Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Actress 1997

The Contenders:

Julie Christie: Afterglow
Helen Hunt: As Good as it Gets (winner)
Judi Dench: Mrs. Brown
Kate Winslet: Titanic
Helena Bonham Carter: The Wings of the Dove

Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Adapted Screenplay 1997

The Contenders:

Donnie Brasco
L.A. Confidential (winner)
The Sweet Hereafter
Wag the Dog
The Wings of the Dove

An Accounting Ledger for a Heart

Film: The Wings of the Dove
Format: Streaming video from NetFlix on The Nook.

When I see a movie like The Wings of the Dove, I remember that there was a time when Helena Bonham Carter was the darling of Merchant/Ivory. There was a time when she seemed to be central in just about every costume-y movie there ever was. And then I realize two things. First, The Wings of the Dove is not a Merchant/Ivory film. Second, Helena Bonham Carter almost always seems to be in costume-y things regardless of who is directing or producing.

Nonetheless, The Wings of the Dove takes place at the end of the Edwardian period. Young Kate Croy (Helena Bonham Carter) lives at the behest of her stern and judgmental aunt Maude (Charlotte Rampling). Kate’s father (Michael Gambon) is an opium addict, something that assisted Kate’s mother into an early grave. Maude has dedicated herself to preventing such a fate for her niece. Instead, she devotes herself to correcting Kate’s behavior and getting her introduced into good society.