I Was Robbed: Maria Bello and Viggo Mortensen
By Anthony Daquano
Did you know that Maria Bello won a Blockbuster award for her role in Coyote Ugly? Neither did I, but now that Blockbuster is sinking faster than Megan Fox’s career, Bello might want to hold on to that prestigious award as she continually gets ignored by the Academy. After getting squeezed out of a crowded field in 2002 for her work in The Cooler, the Academy blundered even further by giving her the cold shoulder for A History of Violence. Given that her co-star Viggo Mortensen was also rejected and that the film was helmed by David Cronenberg, the snub shouldn’t be too surprising. Cronenberg keeps moving away from his days of body horror, so perhaps the Academy will justly honor his work soon, or maybe they just hate him for being Canadian. Meanwhile, William Hurt was honored for his brutal eight minute scene, but since the Academy once worshipped the ground he walked on, they had no choice but to honor his cameo appearance. Meanwhile, both Bello and Mortensen put on an acting tour-de-force to set up the film’s terrific climax that features Hurt.
Considering that Bello appeared in small thankless roles in movies like Coyote Ugly, Payback and even a quick stint on ER, one can’t really make the argument that she hadn’t paid her dues. Her performance in A History of Violence was well-regarded enough to be recognized by critics groups from Chicago, Kansas City and New York. Even the Golden Globes, who like to shun lesser known actors and actresses, found her performance to be one of the year’s five best. Maybe it was the fierce protectiveness of a mother, the unflinching loyalty of a wife, or the realization of a woman that the world she knows is built upon a hidden secret that caused the Academy to decide Bello wasn’t worthy enough of a nomination. After all, Frances McDormand had a role in an Oscar bait film, and as we all know if Frances McDormand is an movie she must be good enough for a nomination.
A History of Violence is a simple enough movie, but without the right actors in the roles, it wouldn’t hold together well. The performances, particularly those of Bello and Mortensen, elevate the movie. Both actors must navigate scenes that juxtapose each other. Both actors sell an intimate and flirtatious love scene, while later in the movie sharing a much more brutal scene not of love, but of a much deeper catharsis. Bello may not comfortable with the realization of her husband’s past and as angry as she is, to be taken much more forcefully by this violent man is tough for her to resist. When she defends her husband in a diner it comes out of a need to protect the man she loves. When she defends her husband against the sheriff and a similar allegation, she defends him out of a need to protect her children. Through these similar but vastly different scenes, both actors maintain a strong sense of the original character while exploring new depths.
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