Cheers: SVU Is Burstyn with Talent

Ellen Burstyn in Law & Order: SVU
Cheers to Ellen Burstyn for her Emmy-worthy guest turn on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The Oscar-winner brought heart-wrenching life to the role of Bernadette Stabler, Eliot's bipolar mom. Her extended scene with her estranged son (the always-excellent Chris Meloni) was a master class in small-screen acting. Bernadette could be the even unstabler cousin of Burstyn's pill-popping grandma in Requiem for a Dream.
The episode also benefited from the presence of another fine actress, The Shield's CCH Pounder, doing double duty as a hard-nosed defense lawyer.
Can't wait to see what Ellen does with her next matriarchal part: Barbara Bush in Oliver Stone's W. She's Burstyn out all over!
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