Here’s the really great part about running down the best of the best from Anna Kendrick: she’s judicious when it comes to selecting her roles so there isn’t some long list of ghastly movies to weed through in order to find 10 kick-ass performances.
Everything she does ranges from pretty solid to downright outstanding, plus anyone that follows her on Twitter understands that she just might be the coolest chick on the face of the planet.
So in the wake of Kendrick and her fellow Bellas soaring to the top of the box office last weekend, here are a few of her performances that we liked the most.
Pitch Perfect
Listen – you can’t talk about the success of Pitch Perfect 2 and not lead off with the original. The unexpected hit that made everyone an aca-believer was quick and cute and funny and wildly entertaining and Kendrick’s overall likeability had a lot to do with that. And for a lot of people her performance as Beca was one of those “damn – she can really sing” moments that made you like her even more.
Up in the Air
This was the role that really put her on the map and made everyone stand up and take notice. Starring alongside George Clooney and Vera Formiga in Jason Reitman’s Oscar nominated dramedy. Kendrick joined her co-stars and director with a nod from the Academy and while both she and Formiga lost in the Best Supporting Actress category (and the film went 0-for-6), her performance as the eager newcomer alongside Clooney’s grizzled veteran drew rave reviews.
The Twilight Saga
When you’re a part of a massively successful series like this, you get props, even if you’re not one of the central figures. Kendrick appeared in four of the five movies (she was credits only in the finale), playing the role of Jessica Stanley, one of Bella’s first friends in Forks. In a series that got as much attention as this one did, Kendrick came away unscathed, which is more than you can say for some of the cast members.
Cake
Spoiler Alert: Anna Kendrick is in Cake, the “Jennifer Aniston should have been nominated for an Oscar” film from last year about a woman (Aniston) dealing with chronic pain. It’s a small, but vital role and she’s vibrant on screen – the perfect foil to Aniston’s broken down, depressed lead.
Into the Woods
Playing “Cinderella” in the recent film adaptation of Steven Sondheim’s Tony Award-winning musical, Kendrick shares screen time with a who’s who of Hollywood standouts (Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, Chris Pine, Johnny Deep) and doesn’t look at all out of place. Instead, she shines bright. Plus, that film paved the way for this:
End of Watch
If we’re dropping clips, all it will take to convince you that you’re going to love Kendrick’s performance opposite Jake Gyllenhall in End of Watch are these two gems:
Drinking Buddies
A sneaky good flick that flew under the radar when it was released, Drinking Buddies is a relationship flick in which Kendrick plays the buttoned-down, focused on marriage girlfriend of Jake Johnson’s craft beer brewery worker. While Johnson and Olivia Wilde are the focal points, Kendrick and Ron Livingston are strong as their respective significant others. Check it out on Netflix if you haven’t seen it.
50/50
The awkward arm-touch scene still gets me every time; it’s just too perfect. Kendrick is so great as the trying-to-hard, “I’m still new to this” shrink and her chemistry with Joseph Gordon-Levitt is great. A future rom-com or dramedy with them as a couple would be rad. Make it happen, Hollywood!
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
This was the “You know she’s great” movie for Kendrick because she doesn’t have a big role in this criminally underrated adaptation of the popular graphic novel – she plays Scott’s sister, Stacey – but you remember ever scene she’s in. Aubrey Plaza’s character is the same way. Can we get a spin-off with Stacey Pilgrim and Julie Powers?
Happy Christmas
Teaming back up with Drinking Buddies writer/director Joe Swanburg, Happy Christmas features Kendrick as a an irresponsible younger sibling that moves in with her brother and his family (played by Swanburg and Melanie Lynskey) and creates chaos. Swanburg is great at making these low key, thoughtful flicks and Kendrick is aces as his leading lady here.
