Best Actress of the Decade Tournament

Top 32 - Round 2

Leslie Mann vs. Cate Blanchett
Quantity: Mann's 11 films pales in comparison to Blanchett's 24. Round - Blanchett.
Quality: Mann was great in Knocked Up and Funny People. However, she's nowhere near Blanchett and her powerhouse performances in The Gift, Veronica Guerin, The Aviator, The Life Aquatic, Babel, Notes on a Scandal, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and, most importantly, I'm Not There. Round - Blanchett.
Oscar Nominations: Mann has never been nominated. Blanchett was nominated for Notes on a Scandal, I'm Not There, and Elizabeth: The Golden Age. She also won for The Aviator. Round - Blanchett.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: Leslie Mann is one of my girl crushes and appeared on Freaks and Geeks. But Blanchett played Bob Dylan!! Round - Blanchett.
Winner = Blanchett.

Amy Adams vs. Penelope Cruz
Quantity: Both actresses appeared in 23 films. Round - TIE.
Quality: They've both done great work. Adams in Enchanted and Doubt, Cruz in Elegy and Volver. Ultimately it comes down to Adams' adorable performance in Junebug vs. Cruz's volatile performance in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Volatile trumps adorable for me. Round - Cruz.
Oscar Nominations: Both have been nominated twice. Adams for Junebug and Doubt. Cruz for Volver and Vicky Cristina Barcelona. However, Cruz won for the latter. Round - Cruz.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: Adams has guest starred on TV shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The West Wing and The Office. Round - Adams.
Winner = Cruz.

Anne Hathaway vs. Marcia Gay Harden
Quantity: Harden's 22 films easily beats out Hathaway's 14. Round - Harden.
Quality: Hathaway was great in Rachel Getting Married. But Harden is great in just about everything, to name a few: Mystic River, American Gun, The Dead Girl, The Mist. Round - Harden.
Oscar Nominations: Hathaway was nominated for Rachel Getting Married. Harden won for Pollack and was also nominated for Mystic River. Round - Harden.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: Harden is my very favorite actress. Round - Harden.
Winner = Harden.

Kerry Washington vs. Zooey Deschanel
Quantity: Both ladies have done a lot of movies this decade. Deschanel's 27 just beats out Washington's 25. Round - Deschanel.
Quality: Washington was truly great in The Dead Girl and The Last King of Scotland. However, Deschanel was fantastic in Manic, Almost Famous, The Good Girl, All the Real Girls, Winter Passing and (500) Days of Summer. Round - Deschanel.
Oscar Nominations: Neither have been nominated.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: In her spare time, Deschanel rocks out with M. Ward in She + Him. Round - Deschanel.
Winner = Deschanel.

Robin Wright vs. Natalie Portman
Quantity: Wright has done 18 films but Portman just beats her with 19. Round - Portman.
Quality: For me, it would come down to Portman's fiery performance in Closer vs. Wright's AMAZING turn in A Home at the End of the World. Ultimately, I've got to go with Natalie. Round - Portman.
Oscar Nominations: Wright has never been nominated. Portman was nominated for Closer. Round - Portman.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen (although they are both in the soon to be released anthology New York, I Love You).
Extra Curriculars: Portman always gets points for her hysterical gangster rap on SNL. Round - Portman.
Winner = Portman.

Catherine Keener vs. Rachel Weisz
Quantity: This may be the most even match up of the competition. To start with, both ladies have done 18 films. Round - TIE.
Quality: They've both done a lot of great stuff. Weisz was great in Runaway Jury, The Fountain and The Brothers Bloom. But then there's Keener and her amazing work in everything from The 40 Year Old Virgin and Hamlet 2 to Capote, Into the Wild and An American Crime. Round - Keener.
Oscar Nominations: Both have been nominated once - Keener for Capote and Weisz for The Constant Gardener. The difference? Weisz won. Round - Weisz.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Tie Breaker: Seriously, so evenly matched. I love them both and I especially am on a Weisz kick since watching her in The Brothers Bloom. Still, Keener is on my top 10 favorite actress list so I've got to give her the edge. Round - Keener.
Winner = Keener.

Laura Linney vs. Frances McDormand
Quantity: Linney's 21 films beats out McDormand's 13. Round - Linney.
Quality: Two ladies who are great in everything!! I'm going to put their best performances (McDormand in Almost Famous vs. Linney in The Savages) against each other and come out with... Round - McDormand.
Oscar Nominations: McDormand was nominated twice (Almost Famous and North Country) but Linney was nominated three times (You Can Count on Me, Kinsey, The Savages). Round - Linney.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: Linney was amazing in the John Adams mini-series. Round - Linney.
Winner = Linney.

Charlize Theron vs. Kate Winslet
Quantity: Theron's 21 films easily beats out Winslet's 13. Round - Theron.
Quality: Theron was great in Monster, North Country and Battle in Seattle. Unfortunately, she's up against Great Kate who is stellar in everything (Iris, The Life of David Gale, Eternal Sunshine, Little Children, Revolutionary Road, to name a few). Round - Winslet.
Oscar Nominations: Theron won for Monster and was nominated a second time for North Country. Winslet was nominated three times for Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Little Children before FINALLY winning for The Reader. Round - Winslet.
Shared Screen: They have not shared the screen.
Extra Curriculars: Theron guest starred on the greatest TV show of all time - Arrested Development. Round - Theron.
Tie Breaker: Theron is great and no one is saying she's not. Still, it's Kate Winslet. Round - Winslet.
Winner = Winslet.

On Sunday, we get one step closer to the dreaded (by me anyway) Marcia Gay Harden / Cate Blanchett show down. Also, coming this week reviews of Paranormal Activity and The Hurt Locker (the former is mostly disappointing, the latter unbeliveably amazing).