Monday, May 22, 2017

In Character: Lili Taylor

Lili Taylor is one of film’s best living character actors, a distinction she’s held since she began appearing in films in the late ‘80s. She helped make the ’90s American independent film movement so iconic. When that movement dried up, Taylor moved to TV, delivering some of the best work of her career. In fact, her recent stint on the second season of American Crime is right up there with her best work. I love that Taylor is still going so strong; she makes everything she’s in that much more interesting.

Five Essential Roles
Mystic Pizza (1988)
as Jojo
“It’s the ’80s - why would I marry an asshole?!”
The most humorous arc in Mystic Pizza is the relationship between Jojo and her kind but dim fiancé, Bill (Vincent D’Onofrio). Jojo and Bill are never on the same page. When the movie begins, Jojo passes out at the alter, unable to go through with her marriage to Bill. They try to get things back on track, but Jojo’s insecurity, matched with Bill’s poor sense of timing/humor, are destined to keep the couple apart.

Jojo was Taylor’s first major movie role, and I love how strong of an announcement it is. Jojo is a fierce woman who won’t take shit from anyone; a great foreshadow of the types of characters that would come to define Taylor.


Say Anything… (1989)
as Corey
If you’ve seen Say Anything, you know that Joe lies. Joe lies, Joe lies, Joe lies. “Joe lies” is a hilarious bit the film keeps circling back to, in which Taylor’s character, Corey, sings that her ex, Joe, is a lying scumbag. And while the Corey/Joe “romance” is amusing, my favorite moment of Taylor’s in the film is when she asks two of her girlfriends, “If you are Diane Court, would you honestly fall for Lloyd?” Here we have three women genuinely wondering if their friend, Lloyd (John Cusack), has a shot with Ms. Popular, Diane Court (Ione Skye). The simple, earnest reaction of Corey and her friends sets Say Anything on a course of pure romantic comedy joy. Corey is a small role for Taylor, but one that is an essential part of her filmography.

The Addiction (1995)
as Kathleen Conklin
The Addiction is a brazen, obscure hip-hop drama from controversial filmmaker, Abel Ferrara. It’s 82 minutes long, in black and white, and not beholden to any Hollywood convention. The film is about Kathleen, an idealistic NYU student, who is attacked one night and subsequently starts to turn into a vampire. But, this being a Ferrara flick, the story isn’t nearly as clear as it seems. The movie can be viewed as a metaphor for heroin addiction, as well as a philosophical study on sin. As Kathleen, Taylor embodies the rapid descent of emotional, physical and spiritual madness in a way I’ve never seen.

The Addiction contains some of Taylor and Ferrara’s best respective work. Finding movies like The Addiction, and discovering performances like Taylor’s within it, makes writing these In Character posts worth it.

Six Feet Under (2002-2005)
as Lisa
We first meet Lisa early in Season 2 of Six Feet Under, when Nate (Peter Krause) visits her in Seattle. A few episodes later, Lisa is in LA and is (surprise!) pregnant with Nate’s child. In Season 3 (where Taylor really shines), Nate and Lisa are happily married and caring for their baby. But with each passing episode, we gain insight into Lisa and Nate’s troubled marriage. The slow, sinking demise of their relationship makes for one of Six Feet Under’s most melancholic arcs, and Taylor is expert at playing such a woman in despair. I don’t want to reveal why Lisa leaves the show, but, much like Taylor herself, once her character is gone, you can’t stop thinking about her.

American Crime, Season 2 (2016)
as Anne Blaine
A great actor puts you in their character’s shoes. You feel for them. You empathize and understand. And when Taylor puts us in Anne Blaine’s shoes, we live in her horror. Just imagine. Imagine if your son told you he was sexually assaulted by another male student at a party. What would you do? Perhaps, like Anne, you’d spin into a controlled frenzy, reaching out to the school, the police, and finally the press. What would you do if you received help from none of them? The levels of panic, turmoil, confusion and frustration that Taylor brings to Anne helps make American Crime’s second season utterly compelling.

