Best Actress in a Supporting Role 1939: Edna May Oliver in Drums Along the Mohawk

Edna May Oliver received her only Oscar nomination for her performance as Sarah McKlennar in Drums Along the Mohawk.

Drums Along the Mohawk is an abysmal movie about a newlywed couple that has to face Indiands and Tories during the Revolutionary War while they try to establish their own farm in the Mohawk Valley. In all honesty, I have to admit I don't really care for this type of movies but I still can enjoy them if they're done well, which is not the case here. The movie looks nice but that's about it: it's a truly dull experience due to its extremely thin writing (there is not a single character that isn't a one-dimensional stereotype and the plot itself is just not very interesting) and the rather poor performances from the cast: I usually like Henry Fonda and while I think that there's nothing wrong with his performance here, I don't think he ever makes his bland character any more interesting; I also really enjoy Claudette Colbert in general but here she probably gives the worst performance of her career as she is just an incredibly pale and forgettable presence. The rest of the cast ranges from alright to god-awful. 

Edna May Oliver was one of the most popular character actresses of that era, and it's easy to see why: she has a lively, strong screen-presence and a rather unique voice. I'm actually very interested in seeing some of her acclaimed performances (A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Pride & Prejudice) and honestly, when I look closely at her performance in Drums Along the Mohawk alone, I do like it quite a bit: my problem is that her performance, although not bad, gets lost within the mess that the movie is and she is unfortunately heavily hindered by the terrible screenplay and the inconsistent pace and editing. She plays Mrs. McKennar, the though, sharp but good-hearted widow the Martins (Fonda and Colbert) work for: it's a rather stereotypical role - nothing really new or interesting, but always at least enjoyable when done well. Oliver is actually a very good fit for the role and she is the movie's only breath of fresh air - I would say there are a couple of moments in which her body language actually felt a bit awkward but overall she enjoyable portrays her character's lively spirit and certainly gets the movie's best lines, which she delivers quite well. Those first few moments are probably the ones in which she shines best, because after that she really doesn't get that much screen-time and she spends quite a lot of time in the background. I'd say she is consistently alright at portraying the character's brassy, uncouth qualities but she never becomes anything truly substantial becomes the movie really does not give her nothing to work with.

What I particularly hate is the fact that the movie really just wastes all of her emotional moments. The brief moment in which she speaks about her late husband is actually quite touching, but as soon as I started to think that some impressive acting was about to come the scene was already over. Also I think that her goodbye with Fonda's character when he leaves the house to go to war is a rather odd moment that could have been great if only the movie gave Oliver and Fonda a bit more time to develop the warm relationship between the two characters: Oliver is good in the scene but Mrs. McKlennar's emotional goodbye feels honestly quite out of the place since the characters had basically just met. Honestly, it's kind of frustrating to watch such a talented performer being wasted by the awful movie around her. 

Probably the worst moment of her performance is the scene when some Indians come to attack her house and she refuses to get off her bed, even as they set fire to it, because her husband made it: it's a downright laughable moment and in my opinion Oliver doesn't really do anything to alleviate the silliness of that moment - she's truly awkward as she just goes along with the ridiculous nature of the scene to the point of becoming actually a bit annoying. She partly makes up for it for her acting in her final scene in the movie which she portrays with the right amount of dignity and I thought she was actually moving in moments such as her goodbye to Gil and Lana but still her performance ends on a rather unsatisfying note as her very final moments as she says her husband's name right before dying feel a bit over-dramatic and exaggerated (I still blame the writing much more than I blame her, though).

I don't think this is a bad performance - despite a few awkward moments, she is overall fine in her stereotypical role and she has some rather enjoyable moments here and there. The real problem is that the movie squanders any attempt from Oliver to add more depth and emotions to her character, barely giving her any time to develop some chemistry with the two leads, wasting her few subtle, emotional moments and throwing at her a handful of ridiculous moments that are just laughable in the worst possible way. She's probably the best thing of the movie beside the gorgeous cinematography, but still that's not saying much and while I don't necessarily hate her nomination there were so many better choices in 1939 than her performance here. 

2.5/5