The Verdict -- Best Supporting Actress 1966

#5. Geraldine Page in You're a Big Boy Now: Oh, Geraldine. It's pains me to say this, but this performance from the 8-time Oscar nominee is easily the worst Oscar nominated performance I've ever seen. Margery Chanticleer is the epitome of the over-protective mother cliché, and instead of fighting against this cliché to craft a real character Page indulges all the worst impulses possible. She's shrill, obnoxious, and utterly without dimension. Her ghastly presence never fails to annoy, and this nomination is simply unfathomable to me.

#4. Jocelyne LaGarde in Hawaii: This nomination stands among the most bizarre in the history of the Academy, and I'm sure LaGarde herself was stunned at the prospect of anyone deeming her work among the five best of anything. That's not to say this performance doesn't have any value at all, because LaGarde makes for an interesting screen presence. She's saddled with a jovial, innocent character that is all about love and warmth, and expresses those emotions in a natural way that feels like her own personality. But this feels like good casting as opposed to good acting, and LaGarde struggles when delivering dialogue or handling any moments with any real weight. It's a puzzling, interesting nomination, but is certainly no feat of conscience acting.

#3. Vivien Merchant in Alfie: In the self-centered mess that is Alfie, Vivien Merchant delivers a true supporting performance that floats in the background of all of Michael Caine's smug caddishness. Her performance is a very quiet one that reeks of normalcy, perfect for the normal girl she is meant to play. Even when her storyline takes a tragic turn Merchant remains steadfast in her subtlety, which I admired greatly. She clearly and effectively expresses emotion without delving into overacting. Unfortunately, the film doesn't seem to care even a little about her and thus we aren't allowed to fully understand this woman on any more than a basic level. No fault of Merchant's, certainly. Also: That scream!

#2. Wendy Hiller in A Man for All Seasons: The most pleasant surprise of this year was my increased appreciation for Wendy Hiller's crusty yet emotional performance as Lady Alice More. For a great part of this film Hiller simply does her usual frosty thing, which she is indeed an expert at. But it's in her final two or three scenes in which she heart-breakingly unveils the inner core of this woman and all her insecurities. Within the matter of minutes her performance glides effortlessly through rage, resentment, understanding, and pure love. She makes a wonderful final impact, and certainly adds emotional weight to her film's final moments. I have so much affection for this solid, reliable performance.

#1. Sandy Dennis in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?: While she is far from an exciting or unique pick, ultimately Sandy Dennis could not be denied the win in this all over the place field. Her Method understanding of Honey may be thorough to the point of distraction, but that firm grasp of the character ultimately pays dividends. She unravels the secrets of this character, perhaps the least integral of the main quartet, in a way that reveals Honey to be a savvy and underhanded player of games. She combines her character's insecurities with undeniable cunning and a deceptive simplicity that is fascinating and always absorbing to watch. Oh, and she truly does dance like the wind.

The Year in Review: This truly was a mixed bag of the year. Much like this year's Best Picture race the decision saw A Man for All Seasons and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? duking it out for my pick. But as much as I admire Wendy Hiller's underrated, emotional performance I had to agree that the Academy made the right choice here. Sandy Dennis does so much more with her performance than any of the other nominees, and has far and away the most material to work with. I'm sad to give Geraldine Page my last place because I've loved her before (I'll always have Sweet Bird of Youth & The Trip to Bountiful) but that performance is simply repugnant. Still, Alfie is easily my least favorite film of the bunch. I'm sure there were better alternatives to my bottom three choices all of whom simply couldn't cut it in my eyes, though I'm not familiar enough with the year to offer up any alternatives.

