Monday, October 14, 2013

In Praise of Julianne Moore in 'Safe'


Backstage is currently doing a regular feature called Standing Ovation, in which different writers, journalists and other experts weigh in with their pick for the greatest performance of all time. When I was asked to contribute, my immediate thought was Julianne Moore in Safe. I decided to wait a week to see if I could come up with a stronger choice. As I suspected, I didn't. I've loved this movie -- and her performance -- since I saw it in 1995. I was happy to have an excuse to revisit Safe, which has lost none of its shock, timeliness or brilliance. Here's my essay on why Moore is so very good in the film.