10 Amazing 2014 Performances That Changed Your Mind About Actors You Hate

8. Keira Knightley - Begin Again

Keira Knightley has had a rough go of it with the critics, hasn't she? She has been built up only to be cruelly torn down, hailed as a talented up-and-comer and then slated for her performances in several costume dramas and blockbusters. Moving quickly from homegrown indies like The Hole and Bend It Like Beckham to Pirates Of The Caribbean and Pride And Prejudice, the backlash against the English actress was strong and the assumption was that Knightley couldn't act. She was wooden, a fake. It is good for Keira Knightley, then, that 2014's Begin Again seems to have shifted critical opinion of her. Knightley, who learned to play the guitar and sing for her role as an aspiring but shy songwriter, has earned many positive notices for her performance in the film. Where did she learn to sing so well? How come her and Mark Ruffalo had such good chemistry together? How come she doesn't completely suck? Was this a new Keira Knightley we were seeing? Well, not exactly. Keira's earlier performances are proof that she could definitely bring it (or bend it), Begin Again just did a good job of reminded people of her talent.