Actresses Who Didn't "Stick to the Wall"

Cafe Society
61

This is a hijack, sorry, but I really don’t get this. They’re nothing alike. Benjamin has no mental deficiencies; except for World War II he’s not involved with any historical events (and there are thousands of movies that surround themselves with WWII); he meets no major historical figures; and doesn’t do anything of cultural or historical importance himself. His girlfriend isn’t an abused fuckup. He has no son that looks like Haley Joel Osment. The mother figure in his life is nothing like Sally Field (she isn’t even his mother, or white). Is it because they’re both set in the south? Well, so is The Long, Hot Summer, and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, and A Streetcar Named Desire, and Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte, and In the Garden of Good and Evil, and The Big Easy. Is it because they’re both long? Well, so is Titanic, and King Kong, and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Is it because it was nominated for so many Oscars? Well, so was Ben-Hur, and All About Eve, and The Color Purple, and again with the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Titanic. I swear, I do not get why people say that, other than the fact that both leads are male, played by movie stars. It perplexes me. [/hijack]

Yep, you’re right. I already said that her performance was hardly crucial to the film (“you could put any other actress in there and it wouldn’t make much of a difference”) but the point is that the character is pivotal, and Julia Ormond happened to play the character, so she’s still working, and is in big movies. I agree that she got hyped just by being in Sabrina, which had the unfortunate effect of being compared to Audrey Hepburn. No one could live up to that. I think she took some time off to have and raise a daughter, which also explains her being interested in the role of the mother in Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (which I actually enjoyed quite a bit, and Ormond was luminously beautiful in it). If hers is not a household name, and the average person couldn’t identify her by sight, then the same could not only be said about a lot of people mentioned in this thread, of course (since they never “stuck” which I take to mean, got name and face recognition, a “Q” factor), but could also be said about actresses who most of us know and would never be mentioned in this thread, but who Joe Blow wouldn’t know either, like Samantha Morton or Michelle Williams or Hope Davis.

I’m not trying to be overly contrary. It’s not like I’m a huge Julia Ormond fan who has to defend her, though I do like her. I also realize that Julia Ormond certainly is much more generic than those very distinctive but unknown (to the general public) women, and doesn’t work near as often or in as many American movies. However, I just checked out her next project on IMDB and I can’t wait to see it. It’s Temple Grandin, with Clair Danes, David Strathairn, Catherine O’Hara, and is directed by Mick Jackson, who’s done some exceptional TV work, such as Threads, Traffic (the miniseries), and Tuesdays with Morrie. He’s done some paycheck movies, such as Volcano, but he also directed L.A. Story, with Steve Martin, which I thought was pretty good. The movie synopsis is: “A biopic of Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who has become one of top scientists in humane livestock handling.” Sounds good.

As garygnu points out, she’s still in demand. Her next three movies are whoppers. State of Play, with Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck and Helen Mirren, directed by Kevin McDonald (The Last King of Scotland), and screenplay by Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton); the title character in The Time Traveler’s Wife, with Eric Bana as the wayward time-challenged hubby; and Sherlock Holmes’ main squeeze (I assume) with Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, directed by Guy Ritchie. After that, she’ll be in Morning Glory, directed by Roger Mitchell (Notting Hill, Changing Lanes, Venus) with Harrison Ford. Ok, that one has the capacity to be dismal, simply because it’s likely she’s the love interest of Harrison Ford, a man old enough to be her grandfather. That could get icky, but we’ll see. She did seem to take a couple of years off, but last year she was in a couple of fantastic indie films. I saw her recently in a terrific little indie film called The Lucky Ones, with Tim Robbins and Michael Peña. It got terrible reviews and I don’t understand why. Plus, she was in a 40’s-set noir called Married Life, with Chris Cooper and Patricia Clarkson. I didn’t see it, but I wanted to see it and wish I had.

62

Re: Rachel McAdams

She’s going to be playing Watson? Interesting choice.

63

I’m still curious why you think this is something special that only happens to actresses.

64

Exactly. After Amistad, Djimon Hounsou was supposed to be the next great dramatic actor. He’s basically been relegated to bit parts in sci-fi movies since then.

Or James Marsden after the X-Men movies. He barely appeared in the sequels because Wolerine (and Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of him) stole the show.

Remember when David Caruso left NYPD Blue (then the biggest show on TV) to become a movie star? What movies did he even star in?

