I tried to explain yesterday why I believe the great Lesley Manville can’t hope to prevail in the Best Actress category, but that she’ll rule or certainly be a leading contender within the Best Supporting Actress realm.
I know this sounds obsessive, but I’m asking other conversation-starters to kick this around once more (as Rope of Silicon‘s Brad Brevet did on 10.27) in hopes of inciting an Academy groundswell that might result in a nomination that will do Manville and Mike Leigh‘s Another Year the most good.
A voter revolt happened before when they were being urged to nominate Kate Winslet as Best Actress in Revolutionary Road; they put her up instead for Best Actress in The Reader. Okay, it’s not the same thing but voters aren’t obliged to follow suggestions made in trade ads. They can do anything they want.
I only know that putting Manville into Best Actress contention, sublime as she is, is almost a sure-fire way to make her lose. It’s just not in the cards. There’s even a feeling that Manville may not even be nominated in the Best Actress category, even if one or two major critics groups step into the breach. But she’s almost certain to be nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category, which has fewer formidable competitors. In my book (and in the book of anyone who believes, however naively, that quality of performance should be a major determining factor) she damn well ought to win in this arena.
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