One of the most famous women in the world, Angelina Jolie, started acting right out of high school. Despite her outward appearance, she has described herself as an awkward outsider at Beverly Hills High School, where she was teased because by her rich classmates. She lived with her mother in an apartment, and the family existed only on child support from her father actor Jon Voight, who had financial problems of his own. She later transferred to a different school and found her identity as what she describes as “a punk chick with tattoos.”
She began her career in a series of forgettable films (“Cyborg 2” anyone?) but then suddenly grabbed attention in the TV mini-series “George Wallace.” The series depicted the life of the title character, who was a controversial governor of Alabama and a presidential candidate. Jolie received very positive reviews as his second wife, Cornelia. Later that same year she would gain even more attention and another set of superlative reviews for her performance in the HBO film “Gia,” which told the true-life story of a famous model who succumbed to drug addiction and then died as one of the early victims of the AIDS crisis. Jolie’s electric performance gained the attention of Winona Ryder, and she was soon cast in a key supporting role in Ryder’s passion project “Girl, Interrupted” about a group of young women committed to a mental institution.
These three roles earned Jolie three consecutive Golden Globe Awards winning Best TV Supporting Actress in 1998, Best TV Movie/Miniseries Actress in 1999, and then Best Film Supporting Actress in 2000. She would also win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for “Girl, Interrupted.” In 2014 she would receive the Academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. She and her father who won the Best Actor Oscar in 1978 for “Coming Home” would join Henry Fonda and Jane Fonda in the record books as the only fathers and daughters to each win Academy Awards.
Tour our photo gallery featuring Jolie’s 15 greatest film performances, which include “Changeling,” “Maleficent,” “A Mighty Heart” and “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.”
15. BY THE SEA (2015)
Director and writer: Angelina Jolie. Starring Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Melvil Poupaud.
Jolie wrote, directed, and starred along with her then husband Brad Pitt in this film about a troubled marriage which many thought was a comment on their own marriage. It may have actually been pretty close to reality since the couple would split less than a year after the film was released. The two play a couple visiting a French seaside resort where their vacation is interrupted by troubled feelings the two have towards each other.
Photo : Merrick Morton/Universal/Jolie Pas/Pellikola/Plan B/Kobal/Shutterstock
15. BY THE SEA (2015)
Director and writer: Angelina Jolie. Starring Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Melvil Poupaud.
Jolie wrote, directed, and starred along with her then husband Brad Pitt in this film about a troubled marriage which many thought was a comment on their own marriage. It may have actually been pretty close to reality since the couple would split less than a year after the film was released. The two play a couple visiting a French seaside resort where their vacation is interrupted by troubled feelings the two have towards each other.
Photo : Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
14. ALEXANDER (2004)
Director: Oliver Stone. Writers: Oliver Stone, Christopher Kyle, Laeta Kalogridis. Starring Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, Anthony Hopkins.
Oliver Stone’s historical epic about Alexander the Great, the king of Macedonia was greeted with less than enthusiastic reviews upon its release in 2004 but the film remains an interesting look at that period of ancient history. Jolie plays Alexander’s mother even though she is only a year older than Colin Farrell who played Alexander. Jolie’s exotic looks and regal bearing are fascinating to watch and Stone uses them to great effect in this depiction of Queen Olympias.
Photo : Merrick Morton/Universal/Jolie Pas/Pellikola/Plan B/Kobal/Shutterstock
15. BY THE SEA (2015)
Director and writer: Angelina Jolie. Starring Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Melvil Poupaud.
Jolie wrote, directed, and starred along with her then husband Brad Pitt in this film about a troubled marriage which many thought was a comment on their own marriage. It may have actually been pretty close to reality since the couple would split less than a year after the film was released. The two play a couple visiting a French seaside resort where their vacation is interrupted by troubled feelings the two have towards each other.
Photo : Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
14. ALEXANDER (2004)
Director: Oliver Stone. Writers: Oliver Stone, Christopher Kyle, Laeta Kalogridis. Starring Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, Anthony Hopkins.
