Elizabeth Berkley brings a combative physical energy to the screen, and we respect the commitment even when it exhausts us. Showgirls exposes the limits of that force, but her supporting work gives reasons to look beyond it.
Fi1m perspective
In Showgirls (1995), Elizabeth Berkley's Nomi Malone makes even an ordinary exchange feel like a confrontation. She brings fury, vulnerability and ambition to the surface with such similar force that it becomes difficult to tell them apart. We were worn out by the sudden changes of emphasis, because each feeling seemed to demand the same strenuous response from us. The commitment is considerable, but the performance gives us too few chances to notice anything quieter. We wanted her to be allowed to do less.
Berkley had established herself as Jessie Spano in Saved by the Bell (1989–1993) before taking her first major film lead in Showgirls. The move from a teen sitcom to Paul Verhoeven's backstage drama could hardly have made the change of direction plainer. Her dance training helps explain the emphasis on physical performance, but it does not by itself explain the excess. Verhoeven persistently asks for more, then gives that energy too little variation or time to settle. The result is tiring, and responsibility for it belongs to the director as well as the actor.
The work after Showgirls makes a broader assessment possible. Supporting parts followed in The First Wives Club (1996) and Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday (1999). The former drew praise for a more natural performance, while her stage work in Hurlyburly (2005) received strong notices for its nuance. That is reason enough to resist treating Nomi's relentless intensity as the only way Berkley can act.
She returned to Jessie Spano in the 2020 Saved by the Bell reboot, as a producer as well as an actor. We would like to see that physical energy used with more restraint. The supporting and stage work suggests she can do it. Give her a director who is willing to let an ordinary conversation stay ordinary.
Biography
Elizabeth Berkley is an American actress. She began her career as a model and dancer before moving to Los Angeles as a teenager. She gained early recognition for her role as Jessie Spano in the television series Saved by the Bell (1989–1993).
Berkley starred as Nomi Malone in the 1995 film Showgirls. She later appeared in supporting roles in films including The First Wives Club (1996), for which she shared a National Board of Review award for best ensemble performance, Any Given Sunday (1999) and The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001). Her television credits include recurring roles in CSI: Miami and Cobra Kai.