 Every Supporting Actress Nominee Ranked:

1. Patty Duke in "The Miracle Worker" (1962)
2. Dorothy Malone in "Written on the Wind" (1956)
3. Thelma Ritter in "Pickup on South Street" (1953)
4. Catherine Zeta-Jones in "Chicago" (2002)
5. Linda Hunt in "The Year of Living Dangerously" (1983)
6. Anna Paquin in "The Piano" (1993)
7. Meryl Streep in "Adaptation." (2002)
8. Cher in "Silkwood" (1983)
9. Eileen Heckart in "The Bad Seed" (1956)
10. Emma Thompson in "In the Name of the Father" (1993)
11. Julianne Moore in "Boogie Nights" (1997) 
12. Ellen Burstyn in "The Last Picture Show" (1971)
13. Oprah Winfrey in "The Color Purple" (1985)
14. May Whitty in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)
15. Patty McCormack in "The Bad Seed" (1956)
16. Claire Trevor in "Dead End" (1937)
17. Sandy Dennis in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966)
18. Agnes Moorehead in "The Magnificent Ambersons" (1942)
19. May Whitty in "Night Must Fall" (1937)
20. Margaret Avery in "The Color Purple" (1985)
21. Mildred Dunnock in "Baby Doll" (1956)
22. Julianne Moore in "The Hours" (2002)
23. Kathy Bates in "About Schmidt" (2002)
24. Wendy Hiller in "A Man for All Seasons" (1966)
25. Angela Lansbury in "The Manchurian Candidate" (1962)
26. Ethel Waters in "Pinky" (1949)
27. Amy Madigan in "Twice in a Lifetime" (1985)
28. Meg Tilly in "Agnes of God" (1985)
29. Teresa Wright in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)
30. Gloria Stuart in "Titanic" (1997)
31. Alfre Woodard in "Cross Creek" (1983)
32. Barbara Harris in "Who is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?" (1971)
33. Geraldine Page in "Hondo" (1953)
34. Anne Shirley in "Stella Dallas" (1937)
35. Amy Irving in "Yentl" (1983)
36. Kim Basinger in "L.A. Confidential" (1997)
37. Shirley Knight in "Sweet Bird of Youth" (1962)
38. Cloris Leachman in "The Last Picture Show" (1971)
39. Margaret Leighton in "The Go-Between" (1971)
40. Rosie Perez in "Fearless" (1993)
41. Mercedes McCambridge in "All the King's Men" (1949)
42. Joan Cusack in "In & Out" (1997)
43. Anjelica Huston in "Prizzi's Honor" (1985)
44. Ann-Margret in "Carnal Knowledge" (1971)
45. Gladys Cooper in "Now, Voyager" (1942)
46. Donna Reed in "From Here to Eternity" (1953)
47. Glenn Close in "The Big Chill" (1983)
48. Susan Peters in "Random Harvest" (1942)
49. Vivien Merchant in "Alfie" (1966)
50. Alice Brady in "In Old Chicago" (1937)
51. Mary Badham in "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962) 
52. Holly Hunter in "The Firm" (1993)
53. Queen Latifah in "Chicago" (2002)
54. Celeste Holm in "Come to the Stable" (1949)
55. Jocelyne LaGarde in "Hawaii" (1966)
56. Ethel Barrymore in "Pinky" (1949)
57. Minnie Driver in "Good Will Hunting" (1997)
58. Thelma Ritter in "Birdman of Alcatraz" (1962) 
59. Winona Ryder in "The Age of Innocence" (1993)
60. Grace Kelly in "Mogambo" (1953)
61. Mercedes McCambridge in "Giant" (1956)
62. Marjorie Rambeau in "Torch Song" (1953) 
63. Elsa Lanchester in "Come to the Stable" (1949)
64. Andrea Leeds in  "Stage Door" (1937)
65. Geraldine Page in "You're a Big Boy Now" (1966)

Vivien Merchant in Alfie

Vivien Merchant recieved her first and only Oscar nomination for her performance as Lily Clamacraft in Lewis Gilbert's Alfie. For a film about a self-centered, misogynistic lothario, Alfie has many of the same qualities of it's reprehensible main character. Michael Caine stars as the titular character, and the film aims to be something of a character study as it is only interested in understanding Alfie's skewed perspective on the world. Caine does well with this obnoxious character, but can't completely save the film from self-indulgence and lack of context. When it comes down to it, the film doesn't really care about anyone but Alfie, and has no sympathy for essentially anyone else in the film nor even deigns to give any of the women in particular any personality or humanity. The five or so women he dates are (almost) all mute wallflowers who stare at the wall and long after him for no real reason, lacking even a modicum inner life. Vivien Merchant plays Lily, one of Alfie's "conquests", who happens to be the wife of a friend of Alfie's he met while staying in a nursing home following something of a mental breakdown. Lily's husband Larry (a sweet Alfie Bass) is absolutely devoted to her and their three children, which Alfie finds absolutely pathetic.

