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Halle Berry deserved the Best Actress Oscar

posted 14 years ago by JaysonT
18 replies | jump to latest

As most of middle America assumed Berry won because she was black and had a sex scene with Billy Bob Thornton, let me set the record straight. Berry won on merit and surge- and here's some factors:

BEST ACTRESS 2001
Halle Berry in Monster's Ball
Judi Dench in Iris
Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge!
Sissy Spacek in In the Bedroom
Renee Zellweger in Bridget Jones Diary

This was fierce competition and all five ladies had strong cases going for them.

Zellweger was obviously the weakest link, but a deserving candidate. She most likely replaced Naomi Watts in Mulholland Dr. since that film was a masterpiece to enthusiasts and academics but not to the common folk. The comedic timing of Zellweger and her over-all charm make this arguably her most natural performance to date, and it was nice to see this make the cut in a whirlwind of dramatic roles.

Dench, a true pioneer in the game, also could be seen as a filler-nominee, but her performance as Iris Murdoch should still be noted as a genius in articulation- no small feat even for a genius like Judi Dench, who had won an Oscar in 1998 for Shakespeare in Love. Albeit a brief performance as the Queen of England, she none the less was seen as a winner already and therefore not eligible for a second win in the eyes of the academy unless truly a unique case (eg the film was a box-office hit, the performance outshined all on screen. In this case it didn't- Kate Winslet was nominated for supporting actress as a younger version of the title character).

Now its time for the 3 main players in the 2001 Best Actress race.

Sissy Spacek had won the New York Film Critics and Golden Globe (Drama) awards for Best Actress for her subtlety sad work in Todd Field's In the Bedroom, a Best Picture nominee that still rendered too talky for modern audiences, almost like taking osteopathic medicine and then dozing off. Still, she was considered the early frontrunner. And since she hadn't won since 1980 for Coal Miner's Daughter, it seemed fit she could win number two 21 years later. However, the performance is widely considered supporting, as Tom Wilkinson is the driving force to the movie's heart and also stirring grand finale.

Nicole Kidman was the "It" girl of 2001. Freshly divorced from the then hottest actor in Hollywood- Tom Cruise-, Kidman could relish in the fact that not only did she sing and die in Moulin Rouge! and win a Golden Globe for it, she also received even more critical praise for her dramatic work in The Others, a summer horror flick that had grossed $96 million domestically despite being a sleeper sensation. Since Moulin Rouge! was also a Best Picture nominee, it seemed Kidman was in the perfect position to win an Oscar for being the "poor little divorcee" who came back on top.

Halle Berry finally had three things going for her. Monster's Ball first off showcased her finest performance to date. Filled with rich undertones of brutality and hostility, Berry was able to demonstrate full range in the hospital, restaurant scenes and her undoing with Thornton. Secondly, September 11th had happened. So politically voters felt inclined to anoint her and Denzel Washington as 2 Lead African-American Actors finally taking home Oscars in the same year. Yes, race did have a say so in 2001 and for plenty of reasons. Thirdly, Berry had the National Board of Review award, Venice Film Festival honor and the Screen Actors Guild award (voted for by actors). So she was largely appreciated across the board.

It most likely came down to Kidman vs. Berry, with Berry winning and deserving so.

[–] Hart13 13 years ago

I totally agree that Halle Berry deserved her Oscar. I've seen ever nominee for Best Actress that year and honestly, Halle topped them all (and no easy feat with Sissy, Nicole, and Judy in the running against her) I totally believe it came down between Spacek and Berry though, I truthfully don't think Kidman had THAT much of a chance. I thought Judi's performance was better than hers.

[–] gsaxby-1 13 years ago

Most of the film awards went to Sissy & Naomi Watts for Mulholland Drive during the critics season. While Berry started the season with a win from National Board of Review, Sissy and to a lesser extent Naomi won most of the these awards.

Spacek won NY & LA in one weekend, then the globe and many other regional critics group awards. Very few actresses have won these awards and not also gone on to win the best actress Oscar. I think the only reason Spacek didn't win oscar #2 was because she had already won. It was a magnificent, towering performance that ran the gamut of many emotions and very clearly lead. She was nominated, short listed or out right won in virtually all critics and film awards in lead, so to call it a supporting performance seems quite odd. Who's she supporting?

It wasn't really until near oscar night was Halle thought to have a decent shot because of the SAG award she won.

It seemed to me that critical response to Halle's performance was somewhat mixed.

It's interesting that Halle was thought to be a real up and comer as a movie star, then did what no other black actress had ever done by winning best actress, then seemed to fall as quickly as she had ascended. I think the oscar win might have been a curse in hindsight. Giving Halle a false sense that she had received renown as a good actress, so free to pursue the next level - global box office domination. To do this she took more commercial, but less interesting work. More of the blow 'em uppers where she was either supporting (i.e. Bond, X-Men) or leads in bombs - Catwoman, Gothika, from which she never recovered.

[–] baheidstu-351-733122 12 years ago

She put in a great performance and thoroughly deserved her Oscar. I do think though that race played a small part in it. I remember in the few years before her win there was a lot of publicity given to the fact that there were very few black performances nominated in ANY category and I believe the Academy sort of overcompenstated for that in 2001. If anything, I think that Denzel's win was more race-driven. Not that he was a bad choice, but I just felt that Training Day was the kind of action flick that doesn't normally win Oscars so it looked odd to see him win for it (just as many people thought it was odd for Marisa Tomei to win for an outright comedy because it rarely happens, thus those stories about her not being the real winner).

Any one of Halle's fellow nominees would have been just as deserving, I am not one of those people who criticize oscar choices because, after all, when you vote for something it is by its very nature a subjective thing and we can't all like the same things.