Diane Keaton has died at 79 years of age. One of the most distinctive qualities of this great actress' performances was their vivacity, their sense of effortless nature. She and Laura Dern, I would say, are the two actresses in the history of cinema whose ability to deliver conversational dialogue best and consistently captures a sense of someone genuinely fumbling through words. Despite undoubtedly memorising and rehearsing her lines, Keaton always seemed fresh and real.
She's best known for her work in the Godfather movies as well as a string of Woody Allen's greatest films, most notably as the title character in what's regarded by many as his best film, Annie Hall. Keaton's personality and fashion sense are well known to have influenced the character we see on screen so she is in more than the usual ways (for an actress) responsible for making it a great film.
In her late career, she shifted to solid and appreciable supporting roles in family drama and comedy movies like the Father of the Bride films and The Family Stone. She was also occasionally a director and she directed an episode of my favourite TV series, Twin Peaks, a decent episode in the popularly disliked latter half of the second season.
It's hard to believe an actress of such natural vivacity could be dead. Her movies will certainly live as long as movies do.
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