The Best of Amy Adams

November 20, 2020

If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you know that my favorite kind of artist (whether it be in film, television or music) is someone who takes chances in their career.  Take Tom Cruise for instance.  Early in his career, he was trying all sorts of different roles, culminating in 1999 when he starred in Magnolia (the Paul Thomas Anderson masterpiece in which he went way outside his comfort zone to play a misogynist motivational speaker) and Eyes Wide Shut, the troubled (but excellent) last film from Stanley Kubrick that foreshadowed the end of Cruise’s marriage to Nicole Kidman.  For the last twenty years, however, Cruise has basically been playing the same type of character that we see in the Mission: Impossible series – the hero to save the day.  He’s taken a few chances, but we haven’t seen much range from him the last twenty years and in fact, we’ll see him back in the fighter jet when Top Gun: Maverick is released next year.  Why do I bring up Cruise?  Because he’s an example of an actor who can do great things – look at his performances in Magnolia, Jerry Maguire, or Born on the 4^th of July, but he doesn’t seem interested in stretching himself any further these days.  That’s why I continue to be impressed by the acting choices made by the subject of this week’s post – Amy Adams, who stars in the new Ron Howard film, Hillbilly Elegy, out on Netflix this month.  If you missed my post on Howard last week, you can read it here.

Like most actors, Adams got her start in television series and bit parts in lesser known films.  A few of her memorable early credits included a guest appearance on The West Wing fourth season premiere as the farmer who helps Josh, Toby and Donna when they miss their ride on Air Force One.  Remember the scene where Josh and Toby lose their shit because they crossed from one time zone into another while crossing county lines in Indiana?  Yeah, that was the episode.  She also had a multiple episode stint on an early season of The Office, as Jim’s girlfriend.  Her early film roles were rather forgettable, but in 2002, she was cast by Steven Spielberg in Catch Me If You Can, the wonderful crime caper starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks.  She played the young and naïve fiancée of DiCaprio’s con artist.  Despite her solid performance in that film, she didn’t receive widespread attention until her breakout role in 2005’s Junebug, which earned her the first of six Academy Award nominations.   

The Definition of Versatility

In looking at her filmography, it’s truly impressive to see the types of roles she has tried, and while they haven’t all been successful, she has shown incredible range.  She’s also one of the hardest working actresses in Hollywood.  Since her success as a princess in the 2007 Disney musical Enchanted, she has made over 25 feature films and a limited series (that we’ll discuss shortly) in just 13 years. 

When you are looking for a top-notch actress who can play any type of character, in any situation, she can rise to the challenge.  She’ll take on a leading role, a supporting role, or a bit part, if she wants to be part of a quality film. 

Here are just a few examples of the types of films she’s starred in:

• Romantic Comedy – Leap Year, about a woman who travels to Ireland in hopes of proposing to her boyfriend.
• Kids film – The Muppets, a reboot of the popular puppet series, in which Adams co-starred with Jason Segel.
• Comic Book film – She took on the iconic role of Lois Lane in the recent DC Comics series of films, opposite Henry Cavill’s Superman.
• Power Drama – She’s done this many times, including Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master, about a troubled man looking for salvation from the leader of a religious following.  Adams starred as the wife of the leader, played by Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
• Historical Figure – Adams portrayed Lynne Cheney, the wife of Dick Cheney, in the comedy farce Vice, again receiving critical acclaim and awards nominations. 

As another example of her range, here is the run she went on from 2008 to 2010:

• Sunshine Cleaning – playing a woman desperate for a job, who goes into business with her sister cleaning up crime scenes, in this comedy-drama.
• Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day – starring as a wacky actress-singer during World War II,  trying to solve her love problems with the help of a new assistant, played by Frances McDormand.
• Doubt – portraying a naïve nun at a Catholic school facing a crisis, opposite acting legends Meryl Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
• Night at the Museum 2 – as Amelia Earhart.  I never saw these movies, but I know the gist of them, so I’ll just move on.
• Julie & Julia – again with Meryl Streep, this time it’s the true story of a woman (Adams) who decides to try to cook every recipe (over 500 of them) in the cookbook of Julia Childs (Streep) in one year.  A nice comedy-drama, featuring great performances by both of the lead actresses.
• Moonlight Serenade – here Adams portrays a jazz singer at a club.  The film didn’t do very well, but I give her credit for trying something different.