At the end of the season’s second episode, a therapists asks Anne, “How are you holding up?” And we realize, along with Anne herself, that this is the first time someone has asked her this question since the ordeal began. “I’m fine,” she manages to get out. “Well, I’m not fine, but I’m okay.” Pair such exacting dialogue with such a fine actress, and you’re bound to produce greatness.

The Best of the Best
I Shot Andy Warhol (1996)
as Valerie Solanas
Lili Taylor’s work in I Shot Andy Warhol is the kind of full-tilt performance I absolutely love. Valerie Solanas was a complicated woman. Manic depressive, paranoid schizophrenic, radical feminist, tortured genius. As depicted in Mary Harron’s I Shot Andy Warhol, Solanas had no off switch. She was constantly ranting and raving to whoever would listen (or whoever she thought was listening). Her madness drove her to nearly kill Andy Warhol, but her genius helped paved way for an intensely needed feminist movement in America.

There’s virtually no sign of Lili Taylor in this film. She is Valerie Solanas. She’s crass, dirty, and unimpressionable. Taylor is fully on in every scene of the film, and watching her is exhausting (a compliment). I cannot imagine how an actor sustains that level of manic energy through an entire film shoot. If you haven’t seen I Shot Andy Warhol (its director went on to make American Psycho), seek it out. It’s the kind of American ’90s indie gem that gives American ‘90s indie film such a grand reputation.

Other Notable Roles
in The Conjuring
Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
Dogfight (1991)
Short Cuts (1993)
Household Saints (1993)
Rudy (1993)
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994)
Ready to Wear (1994)
Four Rooms (1995)
Cosas que nunca te dije (1996)
Ransom (1996)
The Imposters (1998)
The Haunting (1999)
High Fidelity (2000)
Live from Baghdad (2002)
Casa de los babys (2003)
Factotum (2005)
The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)
Public Enemies (2009)
Blood Ties (2013)
The Conjuring (2013)
Hemlock Grove (2013-2014)

27 comments:

  1. She is so great! She has such an interesting face. I just like watching her. Six Feet Under is definitely the stand out in my mind, but I love her funny part in Say Anything too. I will need to catch I Shot Andy Warhol. That wasn't on my radar before this, but I am already sold based on that still alone.

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    1. I'm so glad you're a fan! She is a force in I Shot Andy Warhol. Full manic mode the entire time. I don't know if you're into YouTubing flicks, but I found it pretty easily on there. Definitely worth it.

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  2. Alex. Can you made the list about favorite Palme D'or, Golden Bear and Golden Lion winner....your list always refreshing and exciting

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    1. Thanks so much for saying that! You know, a few years ago, I was going to watch every Palme D'or winner and write a post about them, but many were hard to track down. Very big undertaking. It would be fun to write something about Cannes though. What a quirky festival it is. Thanks again for the comment!

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  3. She is great in I Shot Andy Warhol. Absolutely perfect in that film which is quite underrated as Jared Harris did a good Warhol (but we all know who played the best Warhol. That man wrote a song about him too).

    Lili Taylor is one of those ladies who is just awesome in anything she's in. She can do comedy and drama. "Joe lies..." That is a great song.

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    1. Bowie's Warhol was just so obviously above every one else's, and I say that with great respect to the other actors who have played him. Guy Pearce is one of my all time favorite actors, but his Warhol had nothing on Bowie's. So happy you like Taylor in that film.

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  4. Your post taught me that I have some movies to watch because I haven't seen as much of her as I thought I had. She has been excellent in everything I've seen, though. Most recently, I really loved her in The Conjuring. Looking forward to seeing more of her. Hopefully, she'll continue getting good roles.

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    1. Oh I understand, because she has been in so much. Cannot recommend The Addiction and I Shot Andy Warhol highly enough. And if you have time for (and can stomach) American Crime season 2, she's fantastic in that as well.

