Heather Graham names her five favourite movies
The actress Heather Graham appeared in what one could claim to be a number of dark TV shows and films, including Drugstore Cowboy, Twin Peaks, and Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 film Boogie Nights, for which she drew acclaim for her performance as Rollergirl.
Then again, it is evident that Graham has several strings to her acting bow, as she has also lent her talents to a number of lighter roles in films such as License to Drive (her feature film debut), Swingers, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (in which she had a major role) and The Hangover. Let’s take a look at the kind of films Graham admires in a feature with Rotten Tomatoes to see where she might get her acting inspiration from.
First up for Graham is the satirical rom-com Tootsie, directed by Sydney Pollock and released in 1982. The film stars Dustin Hoffman as a gifted but difficult-to-work-with actor whose reputation precedes him so much that he takes on the drastic measure of posing as a female to land a job. “It’s just so funny and fun, and I love it. It’s cool,” Graham said. “I like that its sort of about women, you know? It’s sort of about how he finds the woman inside himself, so there’s sort of like this feminine aspect to it, and I just love Dustin Hoffman.”
Up next is the beloved 1971 Hal Ashby film Harold and Maude, which according to Graham, is “another equal favourite”. The film tells of a young man who rejects the life his mother suggests to him and who develops and friendship and romance with a 79-year-old woman. “I also kind of like a movie to kind of inspire me and make me feel hopeful in a way, and I feel like that movie does that,” Graham added.
Graham couldn’t help but put many people’s favourite film on her list, The Shawshank Redemption. The 1994 film starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman (based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name) told of Andy Dufresne, who is sentenced to life in prison for murdering his wife and children, though he maintains his innocence. “That movie was just so amazing,” Graham noted. “It’s a wild ride because it’s very emotional. But that story between Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman, it’s just this friendship plot that runs through the movie. I just thought that was really powerful.”
The 2009 film Julie & Julia makes its way onto Graham’s list, even though she admits “it’s not really like a classic movie”. The biographical comedy-drama tells of the early culinary career of chef Julia Child, contrasting it to Julie Powell’s story, who wants to cook all 524 recipes in one of Child’s cookbooks in just one year.
Heather Graham’s five favourite movies:
- Tootsie (Sydney Pollock, 1982)
- Harold and Maude (Hal Ashby, 1971)
- The Shawshank Redemption (Frank Darabont, 1994)
- Julie & Julia (Nora Efron, 2009)
- Rushmore (Wes Anderson, 1998)
Finally, Graham concludes: “I also really like Rushmore. the Wes Anderson movie. It’s fun to watch. It is not depressing; it’s just so delightful.” Anderson’s film is about an eccentric boy (played by Jason Schwartzman) who develops a friendship with a rich older man (played by Bill Murray) over their shared affection for a primary school teacher. It’s one of Anderson’s best-loved films and is certainly one of Graham’s.