Oliver Stone’s historical epic about Alexander the Great, the king of Macedonia was greeted with less than enthusiastic reviews upon its release in 2004 but the film remains an interesting look at that period of ancient history. Jolie plays Alexander’s mother even though she is only a year older than Colin Farrell who played Alexander. Jolie’s exotic looks and regal bearing are fascinating to watch and Stone uses them to great effect in this depiction of Queen Olympias.
Photo : Studio Canal/REX/Shutterstock
13. THE TOURIST (2010)
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Writers: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Christopher McQuarrie, Julian Fellowes. Starring Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Timothy Dalton.
“The Tourist” is unfortunately best remembered for being the subject of some of Ricky Gervais’ most comic barbs when he hosted the Golden Globe Awards and the film rather inexplicably earned three nominations for Best Picture, Actor and Actress in the comedy categories. Jolie herself expressed amusement at the placement laughing on the red carpet that she never thought of herself as particularly funny but apparently the Hollywood Foreign Press did. The film is actually move of a caper film with Depp a tourist traveling in Italy and Jolie a woman he meets on a train who is involved in an elaborate conspiracy plot.
12. THE GOOD SHEPHERD (2006)
Director: Robert De Niro. Writer: Eric Roth. Starring Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Alec Baldwin.
Robert De Niro directed and has a supporting role in this film that takes an inside look at the beginnings and evolution of the C.I.A. (Central Intelligence Agency.) Matt Damon stars as an early C.I.A. operative and the film follows him through college thru his work with the government. The character is loosely based on some key historical figures but not one in particular. Jolie is cast as Damon’s wife. The role doesn’t really offer her too much to do but Jolie likely accepted the part to work with De Niro.
Photo : Merrick Morton/Universal/Jolie Pas/Pellikola/Plan B/Kobal/Shutterstock
15. BY THE SEA (2015)
Director and writer: Angelina Jolie. Starring Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Melvil Poupaud.
Jolie wrote, directed, and starred along with her then husband Brad Pitt in this film about a troubled marriage which many thought was a comment on their own marriage. It may have actually been pretty close to reality since the couple would split less than a year after the film was released. The two play a couple visiting a French seaside resort where their vacation is interrupted by troubled feelings the two have towards each other.
Photo : Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
14. ALEXANDER (2004)
Director: Oliver Stone. Writers: Oliver Stone, Christopher Kyle, Laeta Kalogridis. Starring Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, Anthony Hopkins.
Oliver Stone’s historical epic about Alexander the Great, the king of Macedonia was greeted with less than enthusiastic reviews upon its release in 2004 but the film remains an interesting look at that period of ancient history. Jolie plays Alexander’s mother even though she is only a year older than Colin Farrell who played Alexander. Jolie’s exotic looks and regal bearing are fascinating to watch and Stone uses them to great effect in this depiction of Queen Olympias.
Photo : Studio Canal/REX/Shutterstock
13. THE TOURIST (2010)
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Writers: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Christopher McQuarrie, Julian Fellowes. Starring Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Timothy Dalton.
“The Tourist” is unfortunately best remembered for being the subject of some of Ricky Gervais’ most comic barbs when he hosted the Golden Globe Awards and the film rather inexplicably earned three nominations for Best Picture, Actor and Actress in the comedy categories. Jolie herself expressed amusement at the placement laughing on the red carpet that she never thought of herself as particularly funny but apparently the Hollywood Foreign Press did. The film is actually move of a caper film with Depp a tourist traveling in Italy and Jolie a woman he meets on a train who is involved in an elaborate conspiracy plot.
Photo : Andrew Schwartz/Warner Brothers/Kobal/Shutterstock
12. THE GOOD SHEPHERD (2006)
Director: Robert De Niro. Writer: Eric Roth. Starring Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Alec Baldwin.
Robert De Niro directed and has a supporting role in this film that takes an inside look at the beginnings and evolution of the C.I.A. (Central Intelligence Agency.) Matt Damon stars as an early C.I.A. operative and the film follows him through college thru his work with the government. The character is loosely based on some key historical figures but not one in particular. Jolie is cast as Damon’s wife. The role doesn’t really offer her too much to do but Jolie likely accepted the part to work with De Niro.
