Best Lead Actress, Glenda Jackson (1973) The Academy has a long and stubborn history of ignoring great comedic portrayals in favor of more serious fare. This is one instance where they probably should have followed their instincts and had Glenda Jackson stay in her seat, letting Barbara Streisand take the award for her performance in The Way We Were. A Touch of Class is just so sticky sweet in its execution of a middle-aged love affair that tries way too hard to be sophisticated. In the end, this turns out to be a bunch of lightweight fluff devoid of big laughs or any real excitement. Basically, it's the type of boring schmaltz that the Academy is always inclined to reward. I think they eventually realized that Ellen Burstyn (the mom from The Exorcist) would have been a better choice and ended up giving her this award the very next year.
