Meryl Streep: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

3. Joanna Kramer €“ Kramer Vs Kramer (1979)

Adaptation is one of the lighter roles Streep has found acclaim for in recent years, winning another Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. Where she has done the majority of her best work, though, has been in the straighter, more emotionally draining dramatic performances of the sort of The Hours €“ and, perhaps most famously, Kramer Vs Kramer. Robert Benton's film received five Academy Awards in 1980 in the categories of Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actress. Kramer Vs Kramer is the film that put both Streep and co-star Dustin Hoffman on the map as two of he biggest stars of the time, even though the former had originally been cast in a bit part. She didn't give Benton a second chance to regret moving her up to a starring role, however, with Streep doing a sterling job in a mostly thankless task as a woman who demands a divorce from her workaholic husband, causing rifts between their children, friends and extended family. Absolutely fantastic, humanistic and engaging.