Is Nicole Kidman becoming a victim of the Joan Crawford Syndrome?Joan Crawford was a Hollywood movie star who had the glory times and the down times in her career. She was often criticised, particularly by Bette Davis, for not being able to act (remind you of anybody?). Joan adopted four children, married multiple times, and was labelled Box Office Poison for many years. Joan started out as a very striking individual, but in her 40's began doing weird things to her face and hair. While there was no botox in those days, Joan relied on severe eyebrows, thick lipstick and butch hairdo's to be noticed (think "Johnny Guitar"). In 1945 she won an Oscar for "Mildred Pierce" and her career began to take off again, for a few years at least. Joan thrived on attention and hated it when the glory days dried up again. Her later years saw her settle for C-grade horror movies to keep her name known - think "Trog" and "I Saw What You Did".
We're not suggesting Nicole will end up doing C-grade horror films, but you never know. What we are suggesting is the lengths Nicole may go to, to stay in the limelight. Changing her appearance even more. Nicole's facial changes have, at times, being very scary, just like Joan's.
The one big difference between these two women, is that Joan became a Hollywood Legend (despite her down years). What are Kidman's chances of being known as Legend down the track? Don't know? Go see Lauren Bacall.
15 comments:
Nicole adopted kids just like Joan. And discarded them too, just like Joan. Do you think Isabella will pen a book sometime called *Mommie Not So Dearest?*
Yeah, certainly many parallels to crawford. But as I see the recent photo ops of a harried and frazzled kidman...I imagine she is entering into the "Norma Desmond" realm...from the 1950 film "Sunset Boulevard"...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_Boulevard_(film)
"...a faded movie star who draws Gillis into her fantasy world in which she dreams of making a triumphant return to the screen."
...I imagine the orb is the William Holden part of "Gillis"...getting spun into her nightmare of failure and desperation!
Hi Maclen - seen Sunset Boulevard and agree that there are similarities too. What a great film! Laughed at your William Holden reference ie. Keitho.
Joan Crawford wasn't much of an actress. Bette Davis was sure right. Joan would act with that look of despair on her face in all her movies. Same as Nicole does, except Nicole can't help it. The botox has made her eyebrows stick upwards - so she looks serious. I don't think Nicole can act either. She got her Hollywood pass out of a Cereal box.
Nicole Kidman can only wish that she'd had Joan Crawford's career! Joan was a huge star with a great box office record throughout the 30s and 40s. Kidman peaked around 1999-2003, but yeah I can see the similarity in their over-worked look and Kidman does look like Crawford in the 60s
Yah I definitely agree - there are many similarities not only with Crawford but other old movie stars like Marlene Dietrich, who in her later days stuck surgical needles in her face & attached them to her wig to make her face look tighter.
http://forums.thefashionspot.com/f95/marlene-dietrich-6912.html
I think Nicole shares that need to create a constructed, 'perfect' persona (fake family and all) with old Hollywood, and really, for better or for worse, I do see her as one of the last 'classic' movie stars.
The role player that she is, for awhile in early 00's after her Oscar, I swear, I though I saw old Vivian Leigh and other old stars who had reached the pinnacle of stardom (with Oscars) and en route to retirement attitude of legends. Some had begun to label her legend only to have Bacall came forward and vehmently attempted to retracted that...does anyone remember? She is definitely Joan Crawford than Bacall, Garbo, Taylor or the true greats who can adopt the resigned attitude after true legendary careers...she's a pure delusional nut case. Well history has shown that to be true, and look where she is now. She's old news, physically ugly & surgeried up, with no credibility left to shine anymore.
Do any of you think she will redeem herself and do one great movie. Now she has a new agent and all. I'd like to think she may, but we'll see. she needs to get over herself first. Stupid bitch she is.
Bitch hater, no. It's impossible if you don't have the talent or smarts to sustain your career as a worthwhile serious actress. She has no character and is unable to develop or sustain one in movie roles. This is a walking aging barbie. We really had pegged her wrong. By her actions and career track record since the Oscar have shown her to be not Blanchett or streep, far from it, this is a complete air head who's time apparently is devoted to picking up the latest fads of twentysomethings and repeating her statements of decades ago. This is the underwear flashing, pout-lipped,hair-extensioned, no talent, breast augmented & goes nipples exposed (at her age), expose her private sex life, quick to adopt for no rhyme or reason fashions of other airheads, pathetic moron. Wow, she really is what she is, a high-school dropout.
I think it is the similarities between the classic old movie stars and Nicole Kidman that add to her contrivedness. Basically she has no personality or screen presence which is why sometimes she pretends that she's Monroe, other times she tries to be like Grace Kelly, etc. These actresses were a product of their times which is why it looks so phoney and ridiculous when Kidman tries to emulate them. She doesn't have a strong identity like Streep or Glenn Close who owns each and every one of their roles. Nicole is too bland & wispy. Gimme Joan Crawford over Nicole!
Anon 2:29 am, let me just further clarify kidman's intellect & talent. First I think you're right & put it out clearly -- and not sure whether Crawford had this problem, on the contrary she had too strong of a screen persona to me -- but her/kidman emulation of classic stars are all about appearance, and to a certain tactic their ridiculous jiggle (saw a lot of Ann Margaret in some of her recent roles.) That's all that concerns this model, no substantive attempt to capture her profession, artistry whatsoever. Yeah, Crawford should be offended....
Although Bette Davis often commented on Joan's lack of acting, I myself would rather watch a Joan film anyday. It's no secret that Bette hated Joan and would also refer to Joan's lack of theatrical training. Kidman too has had no training. I own a few Crawford films, and she does tend to do the melodramatic thing a bit hard.
While there are several similarities between Crawford and Kidman, my main point was the facial thing. Joan practically became a parody of herself, and that continued following the Fay Dunaway film "Mommie Dearest".
This is how Kidman is going if she is not careful.
On Joan Crawford appearance, could it be that work hungry, she'd evolved to look her role seemingly pigeonholed as a victim in B-rated scary movies where she could succeed in getting any work? (Why would anyone in sane mind find that arch-browed appearance normal?) As for Kidman, similarly she had met her success early on for her looks, could manipulate her audience/fans to be fascinated with her that ultimately gave her the Oscars. She seems to be trying to apply the same formula to the original fan base that had moved on, most are married with kids with commitments, some could even be grandmothers -- and she aged, ugly, not at all physically fascinating -- and rightfully so, we're talking about 20+ years! It's her low intellect and equally stupid people who won't bust her idiocy. When you age, you'll only last by talent in entertainment, not surgeries and recapture of youth and you look like s**t, it seems purely logical to me....
Choice, you have hit gold! Nicole's big comeback will be a remake of 'Sunset Boulevard'... She will play Norma, and Keith will play Gillis. Perfect! They both may get awards for just playing themselves.
in add to Anon 10:32, did mention that her concept of how to play a role in Compass was about moving her hand evil across the kid's head...not about playing a character, as in, pure evil, evil with redeeming character, evil but in angst in not having children of her own, self-possessed and unable to feel human emotions, etc. etc. etc. she, real dumb or what....
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