MovieChat Forums > Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001) Discussion > Judy Davis taking the mickey out of Judy

Judy Davis taking the mickey out of Judy

posted 21 years ago by annemaree_mcleod
15 replies | jump to latest

I love Judy Garland so I was sceptical when watching this show, but I love it. It is asolutely one of my favourite movies of all time (right up there with The Wizard of Oz and other Judy classics)
One part I do find amusing, is during The Trolley Song scene. At the end, Judy Davis moves her mouth a great deal while miming the sustained "miiiiine..." Judy Garland did that a lot and I found it really funny, however I know another fan and they said they thought it was disrespectful of Judy Davis to take the mickey out of Judy Garland like that. Any thoughts on the subject?

[–] ziegfeldgirl27 21 years ago

I find this disrespectful -- Yes, Judy Garland did move her mouth similarly to this (Judy Davis goes a little over the top) when she SANG, not when she was miming for the movies. If we watch the real Trolley Song, Judy Garland DOES NOT do that mouth thing.

I don't like Judy Davis as Judy Garland. She ruins that movie for me - I think Tammy Blanchard should have been Judy the whole way through.

[–] taintedjezebel 21 years ago

I must admit, I do find it a little annoying in a way I don't experience when watching Judy Garland herself, but I don't consider it disrespectful and I certainly don't believe that Davis was taking the mickey out of Garland intentionally as she simply would not have been allowed to do so, that is not the point of the film! Perhaps in trying to emulate Garlands style, Davis went a little over the top but I believe it is *because* she is imitating the movement that so belongs to Judy, that she may have felt the need to emphasise it.

Cally -

[–] charmingnotion 21 years ago

i think that they should have had Tammy Blanchard play Judy up to the 50's. Judy Davis looked too old to be Judy in the 40's. I dont think that it was disrespectful what Judy Davis did but i agree that it was a little over the top.

[–] ziegfeldgirl27 21 years ago

I read somewhere that Tammy Blanchard was in her late 20s, so she could have played Judy well enough up to that age.

I wonder what Lorna thinks of Judy Davis?

[–] richspenc 8 years ago

I agree 100%

[–] nyfarmgirl17 13 years ago

Tammy Blanchard gets overlooked so much, she not only made this movie believable, but did much better than Judy Davis. They could have aged Tammy up, and let her shine the whole way through. Not only could Tammy have done it, and flawlessly, she also looked much more like Judy as well.

"I am a lover and have not found my thing to love"~Sherwood Anderson

[–] heartsAfire 21 years ago

In the Trolley song Judy Davis did look a little too old for the part. When her scene came on I was like who is THAT?! But once she got out of the Meet Me garb she did kind of posess the Judy Garland style and we have to remember that Judy G. did look a little older than her age. reference to her TV show, TV guest appearances and clips of her in candid photos will and does reveal she looked much older than a women in her 20's and 30's. Also addictions to alcohol and drugs are prone to make a person look older than their years.
I would think its difficult to do a bio-pic of a beloved actor..Judy Davis did an excellent job. If a person was unfamiliar with Judy Garland(or only knew of TWOZ)on its own the performance stands as an excellent bio-musical. If you want to see the mickey lost in a beloved movie star-watch Jennifer Love Hewitt as Audrey Hepburn in the AH Bio-pic, GAH!

I think the filmmakers wanted to work with an actress with experience like Judy Davis. This is a role that can easily be hammed up if in the hands of an inexperienced and naive actor. It's not so much how she looked as Judy Garland but that she put on a stellar performance that defies just your average TV-Biopic. I put Judy Davis' performance up there with Coal Miners Daughter with Sissy Spacek as Loretta Lynn.
Last thing. The final scene where Judy Davis performs the # Forget your troubles come on get happy with the tux top and nylons was outstanding- almost like seeing Judy G. herself..that scene alone shows the intensity of a great performer/actor that really studied and reviewed her subject. An Emmy win(for both Tammy & Judy)was well deserved.

[–] vezzam1 20 years ago

If you listen to the director's commentary on the DvD they explain why they brought in Davis @ Garland in her 20's. They wanted Davis to portray Judy Garland from when she became a woman, an adult, and there was a bit if an argument of when that was exactly. Some felt it was during "Girl Crazy", but Davis refused to play Garland at such a young age, 18, and thought it also if she came in as Judy in her 30's.

I understand the director's choice, and the jump between the two actresses is a little startling at first, but I get over it in five minutes.

[–] AcademyAwardWinningMe 20 years ago

Tammy would LOOK better, but I doubt she could've delivered a better PERFORMANCE than Judy Davis. Judy Davis was phenomenal.

"Don't lets ask for the moon... We have the stars"

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] CCmpbll 20 years ago

I disagree. She wasn't taking the mickey out of Judy Garland at all. I think it was necessary for the over emphasised lip movements to make her 'interpretation' of Garland's song realistic.

Otherwise, it really does look like someone is just opening and closing their mouth to the sound of another singer.

It made it look as though Davis as Garland was singing, right then and there. I personally found it very effective and enhancing.

[–] usersince03 20 years ago

I don't think she (Judy Davis) was taking the mickey out of Judy.

[–] stuffic 20 years ago

vezzam1: Thanks for pointing out that it's the DIRECTOR'S choice when it comes to matters like this. I think some of you are blaming the wrong person. Judy Davis did a brilliant job (and "brilliant" is not a word I use often).

So if she used her mouth too much, or whatever, during a lip sync (I admit this is the first time I've heard the terminology "taking the mickey out"), it may have been the director who told her to do that...and the director or producer who decided to bring Davis in at an early age.

"I don't want to make trouble, all I want is a drink." - 'All About Eve'

[–] taintedjezebel 20 years ago

'taking the mickey' is a british phrase :)

[–] propaganda21 19 years ago

Judy Davis did an incredible job - just phenomenal. It could have been far worse had they used another actress of lesser talent.