Kristin Scott Thomas
With Bel Ami hitting our screens this Friday we’ve taken a look at star Kristin Scott Thomas’ top five films!
Kristen is a diverse English actress born in Cornwall who has acquired French nationality after living in Paris since she was 19. She’s subsequently starred in numerous French films and bought up her three children there, now considering herself more French than British!
Starring as the stunning Virginie Walters in Bel Ami is the most recent in a wonderful acting career, Kristen has given some amazing performances over the years and here are her top 5, in our humble opinion;
1. Bitter Moon - 1992.
This film kick started Kristin’s international recognition in the 90s; a Roman Polanski film and her first performance with that loveable rogue Hugh Grant. Kristin plays Fiona, a British tourist on a Mediterranean cruise with hr husband (Grant) bound for Istanbul en route to India.
They meet another couple on board, a seductive French woman and her wheelchair bound husband. Nigel and Fiona become entangled in the dark twisted relationship of the couple and come to regret it.
Kriston embraced her devilishly sexy side as Fiona and proved herself as a confident young actress deserving of many more roles. This dark thriller is definitely worth a watch, but is not for the faint hearted!
2. 4 Weddings and a Funeral - 1994.
Everyone has seen this film, surely? If you’ve not then get on it! The first of several screenplays penned by Richard Curtis to star Hugh Grant and his and out old friend Kristen.
Kristin plays the formidable Fiona (again!) a performance that won her a Bafta for best supporting actress. The film revolves around, as the title suggests, four weddings and a funeral attended by the same group of friends.
Kristin’s Fiona is a stoic beauty harbouring an unrequited love. A charmingly quintessential British movie that captured a generation and put some now household names on the map.
3. The English Patient - 1996.
Another award winning performance from Kristen here, bagging her a Bafta, Golden Globe, Satellite Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for best actress, as well as an Oscar nomination! Phew.
A romantic drama based on the novel of the same name by Michael Ondaatje, set in World War ll, it’s a story of love, fate and some serious misunderstanding! Kristin plays the illustrious Katherine Clifton, a married woman who embarks on an affair with a geographer (Ralph Fiennes) on an exploration of the Sahara Desert.
Their love begins a series of disastrous events that we learn of through a collection of flashbacks disclosed by the geographer. It won a huge amount of awards (Best Picture Oscar, Bafta & Golden Globe) and for good reason. It’s a film that everyone should see at least once!
4. Gosford Park - 2001.
Yet another award winner here for Kristen, and a cast you could only dream of (the likes of Alan Bates, Richard E Grant, Helen Mirren and Maggie Smith to name but a few) alongside our girl Kristen. A British-American cluedo’esque who’dunnit, written by Julian Fallows.
Kristin plays a hard to read Lady McCordle, the wife of murdered Lord McCordle (Michael Gambon). In true Fallows style there are red herrings galore and seduction to boot. A mystery that will keep you guessing right until the last moment, with Kristen on true form, yet another not to be missed.
5. Nowhere Boy - 2009.
The most recent on our list, Nowhere Boy sees Kristin in a maternal aunt role as Mimi Smith, the guardian aunt of John Lennon whilst he grew up.
The film is based on a biography written by Lennon’s half sister Julia Baird and was released in the October of 2009 to coincide with what would have been Lennon’s 70th birthday.
The film charts the early years of the legend himself and centres around his difficult relationships with his birth mother Julia (Anne Marie Duff) and his stern Aunt Mimi (Kristen). Mimi supported Lennon throughout his career despite their warring personalities and Kristen does an amazing job of portraying a warmth and love underneath a cold exterior.
Kristin’s classically British ‘brave face’ shines through in this already beautiful film and she is unforgettable as Mimi.
Bel Ami is released 9th March