Ellen Barkin
Born: April 16^th, 1954
Place: New York City, New York
Major Awards and Citations: Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (1997): Won Best Supporting Actress for ‘The Fan’
Chicago Film Critics Association (1990): Nominee for Best Actress for ‘Sea of Love’ and Best Supporting Actress for ‘Johnny Handsome’
Golden Globe Awards (1992): Nominee for Best Actress in a Leading Role- Musical or Comedy for ‘Switch’
Oscar Snubs: ‘Sea of Love’ (1989) and ‘Switch’ (1991)
Sam Levinson loves to talk about Ellen Barkin.  The writer/director of ‘Another Happy Day’ has done nothing but rave about her every time he and I have spoken, and it’s easy to see why he does this.  She’s a supremely talented actress who sometimes just isn’t in material worth her salt.  It’s surprising to think that she’s never been nominated for an Oscar, but she hasn’t, which merits inclusion in our Under the Circuit series.  Things might be changing this year (anyone who read my Early Review of ‘Another Happy Day’ knows that already, but in case you don’t, you can read it here), so what better time than now to explore her career?  I’m going to do something slightly different this time around (consider it an experiment if you will) with the piece.  Instead of just chronologically going through her filmography and commenting, I’ll be grouping her performances together into a few categories.  Hopefully this is a different way of doing things that you all appreciate, and something I can do from time to time in this series to keep things fresh.  In any event, it’s still Under the Circuit, so you know what we’re about to do.  The only thing left is to do it.

The Early Films of the 80’s
After a few TV jobs, Barkin showed up on people’s radars when Barry Levinson (yes, Sam’s father) cast her in a supporting role for his film ‘Diner’.  This launched her career in a big way.  Following her excellent turn in that film, she continued to have small roles, but they were in well regarded films like ‘Tender Mercies’ and Sidney Lumet’s ‘Daniel’.  There were plenty of other works like ‘Eddie and the Cruisers’, Paul Newman’s ‘Harry & Son’, ‘Down by Law’, ‘The Big Easy’, ‘Siesta’, and of course ‘The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension’.  Some were starring roles, but most weren’t.  She was building her resume and it paid off in 1989, when she co-starred again with Mickey Rourke (after ‘Diner’) in ‘Johnny Handsome’, as well as giving a performance worthy of an Oscar nomination in ‘Sea of Love’.  Many of these movies were only decent, though some definitely had a guilty charm to them…the only constant though was Ellen Barkin.  In each of these roles, and especially ‘Diner’ and ‘Sea of Love’, Barkin was exceptional.  As the decade was about to change, expectations were high for her.

The 90’s oeuvre

Barkin started the 1990’s with a bang, starring in one of the more underrated comedies of the 90’s.  It’s ‘Swtich’, and she’s very funny in Blake Edwards’ take on the body swap type of films.  She was rewarded with a Golden Globe nomination for her work here, but the Academy never took notice of her.  She was still under their radar, and obviously has remained there.  That may change this year, but more on that later.  What’s worth noting is how well she can do both comedy and drama.  She was showing that she could do it all.  She continued to work steadily, appearing in ‘Mac’, ‘Man Trouble’, and ‘Into the West’, along with a very nice supporting role in ‘This Boy’s Life’.  These were different roles that showcased her in both big and small parts.  Next came ‘Bad Company’, ‘Wild Bill’, ‘The Fan’ (which I inexplicably have a soft spot in my heart for…trashy as it may be), ‘Mad Dog Time’, and a Golden Globe nominated television appearance in ‘Before Women Had Wings’.  This was her second nomination there (I didn’t mention it above since I avoid TV for the citations mostly, but just take note of it), and was further evidence of her ability to do just about anything in acting.  The rest of the decade was comprised of the cult favorite ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’, ‘Drop Dead Gorgeous’, and ‘The White River Kid’.  These were more varied roles.  She still wasn’t often appearing in films that were well liked by critics, but people still took note of her.

2000 and beyond
Since the new millennium began, Ellen Barkin has bucked the trend that dictates that women must only take certain roles as they age.  She’s still doing things just as she pleases.  Often she’s not the lead, but her presence allows her not to have to be.  This includes films like ‘Crime and Punishment in Suberbia’, ‘Mercy’, ‘Someone Like You…’, Spike Lee’s ‘She Hate Me’, and ‘Palindromes’.  She’s slowed down her output in the past half decade or so, but she’s also appeared in some big films to go along with the indie fare that fits her just as well.  The bigger ones include ‘Ocean’s Thirteen’ and ‘Brooklyn’s Finest’, while the smaller ones include ‘Trust the Man’, ‘Happy Tears’, and ‘Twelve’.  There’s also ‘Operation: Endgame’, which is only notable for putting Barkin in touch first with Sam Levinson.  This paid off real well this year with ‘Another Happy Day’, a film that opened just this past weekend and has her on the fringe of the Best Actress talk.

Will this finally be the year for Ellen Barkin?  Well, the performance is among the best of the year, and plenty of people have said as much, so it’s not just me…but it’s going to be a long shot.  The precursors will have to be very kind to her.  Could it happen?  Sure, but I wouldn’t bet on it.  What ‘Another Happy Day’ will do for her is get more of these roles for her, and that’s something to be very pleased about.

I think that Barkin is going to have an Oscar nomination on her resume one day, she just needs things to line up properly for her.  As you’ve just seen, oftentimes she gives good performances in less than noteworthy fare.  I may not have had much to say about a lot of the movies, but she’s never been anything less than good in them.  In the coming years, either working again with Levinson or someone else, I believe she’ll get a real crack at winning the damn thing too.  Going forward, lots of people are going to want to work with her even more than they already did.  Ellen Barkin is a talented and underrated actress that’s going to have her awards moment before all is said and done.  Will it be sooner or later?  I can’t say, but I’ll certainly be eagerly watching and waiting to cover it!

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