Absence of Malice (1981)

Nominated for 3 Academy Awards:

Best Actor: Paul Newman

Best Supporting Actress: Melinda Dillon

Best Original Screenplay

 

Absence of Malice is a film I didn’t get to see until now, and then it suddenly came to mind, and it felt good to dive into a film I know so little about. While I wouldn’t say it was great, it had its good moment, and is saved in the ending by an excellent scene with the main characters stuck in a room talking. That’s just great, elevated by a brief, but powerful performance from Wilford Brimley. He is so good I think he should’ve been nominated even with the limited screentime.

Paul is good, and he does most of the heavy lifting throughout the film. Sally Field is OK, but her character is not that well written and she ends up looking a bit silly by the end of the film. It’s an `80s drama, with a clear mission of criticizing the press. Not much to say about nominee Melinda Dillon, I think she overacted her part.

 

I give it: 7.5/10

IMDB LINK