Mariel Hemingway is most persuasive when she lets a feeling register without explaining it. We value the directness that gives Manhattan its warmth, though her presence alone is no guarantee of a worthwhile film.
Fi1m perspective
In Manhattan (1979), Mariel Hemingway lets Tracy speak plainly while the people around her explain themselves at length. That directness is the strongest reason to watch her: she gives a feeling its due without insisting that we admire the acting. We warmed to Tracy because Hemingway makes her feelings matter amid so much clever conversation. The contrast can be uncomfortable for the other characters, whose fluency does not make them equally affecting.
Woody Allen gives her the space she needs, and alongside Diane Keaton she supplies much of the warmth that keeps the film worth an evening. Gordon Willis's black-and-white photography does plenty to make its increasingly solemn romance appealing, sometimes more than the writing deserves. Hemingway needs less assistance: Tracy's directness makes us care when the film's encouragement to indulge everyone else becomes harder to accept. Our reservations about Manhattan concern that romance, rather than the performance that helps us through it.
The move into leading roles in the early 1980s also brought more physically demanding work. In Personal Best (1982), she plays the athlete Chris Cahill; in Bob Fosse's Star 80 (1983), Dorothy Stratten. Both parts required physical commitment, and neither suggests an actor content to keep repeating Tracy. Those roles give a fuller sense of her choices than Tracy alone can.
Her presence is not enough to recommend Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), in which she plays Lacy Warfield. Sidney J. Furie's sequel is hampered by weak effects, muddled storytelling and tired romantic comedy. We would not use a film this muddled to make a general case against her acting, but there is no reason to start here.
The later career is less prominent, taking in the television series Civil Wars (1991–1993) and a supporting part in The Contender (2000). Screen work became less frequent after the late 1990s, though she has continued to act into the 2020s. For a first encounter, we would choose Manhattan and listen to Tracy rather than the people who think they have more to say.
Biography
Mariel Hemingway is an American actress. She made her film debut at the age of 14 in Lipstick (1976), appearing alongside her sister Margaux, and received a Golden Globe nomination for the role.
Hemingway is best known for her performance as Tracy in Woody Allen's Manhattan (1979), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Other film credits include Personal Best (1982), Star 80 (1983), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), Deconstructing Harry (1997) and The Contender (2000). She has also appeared in television series such as Roseanne and Law & Order.
She is the granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway.
