Cher is persuasive when she makes strength look like a daily necessity. Her brisk delivery can be funny without making a woman’s troubles seem small; Moonstruck gives us the clearest reason to value her acting.
Fi1m perspective
In the marriage proposal scene in Moonstruck (1987), Cher makes Loretta Castorini look as though she has been handed another responsibility. We laughed because accepting a husband seems to require the same practical attention as keeping somebody’s accounts. Loretta is a widowed book-keeper, and Cher’s brisk delivery suggests a woman accustomed to finishing what other people leave undone. She is the steady presence this warm, funny romance needs, with enough doubt in her face to make a change of heart believable.
Her early film breakthrough came in supporting parts in Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982) and Silkwood (1983). Silkwood draws on her capacity for loyalty and vulnerability, qualities that matter as much as her more familiar toughness. In Mask (1985), that toughness becomes fierce maternal protectiveness.
Moonstruck makes particularly good use of her ability to resist another actor without draining the scene of feeling. Nicolas Cage’s Ronny Cammareri sometimes pushes his anguish harder than we believe, but Cher gives him someone credible to play against. Their differences are funny before a joke has been supplied. Norman Jewison allows Cage more insistence than the film needs; Cher makes Loretta’s resistance understandable even when the attraction is unwise.
David Watkin’s cinematography gives Cher room to hold our attention without a speech. Philip Rosenberg’s lived-in family surroundings help: Loretta appears to have habits that existed before the story began. Cher leaves room for uncertainty rather than presenting competence as the whole character. This is where we rate her most highly, letting a sensible woman want something she cannot sensibly justify.
The later film work is selective, with Mermaids (1990) returning to maternal and romantic complications. Burlesque (2010) casts her as a club owner mentoring a younger performer. These familiar protective roles can ask too little of her, and we would welcome more parts that test the vulnerability evident in Silkwood. Start with Moonstruck, and give Cher’s face as much attention as the declarations around her.
Biography
Cher is an American actor. She was born Cheryl Sarkisian on 20 May 1946 in El Centro, California.
She made her feature film debut in Good Times (1967) and later appeared in Chastity (1969). Her acting career gained prominence in the 1980s with roles in Silkwood (1983), Mask (1985), The Witches of Eastwick (1987) and Moonstruck (1987). For her performance as Loretta Castorini in Moonstruck, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Subsequent film roles include Mermaids (1990), Burlesque (2010) and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018). She has also made cameo appearances in films such as The Player (1992) and Stuck on You (2003).
