Jodie Foster is one of the most iconic actresses of her generation; without the movies she starred in, film history would be completely changed. She was born in Los Angeles and was a highly intelligent child. Her mother was a publicist for a film producer who sought get her children in the industry, and, at the age of three, Foster starred in her first commercial for sunscreen. This opened the floodgates into film and television, as she managed to appear in fifty television shows before becoming a regular in Disney films.

But once her mother, now her manager, decided that Foster needed to transition to adult roles, MartinScorsese decided to cast her in his 1976 film Taxi Driver. It was in Taxi Driverthat Foster had her breakthrough and began to see acting as a craft. Since then, she has continued to stun audiences around the world and has moved behind the camera as a director.

Her trophy case now features two Academy Awards, three Golden Globes Awards, and being in a film that won the Palm d’Or, among many other honors. Her career boasts over forty films, some of which she both directed and acted in. With such an impressive resume, it can be a little tough to figure out which films to watch first. Nevertheless, here are the 10 films we just can’t live without.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

10 Taxi Driver

     Columbia Pictures

Taxi Driver is set in New York City after the Vietnam War. The film’s protagonist, Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro), is a Vietnam War veteran with PTSD. Suffering from insomnia, Bickle decides to become a taxi driver during the night to be more productive. Disillusioned with life and amid an existentialist crisis, he meets Iris (Foster), a child prostitute. The film evokes the sensation of being stuck between being awake and sleeping. Indeed, the dreamlike quality of the camerawork and blocking offers additional insight into Travis’ mind. Foster was twelve years old when she appeared in the film and had to undergo psychological tests in order to play the character. What’s more, controversy arose from the subject matter of her scenes, but her performance was nevertheless outstanding. She and De Niro were both nominated for Academy Awards for their roles.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

9 Freaky Friday

     Walt Disney Productions

Freaky Friday has been an iconic movie for several generations: four different versions of the movie have come out in less than fifty years. It’s a lighthearted, humorous film with an unassuming and simple plot. A mother (Barbara Harris) and daughter (Foster) accidentally switch bodies after fighting on Friday the 13th. Forced to confront the lives and people that the other faces, they get a lot more understanding towards each other’s situations. Both Harris and Foster were nominated for a Golden Globes for their performance, demonstrating how popular the film was when it was released.

8 The Accused

     Paramount Pictures

Years before #MeToo took the world by storm, The Accused tackled the topics of classism, misogyny, and shaming women who have been assaulted, raped, or abused. The Accused was based on real-life events that occurred in 1983; Foster’s character, a waitress named Sarah, is brutally gang-raped by three men, and onlookers do nothing about what’s happening in front of them. The film then pivots in the fight for justice, as Sarah joins forces with a local prosecutor (Kelly McGillis) to try and get these men behind bars for what they’ve done.

7 Inside Man

     Universal Pictures

The 2006 Spike Lee film Inside Man features Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, and Foster as individuals tangled in the same situation: a bank heist occurring on Wall Street. Inside Man was a commercial success, garnering $184.4 million globally, and praise for the actors’ performances was abundant. Foster portrayed a power broker meant to fix the heist situation; she was overjoyed at the prospect of working with director Spike Lee due to being a fan of his previous movies.

6 Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore

     Warner Bros.

Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore was Scorsese’s and Foster’s first collaboration. The film was released in 1974 after competing for the Palm d’Or at Cannes Film Festival, and it was considered a critical success after drawing in USD 21 million. The movie stars Ellen Burstyn as a mother who decides to move her family to California after her husband’s death. Foster didn’t play a major character in this film, as she was still starting during this time, but she played the role of Audrey, a tomboy with tendencies for shoplifting and chugging flavored fortified wines. After this collaboration, Foster and Scorsese would later work together in Taxi Driver.

5 Sommersby

     Le Studio Canal+ | Regency Enterprises

In Sommersby, Foster is paired with actor Richard Gere in a period drama set in the Reconstruction era of American history. She portrays a woman in Tennessee whose husband has been missing for six years, having gone to fight in the American Civil War with no trace of him having been found. Her husband was abusive and toxic, and she seemed quite at peace living without him, but then a man claiming to be him shows up—and he seems to have switched personalities. The film was a hit with audiences, as many enjoyed the chemistry between Gere and Foster.

4 Bugsy Malone

     Goodtime Enterprises

Bugsy Malone is the gangster spoof that the world never knew it needed. It’s classified as a gangster musical comedy and all adult roles are played by child actors, including Foster. The movie was geared and marketed towards children, replacing bullets with whipped cream. It competed for the Palm d’Or at Cannes Film Festival; it captivated audiences with its catchy tunes, bright visuals, and solid performances by the actors. Foster’s role is a gun mull– a woman who serves as a companion to a crime boss.

3 The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane

     Claremont Productions

Starring Jodie Foster and Martin Sheen, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane mixes genre: it could be classified as horror, thriller, or mystery. The location is in a small conservative Maine town, and Foster’s character has just moved into town from England with her absentee father. This film was controversial because Foster’s character, a thirteen-year-old girl, has a nude scene and many believed it to be Foster herself. However, it was not her. The film opened to mixed reviews but has since gone on to establish its status as a cult film.

2 Silence of the Lambs

     Strong Heart Productions

Silence of the Lambs is considered by many to be one of the greatest films ever made since its successful debut in 1991. As Clarice Starling, Foster starts hunting a serial killer and must turn to the advice of another serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lector (Anthony Hopkins). The film won every major category at the Academy Awards that year and is, to this day, the only horror film to win Best Picture.

1 Panic Room

Jodie Foster and a young Kristen Stewart play a mother-daughter duo in this 2002 thriller. Panic Room was David Fincher’s follow-up to his 1999 film Fight Club, a classic cult movie to the generation that grew up with it. After moving into an Upper West Side brownstone in New York City, their home is broken into by three burglars. The role of the home itself plays an impact on the narrative, but it’s the feminist undertones and outstanding performances from its actors that lend cultural resonance to the film.