Someone upthread mention Orlando Bloom, that’s another good one, although he could be in a small lull. One more big movie would probably cement him as a “star.” Which just goes to show you how subjective the whole thing is.

65

Jade, with the also mentioned failing star Linda Fiorentino and something about a car thief with Linda Hunt.

66

It clearly happens to men, too - I just pay more attention to the women because they’re (usually) prettier IMHO and their career trajectories are riskier.

67

How do you figure? Even the supposed “failed” It Girls in this thread have all had long (and in some cases, distinguished) careers. If anything, I think being an actress is less risky as their are always plenty of bit parts for an even slightly recognizable actress.

68

Does Heather Graham qualify? She was in a bunch of successful movies in the 90s (Swingers, Austin Powers, Boogie Nights), and then… not much. A failed TV series, some movies I have never heard of, in the last decade. So, she is still working, but rather under the radar. I never thought she was a very good actress, frankly, which could be why, in her late 30s, she’s not really getting great parts.

Are there any good examples of It Girls who did become serious stars? I’m not even sure I understand who is an It Girl to begin with.

69

Oh, I didn’t mean like “This is so stupid the thread should have never been started” or anything. I just meant that I wanted to participate, too, but I just wasn’t sure what the parameters were. I mean, Ione Skye would definitely be an actress who didn’t stick, and I’d think that Heather Graham could qualify, but a number of other suggestions just seem really weird to me.

70

I don’t know that James Marsden deserves to be on here, at least not yet. He’s a bit too new to write off. Sex Drive kinda fizzled, but he was hilarious in the 2007 hit movie, Enchanted, and was the lead male in last year’s 27 Dresses, with Katherine Heigl. He’s got two movies coming up that I’m excited to see. First, The Box, directed by Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko, Southland Tale-hey, I liked it, and the upcoming Knowing with Nic Cage), with Cameron Diaz and Frank Langella. It’s based on a story by Richard Matheson, which was also a (New) Twilight Zone episode where a couple find a box, and are told if they open it they will be rich, but someone they don’t know will die. Mare Winningham, who would probably belong in this thread, played the girl in the TV episode. (btw, the episode is on YouTube. Part 1, Part 2, but don’t watch it if you haven’t read the story and you don’t to be spoiled for the movie).

Second, in the next David O. Russell film Nailed, he’s one of three leads, along with Jessica Biel and Jake Gyllenhaal. Truncated synopsis: “A small town waitress gets a nail accidentally lodged in her head causing unpredictable behavior…” Russell’s a strange, strange man, and I love everything he’s done so far, most especially Three Kings, so I’m looking forward to it.

71

I agree with you on The Box, it looks pretty cool. Of course, I’m a sucker for anything Richard Matheson.

But really, your listing of Marsden’s filmography proves my point. After being branded the next big thing by being picked to star in X-Men, he’s since been relegated to supporting status next to new It Boys/Girls like Hugh Jackman (the X-Men sequels), Ryan Gosling (The Notebook), Kate Bosworth (Superman Returns) and Jake Gyllenhal (Nailed).

He’s had a fine career, but he’s clearly not the “star” he was being groomed to be.

72

This.

IIRC I read a complaint from Lori Petty stating that she and Johnny Depp are about the same age—he has no trouble finding work but she and other actresses their age have to scratch for roles.

A lot of the actresses whom I find to be total babes are showing up in this thread. Maura Tierney, Marisa Tomei, and the uber hottie, Mira Sorvino. She and I have a thing going, but please don’t tell her: I’m waiting for the perfect moment.

Some trivia about the divide Ms. M.S.:

Graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1989, with a BA in Chinese (East Asian Languages and Civilizations). Her honors thesis: “Anti-Africanism in the People’s Republic of China” about the Nanjing Anti-African protests, which won the Harvard Hoopes Prize for writing.

An exceptionally poised and articulate young woman, she may have seemed inappropriate to play a loopy hooker, but Woody Allen took the chance, and her magnificent performance as the female lead in his Mighty Aphrodite (1995) proved her range as a performer and earned her an Oscar (at the tender age of 29) for best supporting actress.

73

Not yet, anyway. I think in a lot of cases, some actors and actresses are doing exactly what they want to do, working in smaller, more interesting movies. Maybe they don’t need or want fame and fortune. They want to make a living, and do good work, and hone their craft, and work with interesting people. If that leads to a path where they’re perceived by others as not living up to their potential, or failures (or whatever word might apply) they’re probably not too upset by that. Some are stuck in a rut, and are upset by it, but I’ll bet a lot aren’t.

