When the history books are cracked open pertaining to cinema there are going to be a lot of names that spring forth as some of the best, but one thing is certain among all others. Kathy Bates will stand out along with several individuals for one reason only: she’s just that good at what she does. These days you’re as likely to see her on TV as you might in films, but that hasn’t dulled her edge any since she’s just as good no matter where you put her, adding her unique talents to whatever project she signs up for, such as American Horror Story. But in the movies she laid down some seriously credible roles that helped to establish her as the kind of actress that could come and go as she pleases and be welcomed no matter where or when she decides to show up. Anytime she does pop up it’s something to be grateful for since you know you’re going to get one heck of a good show.
Here are some of the best movies from her career.
5. Fried Green Tomatoes
Evelyn is the type of woman that gets walked on and doesn’t say much because she lacks the kind of confidence in herself that would allow such a thing, but when she meets Ninny she at least finds someone to talk to and understand what she’s going through. The best part about Ninny however is that she not only talks to Evelyn, but she tells her a story about a remarkable young woman that begins to change Evelyn’s outlook on the world and shows her what it means to stand up and let people know that she’s there and that she’s an actual person, not just a doormat to be walked on all the time.
4. The Waterboy
Anyone ever had a mom this crazy? The answer could be yes or no but Mama in this movie is more afraid of losing her precious son than anything so it comes down to lying to him and telling him what she wants him to hear in order to guilt him into staying as close as possible. Eventually though Mama comes to realize just what Bobby has come to mean to an entire community and what it would mean if she held him back. As nutty and borderline psychotic as she starts out in this movie she does eventually come around to admit that she was wrong and supports her son as he gets ready for the biggest game of his life.
3. Titanic
Molly Brown kind of fades into the background in this movie since it was more about Jack and Rose after all, but sh is a pleasant breath of fresh air among the rich, upper class element that seems rather stodgy and overly formal in their high-toned ways. Molly is just about as rich as anyone on the ship but since she’s from ‘new money’ she isn’t treated with as much respect or dignity. It’s kind of odd how that works isn’t it? You can be just as rich as an old, aristocratic family and yet be treated like a second-class citizen simply because you don’t bend to their ways or have the ‘cultured’ manners that they do. Ah well.
2. Dolores Claiborne
Now we’re getting into the truly masterful roles that Kathy has laid down, as Dolores is one of those women that will work her fingers to the bone and never once complain no matter how hard the work gets. She did everything to keep her family secure and the only thing she ever got for it was misery and the abuse heaped upon her by an uncaring and unfeeling husband. The manner in which she got her revenge was justified to many, but amazingly some people would agree that she needed to be thrown in jail or otherwise punished for what she did. It’s kind of a thorny issue, but some people cross the line later on when they find out what her husband really did.
1. Misery
You’ve got to wonder if celebrities, even authors, would worry about this kind of thing later on down the line when they really get famous. Some people take stories WAY too literally and get enmeshed within the fantasy to such a degree that they can’t parse out reality from fiction any longer. When you break down about the death of a fictional character you might need to disengage for a while. But for Annie, the loss of her favorite character was just too much to bear and she decided to force her favorite writer, and captive, to do something that few writers would ever want to consider, rewriting the story to resurrect a character that was dead and gone.
Any project that Kathy appears in gains just a little more veracity for her presence, ’nuff said.
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