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At nearly 33 years old (eight days and counting) and with five Academy Award nominations under her belt, Kate Winslet may just be the greatest actress of her generation. Her work has not yet revealed any limitations. Like Meryl Streep, she offers an authenticity in her work, even the lesser films. She seems incapable of uttering a false line. She defines authenticity at every turn.
Her work in “Titanic” transcended the material, a shoddy screenplay that saw her running about the doomed boat making decisions about what to do next, and I’ll be damned if Winslet did not make it work. In the hands of a lesser actress, the performance, and perhaps the role, would have come across as silly, but she made a character out of Rose we dared to care about.
There was heat between Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio on the screen. We believed the love, we believed the devotion, and she did this at a very young age. Earlier still she had gone toe-to-toe with Emma Thomson and Alan Rickman in “Sense & Sensibility,” earning an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actress. Further back, you’ll witness chilling work in Peter Jackson’s “Heavenly Creatures” and one sees a major actress developing before our very eyes.
Equally at home in large Hollywood films like or indie productions, such as the under-appreciated “Holy Smoke,” Winslet consistently brings great work to the screen. Perhaps her finest performance to date came in the wonderful love story “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” in which she inhabited a restless spirit Jim Carrey falls hard for. He tries to remove her vibrance from his memory, but he finds, as does the audience, that she is worth keeping there, warts and all.
I thought she Winslet riveting in “Little Children,” though saddled with an on-screen partner that prevented any true chemistry in the severely limited Patrick Wilson. While I believed in her failed marriage, I did not believe the affair at all. But Jackie Earle Haley stole the film from the entire cast and, oddly enough, the two of them were seen on the screen the very same year in the dreadfully received “All the King’s Men.” Winslet was the lone bright spot.
This year we have “Revolutionary Road,” which looks terrific from the materials we’ve been allowed. The performance could land Winslet yet another nomination for Best Actress, and maybe the award itself — finally. The trailer looks wonderful, and both Winslet and DiCaprio (united again) are rumored to be at the top of their game in the picture. Winslet may even have a double-dip opportunity if “The Reader” finds its way to screens this year.
Is there anything she cannot do? I see in her the same innate genius I see in Meryl Streep, that ability to tackle any role with diverse precision.
Is there anyone in her age group even close? Tell us in the comments below!
47 responses so far
1 9-28-2008 at 4:11 pm
Bryan said...
Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett.
2 9-28-2008 at 4:13 pm
Jon said...
I’m actually not the biggest Winslet fan but she deserves nom’s for Heavenly Creatures and Quills. So yeah, she is incredible for only being 33.
3 9-28-2008 at 4:26 pm
Tim said...
There’s Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett and then there’s everyone else.
4 9-28-2008 at 4:32 pm
Guy Lodge said...
Winslet is a dependably intelligent and accomplished actress, for sure, but for my money, she’s only given one truly great performance so far — “Eternal Sunshine,” obviously. She’s much better playing against type — I find her rather wan in her ‘English rose’ roles. Clearly, she’s getting more interesting with age.
As for ‘greatest of her generation,’ I’m afraid I don’t think she’s even close. For me, Samantha Morton (who is two years younger) has more complex gifts and makes more interesting choices. (Forget her two Oscar-nominated roles — fine as they are — and check out “Morvern Callar,” “Under the Skin,” “Jesus’ Son,” “Mister Lonely” … insane talent.)
And Cate Blanchett may be a bit older, but for me, she takes the “best actress of THIS generation” title comfortably. Make that “best actor.”
5 9-28-2008 at 5:06 pm
John K said...
Can’t argue too much with Kate the Great – or Cate the Great, for that matter – but Naomi Watts deserves at least an honorable mention.
I’m assuming that Joan Allen is disqualified due to her age?
6 9-28-2008 at 5:34 pm
Aaron said...
I agree. Hands down Kate Winslet is THE actress of this generation—along with Cate Blanchett, who matches her every step.
I also agree with John K about Naomi Watts—I think she’s fantastic and is very underappreciated. She’s definitely one of Hollywood’s most exciting actresses–and one that I’ll see ANY movie she’s in, no matter what.
I feel that Charlize Theron is a very gifted actress, although I don’t think she’s given the performances to compare with Cate and Kate though. She’s very talented and her movie choices are always interesting (even if some fall short…Head in the Clouds? uh….not good)
7 9-28-2008 at 6:53 pm
Patrick said...
Catherine Keener steals almost everything she appears in.
8 9-28-2008 at 7:02 pm
Damian said...
Cate Blanchett and Toni Colette are so much better than Kate.
9 9-28-2008 at 7:22 pm
Casey said...
