And the Oscar goes to...the most undeserving best actress oscar winner

[sammyyummy]

I was watching a slew of films by actresses who didnt win the Oscar the year they were nominated and wondered who from among those who did win were undeserving of the best actress award (limiting it to the last 15 years; winners listed below):

Gwyneth Paltrow Shakespeare in Love
Hilary Swank Boys Don't Cry
Julia Roberts Erin Brockovich
Halle Berry Monster's Ball
Nicole Kidman The Hours
Charlize Theron Monster
Hilary Swank Million Dollar Baby
Reese Witherspoon Walk the Line
Helen Mirren The Queen
Marion Cotillard La Vie en Rose
Kate Winslet The Reader
Sandra Bullock The Blind Side
Natalie Portman Black Swan
Meryl Streep The Iron Lady
Jennifer Lawrence Silver Linings Playbook

Which actress would you name as most deserving to win an Oscar?

IMHO:
undeserving: Goop Paltrow and Sandra Bullock
deserving: Michelle Pfeiffer and Julianne Moore and Glenn Close

 

[braex27]

From your list -

Gwyneth Paltrow Shakespeare in Love - Cate Blanchett should have won for Elizabeth
Hilary Swank Boys Don't Cry - Agree
Julia Roberts Erin Brockovich - Ellen Burstyn should have won for Requiem for a Dream
Halle Berry Monster's Ball - Agree
Nicole Kidman The Hours - possibly Julianne Moore for Far From Heaven should have won
Charlize Theron Monster - Agree though both Samatha Morton (in America) and Naomi Watts (21 Grams) were very very good
Hilary Swank Million Dollar Baby - Annette Bening for Being Julia should have won
Reese Witherspoon Walk the Line - Felicity Huffman should have won for Transamerica
Helen Mirren The Queen - Agree
Marion Cotillard La Vie en Rose - Agree
Kate Winslet The Reader - Kate Winslet deserved to win but more so for Revolutionary Road
Sandra Bullock The Blind Side - Carey Mulligan for An Education should have won
Natalie Portman Black Swan - Agree
Meryl Streep The Iron Lady - Possibly, Viola Davis (The Help) should have won
Jennifer Lawrence Silver Linings Playbook - Agree, would also have liked Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) to win

 

[Rubber Rat]

I agree with the following winners:

Hilary Swank Boys Don't Cry Halle Berry Monster's Ball
Charlize Theron Monster
Helen Mirren The Queen
Marion Cotillard La Vie en Rose
Kate Winslet The Reader
Natalie Portman Black Swan
Meryl Streep The Iron Lady
Jennifer Lawrence Silver Linings Playbook

 

[Callum]

Gwyneth Paltrow Shakespeare in Love
Hilary Swank Boys Don't Cry
Julia Roberts Erin Brockovich
Halle Berry Monster's Ball
Nicole Kidman The Hours
Charlize Theron Monster
Hilary Swank Million Dollar Baby
Reese Witherspoon Walk the Line
Helen Mirren The Queen
Marion Cotillard La Vie en Rose
Kate Winslet The Reader
Sandra Bullock The Blind Side
Natalie Portman Black Swan
Meryl Streep The Iron Lady
Jennifer Lawrence Silver Linings Playbook

Well, I agree with Lawrence, Streep, Portman, Mirren, Swank, Theron, Kidman, Swank. The rest, no.

Paltrow is a shitty actress and Blanchett should have won for Elizabeth.

Julia Roberts was in no way better than Ellen Burstyn, who should have won for her performance in Requiem for a Dream. Still one of (if not the) best acting performances of the 2000s.

Sissy Spacek was brilliant in In the Bedroom, far more interesting and powerful than Halle Berry...guess a black woman can't win an Oscar until she takes her top off. *sigh*

Felicity Huffman definitely should have won for Transamerica, and I am 300% sure if that film was released now versus back then, she would have. Reese Witherspoon isn't that great in Walk the Line.

I don't disagree with Cotillard winning for La Vie en Rose, because she was wonderful, but Laura Linney probably should have taken the trophy for The Savages. She's another actress that will receive a "handout Oscar" someday (ditto with Julianne Moore, Glenn Close and Edward Norton, but I digress).

Winslet has had better films, and I still say her best is Heavenly Creatures, and the Oscar for The Reader was just an "overdue handout". She played more of a supporting act too. Anne Hathaway was fantastic in Rachel Getting Married.

The 82nd Academy Awards were boring/crap in general, but I still think Streep was at her comedy-drama best in Julie and Julia. Sandra Bullock is a joke, at par with Paltrow winning.

 

[ChickenGuy]

That silly buffoon Roberto Benigni for Life is Beautiful - I saw the film and there was nothing that stood out or was exceptional in his acting AT ALL. He was given it because he 'charmed' the Academy with his antics in the weeks leading up to the ceremony.

Also, Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight - I'm sorry but giving someone as Oscar JUST because they died is just stupid and patronising.

Elsewhere, Oscars have a habit of going to the RIGHT person - for the WRONG movie. Cases in point:

- Judi Dench for Shakespeare In Love which she was barely in - it was given largely because of her much more worthy performance in Mrs. Brown the previous year. In fact you could choose ANY performance of hers - EXCEPT the one she got it for.

- Denzel Washington for Training Day - again, right actor but wrong movie. In my opinion he really should have got it above all his movies for his portrayal as Malcolm X which was excellent, but he never did.

Others I think SHOULD have won:

- Edward Norton for American History X - brilliant performance

- Annette Bening for American Beauty - she was better than Kevin Spacey who did win

Anyway that's all I've got right now.

EDIT:

I've realised when I was almost finished that you were only meaning actresses.

I'll just post anyway since I took so much time typing all this.

 

[BevanBB]

Berry suck. PC award. The French chick was awesome,but let's not forget Julie Christie that year. Swank sucks in everything.Kidman and Roberts didn't deserve either. I think Roberts was better in Notting Hill. Theron---another PC award. A real loser.

 

[Adrock-JD]

Meryl Streep deserves every fucking time. That is all.