I gave myself a Herculean task, I’ll admit it. I won’t say impossible, after all this list is fundamentally subjective. At the end of the day, the list is simply a list of female performances that I like. I only gave myself a few rules:
- I allowed myself to split the long list into two different articles (male and female), just so that I could talk about and recommend more incredible films, and make it easier for myself. Lord knows what would happen if I had to limit myself to three all-time performances per decade...which brings me onto my other rule...
- Only 3 performances allowed per decade. I swiftly followed this up by allowing myself 9 cheats. I could have kept from cheating, but I thought that 9 was more than fair and after all, it’s my article and I can make up whatever rules I like for this more than superficial ranking of incredible performances.
- I started from the 40s and ended with the present. Another arbitrary rule, I know, but a rule all the same.
Let’s just begin, shall we?
1940s
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The cold steel of Phyllis is brought to light in this original femme fatale performance. She is the proto-Catherine Trammel and the original Bacall. Stanwick is electric in the role and makes the film the piece that it is today.
Judith Anderson – Rebecca
Is there a more daunting character than Mrs Danvers in Hitchcock’s
suitably unwavering adaptation of Du Maurier’s Rebecca? What makes this performance so marvellous is the
double meaning of "daunting" here. Not only is the role itself daunting to any
actress, but the way Anderson takes the challenge gleefully and makes the character
her own, more daunting and frightening than anybody could have imagined in the book.
Gloria Swanson – Sunset Boulevard
The most effective, tragic performance of all time in my eyes. A classic figure uncontrollably sending herself down an inevitably unfortunate path, portrayed with great pathos, comedy and drama by Swanson. A final image that will haunt the viewer forevermore and will remain ingrained in film history for the rest of time.
Kim Novak – Vertigo
An underrated performance in the Hitchcock cannon, Novak skilfully presents with multiple versions of multiple women. Sometimes different shades and sides of one person, other times a frightened or seductive version of the other. It is the firm hand of Novak and her clear talent that keeps us on Hitchcock’s winding path in this psychological masterpiece and frankly I don’t think the film would work without her.
Vivian Leigh – A Streetcar Named Desire
There has simply never been a better performance of any Williams character on screen that from Miss Leigh in this film. The vulnerability, tragedy and beauty of the fallen Du Bois sister is all brought beautifully from the page to the film by Leigh’s expertise. Continuing her work with the role from the stage, Leigh finds new facets to the character, as well as portraying her with the perfect amount of elegance and pain.
Ingrid Bergman – Casablanca
True love is a hard thing to convey on screen, but when it’s done right, it’s a magnetic and immensely powerful thing. But what Bergman conveys here as Ilsa is something even more powerful. We view through her pained performance the struggles of a true love that just can’t be. I’d put her on this list just for her eyes' performance alone. The stories those eyes tell under that marvellous hat are stories that have stayed with me since my first viewing and will always be none too far from my mind.
1950s
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The most effective, tragic performance of all time in my eyes. A classic figure uncontrollably sending herself down an inevitably unfortunate path, portrayed with great pathos, comedy and drama by Swanson. A final image that will haunt the viewer forevermore and will remain ingrained in film history for the rest of time.
Kim Novak – Vertigo
An underrated performance in the Hitchcock cannon, Novak skilfully presents with multiple versions of multiple women. Sometimes different shades and sides of one person, other times a frightened or seductive version of the other. It is the firm hand of Novak and her clear talent that keeps us on Hitchcock’s winding path in this psychological masterpiece and frankly I don’t think the film would work without her.
Vivian Leigh – A Streetcar Named Desire
There has simply never been a better performance of any Williams character on screen that from Miss Leigh in this film. The vulnerability, tragedy and beauty of the fallen Du Bois sister is all brought beautifully from the page to the film by Leigh’s expertise. Continuing her work with the role from the stage, Leigh finds new facets to the character, as well as portraying her with the perfect amount of elegance and pain.
