First off I have to admit that The Sopranos is at best my third favorite show on HBO, after The Wire and Deadwood. The show's Jersey hoods aren't as original as the writers think they are, the supporting actors are bland, and there's way too much time spent seeking to justify morally dubious behavior.
Still, you and James Gandolfini deserve all the acclaim and Emmys you've received.
Not to mention your independent film resume. I stumbled on you way back in
Hal Hartley's Trust and was glad to see you get a meaty role in John Sayles' Sunshine State . Your TV work on Oz and Homicide didn't go unnoticed either.
I bring all this up because I just saw your latest film The Quiet today. You've probably blocked it out, but you play a pill-popping mother whose teenage daughter (Elisha Cuthbert) is being molested by your husband (Martin Donovan, your old Hal Hartley sidekick).
The arrival of an adopted deaf girl (Camilla Belle) shakes up this unpleasant dynamic. But Edie, your character spends almost the entire film in a drug induced haze. You're oblivious to what's going on until the girls finally rise up against Dad.
In an early scene we find you passed out in the still-being-decorated living room, as artfully arranged as an antique chair. Later, you strip in front of your husband and insist he tell you if you're fat (a question Cuthbert's character also asks repeatedly). When he won't tell you, you (still topless) announce you're going to sleep on the floor and curl up at the foot of the bed.
I'm going into such detail about a film that definitely does not deserve it to ask, what's up? Edie, your fans want you to keep doing top-drawer TV (OK, you'll have to find a new show) and strong work in films. It can't be the money, since I know you didn't get paid very much for this piece of garbage.
What's really going, I imagine, is that you're not getting offered roles that match up with your talent. The observation that actresses of a certain age can't get good work (Susan Sarandon on Rescue Me?) isn't new. But if The Quiet is the only alternative, somebody needs to hold a telethon.
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