23 February,2014 09:01 AM IST | | mid-day online correspondent
Meryl Streep
She is the queen of the Oscars and her name is mentioned more than God's in Oscar acceptance speeches. Veteran actor Meryl Streep has 21 Academy Award nominations and three golden statuettes to her credit. As she turns 71 today, we celebrate her birthday by listing some of her best films
Meryl perfected the colloquial English spoken in England for her role of Sarah Woodruff in this film. The image of her standing on the cul-de-sac of the Cobb wall in Lyme Regis in Dorset is unforgettable. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her double role of the complex and troubled Sarah Woodruff and American actress, Anna.
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Meryl, an alumna of the Yale School of Drama has done exceptionally well in drama films. This film was inspired by the life of Karen Silkwood, a labour union activist, who died in a suspicious car accident. In the film, she and her co-workers fall victim to a radiation leak and the blame is put on her. Meryl struggles to clear her name. Once she has gathered sufficient evidence, she dies under mysterious circumstances.
She reportedly wore a low-cut blouse with a push-up bra for her first meeting with director Sydney Pollack, who initially felt that Meryl lacked sex appeal for the role. However, her chemistry with Robert Redford was much appreciated in the film. The film won 28 awards and is still talked about for its cinematography and performance of the lead actors.
Based on a bestseller by Robert James Waller, it relates the story of a photographer (Clint Eastwood) and his love affair with a middle-aged Italian housewife. The actors' on-screen chemistry was so crackling that people believed that the two were having an affair off-the-sets. However, the duo refuted the reports. Unlike the novel, the film got a huge reception from the audience.
She portrayed the powerful and demanding Miranda Priestly, fashion magazine editor and boss of a college graduate (played by Anne Hathaway). Meryl's performance earned her many award nominations, including her record-setting 14th Oscar bid, as well as another Golden Globe. The film is said to be Streep's biggest commercial success so far, grossing more than US$326.5 million worldwide.
Though Meryl has excelled in serious roles, the actress revels in showing off her lighter side as well. This 2008 film adaptation of the musical of the same name, based on the songs of Swedish pop group ABBA, was a huge hit. She played a single mother and a former girl band member, whose daughter invites three likely paternal candidates to her wedding. Meryl had fun and so did the audience.
The veteran actor reunited with her Mamma Mia! director Phyllida Lloyd for this biopic on Britain's first woman Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. It's regarded as her finest act till date. Meryl sat through a session at the House of Commons to observe British MPs in action to prepare for her role. Streep's performance earned her the Best Actress award at the Golden Globes as well as the BAFTAs and her third Oscar.
In 2013, she starred alongside Julia Roberts in this film about the Weston family, who are at war till a crisis brings them together. Meryl played the role of a manipulative, boozy matriach with panache. The actor received her 28th Golden Globe nomination and 18th Academy Award nomination for this film.
In the director, Rob Marshall's multi-starrer musical 'Into the Woods', the gorgeous actress took on the part of the wicked witch. The beautiful actress transformed into a dishevelled, grey-haired woman with wrinkles. Meryl Streep had also reportedly brushed up her singing skills for the film. The film's cast included Anna Kendrick, Emily Blunt, Johnny Depp, James Corden and Chris Pine. Meryl Streep got her 19th Academy Award nomination for 'Into The Woods' making her the most nominated artiste in Oscar history.
Need we say more about the brilliance of this screen goddess?
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