Jennifer Connelly: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

2. Emma Murdoch/ Anna - Dark City (1998)

As we've seen from our selections so far, Connelly's career has stretched from low-budget horror and cult classics right through to mainstream Oscar glory. But long after her appearance in Labyrinth, she appeared in another film which has gone on to attain cult status. That film was Dark City, which remains one of the most underrated and visually striking films of the late-1990s. Dark City is a neo-noir sci-fi thriller directed by Alex Proyas (The Crow) and co-written by David S. Goyer (Batman Begins). It begins with John Murdoch (Rufus Sewell) waking up in a bath, suffering from amnesia. Soon he finds himself on the run from a group of men called The Strangers, and from police inspector Frank Bumstead (William Hurt) who suspects him of multiple murders. After discovering his real name and that he has psychokinetic powers, he begins unravelling who the Strangers really are... Much like Blade Runner more than a decade earlier, Dark City takes the familiar tropes of film noir and re-fashions them into something both retro and futuristic. Her character may not be as complex as Sean Young's Rachael, but Connelly does rise above generic convention to make Emma a rounded, flawed and believable character. Her sensuality and vulnerability in the nightclub is beautifully counterpointed by her warmth and serenity in the final scene on the pier. And speaking of pier scenes...