20 Incredible Film Performances That Didn't Get The Credit They Deserved
12. Zoe Saldana - Avatar (2009)
James Cameron has a penchant for writing strong female characters in his scripts. The two that obviously come to mind are Linda Hamilton in Terminator 2 and Jamie Lee Curtis in True Lies, but despite all of the technical plaudits given to the record-breaking Avatar, the real heart of the movie is provided by Zoe Saldana's emotional portrayal of Neytiri. If the Academy were more willing to embrace motion capture technology, then Saldana would have been a shoo-in for a Best Supporting Actress nomination. Far and away the best performance in the movie, the actress's body language and facial expressions do more to convey the personality and feelings of her character than any amount of dialogue ever could. From her initial distrust of Sam Worthington's Jake Sully, she begins to respect him for his bravery while simultaneously admonishing his naivety, and she outshines the numerous cliched plot points. Not an easy performance to give when wearing a Lycra bodysuit and a face-full of dots.
I don't do social media, so like or follow me in person but please maintain a safe distance or the authorities will be notified. Don't snap me though, I'll probably break. I was once labelled a misogynist on this very site in a twenty paragraph-long rant for daring to speak ill of the Twilight franchise. I stand by what I said, it's crap.