1960s
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I think people forget that Bancroft’s performance is more than pure titillation. There is plenty of titillation; her seductive nature in the role encapsulates sex in a way that hadn’t been seen on screen before. But I return to my favourite word this article: "pathos". The pain in the performance and the delivery of the scene where we find out about Mrs Robinson’s previous love for the world of art, leads us to look at the film through an entirely different lens and that’s more than just the writing and directing – that’s Bancroft, through and through.
Elizabeth Taylor – Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Another misunderstood idol. People don’t talk about Taylor for the right reasons. It is often the footnote where people discuss her genuine talent when it came to delivering roles with tremendous strength and volatility. Compare Martha to Cleopatra for instance; that comparison alone can show exactly all you need to know about this wonderful actress and why this performance is on this list.
Shirley MacLaine – The Apartment
Is there a character easier to fall in love with than Fran Kubelick? Yes. You will meet her later in this article, but all the same, Fran is a remarkably close second. The warmth of the character is constantly battling with the truth of the world that she has come to know. She'll make you laugh, she’ll make you cry, all whilst making you fall in love with her.
1970s
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Paired with her husband John Cassavettes, Rowlands has given us some of the greatest performances of all time. My two personal favourites and the two films that I believe to hold her two greatest performances are A Woman Under the Influence and Opening Night. One could see the two as companion pieces, both women under tremendous stress going through severe mental breakdowns and dealing with serious mental health issues. But comparing the closing scenes of both films you can see two perfect examples of how to end these films and the two sides of “the broken woman” story. Rowlands performs with such ease, it’s transcendent.
Louise Fletcher – One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
The greatest villain of all time doesn’t have a lightsaber and he doesn’t stalk people to kill at night. The greatest villain of all time just has a stare to cut glass, an ability to harm with a single word and a nurse's outfit. Louise Fletcher as Nurse Rathched will forever send a jolt down my spine whenever I hear her name and whenever I hear Fletcher begin to address the patients with that terrifying call to arms, “medication time”.
Ellen Burstyn – The Exorcist
When Freidkin and Blatty directed and wrote The Exorcist respectively, they never lost sight of the human drama. The film is fundamentally about a mother losing her child to a terrible disease. That mother just so happens to be an actress and that disease just so happens to be a possession by an almighty devil. The transformation of Burstyn from elegant, charming and witty at the start of the film to worn, tired, angry and scared by the end, is the one of the greatest movie arcs of all time and frankly I see it as a rather underrated one.
1980s
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The greatest mother and daughter film of all time can only be such with two flawless performances and Terms of Endearment has two wonderful ones. I often find myself arguing at night about who offers the better performance. Both are wickedly funny when they need to be, both offer boundless humanity and realism and both damn near tear your heart out by the final reel. I personally believe that it’s a dead heat and I could never not put one on this list without the other.
Meg Ryan – When Harry Met Sally
Is there a character easier to fall in love with than Sally Albright? No, but Fran Kubelick is a remarkably close second. The greatest rom-com female lead character of all time is brought to its top rank position by Reiner's direction and Ephron's incredible scriptwriting, but is cemented to no end by Ryan. Offering wit, charm and naivety in her portrayal of Sally, Meg Ryan makes the perfect rom-com lead for the perfect rom-com film.
Isabella Rossellini – Blue Velvet
Frightening, sexy and mysterious, this is the modern femme fatale through a Lynchian lens and boy does Rossellini takes us on a journey. Never truly knowing whose side each character is on, where her loyalities lie and why she is where she is at all points during the film is all but a mystery. Rossellini, with great power and an apt skill for the subtle, brings Miss Valens to life with ease, whilst offering a truly haunting rendition of the titular track.
Dianne Wiest – Radio Days
This was a tough one. I had spent my 9 cheats already and was really struggling with which Woody Allen and Dianne Wiest collaboration to choose. For me, the lines that Allen gave her led to some of the most brilliant, comedic and dramatic performances of the 80s/90s era. I could have chosen Bullets over Broadway or Hannah and Her Sisters with much ease, but ultimately I landed upon the hapless in-love aunt from Radio Days. In a film built upon excellent supporting roles and cameos, scene after scene Wiest steals the show and deserves this spot on the list, and in all honesty, probably deserves a lot more spots.
