Glenn Close received her second Oscar nomination for her performance as Sarah Cooper in The Big Chill.
The Big Chill is an excellent movie about a group of former college friends who spend a weekend together after the suicide of one of them. It's a movie I already liked the first time I watched it, but I flat out loved it on a rewatch: it's a brilliant movie bolstered by a first-rate screenplay that is equally hilarious and thoughtful. It's a movie that conveys the nostalgic, sad feeling of its character but that at the same time captures the beauty of life and friendship. The whole cast is very good with William Hurt being the standout.
Glenn Close plays Sarah Cooper, one of the friends: she is the one who, along with her husband Harold (Kevin Kline), hosts the friends at her house over the weekend. The first time I saw the movie I thought that Glenn Close was easily the weak link of the cast: I found her performance to be surprisingly disappointing and shallow - I never thought that she dug deep into the character's pain and I thought she had a strangely pale screen-presence that made her disappear completely next to the other cast members. After a rewatch, I now feel differently about her performance: I still don't think she gives the best performance of the cast (I think William Hurt, Meg Tilly and Tom Berenger were better) but I've grown to appreciate more the small subtleties and nuances she brings to the role. She never stands out, but she is part of what makes the ensemble of this movie so great and makes Sarah one of the most interesting characters of the movie. She really feels like part of the group and she creates a beautiful dynamic with all of the other cast members.
In the first scenes of the movie, that takes place at the funeral and shortly after, Sarah seems to be the only character to be in control of her emotions - all of the other characters are visibly upset and incapable of holding their emotions: Sarah, despite silently crying while her husband talks about the deceased Alex, seems to be the anchor of the group, the one who can pull herself together and be kind and smiley towards everyone. Close, though, manages to show that there is definitely something off about Sarah and she manages to make you see the inner turmoil behind Sarah's gentle demeanor: we get a first glimpse of Sarah's desperation when we see her crying alone in the shower - it's a small moment that lasts a bunch of seconds but it's in this small moment of intense desperation that Close finds the core of the character and suggests Sarah's past which is only explained later on. It is later revealed that Sarah and Alex had a brief affair five years prior: even if it hadn't being directly explained, you can read it all through Close's and Kline's performances. Both actors are excellent in conveying the history between these two people and establish perfectly their relationship: there is not passion nor fire in their scenes together but there is a great amount of sincerity, affection and tenderness - on her part, Close is particularly effective in suggesting that Sarah's affair with Alex was more passionate but that she is ultimately more happy with Harold. Some of her best moments are the ones that involve Sarah dealing with her conflicted feelings and memories towards Alex: the moment in which Jeff Goldblum's character mentions the fact that she has found the perfect husband in Harold and Sarah's face, as she briefly thinks of her affair with Alex, freezes is a brilliant moment made unforgettable by Close's fantastic acting. She also excels in the scene in which she tearfully talks about Alex during dinner but I like her even more in the beautifully quiet scene on the porch, in which she reflects about how her affair with Alex affected their friendship later on. It's a sincere, touching moment that Close plays with welcome quietness and with a heartbreaking touch of regret.
Towards the end of the movie, Close becomes the center of a storyline with Mary Kay Place, who plays Meg, one of the friends who wants to have sex with one of the guys at the house in order to get pregnant and have a baby. It's a rather challenging storyline as it easily could have been unbelievable, even ridiculous, but Mary Kay Place and especially Glenn Close manage to make it work. Sarah decides to let Meg have sex with her husband, and while her choice might be questionable Close manages to make it understandable, as if through this act of selflessness she could alleviate her guilt for having betrayed her husband. I love the scene in which Sarah sees Meg and Harold talking and she starts to contemplate the idea of asking Harold to have sex with her - with her growing smile Close manages to make the viewer read all of her thoughts on her face.
