Welcome stargazers to the second installment of my series Who's That Lady?. Taking a page out of the Blog Cabins playbook, I have given an estrogen infusion to the category of actors with Familiar Faces - Unknown Names. You know who I'm talking about; those women who inspire you to exclaim, "Hey, that's the chick from that other show/movie/video that we watched way back when." If you check out this weekend's limited release Henry Poole Is Here you may find yourself saying...
Who's That Lady?
Beth Grant
Beth Grant
A lady of Southern sophistication, Beth Grant was born in Gadsden, Alabama and is a graduate of East Carolina University (North Cakalack Represent!). According to her IMDB page, she is credited with a staggering 123 movies, TV series and other projects sometimes in the role of 'Mother' or 'Woman'. With so many gigs, it's hard to narrow down her three best.
3 Unforgettable Roles
Speed - If I were embroiled in a hostage situation with Keanu Reeves in control and Sandra Bullock driving the bus, I'd probably try to jump to safety given the first opportunity. As Helen, Beth's frazzled nerves and grating screams make you really feel the grave threat the passengers face.
TV: Angel - In the episode Rm w/a Vu, Cordy discovers that her dream apartment is haunted by a nightmarish ghost. The disturbing part is that the sinister spectre is the maniacal mother Maude Pearson. Mrs. Grant coats Maude with her trademark sickly sweet sincerity in a role that will have you inspecting every wall in your home.
Donnie Darko - As parent and teacher Kitty Farmer, Beth shines. I can't explain how awesomely she does this anal retentive role. Let me say she perfectly delivers lines like "If you feel the need to vomit up there, just swallow it" and "Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion!"
Honorable Mentions: Mrs. Grant was the uppity pageant judge in Little Miss Sunshine. Chucky beat her to death with a yardstick in Child's Play 2. She mistook helium-inflated sex dolls for the Rapture in the HBO series Six Feet Under.
Saw it, but even I don't remember her in it!
With over a hundred roles in her career I am sure more than one of these performances escaped my attention. Here are a few films I'd check out a second time just to savor her contribution.
Films: Flatliners, A Time to Kill, Lawn Dogs, Rock Star, Flags of Our Fathers, TV: Malcom in the Middle, Love Field
Strict schoolmarm, irritating mother or mother-in-law, holier-than-thou neighbor are all roles Beth Grant has been called upon time and again to play. The reason she has so many credits is because she consistently hits the mark. In addition to her film and television credits, she has appeared in over thirty plays. To find out more about Beth Grant's career and accolades, be sure to check out her IMDB and Wikipedia pages.
I'm not sure if I'll be chomping at the bit to check out Henry Poole Is Here anytime soon. I am sure that when I do get around to watching it, I will enjoy Beth's role immensely.
She'd be eligible for this based solely on appearing in Donnie Darko. Great choice.
ReplyDeleteThough...I saw Henry Poole at a test screening some months back and barely recall her being in it. She must have been another church lady, and her role wasn't that big, so hmm.
She sparked my original inspiration for this feature. Plus she has that NC connection so I wanted to eventually do some sort of post about her.
ReplyDeleteShame she didn't have a more recognizable role in Henry Poole. Then again, as much as she works a brief appearance may be all she had time for.