Vanity Fair: Jessica Lange Breaks Down Her Career

Her face makes me happy.

I came up with one performance 40 years ago and I've been giving it ever since.

End of article.

Christ, you’re tedious, OP.

Damn, they jumped over a lot -- I'm assuming they cut out her talking about Sweet Dreams, Music Box, Men Don't Leave, Blue Sky, Rob Roy, etc.

R2 :Yawn:

I’ve said what needs to be said about Jessica. My reverence begins at four minutes in the interview below.

R4 Aw, that sucks. Haven’t watched the vid yet.

Jessica is the queen. Meryl could never compare.

I’m really worried she might have bad osteoporosis. Her neck has shrunk so much even since Bette and Joan.

R7 Don’t you think I know that?

From someone who was there.

She's inspiring. I like her performance is Losing Isaiah, but this is a white savior movie and it isn't talked about nowadays.

She supposedly announced that she's quitting acting on television which would be a big mistake since she gets more work on TV than in movies these days.

R11 Losing Isaiah is so underrated. Both she and Berry should’ve been nominated. As for it being a “white savior movie”, I don’t think so. Lange’s character slips up in one critical scene, revealing her own innate and unconscious racism.

It’s a beautifully touching film.

Thanks OP. I’d happily sit and watch Ms. Lange read the dictionary. x

My favorite performance that she ignores here is "Crimes of the Heart". But she didn't like that experience nor that director very much. I learned how to cut my own hair with a razor from watching her in that.

Then someone's mother. Then you're camp...

R14 Rho, please check it out (re: Isaiah). She and Berry are dynamite.

R15 She should’ve been nominated in supporting for that. I love this movie. Also, she had a great time with Sissy and Diane. All still regard each other affectionately to this day.

She became really close with Spacek during this time. They were even neighbors in Virginia at one point.

R16 Let’s just forget that she’s won a Tony, 3 Emmys, a 5th Globe, a SAG Award and a boatload of other awards within the last decade alone, right?

R17, she works with Ryan Murphy. She's camp now.

R18 And she turned down working with Tarantino just last year.

She’s also worked with Louis C.K. and is about to start shooting a Gia Coppola film.

Stop trying to belittle her you little bitch.

*obsesses over her

Director of Grey Gardens.

. OP sucks donkey dick.

R22 Never gets ANY dick.

r12 acting on a tv show is a grind, the hours are long. For a small part it's not bad but for a starring part. . . just look how Viola Davis has changed up in HTGAWM. She tries not to be in scenes with a lot of people and the stories have focused on the students as much as they have on her in order to give her a break from being needed on set all the time.

Feature films are the easier money.

the politician is trash

i will always love AHS 1-3 though.

I really liked the movie The Music Box but it was not a success at the box office or with critics. Listening to her talk about her career and thinking about it myself it really points up how much more adept at the business side Meryl has been than other actresses. She always managed to get the spotlight in the press in a way other actresses didn't. Even back into the middle of their careers people talked about Meryl like she was the only good actress that existed in Hollywood. Meryl has her good points but back in the 80's and 90's it wasn't cut and dry that she was some other worldly talent. They were all good at that time. Her publicist must have been working overtime.

R26 Plus she was hungry.

R26 You’ve mentioned “The Music Box” a few times - it’s actually just “Music Box” - and I agree, it’s an excellent film and performance.

Have you ever seen “Men Don’t Leave”? It’s another understated film and performance that was totally underrated. Reese W even tweeted about it a few years ago. It’s one of my faves.

Love it.

Jessica Lange...our greatest living actress. She's a national treasure.

The comments under this video just made me tear up...

She’s so loved and deserves it. The millennials fan hard.

Yeah, amazing body of work. I assume she is the most nominated actress (living or dead?) after Streep, of course. Can M verify?

R32 She’s tied with a bunch of broads as the 6th most nominated actress in history...

But then again, in my eyes there are no ties...

She’s number one.

r28 "Men Don't Leave" missed me and I've never heard it mentioned all that much. I'll have to check it out.

"Music Box" is one film I wouldn't mind seeing a remake of, with Rachel Weisz and Liam Neeson.

Is -M sick?

She's actually giving Jessica the top spot?

#1 among the 6th most, I assume. Is Dame Judi one of them?

