MovieChat Forums > Someone Like You... (2001) Discussion > Ellen Barkin and her Uriah Heep Hand Wri...

Ellen Barkin and her Uriah Heep Hand Wringin'

posted 13 years ago by maxvaughn
3 replies | jump to latest

So Ellen Barkin already bothers me in this movie and I have never been able to put my finger on exactly why but I think I found a clue. I actually like that actress in certain things, but in Someone Like You I tend to fast forward through all of Barkin's scenes cause she irks me so much.

I was watching it the other day and the part where she's reading Jane's article outloud to everyone was on. The article references how men can behave like Uriah Heep with shy hand wringing. When reading the passage, Barkin uses a southern accent to embody the idea of Uriah Heep.

I know this is picky and pretentious of me, but doesn't she know that Heep is a BRITISH literary character?! Her character is supposed to be this Oprah-esque, intelligent, independent woman. She would've had to read David Copperfield in school or at least heard it referenced, I'm sure.
Sorry, but didn't that bug anyone else?

The penguins are calling and I can't find my way out of the labyrinth.

[–] hka-3 13 years ago

The "article" she's reading may have been written to sound that way. If I said "hand-wringin and aww shucks toe-kickin" it may sound southern even if I wasn't trying to.

Overall "Dee" is the type of character who rubs people the wrong way with her "ungettable get" and naively giving Jane a long lecture about the man who has been sleeping with both of them, etc.

I know a woman who is so much like Dee -- she irks me, too -- and happens to be married to a guy named Ray Brown, the same as Greg Kinnear's name in the movie...but I digress 

Cheese fries...next time.

[–] egujwrrxftoxm 13 years ago

I never noticed that--good point!

Maybe Diane is not Oprah-esque but more of a wannabe Oprah--independent, clever, ambitious, but perhaps not the most well-read or book smart. I remember reading DC in high school but it was optional summer reading, so not sure if it's taught in school.

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I respect people based on how they respect others.

[–] nammage 10 years ago

The character or the actress? Because you're making it seem as if the actress should've known. Unless she wrote the script, I don't see how it's Barkin's error.

-Nam