Kate Winslet kicks Cate Blanchett ass any day of the week from where im standing. the only time she didnt impress the hell out of me was in fact Titanic… then again i hate almost everything about that movie. Garber held his own. I lke Blanchett very much but ill take winslet any day
10 9-28-2008 at 7:24 pm
Casey said...
i think nicole kidman is worth mentioning in this conversation by the way
11 9-28-2008 at 7:29 pm
David said...
Ironically, I feel Winslet’s best work are from non-Oscar nominated roles: Jane Campion’s”Holy Smoke!”, Peter Jackson’s “Heavenly Creatures”, Michael Winterbottom’s “Jude”, and John Tuturro’s “Romance & Cigarettes”.
Winslet has this authenticity and natural transformation she brings into her roles only certain actors have. Plus she’s mastered almost every accent (Australian, American, Northern English, period American).
Out of her 5 nominations, “Eternal Sunshine” is definitely her most accomplished material.
Blanchett, while a great chameleon, I find her personas and screen presence as too icy to have the appeal of a Meryl Streep.
12 9-28-2008 at 8:24 pm
kate said...
If judging from her number of oscar noms, then I guess Winslet could be called the greatest actress of her generation. Judging by talent, though? No way IMO. Samantha Morton, Vera Farmiga, Toni Colette and Maggie Gyllenhaal are all much better IMO.
13 9-28-2008 at 8:44 pm
R.J. said...
I’m a Nicole Kidman fan myself. Though I would certainly include Kate Winslet and Cate Blanchett on the list.
14 9-28-2008 at 9:18 pm
The Z said...
I just want to rub Kate Winslet all over me. She’s spectacular.
15 9-28-2008 at 9:56 pm
Daniel said...
Loved her work in Little Children, though her best performance was easily in Eternal Sunshine
16 9-28-2008 at 10:05 pm
Benjamin said...
I completely agree with your assessment of Kate. She’s the kind of actress that just draws me in and makes me wholeheartedly believe her character. Eternal sunshine is just spectacular.
Blanchett is talented, but she doesn’t have the same enrapturing quality as Kate, at least for me.
Whoever mentioned Keener, yes she’s likable on screen, but she always seems to be playing the same character.
17 9-28-2008 at 10:47 pm
douglas.racso said...
i think it is still nicole kidman for me and winslet is a very close second. Kidman challenges herself beyond expectation.
18 9-28-2008 at 10:54 pm
Highwayroller said...
Nicole Kidman, period.
19 9-28-2008 at 11:37 pm
Jonathan Spuij said...
Kate and Cate.
20 9-28-2008 at 11:54 pm
Dan said...
Kate, Cate, Nicole, and Naomi.
21 9-29-2008 at 12:48 am
Beau McCoy said...
I very much like Cate, but I’ve yet to find the role that’s done her in for me. Generally, there’s always one (’Orlando’ for Tilda Swinton, ‘Before Sunset’ for Julie Delpy, any number of them for Nicole Kidman) that allows me to fall in love with the actress in question.
I do believe though, that Winslet is the most talented actress of her generation. There are seven actresses whose work I will watch, even if the project they appear in gets universally ravaged.
They are:
Swinton (a strength and confidence that is absolutely spellbinding)
Delpy (whose acting is the epitome of effortless naturalism)
Kidman (one of the most unique actors I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching)
Page (the most talented actor of her own gen)
Streep (naturally)
Liv Ullmann (though she hasn’t appeared in anything for a dog’s age, I still hold out hope for that one last great work)
and, of course,
Winslet.
I still stand by the fact that her work as Clementine is one of the greatest performances in the history of the cinema. No two ways about it.
22 9-29-2008 at 4:54 am
Mimi Rogers said...
I think Winona Ryder, if not for her shop lifting episode, would make the greatest actress of her generation. 2 Oscar nominations before age 24 (The Age of Innocence and Little Women) and acclaimed performances (Girl, Interrupted, Mermaids, etc). She would have been in the same league as Naomi Watts. I think another great actress that is under-appreciated is Juliette Binoche, although she won an Oscar for English Patient.
23 9-29-2008 at 5:21 am
John Foote said...
Understand I never judge my Oscar nods, but as this an Oscar site, I do mention them for the obvious reasons. Her talent, her extraordinary talent is what utterly holds me in awe. Only Streep and Fonda have done this for me before (for women).
24 9-29-2008 at 7:12 am
Alfredo said...
