Happy Birthday Suit: Helena Bonham Carter

I don't remember where, but I once watched a program/interview on Helena Bonham Carter years ago and it discussed her rather auspicious start in A Pattern of Roses.  She began acting in her late teens and described herself as quite terrible in the movie, which other opinions corroborated (kind of like Angelica Huston's debut).  She must have learned pretty quickly and on-the-spot, because it wasn't very long before she was a regular fixture in Merchant-Ivory films.

The Wings of the Dove

I also remember reading she lived with her parents until she was 30 or some odd age like that.  She came across as very down-to-earth and willing to make fun of herself.  Throughout the 1990s, she possibly risked being typecast for the rest of her life as period-British actress were it not for her shrewdly chosen role in Fight Club (which she beat out the likes of Winona Ryder).  Quite the opposite milieu, she played the chain-smoking Maria Singer drenched in eye-liner.  That role led to her unconventional part in Planet of the Apes, where she got to make out with Mark Wahlberg while she had an ape mask on.  This would also begin her personal and professional relationship with quirky director Tim Burton.  They have produced two children and worked together a total of seven times.  In fact, his upcoming feature-length version of the animated Frankenweenie will mark his first film without her since Apes.  If they weren't taking a break from working together, you might say she had typecast herself into a different role.

How come there are so few of
these this season?

For years, her cinematic identity has been inextricably tied to the Burton films and her forays into other franchises (Terminator, Harry Potter) haven't exactly carved her out from the crowd.  Recently, she enjoyed a role in the inspirational juggernaut The King's Speech and an Oscar nomination.  She was the fuel behind her royal majesty's fire, and the success may have led to her playing Miss Havisham in the upcoming Great Expectations.  However, the Oscar buzz is currently, suspiciously dim.  Odd, considering she is one of the few actresses to get the special promotional shot treatment a year in advance.  There's an undeniable confidence to her inclusion in the film.  I guess we shall see.  Director Mike Newell has been behind such films as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Donnie Brasco (which starred Johnny Depp), and Enchanted April.  He also was responsible for helping bring Miranda Richardson to life in Dance with a Stranger.  However, he hasn't had much luck in the 2000s, except for directing a Harry Potter film (not the two she worked on).

Bonham Carter has reunited with the director of The King's Speech to give her singing voice another go on the big screen in Les Misérables.  She'll be starring opposite her husband's favorite male muse in The Long Ranger.  AND, she has a (probably exciting) role in the upcoming Jean-Pierre Jeunet film about TS Spivet.  Today, she turns 46.

Check Out Other Happy Birthday Suit(lesses):

Jennifer Aniston     Ellen Barkin     Drew Barrymore     Annette Bening     Jessica Biel     Juliette Binoche     Cate Blanchett     Helena Bonham Carter     Cher     Glenn Close     Claires Danes     Geena Davis     Kirsten Dunst     Jennifer Garner     Jennifer Grey     Kate Hudson     Holly Hunter     Angelina Jolie     Ashley Judd     Keira Knightley     Jessica Lange     Andie MacDowell     Eva Mendes     Rosie O'Donnell     Lena Olin     Michelle Pfeiffer     Natalie Portman     Emma Thompson     Uma Thurman     Rachel Weisz     Debra Winger     Renée Zellweger

Jennifer Aniston #1     Nicole Kidman #1     Rachel McAdams     Julia Roberts     Winona Ryder