10 Greatest Films of Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster has a new movie (Money Monster) out this weekend. She’s actually not an actress in it, she is the director, but today we will focus on her acting performances.
Jodie Foster was born Alicia Christian Foster, in Los Angeles in 1962. She began her career as the Coppertone girl, when she was three. By the time she was eight, she had appeared in more than fifty television shows. Her first feature film, Napoleon and Samantha, came out when she was ten. She has acted in forty-two feature films. Somehow, without missing a year of making films, she obtained a degree in literature from Yale. She is also a film director.
Jodie has four Oscar nominations, winning two. In 1989 she won for Best Actress in a Leading Role for The Accused and again in 1992 for Silence of the Lambs. She has seven Golden Globes nominations, winning two for the films just mentioned.
I feel like Jodie Foster has always been there, throughout my life. When I was a child, she was in almost every kid’s movie I saw. She survived the transition from child actress to adult actress very well. She comes across as very intelligent and wise. Her career seems to be a long trail of smart and personal choices. She never appears to select a project for base reasons.
10. Maverick (1994) — Jodie, Mel Gibson, James Garner, and James Coburn clearly had a lot of fun making this breezy update on the TV classic.
“Well, you all don’t have the exclusive on tells! You both have the same height, the same build, you both talk the same, you both kiss the same, you both draw your guns the same, and you both sing the same wrong words to ‘Amazing Grace’.” — Annabelle
9. Contact (1997) — Carl Sagan’s novel, directed by Robert Zemeckis, and starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey should be better. It’s a little plodding, but it tries to say some thoughtful things and Jodie is very good in it.
“I’ll tell you one thing about the universe, though. The universe is a pretty big place. It’s bigger than anything anyone has ever dreamed of before. So if it’s just us… seems like an awful waste of space. Right?” — Ellie
8. The Brave One (2007) — Kind of a thoughtful Death Wish. Neil Jordan directed this thriller that stars Foster and Terrence Howard. Jodie plays a woman who is mugged and her fiancé is killed. She learns to use a gun after that and when put in a position to use it, feels a release that leads her into more danger.
“I should have walked out of that train. I could have just shown them the gun, they wouldn’t have hurt me. Why don’t my hands shake? Why doesn’t somebody stop me?” — Erica
7. Carnage (2011) — Based upon Yasmina Reza’s Tony winning play God of Carnage. I saw the play the same year the film was released. The film didn’t have the intensity the play had, but it is well cast, starring Foster, Kate Winslet, John C. Reilly, and Christoph Waltz. It’s about two sets of parents that get together to discuss an incident of violence between their children, and devolve into utter childishness themselves.
“My husband has spent the entire afternoon DRYING THINGS!” — Penelope
6. Little Man Tate (1991) — This film was Jodie Foster’s directorial debut. It’s a sweet movie that looks at what it’s like to be a gifted child (something Jodie would know about). It doesn’t treat the child as a gimmick or a freak. It doesn’t overstate anything. It’s just an honest look at the phenomenon of being smart, talented, and yet a child.
“You’re crabby today.” — Dede
5. The Accused (1988) — An intense film about the experience of rape, the judgement sometimes put upon the victim. Jodie won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her searing performance.
“You don’t understand how I feel! I’m standing there with my pants down and my crotch hung out for the world to see and three guys are sticking it to me, a bunch of other guys are yelling and clapping and you’re standing there telling me that that’s the best you can do. Well, if that’s the best you could do, then your best sucks! Now, I don’t know what you got for selling me out, but I sure as shit hope it was worth it!” — Sarah
4. Panic Room (2002) — David Fincher directed this smart thriller about a woman and her daughter under siege in an apartment that is being robbed. Forrest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakum play the thieves. This movie may also be notable for being the last movie in which Kristen Stewart emoted.
“If we stay calm everything will be fine, okay? Just stay calm.” — Meg
3. The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane (1976) — Jodie Foster is the star of this horror movie about a young girl, living alone in a house, in Maine. Sheen plays a very creepy man.
“You should see the way the fire lights up your hair. All yellow and gold.” — Frank Hallett
2. Taxi Driver (1976) — It’s a little tougher to watch Taxi Driver today, when its story happens in real life, all too often. It’s a story of an alienated loner that expresses his rage via a bloodbath. It’s definitely DeNiro’s film, but he’s supported well by Harvey Keitel, Jodie Foster, Cybil Shepherd, and Peter Boyle.
“I think that… that Cancers make the best lovers.” — Iris
1. Silence of the Lambs (1991) — Nominated for 7 Oscars, won 5. Director Jonathan Demme takes what could have been a forgettable B movie and elevates it by making it smart, and none so smart as Hannibal Lector, simultaneously charming and creepy.
“You see a lot, Doctor. But are you strong enough to point that high-powered perception at yourself? What about it? Why don’t you — why don’t you look at yourself and write down what you see? Or maybe you’re afraid to.” — Clarice
Other films considered for this list include Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Inside Man, Sommersby, Freaky Friday, A Very Long Engagement, and Carny. What would make your list?