That’s six very different roles in three years – very impressive in my book. 

My Top 5

As I do with most lists, I probably put too much thought into this.  Now, I have not seen all of her movies – I am a movie addict, but even I don’t have the time or bandwidth to watch everything.  For clarity, I would consider this list my favorite performances by Adams, not necessarily the best films in which she appeared.  For instance, I love Catch Me If You Can, but she has a minor role in it, so it’s not on this list.  Also, I recently watched Her, the outstanding 2013 film directed by Spike Jonze.  Adams has a supporting role, as the real stars are Joaquin Phoenix as a man who falls in love with his computer-generated virtual assistant, voiced by Scarlett Johansson.  Like most of Jonze’s work, it’s uniquely brilliant in a way that only he can deliver.  As much as I love Her, since Adams has only a supporting role, it won’t make my top 5.  Here we go.

5. American Hustle (2013)

Big-named stars, flashy clothes, and interesting hair choices (looking at you, Bradley Cooper) highlight this crime caper from David O. Russell set in 1970s New Jersey.  Adams starred along with Christian Bale, Jennifer Lawrence, Cooper, and Jeremy Renner in a story about con artists who are forced to cooperate in a sting operation with the FBI to take down corrupt politicians.  After a string of successful performances as a supporting character, Adams was cast in one of the lead roles, drawing strong reviews and her only Oscar nomination (to date) for Best Actress.  Like most crime stories, the film features a number of plot twists and questionable motives among the characters played by Adams (as one of the con artists), Bale (her partner in crime), Lawrence (Bale’s wife, who is suspicious of her husband’s relationship with Adams – and rightfully so), Cooper (as the dimwitted FBI agent), and Renner as a corrupt mayor.  With all of the twists and turns, a top-notch cast, and a cool 1970s vibe, this is a good one.

4. The Fighter (2010)

Before starring in American Hustle, Adams appeared in David O. Russell’s boxing drama The Fighter, with Mark Wahlberg playing the titular character, real-life boxer Micky Ward from Lowell, Massachusetts.  Adams played Ward’s girlfriend, who encourages him to stand up for himself in managing his career the way he wants to, and separate from the toxic management of his demanding family.  Her scenes with Ward’s domineering mother (played by Melissa Leo, winner of the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress), his troubled brother (Christian Bale, in a brilliant Oscar-winning performance) and his overbearing sisters are particularly impressive.  While she appreciates their devotion to Ward, she quickly realizes that they see him as a meal ticket and take advantage of his boxing potential for their own potential gains.  This is another example of Adams displaying range in a role that is unlike most other characters she has played, especially when you compare it to our next film. 

3. Junebug (2005)

Have you ever watched a character in a film and said to yourself “I can’t believe that’s the same actor from that other film!”?  That’s the case with Junebug, the 2005 small-town story that brought Adams to the mainstream attention of Hollywood and the Academy, which nominated her for Best Supporting Actress.  The story centers on an art dealer and her husband who travel to North Carolina in pursuit of signing an eccentric artist to a deal.  While on their trip, they stay with the man’s family, including his parents, dirtbag younger brother, and his pregnant wife Ashley, played by Adams.  Despite the terrible way she is treated by her husband, Ashley maintains a positive sunny attitude about life, dreaming about the great things to come and how her life will be so much better after her baby is born.  She plays the role with such exuberance, in a stark contrast from what we’d see later in films like The Fighter and Doubt.  I won’t give away the plot, but there is a particular scene near the end of the film where it’s clear that a star had been born and she would have a bright future ahead of her.

2. Sharp Objects (2018)

OK, I’m cheating here a little bit, because this is not technically a movie, but an eight episode limited series, based on the novel by Gillian Flynn (author of Gone Girl), that appeared on HBO.  Adams starred as a troubled reporter who travels back to her hometown to investigate the murders of two young girls.  Her fractured relationship with her mother (Patricia Clarkson, in a devilish portrayal) dredges up childhood memories that exacerbate her alcoholism and her psychological problems that had previously led to a stay in a psychiatric hospital.  She also develops a relationship with her much younger half-sister (played by Eliza Scanlen, in a breakout role), and sees similar patterns to her own childhood under their domineering mother.  Adams displays an incredible range throughout this series, giving full commitment to the demons that her character is facing, while trying to solve the murder case for her newspaper story.  It’s one of the best displays of vulnerability, pain and strength that you will see from an actor.  The subject matter of this series can be a little troubling – after all, it’s a psychological thriller about the search for a child murderer by someone going through serious troubles in her life, but the acting performance and the storyline make this a strong recommendation from me.

1. Arrival (2016)

Let me just tell you much I love this movie.  Arrival is one of the large number of great movies that were released in a five year window when I was so bogged down by my job that I saw virtually no movies.  So this one passed me by when it came out in 2016 and I saw it for the first time just last year.  Arrival features Adams playing a world-renowned linguist called in to help communicate with one of twelve alien pods that have landed on Earth with unknown intentions.  Before you skip ahead because “alien movies” are not for you, give this one a chance.  This is not Ridley Scott’s Alien.  This is a cerebral drama – there are no space fights.  It’s about one woman’s experience that changes her life forever.  She partners with Jeremy Renner to support a military operation, bringing a civilian mindset to balance out the government officials with itchy trigger fingers.  As she tirelessly works to learn the language of the aliens and develop a common way of “speaking” to them, she stresses the importance of taking baby steps without overreacting to potential misunderstandings of their messages.  Throughout her experience, we see memories that Adams has experienced with her daughter that have a tremendous impact on her life.  If you haven’t seen this film, I won’t give away anything else, but suffice it to say – the payoff is extraordinary.  The film was directed by Denis Villeneuve, who will bring us the remake of Dune next year, and was a box-office and critical hit.  Much like a lot of her roles, Adams brings many characteristics to this role – a quiet strength, determination, vulnerability, and caring.  This is a film that I am so glad I found and her performance is a big reason why it is one of my favorites from the last few years.

The Oscar – If or When?

Adams has been nominated six times – five for supporting actress and once for leading actress – for a variety of her roles over the years.  She should have more nominations – for instance, she wasn’t even nominated for Arrival, which was just plain robbery.  The performances for which she has been nominated have all been strong, but there was never one that pushed her over the edge to get the win.  She has lost to the likes of Anne Hathaway, Cate Blanchett, and Regina King.  Twice she has been nominated with a fellow co-star.  For Doubt, she lost (along with co-star Viola Davis) to Penelope Cruz.  For The Fighter, she lost to co-star Melissa Leo. 

She’s on that short list of actresses that you think will definitely win an Oscar, given her strong track record and adoration by the Academy.  Well, she didn’t get the award early in her career, like Jennifer Lawrence did.  Surely, she will follow in the footsteps of those who have received their recognition over the last decade or so, right?  Will we see a repeat of what we saw with Kate Winslet, who won with her sixth nomination, or Julianne Moore, who won with her fifth nomination?  Or will Adams be destined to follow in the footsteps of Annette Bening, a highly-respected actress with four nominations and no wins?  Or maybe Glenn Close, who holds the record for most nominations (seven) by an actress without a win?  It’s interesting that the two of them star in Hillbilly Elegy this year, which (on paper) looks like Oscar bait – a family drama with showy performances by the leads.  As I mentioned last week, the early reviews haven’t been pretty, so I’m not sure what to expect, but I will watch it nonetheless.  We’ve also seen plenty of years when the Academy awards the Oscar for not necessarily the best performance, but more of a career recognition.  Perhaps we’ll see that this year.  I certainly hope she is rewarded soon – she’s definitely earned it. 

That’s all for this week.  Thanks for reading – I hope you enjoyed my thoughts on the career of Amy Adams.  I’ll be back next week for another edition of my favorite comfort movies – a few suggestions for your Thanksgiving holiday weekend.  If you’d like to be notified of future posts, you can subscribe here.