Emmy spotlight: Michelle Pfeiffer is first class on ‘The First Lady’

A trio of powerhouse actors inhabit the lives of three powerhouse political women on Showtime's "The First Lady." Emmy winner Gillian Anderson plays Eleanor Roosevelt; Oscar, Emmy and Tony winner Viola Davis plays Michelle Obama; and Golden Globe winner Michelle Pfeiffer plays Betty Ford. Pfeiffer is the only one of the three main stars to not have an Emmy, though she did earn a nomination for 2017's "The Wizard of Lies." However, that could change once Emmy voters get a look at Pfeiffer giving a career-best performance.

Pfeiffer arguably has the most difficult job in the series as Ford might be considered the least well-known of the three first ladies. After all, Michelle Obama's tenure in the White House only ended in the past decade and she continues to maintain a high public profile. Meanwhile, Eleanor Roosevelt, the nation's longest serving first lady, is still revered as a pioneer of equal rights for women and minorities, with former President Harry S. Truman referring to her as "the first lady of the world."

Betty Ford, however, may be somewhat of an enigma to modern audiences, and there are those who may only know her as the founder and namesake of the rehab center for the stars. Thanks largely to Pfeiffer's rich and layered performance, audiences see a woman who was not just a political spouse who stood by her husband. This is a woman who had ideas of her own and fought to act on those ideas often in the face of men who saw her as an obstacle to her husband's political success.

Pfeiffer almost disappears into the role of Betty, capturing her natural charisma as well as her  anxiety at being thrust into the role of first lady, a role that she had neither prepared for nor really wanted. We also see Betty's grit and determination, most notably as Betty resists being shoved into a metaphorical corner by Ford staffers Donald Rumsfeld (Derek Cecil) and Dick Cheney (Rhys Wakefield). In Pfeiffer's hands, Betty is no shrinking violet content to smile and wave -- she's got a mind of her own and she will use it as she sees fit.

SEE 'The First Lady's' Dakota Fanning on playing a first daughter and reuniting with Michelle Pfeiffer

That same determination also extends to her dealings with President Ford (Aaron Eckhart). In one of Pfeiffer's best scenes, Betty castigates Ford as he considers offering a full pardon to former President Nixon. "You know that this makes us complicit, don't you! Like we're part of the coverup!" she shouts at Ford. In an interview with Lesley Stahl on "CBS Sunday Morning," Pfeiffer spoke in detail about that scene. "It's the angriest that we see her," she says. "She had made a promise to the American people that this family would always be truthful and I think she held [Ford] to such a higher standard that she really really believed, in her mind, that he was going to do the right thing."

Pfeiffer also gives us a look into Betty's private turmoil, first as a wife who never really wanted to be in politics, then as a mother trying to be there for her only daughter, Susan, played by Pfeiffer's former "I Am Sam" co-star Dakota Fanning, whose scenes with Pfeiffer have both a playful and loving energy, revealing the deep, loving bond between mother and daughter. The turmoil is highlighted first by Betty's struggles with breast cancer. Pfeiffer's face during these scenes conveys Betty's fear and despair as well as a desire to use her illness to help other women.

However, Pfeiffer shines brightest in her scenes depicting Betty's descent into addiction. This isn't some movie-of-the-week treatment of the dangers of drinking. Pfeiffer's despair reveals itself in looks of haunting sadness and desolation, her emotions bubbling just under the surface but always visible. When Betty lets those emotions loose -- especially as the Ford family stages an intervention -- they emerge in outbursts that are as shocking as they are riveting. Pfeiffer goes right to the edge without ever veering into melodrama. This is the work of an actor at the top of her game.

At the moment, Pfeiffer is in ninth place in the odds for Best Limited Series/TV Movie Actress, a packed category that includes her co-stars Davis and Anderson. However, few contenders feel like sure things, so if voters pay attention to Pfeiffer's performance, it'll be hard not to vote for this first lady.

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