Formative Performances: Holly Hunter in “The Piano”

[The following is a guest post from abovethetitle.]

In picking up on Lady T’s theme of performances without a great deal of spoken dialogue, I have chosen to highlight Holly Hunter in “The Piano.” In fact, Hunter’s character Ada McGrath has been a mute since age six and the audience only hears her internal narration. Hunter has a long history of playing female characters brimming with intelligence – who can forget “Broadcast News”? – but her portrayal of Ada showed us new depths to her talents and anchored one of the most popular arthouse hits of the ’90s, and a female-centric one at that. Hunter and her co-star Anna Paquin won Oscars for their performances and Jane Campion, who won Best Original Screenplay, became only the second woman nominated for Best Director. I encourage you to check out this gem if you haven’t already.