thelma ritter Archives - i luv cinema

I am honored to be participating in this blogathon (Small Roles … Big Performances), created by blogger Ruth at Flixchatter. Be sure to visit her site to check out her post as well as the postings of the other participants.

When I first approached this topic, one performance came to mind – Chiwetel Ejiofor in the dystopian Children of Men (2006). That is quite a feat – in a film where there are so many impactful supporting performances (Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Pam Ferris to name a few), I selected Ejiofor’s because of all the roles I have seen him in over the years (not enough for my liking), this is the the most deviant and surprising one.

As always, I strongly encourage you to check out this film for yourself and decide for yourself – way back in 2007, I dedicated a blog post to this film.

If you are so inclined, check out this video (WARNING: It does contain some integral plot elements, either that or you will just be a tad confused about all the talk about “The Human Project”).

But wait – there’s (one) more …

As I was making my shortlist for this post, my mind was flooded with actors and performances from yesterday and today that deserved some notice. So, as I conclude my post, I would like to mention the performance of a personal favorite of mine, Thelma Ritter; watch this clip of her memorable performance in Pickup on South Street to see what I mean:

Maybe it is my naiveté which comes from my (relative) youth, but I think that the great character actress, Thelma Ritter, is often overlooked in discussions of great performers of mid-twentieth century cinema. Happily during her heyday her talent was not overlooked by her peers – she was nominated to an astounding 7 Academy Awards. While she did not have the fortune to take home good ol’ Oscar, this fact in of itself says all that needs to be said about the type of actress she was.

In her first screen role (uncredited) she played a frustrated mom on line at Macy’s in the holiday classic A Miracle on 34th Street. But for my money one of her most memorable roles was not in favorites such as Rear Window, Pillow Talk, etc. but in her role as the down and out “stoolie” from another NYC street, Samuel Fuller’s Pickup on South Street. While on the surface she is a woman who seems to be willing to do anything for a buck, you cannot help but feel sympathy for her when tragedy strikes and her one wish in life is left unfulfilled.

Otherwise relegated to the role of a domestic she was equally funny, loyal and tough when she needed to be. She also had the ability to be the lens by which the audience sees the truth in a situation, even if the characters around her were for a time oblivious. (Note: Let us remember most of the time, chiefly in the films of the 20th century, that was the role of the “domestic character.”)

So my recommendation is for anyone who has not heard of her to do a Netflix, Youtube, whatever search of her. You will be happy you did.