Photo : Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock
11. SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW (2004)
Director and writer: Kerry Conran. Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Giovanni Ribisi.
Jolie only spent three days working on this film but she made a strong impact in her role. The inventive science fiction fantasy was a bit of a flop at the box office when first released but it managed to find a cult following due largely to its inventive visual effects. Jolie plays a commander in the Royal Navy and is quite effective and fierce in her small role.
10. GONE IN 60 SECONDS (2000)
Director: Dominic Sena. Writers: H.B. Halicki, Scott Rosenberg. Starring Nicolas Cage, Giovanni Ribisi, Scott Caan.
Jolie had another small role almost a cameo really in this action thriller starring Nicolas Cage. The film was being made right around the same time Jolie was receiving massive amounts of Oscar attention for “Girl, Interrupted.” Cage related a story once how Jolie would take him to supermarkets while shooting where they’d buy their own lunches. She felt doing things like that kept her in touch with reality and normal people as opposed to the Hollywood hoopla that was surrounding her. Cage plays a car thief who comes out of retirement to steal 50 cars in one night in order to save his brother’s life. Jolie plays another car thief who was once in a relationship with Cage’s character.
9. LARA CROFT TOMB RAIDER (2001)
Director: Simon West. Writers: Patrick Massett, John Zinman. Starring Jon Voight, Iain Glen, Daniel Craig.
Jolie brought the popular video game character Lara Croft to movie screens in this highly successful action adventure thriller. The film follows Croft on a series of adventures around the world. Jolie also did a sequel to the film a few years later and more recently Alicia Vikander took over the role for another version of the character. The interesting thing about this film is that it reunited Jolie with her real-life father Jon Voight with whom she had had a strained relationship for many years. Voight plays Croft’s father in the film.
8. PUSHING TIN (1999)
Director: Mike Newell. Writers: Glen Charles, Les Charles. Starring John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Cate Blanchett.
Pushing tin is a slang phrase used to describe air traffic controllers who make their living by directing planes over the nation’s crowded airspace. This film casts John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton as two controllers who become involved in a competitive conflict filled relationship ignited chiefly by Cusack having an affair with Thornton’s unhappy wife. Jolie plays the unhappy wife. Jolie and Thornton would marry in real life the year after this film was released and would quickly develop a reputation as one of Hollywood’s most eccentric couples. Their gothic vampire-ish attire and their jewelry in which they carried vials of each other’s blood made them a fixture of fascination on many red carpets.
Photo : Merrick Morton/Universal/Jolie Pas/Pellikola/Plan B/Kobal/Shutterstock
15. BY THE SEA (2015)
Director and writer: Angelina Jolie. Starring Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Melvil Poupaud.
Jolie wrote, directed, and starred along with her then husband Brad Pitt in this film about a troubled marriage which many thought was a comment on their own marriage. It may have actually been pretty close to reality since the couple would split less than a year after the film was released. The two play a couple visiting a French seaside resort where their vacation is interrupted by troubled feelings the two have towards each other.
Photo : Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
14. ALEXANDER (2004)
Director: Oliver Stone. Writers: Oliver Stone, Christopher Kyle, Laeta Kalogridis. Starring Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, Anthony Hopkins.
Oliver Stone’s historical epic about Alexander the Great, the king of Macedonia was greeted with less than enthusiastic reviews upon its release in 2004 but the film remains an interesting look at that period of ancient history. Jolie plays Alexander’s mother even though she is only a year older than Colin Farrell who played Alexander. Jolie’s exotic looks and regal bearing are fascinating to watch and Stone uses them to great effect in this depiction of Queen Olympias.
Photo : Studio Canal/REX/Shutterstock
13. THE TOURIST (2010)
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Writers: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Christopher McQuarrie, Julian Fellowes. Starring Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Timothy Dalton.