Like M, Jessica has just as many great performances that did NOT get nods, some of her best really. I still love Streep in "Marvin's Room" and, of course, "Death Becomes Her".

Surely Jessica is #2 behind Streep among living actresses, right?

[quote]Meryl has her good points but back in the 80's and 90's it wasn't cut and dry that she was some other worldly talent. They were all good at that time. Her publicist must have been working overtime.

The living legend mantra surrounding her didn't really start to kick in until the time of that Julia Child movie. It's also when she started playing up the role of legend in public. The early 90's was a rough period for her. She went her longest stretch without a nomination, and she was actually getting turned down for offers. But a lot of her peers were having a rough go of it during that timeframe.

So what you are saying r37 is that when her relationship with Harvey Weinstein was firmly cemented he made sure she had work and the hype to get her ass kissed by everybody.

I'm not saying anything R38. I'm just providing a timeline.

I really don't get people putting Streep and Lange together anyway. They're two completely different breeds of actresses. Besides, Meryl loves publicity, and clearly loves the adoration. I think Lange couldn't give two shits less about it and is just here for the work and the work only..

But that is what I'm saying 39.

Harvey is known for forcing his hand in all things.

[quote] The early 90's was a rough period for Streep. She went her longest stretch without a nomination, and she was actually getting turned down for offers. But a lot of her peers were having a rough go of it during that timeframe.

Streep did have a string of crushing flops in that era: She-Devil (1989), Defending Your Life (1991), Death Becomes Her (1992; a cult favorite today, but a flop when initially released); The House of the Spirits (1993); and The River Wild (1994). Only Postcards from the Edge (1990) was a success; she had to fight to get the lead role in The Bridges of Madison County (1995), which returned her to audience and critical favor.

Jessica is #1 r36. Jessica has a Tony. Meryl doesn't.

Lange’s oeuvre is composed of a myriad delicacies. Her filmography is peppered with unassuming gems perfect for the introspective, contemplative type. What makes Jessica Lange a STAR, however, is that she also has a fair share of film classics and pop culture fare to keep the superficially inclined interested. Her work is eclectic and her career well-rounded.

I think it is very telling that Meryl Streep is so vocal about her admiration and reverence for Lange. Sure, Streep has praised many actresses before, but Lange is the only actress she’s implied is better than her (see Jane Pauley interview above). She’s also mentioned Lange more often than she has any other actress. Whether mentioning her beauty, to her body, to her lifestyle, to her brilliance as an actress, Streep has always managed to praise and comment on Lange in any setting.

When the woman who is widely regarded as the greatest living actress regards YOU that way, you know you’re special.

Personally, Lange and Streep are my favorite actresses of all time. I’m more attached to Lange, but both are the only actresses I will literally watch ANYTHING for. Comfort cuisine.

I wish they would do something substantial, dramatic and gritty together. I think they would ignite the screen together. I’d also want them in something risqué. I’m partial to that true story about the lesbian couple who finally came out in The their 80’s. Something like that would be perfect for them.

Nobody - actor or actress - compared to Lange and Streep. They are so alluring and compelling to watch. Even when they’re “bad” they’re amazing.

R36 Oh, God, she was UH-MAZING in Marvin’s Room. One of her most effortless performances.

“I’m not responsible for whether you’re conscious or unconscious, all I can do is make the effort!”

“oh my...GOD! You went with a carny worker...”

“Well...I’ll just leave a few of this with you... for when you wake up...” (scatters a few M&Ms onto her unconscious son’s chest)

::chef’s kiss::

I like her but I find her film and TV work really repetitive. Streep can still surprise but it’s always the same with Jessica.

The River Wild was a hit ($94 million).

R45 From A Streetcar Named Desire to Normal to Sybil to Grey Gardens to American Horror Story to Feud to Horace and Pete to The Politician, Lange has always been surprising and different.

Compare her work in, say, Normal to her work in Grey Gardens and I don’t see how you can say she’s the same.

[quote]Streep can still surprise but it’s always the same with Jessica.

That's because Streep has been given ample opportunities to showcase her range. She has first pick of every leading lady role being written and takes the best for herself. Lange is rarely given those opportunites anymore, and is saddled with Ryan Murphy tv camp. But give her a Grey Gardens or a Long Days Journey Into Night, and she can go to town.

