Of course, I am anxiously awaiting "Ricki And The Flash," starring MERYL, and her daughter, Mamie Gummer. What I must apologize for is confusing those Gummer Girls!!!!!! How does MERYL keep track? Well, she IS brilliant, and they ARE her children, so I guess she does not have too hard a time.
I knew Mamie had been married to that pig, Benjamin Walker. But I thought she was the one who had played "Lizard Girl" on "American Horror Story--Freak Show." Actually, that was another Gummer--Mamie's sister, Grace.
Neither is on the fast track their mother is, but Mamie has cranked out some credits of her own, from "The Good Wife," to "The Big C," and movies like "Cake" and "Echo Park."
She doesn't need this gig, I think she wanted to work with her mother. I mean, who wouldn't.
Grace is the one who needs to get it together. But don't give up on her yet!
It has to be tough being a child of MERYL. But Mamie is the oldest, and that must be tough for the other kids!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But all God's chillun' got wings, girls, and so does MERYL"S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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ReplyDeleteI prefer Grace to Mamie, by a w-i-d-e margin. The fact that Mamie is Meryl's co-star in "Rickie" instead of Grace, combined with the awful "Lifetime Movie Of The Week" trailers (and screenplay by the dismal Diablo Cody), have really put a bad taste in my mouth for this new film.
ReplyDeleteIt can be hard to remember which daughter is Grace and which daughter is Mamie. Neither is the least bit attractive- they're just dishwater dull in appearance. They look exactly like what they are: boring inbred-wasp Connecticut debutantes. Both lost the genetic lottery, inheriting the worst facial features of Mommy and Daddy. While Meryl transcends her ordinary appearance with sheer force of personality, her daughters are additionally burdened by a strong overlay of their father's oddball features (similar to how Godforsaken Melissa Rivers is the spitting image of her hideous father, despite a boatload of cosmetic surgery). But over time, the Gummer Girls have developed distinctly different personalities and career approaches.
Mamie left the gate first, chomping at the bit to make herself a press pariah by daring to think she could follow in her mother's legendary footsteps. This made about as much sense as if Barbra Streisand had a daughter, and that daughter thought anyone would take her seriously as a singer in her own right. Mamie has chosen one uninspiring tedious project after another, in the vain hope of aping her mother's early career path. What the poor girl doesn't realize is Mama Meryl simply lucked out: she had the right talent at the right place at the right time to ride her particular wave. That happens to "plain" actresses maybe twice a century, before Meryl there was arguably only Bette Davis. Mamie Gummer ain't gonna be the third of that line, dream as she might.
Grace was smart enough to stand back, and learn from her sister's flailing around like a cat in a bathtub. Grace evinces a much greater sense of humor about her career than Mamie, and it shows in her performances (which are much more engaging, whether in comedy or melodrama). Grace wisely dismissed the idea of becoming a major film actress, instead leaping enthusiastically into television where she's had a good run of amusing parts. While not a household name, the industry seems to like working with her: she gets cast again and again. Last year she had a ball with the thankless "Lizard Girl" on AHS while also co-starring in the Halle Berry "Extant" trainwreck. This year she deftly kept up with the desperate revamp of "Extant" when she was rewritten from heroine to primary villain literally overnight. Grace tunes her performance vibe in such a way that one quickly forgets the Meryl connection, and sees her as her living breathing person.
But poor pan-faced Mamie: ugh. No matter what she does, all one sees is a pale mimicry of her mother. Takes herself way too seriously, and as the years quickly pass she's looking much more like Don than Meryl, which just induces a confused headache in the viewer (what is she? Meryl's daughter or a third rate drag impersonation? it gets harder and harder to know what to make of her). Her personality in "Rickie And The Flash" is probably a lot closer to reality than anyone thinks.
ReplyDeleteI agree Mamie's role in the upcoming movie seems to have autobiographical overtones. I have seen more of her than Grace. Mamie is the eldest so that may have something to do with things. But you are right; she may be Meryl' s daughter, but not nearly as attractive, and time already is not being kind to her. I never thought of the Melissa association, but you are absolutely right!