In the end, Glenn Close might not give an amazing performance in this movie but it's a completely solid, memorable piece of work that is part of what makes The Big Chill the ultimate ensemble movie. She portrays her character's feelings with delicacy and subtlety and it's a performance that I like the more I think about it.
4/5
Would love your thoughts and ratings on the cast :)
RispondiEliminaI love when you ask my ratings and thoughts on performances that I can't review because it gives me the opportunity to talk about them, so the more the better :D
EliminaKline - 4 (Again I found that he and Close were the weak link of the cast the first time I saw the movie. His performance really grew on me on a rewatch though as I thought that he made the most out of his role, which was basically the straight man of the group. Kline does this while still bringing quite a bit of humor to his performance and he is never overshadowed by the other cast members. He shares a wonderful chemistry with his on-screen wife and as I mentioned in my review they convey so well the history between Harold and Sarah. He might have a few odd line-deliveries due to the accent he decides to adopt for the role but still as a whole his performance is very good)
Berenger - 4.5 (Berenger brings the right amount of charisma to his role which is very fitting considering his character's supposed fame and success. Berenger though manages to be rather heartbreaking as he portrays the unsatisfaction in his life and his contempt towards his on-screen persona. His chemistry with JoBeth Williams is particularly effective because they both show very well how their characters aren't really in love with each other but rather share a mutual understanding of their respective plights and try to find a moment of solace before coming back to their lives)
Williams - 4 (As I mentioned above, I thought she shared an excellent chemistry with Berenger and they both realized impeccably the nature of their relationship. On her part, I thought Williams did a remarkable job in portraying both Karen's unsatisfaction and her affection towards her husband and kids. She delivers a very strong performance even if perhaps a bit more could have been done with the role as she sometimes is a bit overshadowed by the other members of the cast)
Goldblum - 4 (Goldblum probably has the most limited character in the movie but he nonetheless gives a very enjoyable and memorable performance. He is quite entertaining in portraying his character's particular sense of humor as well as his utter shallowness, but at the same time he believably conveys the affection between him and the other friends)
Place - 4 (Her performance could have been a disaster considering that it revolves around the movie's riskiest storyline but she manages to make it work. Place is particularly effective in showing a certain drive, almost impatient behind her behavior suggesting early on that she has a specific purpose in her mind and she shares a wonderfully poignant chemistry with Close, making the resolution of the storyline surprisingly convincing. Past that, she is also very entertaining in the role and nails each of her one-liners)
EliminaHurt - 5 (Easily the MVP for me. Hurt is excellent in blending both the comedy and the drama in his performance and excels at both. He is extremely entertaining in the scenes in which his character is stoned, particularly the scene in which he interviews herself, but always shows the desperation behind Nick's behavior. He is very moving in portraying how the death of Alex deeply affected him and gives a realistic portrayal of his character's vulnerable, unpredictable emotional state after his return from the war. He shares a beautiful chemistry with Meg Tilly and I love how he wordlessly manages to suggest that Nick will get better with Chloe)
Tilly - 4.5 (She gets the least screen-time out of the cast but I think she gives one of the strongest performances in the ensemble and succeeds in an extremely tricky role. Tilly manages to make Chloe's air-headed nature completely believable as she never overplays it, and she is hilarious in portraying how ill-fitting she is to the rest of the group. She purposefully makes Chloe feel like an outsider as her work lacks the nostalgia that characterizes the performances of the other members of the cast. Her scenes with William Hurt are excellent as they share such a warm, tender and poignant chemistry even if they don't have that much screen-time. A lovely, underrated performance)
Completely agree with you on most of these, for me:
EliminaClose - 4
Kline - 3.5
Berenger - 4
Williams - 3.5
Goldblum - 4
Place - 4
Hurt - 4.5/5
Tilly - 5
I'd say that Williams was close to a 3.5 for me but I think she has some effective moments that justify a higher rating. Love that you gave a 5 to Tilly! Even if I'd give her a little less, I'm glad you loved her work as I think she is so underrated here.
Elimina