Lange is the only actress of her generation who has one all three top acting prizes competitively: 2 Oscar, 3 Emmys and a Tony. She’s also won the entertainment industry’s global popularity award (Golden Globes) 5 times.

She’s good.

Oh, dear...

*who has won

Jessica only works for Murphy because of her drinking. Have you noticed no other directors hire her, unless they are damaged goods too? I would not brag about LCK.

R51 You’re sad, lol.

Sorry, I know the truth hurts.

R53 The truth is that you truly believe you know her on some deeply personal level and that’s sort of sad if not a little demented.

Seek help.

Please. I am not the OP who posts 30 threads on her. She’s not that great or reliable and that’s why only Murphy hires her.

Lange works for Ryan Murphy because he's the only one who can coax her out of retirement. He woos her with meaty roles that she can sink her teeth into. She isn't going to leave her cabin in the woods for a small part playing someone's dotty old grandmother. You have to make that granny an alcoholic, a drug addict, a murderess, a borderline psychotic, etc., to get her to say yes.

R55 No, but I am the op and I am not the one acting like I know her private life. You are.

Lange is selective and somewhat lazy. Acting and the business in general have never been the center of her life. More like an extremely enticing and lucrative hobby.

She works with those that will offer pretty much everything she wants. She’s earned that right.

To do scenes in the Olive Garden? Ok

This video already has 122,000+ views and over 5,000+ likes in less than 24 hours.

Sorry, 8,000+ likes.

R36, among living actresses with most Oscar acting nomination, Lange is still outdistanced by Jane Fonda, Judi Dench, Kate Winslet, Cate Blanchett and Glenn Close. She's tied with Maggie Smith, Vanessa Redgrave, Ellen Burstyn, Sissy Spacek and Amy Adams.

A six-way tie for sixth...

R61 How many of those have won competitive Oscars, Emmys and Tonys?

Redgrave, Smith and Burstyn along with Lange, Lange and Redgrave for the same role.

This video is shorter and more popular.

Now at 307,000+ views with 18,000+ likes.

455,000+ views and 25,000+ likes.

She’ll be at a million by weeks end.

455,000+ views and 25,000+ likes.

She’ll be at a million by weeks end.

475k views, 26k likes.

528k views, 29k likes.

700k views, 39k likes.

R32 - I think the answer to your question is Glenn Close but I could be wrong.

The full rundown...

Love Meryl & Jessica but I must admit I am a BIG fan of Susan Sarandon.

725k views, 40k likes.

[quote]She’ll be at a million by weeks end.[quote]

842,000+ views, 45,000+ likes...

We have 2-3 days left.

Jessica came in number three. Good effort.

How come she hasn't been up for an Oscar in 25 yrs?

Because she was busy winning Emmy, Tony, and SAG awards as well as many other awards.

R79 Preach it, baby.

How come Meryl has over 100 credits and only 3 Oscars and 2 Emmys (voiceovers don’t count)?

Jess has under 50 and she has 2 Oscars, 3 Emmys and a Tony...

To be fair though, Meryl does deserve to win the SAG tribute first. I love both Mama and Aunt M.

Mama should’ve come in 2nd, though.

910k views and 48k likes. We still have Sunday.

Great. A view count troll.

Okay, okay, so it’ll be a week and a half. Not bad for a 70 y.o. who barely works...

957k views and 50k likes.

Oh, and this adorable moment -

eww that dinky dark grey dress, why such horrid dress choices in real life: ? got no baby blue cashmere fuzzy sweaters hun?

R84 You sour, mean thang!

Most acknowledge her as Blanche in streetcar was a huge miss, the big feud she had with alex baldwin and the director threw a massiive wrench into the thing. she spoke so softly thru out that audience members actually yelled they could not hear her, and it was noted in reviews that she whispered thru the whole role. pity....ruined the whole show.

Didn't her 1996 London Streetcar version receive high acclaim? What were the main differences between this and the 1992 production.

If it was significantly better its a shame the lesser version was the one filmed for posterity.

R87 Yes. The only real criticism people had of her stage debut was her inability to project her voice. In fact, she won the Drama Desk Award in ‘92 for playing Blanche.

Lange even admitted she played it more for film than stage.

As for her feud with Baldwin...

Such hatred...

976k views and 51k likes.

1 MILLION views, 61k likes.