1990s
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What a stacked decade, taking the most slots and eating away at my list of cheats. I begin with Kidman in the spellbinding role of Alice. Offering us a seductive, viscous and simply bored vision of a married woman with lust on her mind. She also gives one of the greatest line deliveries on one of the greatest closing lines ever. And yes, it is my favourite Kubrick and Kidman’s electrifying performance is one of the main reasons why.
Jodie Foster – The Silence of the Lambs
The lynch pin to my second favourite film of all time. Foster as Starling leads us through every scene and the every twisting path of this thriller classic. The scenes between Foster and Hopkins are the most delicate tango imaginable and the two meet in the middle so perfectly that the scenes became instant classics and have remained as such ever since.
Sharon Stone – Casino and Basic Instinct
Two incredible performances from Stone here, highlighting two completely different sides to her ability to act. In Casino we see mania and chaos in the character of Ginger, a grenade thrown into every scene leading it to be a blaze of drug-fuelled insanity that is like a car crash to watch, yet impossible to turn away from. Compare this now to the stillness (apart from a few rather vigorous scenes) of Catherine Trammel in Basic Instinct, we go with Douglas the whole way and never question his infatuation, all because of Stone's incredible performance.
Michele Pfeiffer – Batman Returns
The greatest Batman villain performance of all time, over any Joker, Pfeiffer takes it in a landslide. Those who know me, know too well that I unabashedly adore this film and one of the main reasons is the flawless performance from Pfeiffer as Catwoman. Undeniably dangerous, undeniably brilliant. Never mind the wonderful transformation from meek Selena Kyle to the this viscous feline, we see true change in this performance and it’s impossible to turn your eyes from.
Kathleen Turner – Serial Mom
God I wish more people loved this movie. God I wish more people talked about Kathleen Turner the way that I talk about Kathleen Turner. God I wish people just stopped reading, found a copy of this incredibly brilliant, hilarious, pitch black comedy and see for themselves what the hell it is I’m so excited about. Do yourself a favour and watch this masterpiece of black comedy from the master of bad taste himself, John Waters.
Kathy Bates – Misery
As anybody who listens to the podcast knows, I love Annie Wilkes. Now not to spoil the film, but over the course of the running time we find out some pretty horrific things about Miss Wilkes. Do I feel sorry for her? I sure do. Does the thought of retribution cross my mind every time she starts talking about “the blues”? Yes, it does. There is just something so empathetic about the monster that King, Bates, Goldman and Reiner create and I believe that it is chiefly down to Bates’ awe-inspiringly evil performance.
2000s
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The only foreign language entry on this list, which could be seen as an oversight, but it’s just where my mind was at the time. I considered adding “in the English language” to the title, but then I thought of leaving out Huppert in this film from this list. There is a certain scene about thirty minutes into this film where we learn things about this character and I can honestly say that although the scene is simple, it’s one of the biggest surprises I’ve had in a film for a long time. Huppert makes this shock more than a cheap surprise, instead a true character moment, and she does for the rest of the film with the rest of its many shocks and intense moments.
Julianne Moore – Boogie Nights and Magnolia
It takes a truly great actress to act badly and in Boogie Nights, Julianne Moore does just that. In this double bill of Moore performances under Paul Thomas Anderson's direction, we see a masterclass in subtlety and a masterclass in the highly difficult craft of over-acting. Such a delicate fine line is it between an atrocious over-acting performance and a quality one that I ponder whether Moore is our greatest living actress every time I find myself re-watching Magnolia, which is often.
Reece Witherspoon – Election
Tracy Flick has gotten a bit off a reputation as a truly hate-able character, and although Witherspoon has her moments of pure villainy in this film, one cannot deny how Witherspoon leads us to understand where Tracy is coming from and why she is doing everything that she is doing. A perfect foil for Broderick and a perfect fit for this ingenious character.