Oh I just can’t make up my mind between Kate and Cate! I love them both equally. If this was high school, Kate would totally be the pretty popular girl that is sweet to everyone she comes across making us think we have a chance with her but we don’t. Cate, well I see Cate as being the Regina George of the school. You know the hot popular cheerleader that doesn’t know you exist and treats everyone like shit but you can’t help but be infatuated with her…yea that would be Cate in this fictional high school scenario.
25 9-29-2008 at 9:12 am
Xavi Rodriguez said...
My top ten (With not particular order):
1. Kate Winslet – Easily the Best Actress of her generation, unleast for me…
2. Cate Blanchett – Close in second place
3. Naomi Watts – Underappreciated actress and I’m sorry, beside I like Kidman, I think Watts is better actress
4. Toni Collette – “You’re so bad, Muriel!”
5. Juliette Binoche – Three words: Three Colors: Blue
6. Samantha Morton – It’s so bad that she was nominated for her lesser performances…
7. Marion Cotillard – I love her since Big Fish and A very Long Engagement
8. Maggie Gyllenhaal – Better actress instead her brother…
9. Tilda Swinton – She’s a chamaleon
10. Charlize Theron – Bad choices but she’s competent actress
Interesting that, with Gyllenhaal exception, all of those actresses are foreigners
26 9-29-2008 at 9:20 am
mike said...
Cate Blanchett is tops on my list…
Winslet is very good, but I feel Cate really gets into her roles a little more…
27 9-29-2008 at 9:29 am
Scott said...
I whole-heartedly agree – easily the greatest living young actress and the most undeservedly unOscared. I did some heavy-hearted analysis of her amazingness here which you might find worth a look: http://scott2bc.blogspot.com/2007/02/swank-2-winslet-0.html
28 9-29-2008 at 9:32 am
Patrick said...
I agree wholeheartedly. She is my favourite actress of all time. I fell in love with her as a young teenager and the love affair has continued as she’s continually tackled interesting and challenging roles.
In my mind her best performances are in ‘Holy Smoke!’ and ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’, both utterly fearless and compelling. I agree with Guy, she’s best when breaking out of the mould.
I anticipate both ‘The Reader’ and ‘Revolutionary Road’ with high excitement and hope she makes it in for at least one of them.
29 9-29-2008 at 10:25 am
McGuff said...
Is Maggie Gyllenhaal really a name that people think of here? Really? I know Mr. Tapley liked “Stranger Than Fiction”, but I thought he was the only one. And if there’s a general consensus that Katie Holmes was better in a role than you — though the scripts put the role in two different lights — you don’t belong in this discussion.
I’m with everyone else, that it’s Kate and Cate, and I love the Naomi Watts love. I still think “The Painted Veil” was one of the most underrated, ignored films of the decade. Naomi was fantastic in it.
30 9-29-2008 at 11:18 am
Guy Lodge said...
“Stranger Than Fiction” is hardly the film Gyllenhaal’s reputation is built upon, McGuff. I wouldn’t call her one of the greats just yet, but she’s superb in “SherryBaby” and “Secretary.”
Mimi: I agree that Juliette Binoche is a truly great actress (though she’s not exactly of Winslet’s generation) — but here in Europe, she’s anything but underrated. There’s just been an entire retrospective of her work at the National Film Theatre in London, and the French (quite rightly) revere her like none of her contemporaries.
31 9-29-2008 at 11:22 am
Chad said...
Fuck Cate Blanchett. I don’t think there’s a single working actress in this age bracket with real consistency aside from Samantha Morton. But I would argue that Winslet, Natalie Portman, Anna Faris and Zooey Deschanel have enormous potential that’s often wasted. Emma Thompson is the queen though if she’s not too old for “this generation”.
32 9-29-2008 at 2:23 pm
McGuff said...
Guy, that’s a fair point, and for the sake of full disclosure, I haven’t seen ‘SherryBaby’ or ‘Secretary’. And I have liked her before, I was just giving an example of some recent work where I wasn’t a fan. Basically, I think she’s a fine actress that, frankly, isn’t in the league of Winslet, Blanchett, Watts, Binoche, etc. Just the one name being consistently mentioned that I can’t get on board with.
33 9-29-2008 at 2:40 pm
Guy Lodge said...
Both films are worth checking out, McGuff — had the 2006 Best Actress Oscar been mine to give, she would’ve taken it easily for “SherryBaby.” That she didn’t even manage a nomination (when Meryl Streep did) is shameful.
34 9-29-2008 at 3:08 pm
Patrick W. said...
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Maggie Gyllenhaal has a scary philtrum.
35 9-29-2008 at 3:20 pm
AdamL said...
Thought Patrick Wilson was very good in Little Children and even better in Hard Candy. Not limited at all.
36 9-29-2008 at 4:33 pm
John Foote said...
