Today is Jane Fonda's 75th birthday. Here are a few reasons this is important. 1) Jane Fonda is my favorite movie star of all time. She's about grit, compassion, vulnerability, whip-smart instincts, and a heavy soulfulness. She's basically the Annie Lennox of acting. 2) She is JANE. FONDA. 3) The woman is 75. Can you stand the immense glamor? Because the Mayans cannot. I want to hear your choices for Jayne Seymour Fonda's greatest work in the comments, but in the meantime, I'll ebulliently list my top five picks. I'm already roping the wind like Cat Ballou.
5. Nine to Five
Nine to Five is both a drop-dead funny comedy and the most dowdy-decadent fashion show of 1980. As beleaguered secretary Judy Bernly, Jane fights with the copy machine with the same vigor she reserves for eviscerating Mitt Romney on Twitter. I love seeing Jane act alongside such kickass, defiant women, especially if they're all bonded together in the pursuit of tying up Dabney Coleman. In the above clip, she spouts the most damning line of the movie. Ow, ow!
4. Klute
Jane's first Oscar-winning role was a revelatory moment in her career. As mysterious call girl Bree Daniels, Jane lit up her therapist sessions with a disarming ability to be as chilly and vulnerable as she liked. Can you take your eyes off her as she discusses the travails and psychological games of prostitution? I bet you one expensive shag haircut you can't.
3. The China Syndrome
Kimberly Wells wants to be a more serious on-air newswoman, but she's stuck reporting on singing telegrams and human interest stories. Then, when a nuclear meltdown almost swallows up L.A. (in a fiasco that foreshadowed the real-life Three Mile Island disaster), Kimberly fights to prove her mettle as a hard-hitting reporter, and her investigation leads her into a scary world of intrigue. Jane is so compelling and believable as the determined Wells that her final scene, in which she shoves a microphone into the right person's face, is simply thrilling.
2. Julia
Julia is a flawed biopic of Lillian Hellman that veers from one story concerning the longtime affair between Hellman (Fonda) and Dashiell Hammett (Jason Robards) to another about Hellman's relationship with the quirky, elusive Julia (Vanessa Redgrave). Ultimately, Hellman herself is more interesting than both of her pals, and the reason is because Jane Fonda gives the role a dogged, yet tender edge that makes her seem both larger-than-life and deeply human. I love when actors capture the essence of a writer, and here, Jane is unmatched as one of the great playwrights of the 20th century. (Though, credit where it's due: Judy Davis also ruled as Hellman inDash and Lilly.)
1. They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
Jane scored her first Oscar nomination as the somewhat unknowable Gloria, a contender in a grueling weeks-long dance marathon during the 1930s. Gloria's extreme fatigue and utter cynicism become metaphors for rough aspects of the human condition, and she simply could not be more amazing, painfully brilliant, or cool here. And that hair? That hair! She's a marvel, and she's matched by a wonderful cast (including Michael Sarrazin, Susannah York, and Gig Young) and an ace script.
Runners-Up: Walk on the Wild Side, The Morning After, Agnes of God, Fun With Dick and Jane
So hit me: What's your pick for Jane's best work?
