I'm planning to start a new weekly series on character actors and other underrated actors. For the most part they will be faces you recognize but are unable to attach a name to. Others are more recognizable but are often under-appreciated. The first of this series is devoted to Melinda Dillon better known as the mom from A Christmas Story.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Close Encounters garnered Dillion the first of two Oscar nominations (the other being in Absence of Malice. Playing the mother of the abducted boy in Spielberg's classic Dillion brings a level of honesty and desperation of a mother desperate to be reunited with her son. Much a parallel to Richard Dreyfus' character, Dillion believes that hope exists beyond the known cosmos. Dillon used her role here to help nail down her role later in A Christmas Story.
A Christmas Story (1983)
One of the most beloved Christmas movies all time, Dillion leaves an indelible mark as the loving mother of Ralphie. Dillion imbues sweetness, toughness and commitment as the matriarch of her family. Dillion's performance rises her character above the stereotype of the 40's and 50's housewife and makes her an independent woman. Whether it be washing her son's mouth at with soap or demanding he try on a horrible Christmas present Dillion scores.
Magnolia (1999)
Her last major movie role, Dillion is one of the more forgotten members of Magnolia's sprawling ensemble cast. Not as central to the story as Julianne Moore, Tom Cruise or Melora Walters; Dillion's character still represents one of the overarching themes of a wife or child being neglected or forgotten by a man. In her limited screen-time Dillion achieves a sense of loneliness and anger.
Other notable movies:
Bound For Glory (1976)
Slap Shot (1977)
Absence of Malice (1981)
No comments:
Post a Comment