Melanie Griffith...
#0Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 7/8/06 at 11:15pm
I am watching WORKING GIRL again on Tv right now.
How on earth did Melanie Griffith snag an Oscar nomination for her horrendous performance?
#1re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 7/8/06 at 11:39pmYou know, Munk, I've often wondered about this, too. When I watched this movie for the first time, I was expecting a great script with knockout performances. After all, the film received several Oscar nods, which I realize now doesn't mean much. Anyway, I was underwhelmed, to say the least. The movie was predictable and Melanie's performance was below par, in my opinion.
Vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra
Salve, Salve Regina
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Eva
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
O clemens O pia
#2re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 7/8/06 at 11:41pmShe's the same in everything. Clueless and on drugs.
#3re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 7/8/06 at 11:48pmYeah, her kewpie doll voice grates.
Vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra
Salve, Salve Regina
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Eva
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
O clemens O pia
#4re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:23am
Phyllis Rogers Stone
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/16/07
#6re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:37amThat's the problem with coke...the post nasal drip!
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
#7re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:40am
What an old, tired thread from an old, tired poster.
Melanie was excellent in "Working Girl." She never "got there" again, but that was a terrific performance!
Too bad it's lost on some.
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#8re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:48am
Great film...I watch it every time I pass it while flipping.
So much better than the overrated "Rain Man" which beat it for the BP oscar.
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
#9re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:52amPeople might also forget that not only was Melanie nominated for her performance, she was the front-runner and had picked up several precursor critics awards that year. It was considered a bit of an "upset" when Jodie Foster beat her out for "The Accused."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blueroses
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/18/04
#10re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:53am
I was crazy for Melanie in this role, and loved Sigourney and Harrison Ford, too. Alec Baldwin as the hot but sleazy boyfriend, a great original song...so much to enjoy about this film.
Joan Cusack was the real standout, though.
"Six thousand dollahs and it's not even leathah!"
#11re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 9:55amI've said it too many times...BEST ORIGINAL SONG in film, EVAH!!
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
blueroses
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/18/04
#13re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 11:30am
I have always had a soft spot for Melanie Griffith. She's no master thespian but possesses a kind of unforced vulnerability and comic savvy that other actors just don't have.
And unlike Marilyn, she's a survivor.
#14re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 11:41amLOL @ the 80's bangs in that picture!
#15re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 11:41am
I don't feel strongly about her performance one way or the other in terms of whether she deserved an Oscar for it or not, but I do know it's a performance/film that I thoroughly enjoy. I'm quite a Mike Nichols fan and he really delivered with WORKING GIRL.
Sigourney Weaver is absolutely fantastic as well and both Alec Baldwin and Joan Cusack (in an Oscar-nominated performance) give wonderful supporting roles. I personally think it's a pretty neat movie.
#16re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 12:00pmWorking Girl needs to take responsibility for it's contribution to the hole in the ozone layer!
killertofu333
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/23/08
#17re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 1:30pm
I have always had a soft spot for Melanie Griffith.
Borstal, I feel the same way. While I'm not a HUGE fan by any means, when I saw her in "Crazy in Alabama" I actually didn't completely hate her performance. Don't tell anyone!!!
#18re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 1:37pmI watched this again recently and I couldn't figure out the big hair. Was it meant to look a little over the top when the film was originally released? Or was that normal hair for that period? They must have had multiple hair wranglers on the set at all times.
killertofu333
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/23/08
#19re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 3:23pm
Or was that normal hair for that period?
Believe it or not, that was normal hair for the 80s. It took a lot of teasing and hairspray to achieve such a horrendous coiffure.
kelzama
Broadway Star Joined: 9/14/04
#20re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/13/09 at 3:32pmThere existed some subtle regional differences. While Melanie is sporting the look of a composite 80s girl, Joan's got the New Jersey Mall Bang look down pat, complete with extreme blush and 5 colors of eyeshadow worn all at once.
#21re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/14/09 at 11:20am
I've said it too many times...BEST ORIGINAL SONG in film, EVAH!!
I totally agree. Not only is it a fantastic song, but it was brilliantly used in the film. I get goosebumps every time I see Joan answer that telephone and jump out of her chair at the end.
While I'm not particularly a Melanie fan, she was in the right film at the right time. Her subtle and unique style created an instantly memorable and iconic character. I can't imagine anyone else playing that part, which is typically the sign of a great performance. It was the perfect cast, all delivering superb performances in a film that upon first viewing, the public knew would be a classic. I saw three times the week it opened.
While Joan's "look" may seem OTT now, it actually wasn't at the time and was completely on point for the character she played. It was her performance, which was probably driven by the look, that truly made her stand out in the film. But the look was crucial to the plot as illustrated by Melanie's transformation, which was performed by Joan's character. "If you wanna be taken seriously, you need serious hair." Twenty years later, we always look back at past and have a good laugh at fashion. Then it immediately becomes a retro fad, where designs run out of ideas, get lazy, and cherry-pick the elements they want the public to repeat. I will be thankful to finally get out of the 70s.
1987 was a particularly strong year for films and honestly, Rain Man was my last choice for Best Picture out of the nominees.
Some notable films that year:
Big
The Accused
Dangerous Liaisons
Working Girl
Mississippi Burning
Rain Man
Beetlejuice
The Accidental Tourist
Gorillas in the Mist
Pelle the Conquerer
A Fish Called Wanda
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Die Hard
Salaam Bombay
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
Bagdad Cafe
The Milagro Beanfield War
I would have substituted the Rain Man BP nod with Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Accused or A Fish Called Wanda.
#22re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/14/09 at 3:29pmGreat Griffith performances in bad movies: BODY DOUBLE and CECIL B. DEMENTED.
#23re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/14/09 at 3:55pmCould never get past her affected way of speaking.
#24re: Melanie Griffith...
Posted: 2/14/09 at 4:03pm
Moriarty (formerly of AICN) defends Body Double
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