Is Kate Winslet the greatest actor of her generation? The fact that the answer is “maybe” speaks volumes. For over 30 years, Winslet has been one of Hollywood’s premier actresses, one with a resume that speaks volumes. You could get lost on the page listing Winslet’s accolades: one Oscar, one Grammy, three SAGs, five Golden Globes, five BAFTAs.
Winslet could find herself in the awards conversation again with the biopic “Lee.” Winslet stars as Lee Miller, a former model-turned-wartime photographer working for Vogue during World War II. With "Lee" currently playing in theaters, we ranked Winslet’s seven best movie performances.
7. ‘The Reader’
If you win an Oscar (more on that later) for a performance, it has to go on the list. In “The Reader,” Winslet stars as Hanna Schmitz, a tram conductor in 1958 Berlin who begins an affair with 15-year-old Michael Berg (David Kross). Years later, Michael (Ralph Fiennes), now a law student, learns Hanna is on trial for a war crime during her time as a Holocaust security guard at Auschwitz.
Winslet had the impossible task of finding empathy for a woman involved in horrific crimes against humanity. Yet Winslet successfully gave a moving performance of a flawed, guilt-ridden woman. Winslet won her only Oscar for Best Actress. However, it should have been in the supporting category, and Winslet should have won Best Actress for another role on this list.
6. ‘Sense and Sensibility’
Backed by her theatrical training and British charm, Winslet is the perfect actress to star in a Jane Austen adaptation. For her second film credit, Winslet starred as Marianne Dashwood in “Sense and Sensibility.” After the death of their father, sisters Marianne and Elinor (Emma Thompson) are left with little inheritance, meaning they must find wealthy suitors to be their husbands. On the search for a husband, Marianne becomes torn between the older Colonel Brandon (Alan Rickman) and the dashing John Willoughby (Greg Wise).
“Sense and Sensibility” predominantly serves as a showcase for Thompson, with her script winning the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. However, Winslet proved that even at a young age, she had the talent to become a star in this business.
Watch on Prime Video
5. ‘Steve Jobs’
It takes a special actor to handle the walk-and-talks, extended monologues and quippy dialogue in an Aaron Sorkin script. Winslet was up for the challenge and delivered in “Steve Jobs,” Danny Boyle’s biopic covering three seminal moments in the life of Steve Jobs.
Michael Fassbender plays Apple’s visionary, while Winslet plays Joanna Hoffman, a marketing executive and Jobs’ right-hand man. Despite minor issues over the Polish accent, Winslet’s conviction shines as she more than holds her own against a powerful performance from Fassbender.
4. ‘Little Children’
Winslet transforms into another flawed character in Todd Field’s “Little Children.” Sarah Pierce (Winslet) is an unhappy suburban housewife to a porn-addicted husband. One day at the playground with her young daughter, Sarah meets Brad (Patrick Wilson), a handsome law student with a filmmaker wife (Jennifer Connelly) and son.
Sarah and Brad embark on a sexually-driven affair, as the two use each other as an escape from their failing marriages. “Little Children” is a painstakingly all-too-real look into the problems faced by many American middle-class marriages. At the center of the film is Winslet, who impressively brings emotional vulnerability to a woman at a crossroads in her life.
3. ‘Titanic’
Winslet became a global megastar overnight as Rose in “Titanic.” James Cameron’s epic disaster film chronicled the tragic Titanic voyage through the romance of Rose, a teenager set to marry into a wealthy family, and Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a penniless artist who won a ticket in a last-minute poker game.
Over the course of a few days, Rose and Jack meet, dance, and fall in love, as they plan for life when they reach America. Then, the ship hits the iceberg, and “Titanic” becomes a survival movie as these star-crossed lovers fight to stay alive. Compared to DiCaprio, Winslet had a harder job, considering her character is a spoiled brat. By the end, Rose becomes the heroine as the audience roots for her survival. The one misstep: She should have made room for Jack on the door.
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2. ‘Revolutionary Road’
Winslet reunited with DiCaprio for Sam Mendes’ adaptation of “Revolutionary Road.” Winslet plays April Wheeler, an aspiring actress who falls in love with and marries April Wheeler in the 1950s. The couple buys a house in Connecticut on Revolutionary Road, which becomes the bane of their existence.
Winslet and DiCaprio viscerally tear into each other in several standout arguments as their marriage dies a slow, painful death. Whatever magic Winslet and DiCaprio created in “Titanic” returned for “Revolutionary Road” because their chemistry is dynamite. Every insult and proclamation shouted by Winslet hits like a powerful bullet straight to the heart. This is the role Winslet should have won the Best Actress statute for in 2009.
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1. ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’
While Winslet’s romance with DiCaprio in “Titanic” is her most iconic, her on-and-off relationship with Jim Carrey in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is her best work. In the Michael Gondry-directed film, Winslet plays Clementine Kruczynski, Joel Barish’s (Carrey) blue-haired girlfriend.
After their two-year relationship ends, Clementine undergoes a procedure to remove her memories of Joel. Clementine is unhinged and erratic, but through Joel’s memories, you can see why he fell in love with the free-spirited extrovert. This fearlessness of being vulnerable puts Winslet in rare air as an actor. Elevated by Charlie Kaufman’s Oscar-winning script, Winslet is equally heartbreaking and uplifting in a career-best performance.
Watch on Netflix