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  5. I haven't seen the majority of her movies and I definitely need to change that. I loved her in American Crime S2, even though I hated how the final episode wrapped up nothing. She was the MVP of that season.

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    1. You know, we're getting to a point where these ambiguous endings are becoming a huge problem. I get it for specific films. You've invested 2 hours and the director has a right to let you make up your mind about where the characters go from there. Some of my all-time favorite movies end on an ambiguous note. But entire TV seasons are different. Especially these one-off TV seasons, like American Crime. We invest nearly a dozen hours, and it just... ends. Feels lazy to me. Wrap it the F up.

      Rant done haha. Because noting all that, Taylor IS incredible in that show. I'm so happy you liked her work in it.

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  6. I'll always remember her best for Mystic Pizza (But holy crap! I'd forgotten Vincent D'Onofrio was in that!)Sometime I need to rewatch all those flicks I saw in the '80s.

    The Conjuring didn't rock my world, though I remember it as being a solid movie. I don't know whether it's because of my secular upbringing, but demon possession movies don't scare me. My husband, the fallen-away Catholic, can be terrified by The Exorcist any number of times, but the most disturbing part about it, for me, is how much they traumatized that poor little girl while making the film.

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    1. Poor Linda Blair never really recovered. It raises an interesting question: how much should someone sacrifice for their art? Or, in her case (because she was underage), how much should I child endure for art? It's a flawless, iconic performance, but at what cost?

      The Conjuring didn't rock me either. I was actually surprised that is wasn't scarier.

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    2. I don't know what Linda Blair's parents were thinking. No way would I have let my kid go through that, potentially iconic role or not. :-)

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    3. What's interesting is that her mom fully supported Linda throughout. Linda fought hard for the role, including showing up unannounced to William Friedkin's office to audition.

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  7. Great actress. Loved her on Six Feet Under. Really need to rewatch that show now. I haven't seen it since it aired. I also really want to watch American Crime. Sounds like a show i would enjoy.

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    1. I rewatched the whole thing a few years ago and I liked it so much more. I missed a lot watching it as a teen. American Crime is soooo intense. I can't believe it aired on network TV.

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  8. Hey, can you do one on Juno Temple?

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    1. Great idea. I love her. Now thinking about a favorite role....

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  9. She was also great in Doghouse(1991)

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    1. Ohh I haven't seen that. Going to have to check it out. Thanks!

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  10. I haven't seen lots of her work but damn she was fantastic in Six Feet Under.Everyone on that show was, truly. I loved that she kept coming back. That moment when she appeared to Brenda during her wedding talking to her that it's a punishment her baby is 'leaking out of her'. Damn.

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    1. Ohhhh that scene is so intense, one of my favorite in the show. Taylor was so good in that role. I felt so sad for her character.

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  11. I love Lili Taylor, she just has that extra something that she brings to her roles. Loved her in Mystic Pizza, that kooky charm and playfulness were lovely.

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    1. So glad you're a fan of her work. I agree, she always has an extra something that helps draw us in.

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  12. Oh Taylor is amazing. My favorite performance from her (and actually one of my favorite-performances ever) is the one from The Addiction. I also like her a lot on Six Feet Under. But The Addiction... that film left me speechless. I'm a big fan of vampire/gothic stories (I've watched almost anything from that genre) and I think that film has to be my favorite on the topic. The cast, the images... it's really powerful, scary, and it looks quite real. I felt like that's how I'd approach the topic if I'd do a film about it. It's actually my favorite Ferrara film too and definitely one of the films I've liked the most even though it's quite brutal so it's not one of those I'd rewatch often, but it's a unique gem.

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    1. I hadn't seen The Addiction before writing this post, but holy shit am I glad I did. What a wonder that film is. It is right up there with Ferrara's best, certainly. Who knew Taylor and Ferrara would make such a great team. Wish they worked together more, actually.

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