Carey Mulligan is one of the finest British actresses around at the moment and has already delivered a sting of terrific performances in recent years.
Carey Mulligan in Far From The Madding Crowd
She is returning to the big screen this week as she takes on the central role of Bathsheba Everdene in the adaptation of the Thomas Hardy novel Far From The Madding Crowd - it really is promising to be one of the best period movies of the year.
We are huge fans of Mulligan here are FemaleFirst and we take a look at some of her best performances as movies as we celebrate her long awaited return - it has been over a year since we have seen her star in a film.
- An Education (2009)
Mulligan had already enjoyed success by the time that An Education bit the big screen back in 2009, but it was the film that really was to catapult her to wider acclaim and recognition. The movie saw her team up with director Lone Scherfig, as Lynn Barber's coming of age memoir was adapted into a screenplay by Nick Hornby.
Mulligan takes on the role of sixteen year old Jenny who is taken into the adult world that she dreams of by David, a man who is nearly twice her age. She is tempted by this new life and her family's hopes of getting her to Oxford hang in the balance.
An Education is one of the best coming of age movies that has graced the big screen in many years, and that is largely thanks to the terrific central performance from Mulligan. She and the director taps into the desire to be older that every teenage has - that makes Jenny a character that just about anyone can relate to as we have all been there and had those feelings.
Mulligan may be playing a sixteen-year-old girl, and yet this is mature performance from the actress as she plays Jenny with great depth as well as a wonderful humour and wit. Of course, Mulligan is assisted by a terrific script - Hornby's screenplay really is incredibly observant and at times very wise - but it is the actress who really shines.
It was a movie that really did put Mulligan on the global film stage and she went on to pick up her first Best Actress Oscar nomination. The movie was also nominated for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, but walked away empty handed on the night.
- Inside Llewyn Davis (2014)
Inside Llewyn Davis was the last time that we saw Mulligan on the big screen as she teamed up with directors Joel and Ethan Coen for the first time.
Inside Llewyn Davis follows a week in the life of a young folk singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961. Mulligan plays Jean Berkey, a former lover of the title character, whose singing career is starting to take off with her new man Jim - played by Justin Timberlake. Davis' world is complicated further when he finds out that Jean is pregnant and the child might be his.
Inside Llewyn Davis may follow a man who is broke and homeless, and yet it is still a film that is warm, full of hope, witty and funny. It is one of the best films from the Coen's in recent years.
The movie is very much about the title character and focuses on actor Oscar Isaac, Mulligan's performance as the volatile Jean is one that you will not forget in a hurry. The character of Jean brings a dark humour to the film, and it is a character that we have never seen Mulligan tackle before. Mulligan may not have as much screen time as we would like, but in the time she does have, she makes a huge and unforgettable mark on the film.
Inside Llewyn Davis was met with critical acclaim when it hit the big screen at the beginning of 2014 and was one of the early 'must see' films of the year.
- Drive (2011)
Drive was one of my favourite movies of 2011 as Nicolas Winding Refn returned to the director's chair - it has gone on to become somewhat of a modern classic. The movie saw Mulligan team up with Refn and actor Ryan Gosling for the first time and the trio turned out to be a terrific film team.
Drive follows loner stuntman who falls in love with his neighbour Irene. The pair of them is dragged into the underworld as Irene's ex-convict husband returns. Driver puts hit life on the line to project Irene and her young son.
While it is Gosling's is well and truly the driving force of Drive, the relationship between Driver and Irene is something that you just can't take your eyes off. The couple say very little to each other with words and yet the lack of words between them is so incredibly powerful. Their relationship is intriguing and all-consuming and sees both Gosling and Mulligan deliver terrific performances.
Drive was one of the most unforgettable movies of 2011, as the director mixed haunting silences with explosions of graphic violence - they really are in your face and break the peace and quiet of the movie. Drive is a compelling movie from start to finish it's well thought out and is beautifully crafted. Refn's unhurried style of storytelling it gripping and it will hook you from the very beginning.
Drive was, by far, the coolest movie of 2011 and was elevated further by the beautiful performances from Gosling and Mulligan - they really had never delivered anything like this before or since.
- Shame (2012)
In 2012, Mulligan teamed up with another great director and actor as she worked with Steve McQueen and Michael Fassbender for the first time on Shame. McQueen is a director that is not afraid to tackle difficult and taboo subject matter and shame delved into the world of addiction.
Brandon (Fassbender) is a New Yorker who shuns intimacy with women but feeds his desires with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his wayward younger sister (Mulligan) moves into his apartment stirring memories of their shared painful past, Brandon's insular life spirals out of control.
Shame is not the kind of movie that you would watch on a regular basis, as it is a cold and haunting film about a man who is truly struggling with sex addiction. There is something incredibly raw and real about it and it is a real slap in the face when you watch it. Yet, it is a movie that is made without judgement
Sissy is a character that is also dealing with her own problems and neither Brandon or Sissy are there for each other to help them deal with their daily struggles - despite their being a strangely intimate relationship between the pair.
Both Fassbender and Mulligan deliver captivating performances that you just cannot take your eyes off from start to finish. Shame is a beautiful character study about two damaged people trying to survive in a difficult world.
Shame and the central performances of Fassbender and Mulligan were met with critical acclaim when it was released. This movie really should have picked up some Oscar nominations and it is sad that a film this this was overlooked.
- Never Let Me Go (2011)
Never Let Me Go hit the big screen back in 2011 and remains one of my favourite films and performances of Carey Mulligan. The movie was an adaptation of the book of the same name by Kazuo Ishiguro and saw Mark Romanek back in the director's chair.
Set in almost an alternate reality of England during the fifties medical technology has found a way to banish sickness and prolong human life - but it comes with a sacrifice. The film follows the love story between Kathy, Tommy, and Ruth and how their lives have already been mapped out for them.
I came to this movie knowing nothing about it - I went on to read the book after I had seen the movie - and found it to be a poignant and rather chilling tale. This is really a morality movie that will leave you asking, 'is this type of medicine ever acceptable.'
Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, and Keira Knightley give a trio of haunting performances as Kathy, Tommy, and Ruth - three young people who struggle with the rage, jealousy and sadness that they feel about their lives and the fact that they will not get to live them.
The relationship between Tommy and Kathy will truly break your heart, while Mulligan's final scenes are haunting and will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.
Far From The Madding Crowd is released 1st May.
Tagged in Carey Mulligan Shame