In 1980, this 14-year-old chubby girl thoroughly enjoyed watching Gena Rowlands in “Gloria.” Her fierce but non-classic beauty and tough girl articulation of the role gave me another actress I could relate to and cheer on, and I’ve watched and enjoyed her since then. I also liked the way Rowlands’ life and career was a family affair. She was married to her auteur, writer-director John Cassavetes for 35 years, until his death in 1989. Rowlands notably took on feature film roles in order to help finance his films! Rowlands’ seminal late Gen X/Millennial role in “The Notebook” was directed by her son Nick Cassavetes. She also starred in her daughter Zoe Cassavetes’ 2007 film “Broken English.” That’s a level of family bonding, trust, faith, and encouragement that goes above and beyond, and that Hollywood should celebrate more.
My favorite Gena Rowlands film is a 1998 movie by William…
