I am well aware that Renée Zellweger is not everyone's cup of tea. But I have always thought of her as an incredibly talented and versatile actress and enjoyed most of her roles. And she has the awards to prove it: two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. Yet many people seem to be more obsessed with her physical appearance than her accolades. I don't care if she's had plastic surgery or how "different" she looks now and I don't think the cruel comments about her changing appearance were warranted. For me, her extensive filmography speaks for herself, not to mention her impressive vocals on the Chicago and Judy soundtracks.
Alex Kuczynski from the New York Times outlines Renée Zellweger's enduring appeal: "She carved out a career playing accessible characters, wholesome and fallible. In Dazed and Confused, as a heartland teenager, and in Jerry Maguire, she was winning and approachable. As Bridget Jones, she allowed us to embrace our wine-and-heartache inner insecurities. She made the fat, boozy chain-smokers and job-losers among us feel O.K. about ourselves". Indeed, many people were drawn to the Bridget Jones films because she embodied the awkwardness, heartache, disappointment and insecurity that we have all experienced - and sometimes all at once!
Here are my seven favourite Renée Zellweger roles:
7. Down With Love: Barbara Novak
I enjoyed this romantic comedy, although it received mixed reviews when it was released in 2003 and rarely appears on any lists of Zellweger's best work. It's a lighthearted and entertaining nod to romantic comedies of the 1960s with a great cast including Ewan McGregor, David Hyde Pierce and Sarah Paulson. Set in 1962, it explores feminist ideas and attitudes about sex and love through the eyes of aspiring author Barbara Novak, whose book Down With Love, aims to free women from their traditional ideas of love in order to advance their position in the workplace and society. It is also interesting that Barbara and her editor convince Judy Garland to sing the song Down with Love to promote her book on The Ed Sullivan Show since Zellweger would receive praise for her portrayal of Judy Garland 17 years later.
6. Empire Records: Gina
This is a film that received largely negative reviews but went on to become a 90s cult classic. However, Zellweger was singled out for her strong performance as "wild child" Gina. The plot centers on a group of employees at an independent record store who try to save the store from its imminent closure, which, as a music collector, I find most admirable. The film also has a great soundtrack featuring music from quintessential 90s bands such as Gin Blossoms, The Cranberries, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Better Than Ezra. Nathania Gilson from The Guardian argues that the film is ready for a comeback: "It’s not just a heady dose of nostalgia for an era where dancing on rooftops or singing along with the Cranberries was normal. It’s also grown into a go-to comfort watch for a generation who might need to remember the value of being understood over betraying their sense of self for a bit of easy cash and glory".
5. Nurse Betty: Betty Sizemore
This is a dark comedy that received critical acclaim, winning the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Screenplay while Zellweger won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. She plays Betty Sizemore, a waitress who is a big fan of the fictitious soap opera, A Reason To Love. After witnessing her dodgy husband's murder, she is so traumatized that she assumes the identity of a nurse from the soap opera i.e. Nurse Betty. She then searches for her "ex-fiancé", the lead character from the soap opera played by Greg Kinnear, oblivious to the fact that there are drugs in her car, drugs which two hitmen want to get their hands on.
4. What/If: Anne Montgomery
This was a Netflix thriller filled with twists and turns and a plot so bad it was good. While it did not get very good reviews, I was unapologetically addicted. It was great to see Zellweger shine in such a different role - a wealthy and deliciously devious woman, Anne Montgomery, who agrees to provide funding for a young scientist whose work could save the lives of millions of children. However, the young scientist soon realizes that Anne is not motivated by sheer benevolence and her "indecent proposal" has a devastating ripple effect on everyone involved.
3. Bridget Jones's Diary: Bridget Jones
The 2001 film is based on the 1996 novel with the same title by Helen Fielding. It was a critical and commercial success, which lead to two equally successful sequels, namely Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004) and Bridget Jones's Baby (2016). The plot follows the misadventures of Bridget Jones, a single, talkative and often socially inappropriate 32-year-old woman who works for a publishing company (and has a crush on her dashing boss, Daniel Cleaver, played by Hugh Grant). As previously mentioned, Bridget is a relatable character (be honest: who hasn't cried into a bottle of wine while listening to All By Myself at max volume?) and that contributed to the franchise's (and Zellweger's) popularity.
2. Chicago: Roxie Hart
Chicago is one of my favourite musicals. It has all the ingredients for an intoxicating theatrical experience: jazz, murder, sex and corruption. I thoroughly enjoyed Renée's performance as Roxie, the naïve adulteress turned murderess turned Vaudevillian star, in the 2002 film adaptation. The film was a hit: it won the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Picture and Zellweger won the Golden Globe for Best Actress. She also received a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Motion Picture.
1. Judy: Judy Garland
The role that earned Zellweger her second Academy Award for Best Actress, a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motional Picture - Drama and a BAFTA for Best Film Actress in a Leading Role and a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Motion Picture - all deserved! It is an outstanding performance and once again she showcases her vocal prowess by singing some of the icon's most famous songs without trying to imitate her. Much of the film is set in 1969, months before Judy's untimely death at the age of 47, and focuses on her rocky performances at The Talk of the Town nightclub in London.
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