Julia Robert’s top five performances –

5. Ben is back (2018)

There is an ever-changing dynamic built into the relationship between mother and son in this forgotten drama and by all accounts it is the seasoned, natural, super-present Julia Roberts who carries the most important scenes on her shoulders throughout the story. There are certainly parts of the plot here that don’t quite work for me, and I think there are many weaknesses in the way Lucas Hedges portrays the addicted Ben, but Roberts is fantastic in exactly every second she spends in front of the camera.

4. Duplicity (2009)

Tony Gilroy’s absolutely brilliant (and painfully underrated and funny) corporate thriller is steeped in character, pace, humor and charm even as it portrays the most ruthless side of industrial espionage, and here Roberts gives a timelessly excellent performance as the relentlessly intelligent Claire Stenwick. Here Roberts manages to be as beautiful as she is dangerous, as witty as she is inventive.

3. August: Osage County

The dysfunctional collection of women in the Weston family and their clash in the aftermath of tragedy was probably originally intended as a performance by Meryl Streep as the rude, uncompromising mother, but in retrospect it is Roberts who steals the show. Roberts is the star here, and Tracy Letts’ Pulitzer Prize -winning Broadway play is transformed by Roberts’ performance into a compelling, fascinating, funny and dark tale of emotional baggage.

2. Erin Brokovich (2000)

Roberts won an Oscar for her role as small-town lawyer Brockovich (based on true events) and there was never a question mark there. Because she is always brilliant here. Soderbergh’s often somewhat neurotic directorial style is an excellent contrast to Roberts’ charming, confident and tough portrayal of Brokovich, and she is hypnotically good in every scene.

1. Closer (2004)

The most compelling role Roberts has ever played is undoubtedly in Mike Nichols’ film adaptation of Patrick Marber’s award-winning play, in which she portrays Anna, a tough photographer to say the least, who finds herself in the middle of a rare, rocky relationship drama between two couples where verbal blows fly through the air and any emotion is completely decimated by regular transgressions. Roberts’ intensity as Anna is perfectly matched by Clive Owen’s buttoned-up, stressed-out nervousness, and in many ways this is a pure display of consistently excellent acting.