I think the first will be her role as Tish Gray in The Baby Maker
The Baby Maker was released in 1970. Ahhh the 70s what a time to be alive. A sort of Liberal movement was happening opening the world to new perspectives and ideas. One thing that was definitely new to that decade was surrogate motherhood. Now today there was two types of surrogate motherhood, one where the surrogate is pregnant with an egg that is not biologically hers. The other method that is shown in this film is where the surrogate is the biological mother of the child.
Tish became a surrogate for a couple who couldn't have children of her own. While the wife couldn't bear children , her husband could. In order for them to have a child that at least half belonged to them , the husband and Tish have a baby the old fashion way.
I really did admire the character of Tish. Throughout the film you witness the selflessness and old soul that is Tish Gray. This was a complicated situation for all involved. What I loved is how Barbara was able to portray Tish as a surrogate. Throughout the movie we see Tish develop feelings for the husband , but at the same time you see her selflessness, courage and strength to give up her child. I think that shows how talented Barbara is to play the many layers of that character.
I also have to give Barbara credit because the birth scene in this movie was very realistic. I have seen characters give birth in films and tv before and you can tell its fake. Again its film and tv , but in The Baby Maker Tish giving birth seemed so real.
This is one of my favorite films that Barbara stars in. Its a very bittersweet movie. The couple gets a baby and Tish lets go of the child she carried for 9 months. Not only does she in some way lose the child by giving it away to the couple, but she also loses the husband , who she was developing feelings for. I think the movie poster says it all " The beauty of creating life , The freedom to give it away".
https://youtu.be/n8EMXf3Bkus
Now I can go on about how great The Baby Maker and Tish Gray are , but we are here to talk about Barbara.
The second is a film I think many Barbara fans know and if I must say its my all time favorite movie Beaches.
Beaches was released in 1988 and its a story about friendship. Barbara plays a introverted lawyer named Hillary Whitney. She met C.C. Bloom when she was 11 and they became lifelong friends. To me it seems Barbara had a lot of work to do with this role .
For one Barbara had to play different Hillary's . She had to play Hillary in her 20s to 40s doing that and rembereing how old she is in certain scenes must have been difficult. She had to play a lawyer turned housewife turned single mother. There was the friendship with C.C. and her relationship with her daughter. Not to mention she had to play someone with a terminal illness.
https://youtu.be/FhrUp9pM0rE
With C.C. she was a person that enjoyed being in the spotlight and enjoyed attention. Hillary was like the friend we dream about . She was fiercely loyal to C.C.. While C.C. preferred the spotlight, Hillary was always there behind the scenes or in the audience always there to support C.C..
I believe a lot of work went into playing Hillary and I commend Barbara on her performance in Beaches. I think If we can take anything from watching Beaches its that true friendships are rare and some friendships last forever.
Lastly one of my personal favorites is Barbara's portrayl of Cora Mills/ Queen of Hearts from Once Upon a Time .
Cora was forced to give up her first child, because Princess Eva ( who happens to be Snow's mom) betrays her to King Leopold. This begins the feud between Regina and Snow's families and Cora's believe that love is weakness. She loved her daughter Regina, but she always showed in all the wrong ways. She wanted what was best for her daughter and to have the things and be provided the opportunities she never had.
There is a reason Cora was this way, she didn't have her heart. When her heart is finally given back to her in Storybrooke , Snow manipulates Regina into killing her own mother( Makes my hatred for Snow White grow). When Cora was in the Underworld we got to see a glimpse of what life would have been like with Cora having her heart back.
After all the pain she caused, Cora did redeem herself by reuniting Regina and Zelena bringing them together . Cora then got to move on to a better place. Though my version of a better place would be in Storybrooke with her girls.
https://youtu.be/xgZcNZbnugY
Barbara was just omg she was amazing as Cora. It was a real example of how talented Barbara is. She played so many versions of Cora. What impresses me is how different she made Cora with her heart and Cora without her heart. Her body language and voice tone changes in order to really play the many manipulative layers that is Cora.
I really loved seeing Cora in Once in Wonderland because we got to see what her reign as the Queen of Hearts looked like and let me tell you she was one badass queen. The mentor relationship between her and Anatasia I thought was epic.
https://youtu.be/GF5PduqexVA
Barbara is one talented actress that isn't given enough credit for her work. Barbara is more than just an actress. She is a wonderful human being who inspires everyone through her good natire and kindness. She cares about the world , animals and the environment. She is such a treasure for all she has done and accomplished. Her smile is very contagious and it will uplift you on a clody day and make your day be filled with sunshine and rainbows. If you ever are lucky enough to meet Barbara you will be blown away by how nice she is. She is the nicest person I know and my absoulute favorite person in the world.
Barbara you are so awesome and have a heart of gold. You deserve this day and so much more. Have the happiest of birthdays.
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