Lange's Best Actress win for this movie has not aged well for many of the movie reviewers and Oscar pundits I read and listen to regularly. It doesn't help that 1994 is arguably one of the worst years for actresses in recent history. That being said, I honestly find Lange pretty mesmerizing and hypnotically watchable here - she IS the movie. No one plays borderline mentally unstable and carnally sexual characters better than Lange, and if nothing else, this film touches on all her strengths as an actress. The film surrounding her is very good if not great, but it frankly dives whenever Lange is offscreen. Jones is always a reliable actor, but he feels a little on automatic pilot here. There are some nice supporting turns, including Carrie Snodgress as Boothe's wife, but Hurricane Jessica pretty much blows through this movie leaving no stone unturned. And I personally have no problem with her Best Actress victory. Interestingly, this film was made around four years before its release but remained on the shelf indefinitely due to financial problems with its studio. So, in many ways, it's a miracle that this film saw the light of day let alone became an Oscar winner.
