The Runner-Ups: Elisabeth Moss in "Queen of Earth" (2015)

Scene from Queen of Earth

Every Oscar season, there are a handful of actors who get tagged with the "snubbed" moniker. While it is always unfortunate to see our favorites not honored with at very least a nomination, there's another trend that goes largely unnoticed: those who never even got that far. The Runner-Ups is a column meant to honor the greats in cinema who put in phenomenal work without getting the credit that they deserved from The Academy. Join me every other Saturday as I honor those who never received any love. This list will hopefully come to cover both the acting community, and the many crew members who put the production together.

Review: Thanks to Moss, "Queen of Earth" is a Masterpiece About Mental Breakdowns

Elisabeth Moss

Every now and then, there comes a performance that reminds you of the capabilities of "complex" women. I'm talking about ones that are insecure but not hopeless. Bette Davis made a career out of this. Rosamund Pike received an Oscar nomination (Best Actress - Gone Girl) for this. In director Alex Ross Perry's Queen of Earth, Elisabeth Moss joins the list with a performance that is intense yet nuanced, psychopathic yet controlled, and selfish yet smart. From the opening scene where her running make-up and withering voice introduces the audience to this world with an uncomfortable close-up, this is Moss' moment to prove that she's more than Peggy Olsen from Mad Men. She's an actress with capabilities that have yet to be fully explored. It is also why Queen of Earth may be one of this year's unassuming masterpieces.

The "Queen of Earth" Trailer Asks the Question: Just How Creepy Can Elisabeth Moss Be?

Elisabeth Moss

Among the lesser known great films of last year was director Alex Ross Perry's Listen Up, Phillip, which featured Jason Schwartzman as an arrogant writer as his life fell apart. The film was a success thanks to its instinctive deconstruction of the writer's ego and how it actually makes it both a tragic comedy and a preventative decline. With a unique style, it is exciting to see him back this year with Queen of Earth, which co-stars Elisabeth Moss and Katherine Waterston in a film that looks very eerie and based on the first trailer, one of the most intense psychological dramas of the year.