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Cher was more impressive than Meryl in Silkwood

I could always tell watching that movie that Meryl was 'acting' a lower class character but with Cher, it was a heart and soul transformation. I've been hard on Cher for winning an Oscar for Moonstruck without doing anything this extraordinary to get it, but Silkwood made me see that she is actually incredibly versatile.

by Anonymousreply 39June 23, 2022 11:30 PM

Meryl was also sensational as Siljwood and completely disappears into her role too. She even showed her tot for pete's sake!

by Anonymousreply 1June 18, 2022 2:23 PM

Hey OP, who you calling low class? Here's what I think of YOU!

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by Anonymousreply 2June 18, 2022 2:26 PM

Yeah I agree with you OP. That said, despite seeing the wheels turning (or however Katherine Hepburn described Meryl’s acting), it’s still an impressive performance too.

by Anonymousreply 3June 18, 2022 2:34 PM

Go take a Silkwood Shower OP!

by Anonymousreply 4June 18, 2022 2:38 PM

Cher is a very savvy and multi-talented woman. When she was hanging with Jack & Angelica, Warren Beatty, et al. in the 70s, she had insecurity because she thought they were doing art and she was doing Half Breed. But she never gave up and worked on her singing, songwriting, and acting and now has an enviable resume.

by Anonymousreply 5June 18, 2022 2:41 PM

[...]

by Anonymousreply 6June 18, 2022 2:44 PM

I'm surprised Meryl and Cher never died from lung cancer, they were lighting up every single scene in this movie for two and a half hours.

by Anonymousreply 7June 18, 2022 3:00 PM

I've said this here on DL before: Cher's acting in Silkwood, when she convinced even me that she was a lesbian, is when I knew she was a brilliant actress.

It's a great movie besides being a true (and very sad) story. If you've never seen it, you should.

by Anonymousreply 8June 18, 2022 3:45 PM

Meryl is a stage actress whether anyone sees it or not, and the weight of her technique (Streep playing "spontaneous" is a fearsome sight.) leaves her almost always seeming over-rehearsed and a little cynical about her "capturing" moments.

Cher is a natural actress (and a natural celebrity) whose various versions of enhanced appearance left her, surprisingly, with the continued gift of seeming "present," in the moment, honest, and instinctively right. She has had more small moments of surprising brilliance than Streep has had in all her films.

Cher's face is rather immovable now and she's a bit beyond playing average human beings, but even if she's being used as screen decor today she can still hold the focus.

Not quite, but almost like Marilyn, who despite her good efforts ruined almost every scene she was in because her incandescence transcended the script, the plot, the scene and the other players. Cher often is unexpectedly perfect and when she's not you blame the director, the camera man, the editor and the other actors. You just find yourself looking at her regardless.

by Anonymousreply 9June 18, 2022 4:00 PM

She lost the Oscar to Linda Hunt, who played a man in The Year Of Living Dangerously

by Anonymousreply 10June 18, 2022 4:01 PM

The comments comparing acting styles show a general ignorance about the craft. But yes both are great actors. YBut do carry on.

by Anonymousreply 11June 19, 2022 12:04 AM

Enlighten us R11 don't just sit there and scoff.

by Anonymousreply 12June 19, 2022 12:07 AM

Would Linda Hunt be canceled today for taking the role away from a biological man?

by Anonymousreply 13June 19, 2022 12:07 AM

I’m a lesbian who’s been exposed to nuclear waste, hohhhh!

by Anonymousreply 14June 19, 2022 12:17 AM

When Cher suddenly hooks up with Tina Darling and moves her in, I thought Meryl would recreate the Mommie Dearest strangulation scene.

by Anonymousreply 15June 19, 2022 12:19 AM

R9

Cher's face is rather immovable now and she's a bit beyond playing average human beings, but even if she's being used as screen decor today she can still hold the focus.

Example :Mama Mia 2, horrible dreck but when Cher enters her scenes she kicks the wattage up several notches. In person, Cher literally radiates.

by Anonymousreply 16June 19, 2022 2:33 AM

My goddesses are Cher and Dolly. Despite all the slap and surgery - there's something so authentic about both of them. I'm sure there are others but I can't think of many off hand. Elsa Lanchester maybe.