2010s
Charlotte Rampling – 45 Years
Hands down the greatest performance in recent memory for me, male or female. Talk about subtlety? The quality of this film and this performance sneaks up on you through the film and for so long after it. During it, you can see the pain behind the eyes, but by the final shot you see a masterpiece of a performance in one real-time slow zoom in. After the film you consider how great it was, but just like that zoom in, it holds and remains until you realise that this is one of the better films of the decade and perhaps of the past 25 years. And that’s because of Rampling. Incredible Rampling.
Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine and Carol
The greatest working actress we have at the moment. I have both of the leads to Carol here, as I believe that, in Carol, they offer one of the truest and greatest romances of recent film history. But I separate them to talk about their other excellent performances. Blue Jasmine for Blanchett - my favourite performance in an Allen film and that’s saying an awful lot in itself. The power and pain in Blanchett’s performance constantly flashing back to the beauty and elegance of yesteryear heightens the shame and humour. Truly magnificent work in both films.
Rooney Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Carol
Similar praise for Carol, with Mara brilliantly showing the naivety of a first affair and the beauty of a first true love. But in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo we meet Lisbeth Salander. Good God! This fierce and thrilling creation is brought to the screen with incredible effect by Mara, to the point where she steals the entire film from underneath itself. Every single throwaway moment offers more insight to the mind of this terrifying character. Mara makes her a pure human that we know every facet of, inside and out, with the ease of a seasoned pro.
Olivia Colman – The Favourite
The immediate standing ovation at the Oscars for Colman as she accepted her award just proves that there is still hope for quality. There wasn’t one person in that auditorium that didn’t appreciate the brilliance of her performance and what a performance it was. Heart-breaking, hilarious, horrific, all in the space of a few hours. A true talent. I hope that this is not her peak, although I see it as an almost impossible peak to beat. I have hope in Colman’s talent and so should you.
Hands down the greatest performance in recent memory for me, male or female. Talk about subtlety? The quality of this film and this performance sneaks up on you through the film and for so long after it. During it, you can see the pain behind the eyes, but by the final shot you see a masterpiece of a performance in one real-time slow zoom in. After the film you consider how great it was, but just like that zoom in, it holds and remains until you realise that this is one of the better films of the decade and perhaps of the past 25 years. And that’s because of Rampling. Incredible Rampling.
Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine and Carol
The greatest working actress we have at the moment. I have both of the leads to Carol here, as I believe that, in Carol, they offer one of the truest and greatest romances of recent film history. But I separate them to talk about their other excellent performances. Blue Jasmine for Blanchett - my favourite performance in an Allen film and that’s saying an awful lot in itself. The power and pain in Blanchett’s performance constantly flashing back to the beauty and elegance of yesteryear heightens the shame and humour. Truly magnificent work in both films.
Rooney Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Carol
Similar praise for Carol, with Mara brilliantly showing the naivety of a first affair and the beauty of a first true love. But in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo we meet Lisbeth Salander. Good God! This fierce and thrilling creation is brought to the screen with incredible effect by Mara, to the point where she steals the entire film from underneath itself. Every single throwaway moment offers more insight to the mind of this terrifying character. Mara makes her a pure human that we know every facet of, inside and out, with the ease of a seasoned pro.
Olivia Colman – The Favourite
The immediate standing ovation at the Oscars for Colman as she accepted her award just proves that there is still hope for quality. There wasn’t one person in that auditorium that didn’t appreciate the brilliance of her performance and what a performance it was. Heart-breaking, hilarious, horrific, all in the space of a few hours. A true talent. I hope that this is not her peak, although I see it as an almost impossible peak to beat. I have hope in Colman’s talent and so should you.
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And so concludes the first half of this effort to compile a list of the greatest performances of all time. Even if the attempt is futile, you can still just look at the article as a list of more than solid recommendations. Trust me, you can do far worse than a marathon of these incredible films.
- Thomas Carruthers
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