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Search the web: Music DVD's Posters Videos CD's Wallpaper Screensavers subsequently became a model. Berry won her first professional acting gig on the TV series Living Dolls, and then appeared on Knots Landing before winning her first big-screen role in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever. It was on the set of the film that she first earned her reputation for her full commitment to acting, reportedly refusing to bathe for weeks in preparation for her portrayal of a crack addict. Following her film debut, Berry was cast opposite Eddie Murphy in Boomerang (1992) as the comedian's love interest; not only did she hold her own against Murphy, but the same year she did acclaimed work in the title role of the Alex Haley miniseries Queen, playing a young woman struggling against the brutal conditions of slavery. After a comedic turn as sultry secretary Sharon Stone in the 1994 live-action version of The Flintsones, Berry returned to more serious fare with her role in the adoption drama Losing Isaiah (1995). Starring opposite Jessica Lange as a former crack addict battling to win custody of her child, who as a baby was adopted by an affluent white couple, Berry earned a mixed reception from critics, some of whom noted that her scenes with Lange highlighted Berry's own shortcomings.
However, critical opinion of the actress' work was
overwhelmingly favorable in 1998, when she starred as a street smart young woman
who comes to the aid of a bumbling politician in Warren Beatty's Bullworth. The
following year, Berry won even greater acclaim -- and an Emmy and Golden Globe
-- for her turn as tragic screen siren Dorothy Dandridge in the made-for-cable
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. Unfortunately, any acclaim Berry enjoyed was
overshadowed by her widely publicized brush with the law in February of 2000,
when she allegedly ran a red light, slammed into another car, and then left the
scene of the accident. The actress, who suffered a gash to her forehead (the
driver of the other car sustained a broken wrist), was booked in a misdemeanor
court in early April of that year.
Fortunately for Berry, her subsequent onscreen work removed the
spotlight from her legal troubles; that same year, she starred as Storm in Bryan
Singer's hugely successful adaptation of The X-Men. Working alongside a cast
that included Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman, