SAG Awards 2014 Predictions: Best Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries [Poll]
A group of spectacular actors and actresses will be honored at the 2014 Screen Actors Guild Awards for convincing performances that stayed with viewers long after credits rolled. A group of superb female actors are being honored for their performances in a television movie or miniseries, but only one worthy actor can win the award.
The nominees for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries are:
Angela Bassett, "Betty & Coretta"- Bassett gives a powerful performance, as always, as Coretta Scott King, the wife of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The Lifetime movie chronicles King's friendship with fellow widow Dr. Betty Shabazz (Mary J. Blige), the wife of Malcolm X. When their husbands were assassinated, Coretta and Betty inherited the civil rights movement and bonded over being single mothers.
Helena Bonham Carter, "Burton and Taylor"- Although Carter does not closely resemble glamour icon Elizabeth Taylor, she captures the actress' bawdiness and undeniable charm in the BBC movie about Taylor and her ex-husband, Richard Burton. It mostly takes place in 1983, when they both starred in the Broadway revival of the play "Private Lives." Both have new love interests, but the pair still has an irrepressible chemistry and an enduring toxicity.
Holly Hunter, "Top of the Lake"- Hunter embodies the odd character of GJ, the mystic leader of a new age feminist group in a tiny New Zealand town. She is excellent at embodying the character, who is detached but engaging, and sometimes insufferable. Although she is harsh, her message draws acolytes. Her insight plays into the main storyline of a female detective searching for a pregnant 12-year-girl.
Helen Mirren, "Phil Spector"- Mirren is excellent as Linda Kenney Baden, the defense attorney for music mogul Phil Spector during his trial for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson. The film focuses on the relationship between the eccentric Spector and the determined Baden. Mirren's Baden is intelligent and focused, and tries to raise reasonable doubt amidst an assumption of guilt. (However, it ultimately fails; Spector is now serving 19 years to life for the murder.)
Elisabeth Moss, "Top of the Lake"- Moss is superb as Robin Griffin, the detective who is trying to crack the case of a 12-year-old pregnant girl who tried to drown herself in a frigid lake in a small New Zealand town and then disappeared. Moss attempts the difficult task of putting on a New Zealand accent, which alone deserves credit. She assumes the role of the determined and preceptive detective in a town where nothing is as it seems.
Prediction: Elisabeth Moss, "Top of the Lake"
While veteran actresses Helena Bonham Carter and Helen Mirren are often cited as favorites to win in this category, Elisabeth Moss' excellent characterization renders the 31-year-old actress worthy of the award. Her role as the discerning detective creates a strong female character and feminist archetype in the moody crime drama, in which feminism and the patriarchy play a large role. Moss' performance is as nuanced and strong as those of her fellow cast members.