“The Tourist” is unfortunately best remembered for being the subject of some of Ricky Gervais’ most comic barbs when he hosted the Golden Globe Awards and the film rather inexplicably earned three nominations for Best Picture, Actor and Actress in the comedy categories. Jolie herself expressed amusement at the placement laughing on the red carpet that she never thought of herself as particularly funny but apparently the Hollywood Foreign Press did. The film is actually move of a caper film with Depp a tourist traveling in Italy and Jolie a woman he meets on a train who is involved in an elaborate conspiracy plot.
Photo : Andrew Schwartz/Warner Brothers/Kobal/Shutterstock
12. THE GOOD SHEPHERD (2006)
Director: Robert De Niro. Writer: Eric Roth. Starring Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Alec Baldwin.
Robert De Niro directed and has a supporting role in this film that takes an inside look at the beginnings and evolution of the C.I.A. (Central Intelligence Agency.) Matt Damon stars as an early C.I.A. operative and the film follows him through college thru his work with the government. The character is loosely based on some key historical figures but not one in particular. Jolie is cast as Damon’s wife. The role doesn’t really offer her too much to do but Jolie likely accepted the part to work with De Niro.
Photo : Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock
11. SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW (2004)
Director and writer: Kerry Conran. Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Giovanni Ribisi.
Jolie only spent three days working on this film but she made a strong impact in her role. The inventive science fiction fantasy was a bit of a flop at the box office when first released but it managed to find a cult following due largely to its inventive visual effects. Jolie plays a commander in the Royal Navy and is quite effective and fierce in her small role.
Photo : Moviestore/Shutterstock
10. GONE IN 60 SECONDS (2000)
Director: Dominic Sena. Writers: H.B. Halicki, Scott Rosenberg. Starring Nicolas Cage, Giovanni Ribisi, Scott Caan.
Jolie had another small role almost a cameo really in this action thriller starring Nicolas Cage. The film was being made right around the same time Jolie was receiving massive amounts of Oscar attention for “Girl, Interrupted.” Cage related a story once how Jolie would take him to supermarkets while shooting where they’d buy their own lunches. She felt doing things like that kept her in touch with reality and normal people as opposed to the Hollywood hoopla that was surrounding her. Cage plays a car thief who comes out of retirement to steal 50 cars in one night in order to save his brother’s life. Jolie plays another car thief who was once in a relationship with Cage’s character.
Photo : Moviestore/Shutterstock
9. LARA CROFT TOMB RAIDER (2001)
Director: Simon West. Writers: Patrick Massett, John Zinman. Starring Jon Voight, Iain Glen, Daniel Craig.
Jolie brought the popular video game character Lara Croft to movie screens in this highly successful action adventure thriller. The film follows Croft on a series of adventures around the world. Jolie also did a sequel to the film a few years later and more recently Alicia Vikander took over the role for another version of the character. The interesting thing about this film is that it reunited Jolie with her real-life father Jon Voight with whom she had had a strained relationship for many years. Voight plays Croft’s father in the film.
Photo : Moviestore/Shutterstock
8. PUSHING TIN (1999)
Director: Mike Newell. Writers: Glen Charles, Les Charles. Starring John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Cate Blanchett.
Pushing tin is a slang phrase used to describe air traffic controllers who make their living by directing planes over the nation’s crowded airspace. This film casts John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton as two controllers who become involved in a competitive conflict filled relationship ignited chiefly by Cusack having an affair with Thornton’s unhappy wife. Jolie plays the unhappy wife. Jolie and Thornton would marry in real life the year after this film was released and would quickly develop a reputation as one of Hollywood’s most eccentric couples. Their gothic vampire-ish attire and their jewelry in which they carried vials of each other’s blood made them a fixture of fascination on many red carpets.
Photo : Moviestore/Shutterstock
7. THE BONE COLLECTOR (1999)
Director: Phillip Noyce. Writer: Jeremy Iacone. Starring Denzel Washington, Queen Latifah, Michael Rooker.
