“Kinda nice”: James Stewart’s most underrated performances
A tall, handsome man with a recognisable voice, a reassuring presence, and the ability to switch emotions at the drop of a hat. That’s all you can ask for in a top-level actor, and it’s also a perfect description of the one and only James Stewart.
One of the biggest stars in Hollywood in the 1940s and 1950s, Stewart appeared in some of the biggest and most beloved films that continue to mesmerise contemporary audiences despite their fucked-up attention spans. His role as George Bailey in the enduring holiday favourite It’s a Wonderful Life is one of the most famous in movie history and still jerks tears almost 80 years after its original run. Then you’ve got the likes of Vertigo, The Philadelphia Story, Rope, and more, too many to keep fucking track of. An embarrassment of riches by anyone’s standards.
For one of Jimmy’s lesser-known great roles, we must turn to a film released in 1965. Shenandoah is a Civil War movie starring Stewart as Virginia family man Charlie Anderson, who runs a farm with his seven children (and one daughter-in-law). As the war rages on around him, Charlie tries his best to stay out of the fighting, concerning himself only with his land and the people who live on it. That all changes when his youngest son (played by To Kill a Mockingbird’s Phillip Alford) is kidnapped by the Northern army, which forces Charlie to finally take action.
Though not a classic of Stewart’s filmography, the movie received strong reviews upon its release. In the context of his legacy, the film still holds a very important place, with many citing the leading man’s performance as one of the best of his goddamn illustrious career. As for the star himself, however, he had a far more humble opinion.
“Shenandoah was kinda nice,” he said, as per Michael Munn’s book Jimmy Stewart: The Truth Behind the Legend. “I know it was anti-war and all that, but… but when you make a film with a touchy subject and turn it into propaganda… [sic], I’m against that, because the important thing is dramatic quality. And Shenandoah had some real dramatic quality to it, thanks mainly to the script by Jimmy Barrett.”
Critics were able to see past the anti-war sentiment of the film (which is apparently a bad thing?) and were far more praising of the film than its star. Several even called for Stewart to be nominated for an Oscar for his performance, but his name wasn’t on the list when Paul Scofield won ‘Best Actor’ for his role in A Man for All Seasons (John Wayne’s favourite ever film).
That’s not to say that Shenandoah wasn’t completely ignored during awards season. It was nominated for the ‘Best Sound’ award at the Oscars, while Rosemary Forsyth was shortlisted for ‘Most Promising Newcomer – Female’ by the Golden Globes for her performance as Charlie’s only daughter, Jennie.
Director Andrew V McLaglen called Stewart’s turn in his film “one of the most underrated performances ever”. Given how many other great performances Stewart gave across his long career, a few were always going to slip through the cracks, but that just makes discovering them for yourself even more fun. If you consider yourself a Stewart fan but somehow haven’t seen him in Shenandoah, then you owe it to yourself to see what all the fuss is about.
