Vinessa Shaw makes the practical worries in a thriller worth attending to. We value her grounded supporting work, though being cast as the sensible person nearby can leave an actor too little to do.
Fi1m perspective
In Side Effects (2013), Vinessa Shaw’s Dierdre Banks is worried about money. Her husband Jonathan, played by Jude Law, has a full list of patients and a drug-company fee for putting patients on a trial. Shaw makes that domestic concern worth our attention even as Steven Soderbergh gets his thriller moving. We felt for Dierdre because her financial unease seems entirely reasonable beside a husband so sure of his own decency. We value Shaw’s ability to make an ordinary worry count when the plot has more elaborate business to conduct.
Allison in Hocus Pocus (1993) was the early breakthrough; Domino in Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut (1999) marked the turn towards her adult career. The horror of The Hills Have Eyes (2006) and the Western 3:10 to Yuma (2007) belong to a subsequent career largely built from supporting parts. Across those shifts, she has repeatedly been cast as grounded, determined women. That suits her, but being the sensible person nearby can become a restriction if the writing stops there.
The difficulty is how much space these films leave her. Eyes Wide Shut earns its slow pace through the painful intimacy of Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, though some exchanges outstay their welcome. In Side Effects, production designer Howard Cummings gives Jonathan an office of pale wood and glass, a reassuring setting for a man so comfortable with himself. Shaw’s financial anxiety complicates that comfort, but Soderbergh’s film grows more absorbed in thriller mechanics. We recommend both films with reservations, without pretending either is built around her.
Two Lovers (2008) offers a reason to look further. She has a leading role as Sandra Cohen alongside Joaquin Phoenix, and their chemistry makes the case for giving her more substantial parts. Her steadiness is worth having, but it need not always mean attending to somebody else’s troubles. Start with the Soderbergh film for the quality we trust in her; try Two Lovers for a larger part.
Biography
Vinessa Shaw is an American actress and model. Born in Los Angeles, California, in 1976, she began her career as a child actress, making her feature debut in the 1981 slasher film Home Sweet Home. Her breakout role came as Allison in Disney's Hocus Pocus (1993).
While attending Barnard College, Shaw was cast in a supporting role in Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut (1999). Subsequent film roles include The Hills Have Eyes (2006), 3:10 to Yuma (2007), Two Lovers (2008) and Steven Soderbergh's Side Effects (2013), in which she played Dierdre Banks. She has also appeared in the series Ray Donovan (2013). Her mother is actress Susan Damante.
