I am a Hathahater, so naturally my jaw dropped and perhaps some of the food I was eating when she so smugly won Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars last Sunday.
This is what she stated when when Hathahaters like me criticized her authenticity.
“”She tried to win over the haters in her Oscar speech but expressed that even with all of the criticism, “I live my life with love. I live my life with compassion. I live my life hoping the best for absolutely everyone, no matter how they feel about me. And when you live that way, it’s amazing how beautiful every day can be.”
The notion that bothers me, is that she actually believes her role as Fantine was Oscar-winning- worthy…the Academy does as well. But it takes a very grounded disparity to take on a role of a mother who literally would sell herself to feed her daughter. I doubt she read the book. I know her mother played the role on Broadway- which is probably why Anne felt entitled in her role. Its like she stripped the role of Fantine not to bring life to the story of Les Mis but to integrate herself in a position of power and entitlement in Hollywood- by boasting her humbleness through her 25lbs weight loss and hair “loss.” when in previous years she said in disgust that she thought her 115lbs figure was too fat. but this is just the words of a hathahater or it could just denote to the fact her real voice doesn’t have enough gumption for the role- yet she sees herself as a Broadway star- rather discovered as a disney star. Moreover, her real voice couldnt reach the range of the music used, so there were other singers to help fill the musical void
I used to be a Hathahater too when she first broke onto the Hollywood Stage. The Princess Diaries? What was she thinking? However, I do believe her performances have improved due to better film choices, life experience and working with more talented actors and actresses than herself. I am going to have to disagree with you here, as a die-hard musical fan and viewer of Les Mis in multiple venues, I believe she did a fantastic job with portraying the pyshological and emotional dilemmas that Fantine struggles with before her life ends. Yes the sacrifices she made for the film, such as losing weight and cutting her hair, shouldn’t be considered when weighing nominees for the award. But her ability to portray the character through song in a mere twenty-five cameo made her Oscar worthy.
You make an excellent point Sammy, (Im not sure if this counts as a “blog fight”) She has come a long way from her days of being Genovia’s Princess- and when she did Rachel Getting Married, I did believe that she deserved an oscar for that role. I think we will have to agree to disagree about her role in Les Mis- though I do have to say, Les Mis in its cinematic form did not do the stage version justice- However, Anne Hathaway was the best of the cast choosen and was the closest to protraying the character in its purest form than any of the other cast members in the film. I am just taking into account the original production, Fantine’s role in the book and how humbling it was to read what Fantine went through. That being said- whether or not she deserved the oscar- I just seems as though she was entitled to role because her mother played the role on stage. I am also not a fan of background singer “aiding” Hathaway’s weak spots in her vocal abilities. Nethertheless, If I judge the cinematic version- she did a good job.