Felicity Huffman

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 10:52pm

She was just on 60 Minutes.

I adore this woman.

She is so brutally honest.

When asked of motherhood was the best experience of her life, she said . . . "No" and then continued to state she resented the question, because it put women in an untenable position.

Man, she speaks her mind. Gotta love it.

[jasonf]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 10:57pm

I LOVED that moment - she should get an award for best interview with that one. SHe threw Lesley Stahl for a loop - gotta love that.

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 11:05pm

I am sure Lesley Stahl's head has not snapped back that quickly in a very long time.

And then Huffman called her on it!

[MyNameInLights]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 11:06pm

I love her to death. She's my favorite of the Desparate Housewives, and I love watching her act.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 11:26pm

That is such a fantastic response to that question. I just realized what a conservative and politically manipulative construct that question is.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 1/15/06 at 11:35pm

Perfect answer. She is my new hero.

[OddExoticCreature]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 12:15am

aw crap. I was just saying tonight watching Desperate Housewives what a great actress she is. Oh well, maybe I'll catch it later.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:09am

YAY FELICITY! She rocks. Let's keep our fingers crossed for her tomorrow night!

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:33am

I think she is DIVINE!

And I am honored to be studying the techinique she not only uses but has taught! Yea for the Atlantic Theater Company's school!

[bwaysinger]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 7:48am

Felicity Huffman is absolutely breathtaking on Housewives. She takes a light serio-comic show and brings so much committment that she wipes the floor with the rest of the Housewives. Marcia Cross holds her on with her but Hatcher and Longoria look like children.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 9:00am

I've been a fan since I saw her as the replacement for Madonna in David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow. I remember thinking to myself, "This girl is gonna be HUGE one day!" Haha, I was right!

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 9:21am

And I bet no one ever asks her if Motherhood is the best experience of her life.

[IWannaDance!]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:25am

Seriously, how often do you hear a man get asked if fatherhood was the best experience of his life. Sure, they get asked about fatherhood, but they're not expected to say that it overshadows everything else. If they do, it's just gravy. Argh, this attitude that women aren't complete until they have children just drives me up a wall! Good for Felicity for standing up for herself.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 1:24pm

For standing up for all women.

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 2:43pm

I am not lying when I say Stahl's head shot back as if she had been hit when Huffman said "no" and then went on to attack the premise of the basic question.

Stahl then asked her if she was a good mother - and she basically said, "how the hell do I know". She worries about what she is teaching them . . . all of the stuff all mothers worry about, which means, almost by definition she is a good mother.

She is so honest

She is my hero. And, a great actress.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 2:45pm

Let's not say she speaks for all women, because for many women, having birth is THE huge moment of their lives. But, she does speak for a silent and oppressed group of women who are not allowed to say it was a wonderful moment, but not their life's purpose fulfilled. So, good for her, but let's not make it out to be what all women feel but no one says.

I adore Huffman in housewives, and would love to see her pick up a globe for it -- however. As I've said 100 times already on this board, I found her performance in Transamerica to be one of the laziest performances I've seen on screen in years and years. And, she gets nomination because people (like people do with the actors in Brokeback) are "amazed" at her "courage" for lowering herself to play the part of a transgendered person. Not only did she approach the part (upon my viewing) in a very judgemental way, but she missed the boat entirely when she says things in interviews like she played the part as a woman who was learning to be a woman as a second language.

But, I do want to temper my distaste for her in that role with an adoration of her in Housewives. Best of luck to her.

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 2:53pm

"like she played the part as a woman who was learning to be a woman as a second language."

I actually don't think that's an inaccurate statement. At all. A transexual has to grow up as the right gender in the wrong body. And they are raised to be that stereotype of their biological sex. So, then when they are able to figure out that they are transgendered, they have to learn a lot of things from scratch as they transition---how to be the gender they always were on the inside. Sure--everyone's transition is different, harder for some, easier for others, but I don't imagine many would find fault with that statement.

I will agree that I found some of the comments in interviews to be jarring, but until she proves me wrong, I would assume that she is very respectful of the character she played. She did a lot of research so that she could be honest. And, knowing that I think I understand some of her comments as actually being protective of her character. Maybe not.

And full disclosure--I have not seen the film yet, so I can not assess her performance. But, I have seen clips.

[Jane2]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 2:54pm

I have a slightly different take on Felicity in Transamerica. I was blown away by her realistic portrayal. She was exactly like any real transsexual I've ever met. It never occurred to me that she was 'lowering' herself or anything of the kind. As for her 'second language comment', I read this somewhere as well as seeing her say it on tv. The way I heard it was Stahl asking how she learned to play this role, and what I got from Huffman was that learning to play a man undergoing this procedure was like someone learning English as a second language. I can understand that difficulty.

Oh well, I can't wait to see the globes tonight!

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:04pm

What's really beautiful is that they chose a woman to play Bree.

Often times, you see men playing a trangendered/transexual female (Normal) or vice versa (Boys Don't Cry). And, in many ways this makes sense--especially if you are covering the early part or before the transition.

But, speaking completely in terms of what is happening inside the person, it should be the opposite--and that's what I found refreshing in the casting of Bree.

[Jane2]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:10pm

Wait til you see it!

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:12pm

I found the opposite - that having a woman portray the character backfired. Out of makeup, she looked like a woman, and with makeup, like a man. Should have been the other way around. Also, vocally, same problem - she sounded like a woman trying to deepen her voice instead of a man trying to feminize it.

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 3:16pm

But those are merely externals. And the designer should be blamed in that case.

For the emotional life of the character, it is absolutely correct.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 5:20pm

I agree, jerby...the casting of her as a woman is inspired. Thank God that was done.

I'll be interested to see how you react once you see the movie. The "second language" comment isn't 100% wrong, but what she forgets is the role of the expectation of society -- which is TOTALLY different between learning a language and learning a gender. when "learning" a gender, you are not learning how to do things in the same performed way as language requires. Gender is a performative utterance, and not just an utterance.

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:52pm

She was trying to create a metaphor in the abstract sense--not in the literal you seem to be taking it.

But, I do need to see the film before we discuss it any further. That would certainly be more fair to the dialogue.

[DG]

Posted: 1/17/06 at 2:28am

I haven't seen the movie, but I did just see her GG acceptance, and it was the emotionally resonating moment of the evening. Thank you Felicity.