It is a well-known fact (okay, okay, this writer’s opinion) that Maria Bello was robbed of a 2005 Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her taut, unnerving performance in Cronenberg’s “A History of Violence,” despite a gong from the New York critics and a (lead) nomination at the Globes. (She wasn’t far off for “The Cooler” a year previously, either.)
Now you may recall (though I wouldn’t blame you if you’d already forgotten) that the winner of Best Supporting Actress that year was Rachel Weisz for her agreeable and, in my opinion, wholly unremarkable work in “The Constant Gardener.” It’s a win I’ve never really understood.
Now, in a depressing twist of fate, Bello finds herself taking over Weisz’s role in the godawful “Mummy” franchise, the latest installment of which Kris seems less than keen on. If you ever needed a textbook demonstration of the difference an Oscar (or at least a nomination) can make to an actor’s career, there you have it.
However, in an interesting Guardian interview with the excellent film writer Ryan Gilbey, Bello appears to be making the best of a bad situation. The usually more indie-minded actress tells Gilbey that she’s always hankered after just such a part:
I’ve been telling my agent for years that I wanted an action movie, but no one saw me like that. Two weeks before my 40th birthday, I guess I’d given up. I mean, how many action roles are there for women over 40? Soon after that, I got a call to say they were considering me for the part.
Ten out of ten for positivity, then, but come on – no actor that gifted can convince me that they actually want a title like “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” on their resume. (Hilariously, the interview reveals even the film’s director is baffled by her appearance in it.) It’s also difficult not to cringe when she explains her “more cynical” take on the character, Evie O’Connell, by saying that Evie “dreams of being someone like Rachel Weisz.”
Fortunately, this appears to be an odd career blip, as her upcoming projects suggest it’s edgy business as usual for the actress. The interview reminds us of her upcoming role in Alan Ball’s long-delayed, much-discussed feature debut “Towelhead,” of which she has this to say about her character, the mother of a child abuse victim:
She’s just the nastiest. So many actors say you have to find something you like in each character. I’ve never bought that. I think there are people in the world who are plain mean. Not many, but some. So that’s how I decided to play her – without sympathy.
You have to admire that. There’s also her performance as a self-harming housewife “Downloading Nancy,” which bowed at Sundance in January but has proved too bleak for distributors. Critics were bewildered, though Bello was consistently praised – Variety called her turn “the definition of fearless.” Finally, she’s part of the intriguing ensemble (including Julianne Moore, Robin Wright, Alan Arkin and Winona Ryder) for “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” the next film from the always-interesting Rebecca Miller.
Plenty to look forward to then. Just please, no more “Mummy” films. Okay?
Comments
7 responses to “Don’t give up on Maria Bello”
I always thought Bello has a toned muscles. It’s surprising that she was not being considered before. Also, she has such a hard edge to her that’s normally a plus for guys in action movies. But if the studios are looking for actresses to be the damsel in distress in action flicks, Bello wouldn’t fit the role. Because she can kick it.
Looking forward to see “Towelhead” but annoyed that it’s from the hands of Alan Ball. Alan Ball makes his projects about how clever of a writer and director he is. It’s a very distracting when you know that the strings are being pulled.
Rachel Weisz’s Oscar win was well deserved in my opinion, the best performance of that year hands down. Maria bello is a good actress in her own right and i shocked that an actress of her caliber would even do a mummy film. I hope she does better films in the future.
I’m glad she was able to do an actioner, but man…she cranked out her worst work to date.
I’m gonna see the Mummy perhaps tomorrow, but I think she’s a great actress too. And if she wants to do an actioner, fine, I understand that. But she’s probably just nog cut out for that.
I always thought that Bello missed on the nomination because of the so called “category confusion”?
There’s no doubt she gave a great performance, and Weisz gave another good performance, but I would have chosen to award someone else.
Michelle Williams in Brokeback Mountain, Claire Danes in Shopgirl, Julia Jentsch in The Edukators, the ladies of Where the Truth Lies and the ladies of Hustle & Flow, Q’orianka Kilcher in The New World and also, if memory serves right, there were a couple of interesting performances in the movie Palindromes.
I’ve no problem with Bello doing an actioner, but she should have been a bit more discerning!
I’m not sure there was category confusion over her campaign in 2005 – the Globes lead nod was just a bit of an anomaly. I think she simply missed out because the role pushed too many sexual boundaries for the Academy’s liking. (As did the film, for that matter.)
Eh, she’s a character actress, and she needs to pay the bills. She needs something to fill the bank account so that she can do the films that she actually wants to do. I can dig it.
Personally, I thought she was amazing in “The Cooler.”