Merchant plays Lily as an absolutely normal British housewife, who is serious and average and has some affection for her husband. Her first few scenes see her visiting her husband at the nursing home, where they chat and watch as Alfie seduces the nurses and blatantly has sex with them in their company behind partitions. Lily is disgusted yet somewhat intrigued by Alfie's adventurous sexuality. Her marriage seems to have become stagnant and perhaps a little bland. Merchant shows this all in simple, subtle ways through her eyes and facial expressions without even really having dialogue. It's nicely done, but nothing flashy or even truly noticeable unless you are looking for it. That all changes when on another visiting day, she and Alfie (released from the home) both visit her husband and Larry insists on Alfie giving her a ride home. Neither seems too keen on the idea, but both agree for Larry's sake. On the way home, they stop and get some lunch and Alfie "seduces" her simply because he's Alfie and he can. Throughout this all Merchant maintains her quiet subtlety. She clearly likes the attention that Alfie gives her, but seems almost to fall into having sex with him. Their entire scene they have barely any dialogue outside of Alfie's inner monologue, and Merchant remains pleasantly average with a winning smile.

At this point Lily disappears from the film for some time, seemingly just another lay of Alfie's until she pops back up at Alfie's apartment, where it quickly becomes clear she is meeting an abortionist there because she is pregnant with Alfie's child and can't keep it. Here is where the meat of Merchant's performance exists, as we see Lily struggling with the abortion and her contempt for Alfie. This all comes back after the abortion occurs and Alfie returns (she didn't want him there) to find her lying on his couch, the deed done. The way that Merchant shuts down Alfie's incessant chattering with pointed looks of annoyance and contempt for this man who clearly doesn't care a thing about her or the child is soft yet powerful. She recognizes Alfie for the asshole he is, as he lacks any understanding or sympathy for what she has just gone through. We also get her only loud moment, as Lily lets out a cry of anguish and sadness over what has just occured. It's a truly haunting sound that highlights the devastation Lily feels perfectly. Throughout her entire performance, Merchant never strays from her subdued, controlled acting style. She doesn't allow her performance to overshadow Caine's work, but works under him to force a character into being. Her emotion is certainly palpable, yet always understated.

Vivien Merchant has a wonderful handle on this character, and the role she plays in this film. She knows that Lily is just another chess piece on Alfie's journey to great "understanding" and she never overdoes her part with overacting or flashiness. Unfortunately for her, the film is just not concerned with the character of Lily Cramaclaft on any human level, and thus dulls the impact of this performance greatly. This is a quiet performance where the silence speaks volumes, and I admire Vivien Merchant for not "going there" and attempting to upstage the lead. This is a subliminal supporting performance, just as the director, and Alfie himself would have wanted. 3/5 Thelmas.

Best Supporting Actress 1966

And the nominees were....

• Sandy Dennis as Honey in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (winner)
• Wendy Hiller as Lady Alice More in A Man for All Seasons
• Jocelyne LaGarde as Queen Malama in Hawaii
• Vivien Merchant as Lily Clamacraft in Alfie
• Geraldine Page as Margery Chanticleer in You're a Big Boy Now

The Field: The snail's pace continues! I'll probably never quite make it to ever finishing this project, but I've resigned myself to that and have decided to just have fun with it. I'll do a year whenever I'm feeling in the mood, and I right now I am most definitely in the mood for a little 1966. These five ladies are all eminently interesting actresses, from the mysterious Merchant to the glorious Page to the quirky Dennis, one-timer LaGarde, and sour Hiller. I've only seen Virginia Woolf and Seasons before, so three of them will be first time watches for me. I'm probably most interested by LaGarde, who gave her only performance on film EVER here, and Page, who I just generally love. Incidentally, dear Geraldine is up first. As is now the norm, there will be a review every two days as I've finished them all beforehand so as to not get caught up mid-year.