In honor of the actress’ birthday, we’re taking a look at the best Ellen Page movies
Actress and activist Ellen Page has a birthday this month so we’re spotlighting her career to celebrate. Getting her start on Canadian television, Page made her debut on the indie circuit in David Slade’s Hard Candy and went on to star in smaller pictures before her breakout role in Juno received accolades. She also co-starred in blockbuster films like Inception and played Kitty Pryde in X-Men: The Last Stand, later reprising the Marvel role in 20th Century Fox‘s X-Men: Days of Future Past.
A feminist and marriage equality activist, Ellen Page is one of Hollywood’s most dynamic actresses. Over the course of her career, we’ve seen her grow up and continue to make her mark in entertainment. In celebration of her 29th birthday, we’re taking a look back at the very best Ellen Page movies!
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Hard Candy (2005)
In David Slade‘s Hard Candy, Ellen Page portrays Hayley, a pre-teen who lures Jeff, a thirty-two year old photographer (Patrick Wilson) to meet her despite their age difference. After she drugs his drink, Jeff wakes up tied to a chair and Hayley begins to torture him so he’ll admit to being a pedophile. The jarring and twisted 2005 R-rated flick was Page’s springboard to burgeoning as an indie darling.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
Ellen Page actually wasn’t the first actress to play Kitty Pryde in the X-Men films. She replaced two different actresses when taking on the role in the 2006 film. In it, she plays a different version of the character than the one known in the comics. Pryde/Shadowcat shows up as a student at Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters who starts a friendship with Bobby Drake/Iceman. Rogue (Anna Paquin), his girlfriend, sees the interaction as an opportunity for him to possibly have a normal relationship with someone else and it serves as a minor subplot. We get a look at Shadowcat’s ability to move through objects in some of the action scenes, but the role is limited but bigger than in the previous two films.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Juno (2007)
Jason Reitman‘s Juno was Ellen Page’s first major breakout role as the sardonic 16-year old who discovers she’s pregnant and not ready to be a parent. The ’07 movie reached cult film status through Diablo Cody’s witty and very quotable script that centered around Juno’s quest to find parents to her unborn child while still being just a teen. Her relationship with her baby daddy (played by Michael Cera) is also considered one of the most endearing parts of the film and their duet of “Anyone Else But You” is definitely a highlight of the pair’s chemistry.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Whip It (2009)
In 2009, Ellen Page starred in Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, Whip It. As teen pageant reject Bliss Cavendish, Page got to work with an incredible ensemble of actresses who composed the roller derby team the film centers around. In order to spite her mother, Bliss finds her tribe in the cool older chick group that runs in the roller derby circuit. Barrymore’s underrated film was a fun coming-of-age punk rock film with a great cast that included the director, Juliette Lewis, Kristen Wiig, Alia Shawkat, Marcia Gay Harden and rapper Eve.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Inception (2010)
In the stunningly visual and mind-bending Christopher Nolan film Inception, Ellen Page was once again a part of an all-star ensemble that included actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, and Michael Caine. The film follows a professional thief named Cobb (DiCaprio) who, alongside his specialists, isn’t hired to steal anything but rather implant an idea in a mind through dream-traveling technology. Page plays Ariadne, one of his specialists, who aids Cobb through building the dreamscape as the architect. Besides the Batman pictures, Inception is Nolan’s biggest hit due to its ambiguous ending that requires multiple viewings of its audience. Does the top keep spinning or does it stop?
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Super (2010)
Before James Gunn helmed Guardians of the Galaxy, he made an indie (not your average) superhero film called Super. In it, Ellen Page co-stars as Libby, a comic book store clerk who serves as the sidekick to regular guy, Frank (Rainn Wilson) after he decides to fight crime in a superhero costume. The dark comedy explores the dangers of vigilantism even with good intentions. The duo quickly realize that their actions have real consequence and that maybe they can’t take out an entire mob in order for Frank to get his wife back.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
In 2014 when Bryan Singer took back the rebooted X-Men franchise with Days of Future Past, Page returned to play Kitty Pryde in an adaptation of the character’s own storyline. Since the X-Men films are usually the Wolverine show, Pryde’s original role in the comic’s plot was reduced from being the person who travels to the past to the person who helps Wolverine get there.
Ellen Page Movies Spotlight: Freeheld (2015)
Last year, Page starred in this drama directed by Peter Sollett (Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist) alongside Julianne Moore and Steve Carell. The film explored the story of police lieutenant Laurel Hester (Moore) and her registered domestic partner Stacie Andree (Page) who battle to secure her pension benefits when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The film raised awareness of the real-life legal drama that same sex couples experience when their significant other’s aren’t recognized as their next of kin.
(Photo Credit: Dominic Chan / WENN.com)
