Best Actress in a Supporting Role 1957: Elsa Lanchester in Witness for the Prosecution

Elsa Lanchester received her second Oscar nomination for her performance as Miss Plimsoll in Witness for the Prosecution.

Witness for the Prosecution is an excellent movie about a barrister (Charles Laughton) who is still recovering from a heart attack and yet decides to defend a man accused of murder. It's a compelling courtroom drama skillfully written and directed by Billy Wilder. The usually dull Tyrone Power gives a fantastic performance here that adds a lot to the movie never giving away the truth of the case and Marlene Dietrich despite having a couple of awkward moments still delivers an effective, remarkable turn. 

In 1957, I think the majority of people were expecting Lanchester to win the Oscar: she was by far the most famous actress out of the five nominees, she was a veteran who had been part of the industry for more than twenty years and she won a Golden Globe for her portrayal. At the same time, it's sort of understandable why she ultimately lost the Oscar: it's the kind of flashy and colorful supporting role that can be very entertaining when done right, but at the same time it lacks any depth or substance whatsoever - Carolyn Jones' character in The Bachelor Party is heartbreaking and complex, Hope Lange in Peyton Place has many challenging emotional moments and her character is one that easily elicits sympathy, Diane Varsi in the same movie has a few "big" moments and a real character arc and Miyoshi Umeki, despite having nothing to do, still packs an emotional punch due to the tragic nature of the role itself in Sayonara, while Lanchester is technically nothing more than a comic relief. There is no denying that her performance in this movie is rather one-dimensional, and Lanchaster herself wastes an early moment in which Miss Plimsoll, who is the barrister's nurse, talks about her engagement with a lawyer who died of peritonitis, but at the same time her work is still very enjoyable within its limitations. 

The key to the success of her performance is the chemistry between her and her real-life husband Charles Laughton: the two actors are highly entertaining to watch together as they share such a perfect chemistry and their timing is always pretty much flawless. Their scenes together throughout the whole movie are actually quite repetitive, as they consist mostly of Miss Plimsoll trying to get Sir Wilfrid to rest and take his pills while he thinks of new ways to hide cigars and brandy from her, but they never feel as such because the two actors pay off each other so well. Miss Plimsoll is a character that is both thankless and challenging - the former because it is rather one-note, the latter because it can be very easily grating. Lanchester brings the right amount of energy to her performance and she manages to make petulance enjoyable and even endearing. She is always very funny at portraying Miss Plimsoll's sunny yet insistent personality that constrasts so wonderfully Laughton's portrayal of Sir Wilfrid's grumpy attitude. I wouldn't necessarily say she is a scene-stealing presence - the mystery is by far, and rightfully so, the most remarkable aspect of the movie but she adds nicely to every scene she's in. And some of her line-deliveries are absolute gold ("Teeny weeny flight of steps, Sir Wilfrid, we musn't forget we've had a teeny weeny heart attack"). She gets progressively less focus and screen-time as the movie goes on and starts focusing more on the trial, but she still makes the most out of her small moments in those scenes as Miss Plimsoll still wants to get sure Sir Wilfrid takes his medicine. And I just love the moment towards the end when she utters "Wilfrid the Fox! That's what they call him, and that's what he is", just priceless. My favorite moment of her performance is probably her last scene, after the trial is over but a new one is ahead: in this moment, in which Miss Plimsoll's unexpectedly urges Sir Wilfrid to take the new case, Lanchester is great at portraying her character's more understanding side and I love how the two actors subvert their character's antagonism into complicity. 

Overall, this is not a great performance as the role itself is a little bit to slight, but Elsa Lanchester still gives a very entertaining and memorable piece of work. She might not be the best thing in the movie but she adds nicely to it and I can't imagine anyone being better than her in the role or sharing a better chemistry with Charles Laughton. It's a nice, colorful supporting performance that I enjoyed all the way through. 

3.5/5