While it owes a bit of its plot to “The Silence of the Lambs” this film is still an interesting thriller about the tracking of a serial killer. While in “The Silence of the Lambs” the FBI trainee gains her info from the imprisoned Dr. Lecter, in this film Jolie plays a rookie homicide detective who is sent out in the field to investigate with info she gets from a former homicide detective (Denzel Washington) who is now a quadriplegic confined to a hospital bed. This was Jolie’s first starring lead role in a major Hollywood film.
6. MR. AND MRS. SMITH (2005)
Director: Doug Liman. Writer: Simon Kinberg. Starring Brad Pitt, Adam Brody, Vince Vaughn.
If “By the Sea” is the film that vicariously depicted the end of the Jolie-Pitt marriage, “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” is the film that was there for the beginning of the Jolie/Pitt union. They are cast as a married couple with a troubled marriage who are paid assassins and are hired by various people to kill each other. The film is a tight action thriller and what or wasn’t happening between the two stars off-screen only adds to the film’s interest.
5. PLAYING BY HEART (1998)
Director and writer: Willard Carroll. Starring Gillian Anderson, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Connery.
This small independent film with a stellar cast was released prior to Jolie gaining full status as a movie star and recognizable personality. It is not to be missed though and features one of Jolie’s most touching and heartfelt performances. She plays a sensitive young woman with a love of helping injured animals. In a club she frequents she meets Ryan Phillippe as a young man who seemingly is interested in her romantically but for some reason always backs away as they are about to get close. Jolie is vibrant and loving as she slowly learns why Phillippe is having trouble committing fully to the relationship.
4. MALEFICENT (2014)
Director: Robert Stromberg. Writers: Linda Woolverton. Starring Elle Fanning, Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton.
Maleficent was the evil fairy in who places a curse in the heroine in Disney’s classic animated film “Sleeping Beauty.” This live action film expands the story and tells how Maleficent came to be the evil creature she is. Jolie’s striking beauty and intense eyes bring the animated character to life with an authenticity usually lacking in these Disney live action versions of their animated films.
3. CHANGELING (2008)
Director: Clint Eastwood. Writer: J. Michael Straczynski. Starring John Malkovitch, Colm Feore, Amy Ryan.
Jolie earned Best Actress nominations for the Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG awards for this unique film from director Clint Eastwood. Jolie plays a young single mother whose son disappears in 1928 Los Angeles. When the police “find” the child Jolie insists the boy they have given her is not her son but a different boy. What follows is an exploration of whether Jolie is losing her mind or if some more sinister police conspiracy is going on. This is an interesting change of pace role for Jolie who usually played more emotional and outwardly charismatic characters. Here she plays a woman who is a bit shy, awkward and not one of the more extroverted women she usually played.
2. A MIGHTY HEART (2007)
Director: Michael Winterbottom. Writer: John Orloff. Starring Dan Futterman.
Jolie has one of her most emotional roles as Mariane Pearl the wife of journalist Daniel Pearl who was kidnapped and beheaded while covering a story in Pakistan. She earned Golden Globe and SAG Best Actress nominations for her role but was surprisingly omitted from the Oscar race. Jolie gives a deeply felt performance as her character goes from worried disbelief to deep despair and painful grieving when she finds out her husband’s fate.
1. GIRL, INTERRUPTED (1999)
Director: James Mangold. Writers: James Mangold, Lisa Loomer, Anna Hamilton Phelan. Starring Winona Ryder, Whoopi Goldberg, Brittany Murphy.
Jolie caused quite a sensation with her role as a sociopathic young woman who has spent most of her life in a mental institution. She won The Golden Globe, SAG award and Oscar as Best Supporting Actress as the troubled Lisa who befriends Winona Ryder when Ryder’s character Susanna is placed in the same ward to treat her borderline personality disorder. Jolie is simply galvanic in this film as she goes from crazed, to enraged, to wise, to funny and even more emotions all with in a matter of minutes sometimes. Her scene where she evilly talks a character played by Brittany Murphy into suicide is a hair on the arms raising piece of acting that Jolie pulls off to perfection.
