You Know Who's Awesome? Rebecca Hall

"You can't hunt what doesn't exist."

I hope "You Know Who's Awesome?" becomes a regular thing. This first one is in honor of Rebecca Hall. I've only seen her in a few movies but she is a really talented actress and those few performances are fantastic. The first film I recall seeing her in was Christopher Nolan's The Prestige. I have to admit that I am a big fan of this movie and perhaps I have a biased appreciation of its stars. Then again, Rebecca Hall's performance was arguably the most impressive in the film, or at least a close second to Christian Bale.

The next film is Woody Allen's Vicky Christina Barcelona. This is the second movie where she stars or costars with Scarlett Johansson and, once again, Rebecca Hall proves the victor in the acting department. Maybe she's lacking the star power and whatever that means, but in this film, I think she really steals the show. Even with all of Penelope Cruz's "I'm a crazy Latina" shtick, Hall shines brightest, or at least as much as Javier Bardem. 

The third and final movie is Ben Affleck's The Town. I really wanted this movie to be good and it really was. Part of that goodness, you might guess, is the presence of, yes, Rebecca Hall. She is so good in this movie. She is the kind of good that it will slip right past you if you don't stop to recognize it. In this film, she finally gets the chance to be the primary female lead and she doesn't waste the opportunity. True to form, she turns in a solid performance worthy of notice and aids Affleck in telling an okay story really well. Her and Jeremy Renner are seriously neck and neck here.

Next month, she stars in The Awakening. Despite a boring title and a tired premise, I am glad she is getting the chance to carry a film. If her work thus far is any indication, and I'm sure that it is, she will be turning in a noteworthy performance. My hope is that this film is a nice stepping stone towards her future as an Academy Award Winner. Seriously, I feel like they give those statues to actresses who aren't half this good almost every year. 

The Awakening opens November 11, 2011