Justin Timberlake is a fine example. He’s a superstar who could (probably) get big movies if he wanted, but he said he wanted to be in smaller films where he could learn and interact with people who care about films, without having the pressure of carrying a movie. I know I’ve said this before, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard a note of Justin Timberlake’s music, in any incarnation, but knowing his reputation as a music superstar, I didn’t expect much of him when I went to see Alpha Dog. I was blown away by him, even though he was a supporting character. Emile Hirsch also made an impression but it was Timberlake’s character that made me say “who was that guy?” and then when I checked IMDB though “shit! THAT was Justin Timberlake?? Wow!” He definitely has a major talent. His next movie showed that Alpha Dog wasn’t a fluke. He was fantastic in the (IMO) excellent Black Snake Moan. His role was small, but powerful. Then he did a couple of “uh oh, was I wrong about him?” movies, Shrek the Third and The Love Guru (which I didn’t see). I can’t imagine he needs a paycheck so they were perplexing choices. Then he comes back with a fantastic turn in the highly weird Southland Tales (which was filmed before, but I saw after Black Snake Moan).

His next movie is another small indie film, The Open Road, though with some names (Jeff Bridges, Kate Mara, Mary Steenburgen, Harry Dean Stanton and Lyle Lovett). He’s the lead this time, but it’s not the kind of film that’s going to get a lot of hype. I firmly believe that if he wants to, he could go on to be one of our finest actors. It’s too early to tell. But the point is that he hasn’t failed at his acting career, which I’ve heard people say elsewhere, he’s doing exactly what he wants to do, taking it slow, learning, working with good people (for the most part, though I’m sure he learned valuable tips from Mike Myers regarding comedic timing, and it would be interesting to see him in a comedy).

74

FYI, Rosanna Arquette directed a documentary called Searching for Debra Winger, which is, I think, about the problems actresses having getting work as they get older.

As for Carrie Fisher, I think she had problems with drug addition and bipolar disorder, which might have contributed to her career problem.

75

**Fish’s **observation is what I meant by it appearing to be “riskier” for a female actor to navigate a career in Hollywood.

76

I’m still not seeing the proof that it’s riskier for women. Nearly all of the names listed in this thread are just failed examples of the Hollywood “It Girl” phenomenom. All that shows is that the entertainment rags have a poor track record when it comes to picking up on who will be the next star.

Look at Thora Birch. After American Beauty and Ghost World, she got labelled an It Girl. She’s since went on to do not much of note, but she’s made a ton of movies. But the funny thing is that Scarlett Johansson was in Ghost World too, but she didn’t earn her It Girl status until Lost in Translation.

Look at all of the other names mentioned in this thread. While none of them are “stars”, all of them are working steadily. There’s a big difference between being a star and having a career, but you can only have so many stars. And having doesn’t seem any more difficult for female actors than it does for male ones.

77

Yes. Excellent example.

78

There are plenty of Hollywood actresses “of a certain age” who have worked fairly steadily. Diane Keaton. Susan Sarandon. Meryl Streep. A set younger, Nicole Kidman, Julia Roberts (who hasn’t worked much since she had kids, but I suspect she could if she wished to).

Johnny Depp has no problem getting roles because he’s Johnny Depp. Jodie Foster is a year older, and doesn’t have a hard time getting roles when she wants to work either.

79

Cameron Diaz? She’s stayed pretty active since. She didn’t have much in the last couple of years besides Shrek sequels, but according to her imdb page she has leading roles in two movies due for release this year.
And after having written all that out, I finally got the joke. Well done.

80

My own picks:

Phoebe Cates. She may have been on the downward slope anyway after Drop Dead Fred and Princess Caraboo, but she apparently decided to call it quits on her own to raise a family. I didn’t realize, though, that her husband is Kevin Kline and they’ll have their 20th anniversary this year.

Robin Givens was in the spotlight at lot in the late 80s, especially after marrying Mike Tyson. imdb shows a steady stream of credits since then, but nothing I recognize, other than a lot of appearances on Howard Stern, Hollywood Squares and The View. I think she’s probably a good example of someone getting a reputation as ‘difficult’.