Meryl may be good but I find her boring.

by Anonymousreply 17June 19, 2022 3:07 AM

Where can you stream it ?

by Anonymousreply 18June 19, 2022 3:52 AM

Cher is delectable in Silkwood (stayed in my mind for days) - better than in Mask, imo, but I liked both.

by Anonymousreply 19June 19, 2022 3:55 AM

R18 you can get the dvd for $10 from Amazon but when I searched where to stream it, it said it wasn't available at this time.

by Anonymousreply 20June 19, 2022 3:57 AM

They’re both really, really good. I think this is Meryl’s best performance.

by Anonymousreply 21June 19, 2022 5:00 AM

Anyone interpret that scene where the camera focuses on Cher and she’s staring blankly but you can see she’s troubled by something or thinking about something?

by Anonymousreply 22June 19, 2022 5:32 AM

It’s implied that Cher’s character said something about Karen’s investigation which contributed to her being killed.

by Anonymousreply 23June 19, 2022 5:35 AM

As an lifelong actor, I certainly do know what I'm talking about.

And I love Streep.

But she's no spontaneous, "discovery in the process" performer when it comes to the last, best take. Cher surprises with her truth. Streep has calculated the character's journey and too often, even in some of her comedies, it's a little like a preplanned walk through the Stations of the Cross.

by Anonymousreply 24June 19, 2022 5:03 PM

I find it amusing to read read the criticism of Streep. As for Kates’s comment- jealousy and envy folks, of the first order- kind of astounding.

by Anonymousreply 25June 19, 2022 5:12 PM

Cher can certainly act but she's not a great one by any means. It's not like any of her movie roles were terribly different than her in real life.

by Anonymousreply 26June 19, 2022 5:21 PM

R25 Exactly. And especially rich from Kate who played every character the exact same way for 50 years.

by Anonymousreply 27June 19, 2022 6:05 PM

I thoroughly enjoy Cher both as an actress and as a singer. I swear, her voice is richer now than it was when she was young.

by Anonymousreply 28June 19, 2022 6:33 PM

Sweetheart, you haven't heard Cher's real voice since you last saw her real nose.

by Anonymousreply 29June 19, 2022 8:51 PM

Do any of you catty aging spinsters even know the difference between acting on stage and in a film. No, the banal second hand thoughts of a failed actor who once was a hundred dollar a day extra doesn't count for much.

by Anonymousreply 30June 19, 2022 9:11 PM

OP who cares. It was a pointless movie that given the facts could not be conclusive about what happened to Karen Silkwood. The characters were dreary as fuck and would be of no interest otherwise if not for the situation they became involved in. The only sustained interest was waiting to see who would be 'cooked' next. And the showers and scrub downs the only exciting part of the movie.

by Anonymousreply 31June 19, 2022 10:05 PM

r31 what a horrible person you are. I bet you were foaming at the mouth waiting for the next scrubdown scene.

by Anonymousreply 32June 19, 2022 10:47 PM

it was the only thing to look forward to R32

by Anonymousreply 33June 19, 2022 11:06 PM

It definitely needed a more action-oriented Rambo character.

by Anonymousreply 34June 19, 2022 11:08 PM

It was no China Syndrome R34 a much better film on a similar theme.

by Anonymousreply 35June 19, 2022 11:37 PM

Actually, R34 Ramwood sounds like a promising idea

by Anonymousreply 36June 19, 2022 11:40 PM

R31 go back to your superhero movies, you drip

by Anonymousreply 37June 20, 2022 8:27 AM

R26 must have e blocked (which wouldn't surprise me). There's a world of difference between Cher acting/dressing like a slouchy working-class lesbian in Silkwood and her singing in Bob Mackie gowns.

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by Anonymousreply 38June 20, 2022 11:56 AM

R37=either you like Saint Silkwood which downplayed Karen's wild ways and pill popping and the children she left with their father, or you are doomed to superhero movies. Got it! Wasn't aware that The Battle of Algiers, The Heiress, Sunset Boulevard, Goodfellas, All the President's Men, Boyhood . . .were superhero movies!

by Anonymousreply 39June 23, 2022 11:30 PM
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