JUDY

I'm trying to catch up with the movies that have won awards and been nominated for Oscars in various categories. The latest I watched is JUDY. I can see why Renee Zellweger is getting critical acclaim and awards attention. She seems to be in every scene of the film and it's hers to win or lose. She commits to the role and pulls off an approximation of Judy Garland's look and mannerisms toward the end of her life. And Zellwegr does a decent job of singing.

But she misses the charismatic neediness of Garland I think, that red hot gleam of please love me in Judy's eyes (Zellweger instead does a lot of squinting). She comes close in one or two phrases in her singing to Garland's unique combination of rock-solid mature tone with a child's vulnerability. I would have preferred Garland's recorded voice with Zellweger lip synching, but maybe that's just me.

The story has some fictional aspects, one of which actually works: a made-up older male gay couple, used to represent Garland's connection to her many fans among gay men at the time. The scenes with them are the most moving and engaging in the film, again, for me.

I can see Zellweger winning the Oscar for taking on such a challenging role in a movie that the actress basically carries from start to finish, at times captivatingly, if that's a word. I found it worth watching despite its flaws.