Best Actress: Ellen Burstyn

 This is what happens when you don't win an Oscar for the film you deserve it for.

via simbasilble

You get rewarded for a lesser-deserving film. That's not to say that Ellen Burstyn isn't fantastic in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, because she really holds the film together, but The Exorcist was revolutionary. This is a 1940s film with a rough '70s edge.

Watching some of these older films, I'm struck by the idea that 'This could never be me.' There's no way I'd let a man beat me around, let alone my only child. 

I'm so glad that storyline ended within the first 20 minutes: it sets the catalyst for the rest of the film. After being widowed following a freak traffic accident, Alice and her son travel across the country so she can go home to fulfill her dream of becoming a lounge singer. But then she makes a stop along the way and they wind up staying in Tucson, where Alice gets a job in a diner, meets a local everyman played by Kris Kristofferson, and deals with another side quest keeping her from her dreams.

I remember at the time being very annoyed by the son, then I read, while working on this article, that he was told to repeat this joke over and over again because he kept getting in wrong? Effective acting, that's for sure. I also didn't really care for Kris Kristofferson's character, who was better than the abusive husband but still had a streak in him. 

Mainly, I don't think Alice got a happy ending. She got an ending. Dreams change, but it didn't feel earned to me.

Ellen was nominated against Diahann Carroll (Claudine), Faye Dunaway (Chinatown), Valerie Perrine (Lenny), and Gena Rowlands (A Woman Under the Influence). I haven't seen Claudine or Lenny, but Diahann Carroll was a singular talent. And Chinatown and A Woman Under the Influence are classics. It's criminal that Gena Rowlands never won an Oscar. 

I do enjoy Ellen Burstyn, but she should have won for The Exorcist. And she probably should've won for Requiem for a Dream, but I'll unpack that when we get to Julia Roberts' entry.

DID I LIKE ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE? The movie's kinda mid, in my opinion. But Ellen's great. And we got Martin Scorsese against type! 

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Did you like Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore? What are your thoughts on Ellen Burstyn's Oscar win?

Keep up with all my Rewatching the Best Actresses posts here!