British
actress Keira Knightley has accumulated a hugely impressive resume in
her 29 years, showing incredible skill and development as an actress,
as well as breathtaking movie star looks. With a wonderful aptitude
for period pieces, she has a particular talent for portraying
brilliant, conflicted and nuanced women- and her depiction of
brilliant cryptanalyst Joan Clarke in THE
IMITATION GAME
is no exception. To celebrate the home entertainment release of THE
IMITATION GAME arriving on Blu-ray™,
DVD and digital platforms on 9th
March 2015, courtesy of STUDIOCANAL,
we count down some of her most memorable roles.
The
Imitation Game (2015)
Based
on the true story of legendary cryptanalyst Alan Turing, this
historical biopic recounts the nail-biting race against time by
Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch)
and his brilliant team of code-breakers at Bletchley Park during
World War II. The film spans key periods in Turing's life, from his
unhappy years at boarding school and the triumph of his secret work
on the revolutionary electro-mechanical 'Bombe', which broke the
Enigma code, to the tragedy of his post-war decline following his
conviction for a now outdated criminal offence. Knightley
provides a superb Oscar-nominated supporting turn as Joan Clarke, a
fellow cryptanalyst, and Turing’s close friend and confidante.
Begin
Again (2013)
Knightley
shows off some impressive singing talents in this enchanting romantic
musical drama, based on the hit musical Once.
It follows the repercussions after down-and-out music executive Dan
(Mark Ruffallo)
chances upon young singer-songwriter Gretta
(Knightley)
at an open-mic night. Gretta, still reeling from the break up with
her rock-star ex Dave (Adam
Levine),
agrees to collaborate with Dan on an album- recording each of the
songs in a different location in Manhattan.
Anna
Karenina (2012)
The
third collaboration between director Joe
Wright and Knightley,
this adaptation of Tolstoy’s
classic novel offered an experimental approach to the source
material. Wright chose
to set the majority of scenes were shot
on a rundown theatre built from scratch in Shepperton. The various
locations in the film, such as the train station, and horse stables,
were actually built on top of the stage. Knightley
takes the lead as the tragic heroine, opposite a stellar cast that
includes Jude
Law, Domhnall Gleeson, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
and Emily
Watson.
A
Dangerous Method (2011)
Knightley
takes on the daring role of Sabina Spielrein in this David
Cronenberg- directed historical drama which
focuses on the tense professional relationship between Carl Jung
(Michael Fassbender)
and Sigmund Freud (Viggo
Mortensen), as well as
Jung’s relationship with Spielrein. Knightley
gives a brilliant, sensitive portrayal of the psychologically
disturbed Spielrein, who eventually went on to become a talented and
respected psychoanalyst in her own right.
Last
Night (2010)
This
little-known ensemble piece, directed by Massy
Tadjedin and starring Keira
Knightley, Sam
Worthington, Eva
Mendes and Guillaume
Canet, offers a slow-burning and understated
study on the nature of monogamy. Joanna (Knightley)
and Michael Reed (Worthington)
are seven years into a happy, stable marriage when he is sent on a
business trip with a colleague he is fighting an attraction to
(Mendes). That same
evening, Joanna runs into an old flame and spends the evening
considering how things might have been.
Never
Let Me Go (2010)
This
haunting, dystopian drama based on Kazuo
Ishiguru’s novel of the same name stars
Knightley alongside
Andrew Garfield and
Carey Mulligan, and
recounts the lives of Ruth (Knightley),
Kathy (Mulligan) and
Tommy (Garfield),
three friends who grow up together in an idyllic English boarding
school. However, after they leave the school the horrific truth of
their fate becomes apparent, and they are forced to confront the
inevitable, while dealing with the ever-present love triangle hanging
over them.
The
Duchess (2008)
This
biographical drama chronicles the life of 18th century aristocrat
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, played by Knightley.
A celebrity of the time, Georgiana's charm, kindness, activism and
fashion bring her high regard everywhere she goes. But the oppressive
restraints of her controlling husband (Ralph
Fiennes)
lead her into a passionate affair with the younger Charles Grey
(Dominic
Cooper)
highlighting the stark, appalling differences in treatment between
men and women in the aristocracy of the 18th
century.
The
Edge of Love (2008)
Written
by Knightley’s
mother, Sharman Macdonald,
this historical drama is loosely based on real events, and focuses on
the friendship between two married couples- the poet Dylan Thomas
(Matthew Rhys) and his
wife Caitlin Thomas (Sienna Miller)
and Thomas’s old flame Vera Phillips (Knightley)
and her husband William Cillick (Cillian
Murphy). Both Knightley
and Miller
garnered rave reviews for their nuanced portrayals of two women whose
genuine, close friendship was built on a fragile foundation of
suppressed feelings and suspicion.
Atonement
(2007)
This
heartbreaking wartime drama based on Ian McEwan’s bestselling novel
boasts a stellar cast, including Knightley,
James McAvoy, Saiorse Ronan, Benedict Cumberbatch
and Vanessa Redgrave.
When the budding romance between Cecilia Tallis (Knightley)
and Robbie Turner (McAvoy)
is cut brutally short following a lie told by Bryony Tallis (Ronan),
the repercussions span several decades. Knightley
provides a masterfully reserved and
heartbreaking turn as the stoic Cecilia, and Wright’s
tackling of the novel’s twist ending is a particular masterstroke.
Pride
& Prejudice (2005)
Joe
Wright’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s most
famous work earned him a BAFTA for most promising newcomer and
follows the trials and tribulations of the five Bennett sisters after
two eligible bachelors move into town- Mr Darcy (Matthew
MacFayden) and Mr Bingley (Simon
Woods). Wright
was famously reluctant to cast Knightley
in the lead role of Elizabeth Bennett, deeming her ‘too
attractive’... until he met her, and realised her tomboyish
attitude was ideal for the role. Knightley
provides a brilliantly fresh portrayal of a beloved literary
character, which led to her first Academy Award nomination.
THE
IMITATION GAME arrives on Blu-ray™,
DVD and digital platforms on 9th
March 2015, courtesy of STUDIOCANAL.