 1 win), The Shawshank Redemption (7 nominations), Quiz Show (4 noms), and the surprise Four Weddings and a Funeral (only 2 nominations in the 'only 5' Best Picture era!).

After the jump more vintage '94 and our best guess as to what would have made the list in the current voting era of 5-10 nominees...

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"Girl, you'll be a woman soon... Soon, you'll need a man 🎵"

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Throwback Fun: Favorites of 1994?

Tuesday's revisit to the essential and apparently sorely underseen Queen Margot (1994) and the comments thereafter had me thinking about favorite films from 1994. This website wasn't around back then of course (I think the internet was just in listserv mode at that point?) but I was already making lists. So what would I have nominated had our Film Bitch Awards been around back then? What would you have nominated had you had an Oscar ballot?

The answers (fluid as they are should rewatching ever occur) are after the jump...

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Eight Hateful Links

• New Now Next Jesus. I can't believe we haven't mentioned this but the First Wives Club actresses are finally reuniting - Goldie, Bette, & Diane will star in a Netflix film called Divanation, as a former pop trio reuniting. I was going to shout "when can we buy tickets?" but it's Netflix so...
• Salt Lake Tribune the Utah Film Critics took Fury Road to Best Picture but how's this for fun: They gave Rose Byrne in Spy their Best Supporting Actress prize.
• Cinematic Corner Sati doesn't like Carol (wha!?!?!) but she still makes great lists so we'll pretend we hadn't just learned this about her. Anyway... this one is on her favorite things about Mad Max Fury Road

• Forbes suggests that Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth etc... give you the most ROI at the box office given their salaries per film. The list is kind of interesting but bankability is so intangible since many of today's stars don't have colossal box office because they are selling tickets but because they are playing characters who sell tickets -- notice how many Marvel superheroes make this list.
• MNPP Colton Haynes and Luke Evans have something in common
• /Film Star Wars may be the only franchise getting ink this month but James Cameron won't want to see his records destroyed. He is still promising Avatar 2 for 2017
• The Wrap has been experimenting with Oscar math for years trying to see if we'd ever get a 10 wide year under the new system. This year their experiment ended with 10 pictures. And this plays like sound reasoning on what type of year we'd need to get ten nominees:

A larger-than-usual number of films got votes, but a smaller-than-usual number of them had strong support.

So the question is: do you think it's that kind of year? Here's our current Best Picture Chart

• and finally... 
I don't plan to review Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight since I've been slagging it off on Twitter and gave it the #2 spot in my Worst of 2015 list and who needs to be so toxic during the holidays? In short my review goes like this: "the best part was intermission". So to make amends to the Tarantino devotees among you, please enjoy Joe Reid's 50 Best Performance in Tarantino Movies list. I would naturally quibble with the order. Bridget Fonda's awesome "Melanie" in Jackie Brown and Amanda Plummer's hysterical "Honeybunny" from Pulp Fiction are among my favorites and neither even make the top 35! Both are lower than Jamie Foxx in Django Unchained which is puzzling as he gives the weakest of leading performance in the Tarantino filmography (think about it). The top three are all marvelous Oscar worthy choices and I'm pleased that most of the Kill Bill players rank highly. Over the years Kill Bill has sliced such a distinctive but clean and familiar path through the center of Tarantino's filmography that I now consider it his best work, hands down. Or limbs off as the case may be for so many of its unfortunate extras.

If you must know I'd rank the principle performances in The Hateful Eight like so: Samuel L Jackson ≥ Walton Goggins >>> Kurt Russell > Demian Bichir >> Jennifer Jason Leigh (sorry, she's never done much for me as an actor. I'm aware that this is an unpopular opinion amongst film critics) > Bruce Dern > Tim Roth >> Michael Madsen (who sadly is given very little to do). If you plan to see the sadist western over the Christmas break, we would be interested in hearing your opinion despite feeling hateful ourselves.