A notable anomaly regarding Saoirse and Dakota Fanning.

Well, Dakota seems less discriminating in the roles she will take, which isn't necessarily a bad thing - I wish Saoirse would take more - but she seems to be being eclipsed by her sister Elle now.
She started much earlier, made most of the films she's known for before Saoirse even got started and seems to be treading water at the moment. Saoirse has certainly paced herself better.

What I've found interesting is that Chloe Grace Moretz has dropped out of Little Mermaid and announced she is cancelling all movies for the foreseeable future so she can reassess her career. She was doing lots of films herself.

She has just been a more impressive actress so far. Remember, a lot of the praise Dakota Fanning got was based on her potential when she was a child. She hasn't really given a great "adult" performance yet.

I have maintained for about ten years now that Dakota paid a price for her controversial role in the Hounddog film. Sadly, I really believe that she got fewer good offers as a result of doing the film. I have yet to find a poster on IMDb that concurs with my thesis, but I stand by my claim. Having said this, I absolutely adore both of these actresses.

Interesting. Yes it was certainly a controversial role (but a good and bold performance) for such a young actress. And Hollywood does like to present a wholesome face to the world, whatever the reality is behind the scenes. You might well be right.


The Players of The Game are the scum of the earth.

In my opinion Saoirse hasn't really given a great adult performance yet either. But in part, like Dakota, that is dependent on her landing a great role in a great film, and that is easier said than done.


The Players of The Game are the scum of the earth.

As much as I like Saoirse, I saw nothing spectacular about her much heralded performance in the Brooklyn film.

Part of the reason why critics were frankly incredibly effusive in their praise was her subtleness and restraint in showing us (the audience) exactly what emotional state she happened to be in and what her character was thinking at any given time. She of course had her chances to emote strongly during certain scenes, but her work was IMO understated but just beautiful.

There were so many striking scenes: when Eilis was walking to meet the priest in her yellow dress is one example. Just the manner in which she walks and the look on her face shows us how drastically this young woman has changed as compared to a bit earlier in the film when she was so homesick and melancholy. She's so convincing in conveying the transition.

I loved the scene where she is slowly walking through her room and observing everything as her character has finished packing in anticipation of her trip back to America. She doesn't have one word of dialogue, but it's heartbreaking nonetheless.

When Saoirse was being introduced by actor Paul Dano at The Palm Springs Film Festival, he specifically mentioned the early scene when her friend accepts a dance with a young man and the camera just gets close to her face while she looks around the dancehall knowing it may be the last time she is ever in her homeland. It's a masterclass in patient and subtle acting because Saoirse's able to let us clearly understand exactly what is going through her mind without one word. I could probably write about literally every scene she appears in, but suffice to say I believe it was a knockout performance.

So. The Fanning sisters are on their way to becoming great actresses, though I've heard some rumours that their parents were rather stagey, they never became a hindrance on their careers. Dakota attended Columbia, they seem well adjusted and concerned about their crafts (though I find Elle's "Lolita"-like vibe and role selection tiring). The difference is that, even though they both have left behind the "child actress" phase, they are still in their starlet phase, they are still considered in the industry in the "they have a lot of potential" category. Saoirse is way past that, she already is considered a major. I think this tweet defines ir pretty well:

https://twitter.com/joshrothkopf/status/784926227446452224

Saoirse is the standard now, which means that her peers are not the Steinfelds, Fannings or Grace Moretz, She shares a category with Cate Blanchett, Viola Davis, Jennifer Lawrence, Julianne Moore, etc. She is only the youngest one in the group.

All of the above is only in industry terms, her stance with producers, directors, screenwriters and fellow actors. Certainly Saoirse is only half as recognizable as Elle Fanning or Hailee Steinfeld in objective terms. But an artistic career is a marathon, not a sprint, and Sersh seems to know this pretty well, much better than her age counterparts. She's only going to be more selective, her age peers are still working on that.