Maggie Gyllenhall was incredible in “Stranger Than Fiction” , supporting actress worthy, and she should have been nominated for best actress for “Sherrybaby”…frakin’ amazing — getting better all the time.
37 9-29-2008 at 9:48 pm
Zan said...
Little late on this, but I’ve always preferred the emotional range of Naomi Watts to Winslet.
Emily Mortimer is possibly my next favorite actress.
38 9-29-2008 at 11:50 pm
pieterk said...
Kate Winslet is awesome! Cannot wait for more releases. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind sealed the deal. Brilliant performance. Another actress I reckon has great potential and who I am waiting to see making a comeback is Julianne Moore.
BUT one of the greatest performances by a female has not won an oscar and it was Diane Lane in Unfaithful.
39 9-30-2008 at 11:50 pm
Marvin said...
Blanchett for me.
But Kate is a great actress herself. I loved her Clementine performance even if I didn’t like the movie all that much. She was great in Titanic, too. I know a lot of people tend to pick on that movie but she was freaking Rose DeWitt Bukater!
40 10-01-2008 at 7:33 am
JAB said...
i don’t know the full constraints of this “generation” but…
1. Kate Winslet
2. Cate Blanchett
3. Reese Witherspoon
4. Natalie Portman
5. Laura Linney
6. Nicole Kidman
7. Tilda Swinton
8. Maggie Gyllenhaal
9. Catherine Keener
10. Marion Cotillard
honorable mention: Rachel McAdams
41 10-01-2008 at 10:13 am
Guy Lodge said...
Glad to see someone mentioning Reese Witherspoon — she just has it. The obvious films to cite are “Walk the Line” and “Election,” but anyone who can carry “Legally Blonde” is pretty damn incredible.
Hope she gets back on track soon after some badly mismatched projects.
42 10-16-2008 at 11:59 pm
McGuff said...
Just wanted to say that per the suggestions in this thread, I just watched “sherrybaby.” Wow. What a performance by Gyllenhaal. Let me take back the things I said negatively about her. That 2006 Oscar 5 for leading ladies was seriously muddled, because it misses my two favorite performances of the year: Gyllenhaal (SherryBaby) and Naomi Watts (The Painted Veil). I could have done without Streep and Dench.
If that had happened, the 2006 Oscar 5 would have been the who’s who of the above list: Winslet, Watts, Gyllenhaal, Penelope Cruz … well, and Helen Mirren.
Thanks for the suggestion.
43 11-15-2008 at 1:00 pm
Diego said...
Angelinaaaaaaaa! I love you! jajaja
44 1-28-2009 at 11:36 pm
Fincher said...
Cate Blanchett all the way for me
My fav Winslet performance still is Heavenly Creatures. She is also really in good in Hamlet. I respect Winslet, but common she needs to take different roles than just playing depressed American women.
Naomi Watts should have been nominated for her great role in King Kong.
Samantha Morton is too good to ignore but she gets ignore by the big guys. It seems that the money people dont find her attractive enough or the lack of starpoweris an issue. I dunno, but I do know she is incredible talentet
45 4-01-2009 at 10:48 pm
Tara said...
Cate Blanchett all the way for me!
I like Winslet but I think Blanchett has the perfect balance between emotional depth and skill. She can be powerful and strong one minute but fragile as glass the next. I feel Winslet relies on the same skill in every role whereas Blanchett completely morphs in body, mind & soul from one character to the next, every performance ever so unique and interesting. They are both fine actors but I don’t think Winslet is nearly as phenomenal as Blanchett. She is the only other actress I can think of to even be considered in the same league as Meryl Streep. Winslet has a long way to go before she proves she can hold her own with those two powerhouses.
46 11-21-2009 at 12:02 am
terrence said...
It’s Cate Blanchett for me. I just don’t think Winslet is all that impressive. She’s good but doesn’t establish herself as the forerunner in a pack of strong actresses. I mean, what does she do that’s so fabulous and distinguishable? Play characters emotionally? wow, that describes the majority of actresses working in film today. She doesn’t give anything I haven’t seen from a million others. Cate is evolving acting and really morphs entirely into her roles. She doesn’t rely on the same skills every film as much as Winslet, she experiments with different styles and characters to make it much more interesting and engaging for an audience so she’s giving you something you haven’t seen before, love it or hate it. THAT is what “the best actress of her generation” is to me–someone who can be innovative, engaging, and dynamic onscreen and applies their own unique hutspah and aplomb which Blanchett does so magnificently. So, really, there’s no competition and absolutely no question that Cate Blanchett has firmly established herself as THE premiere actress of her generation.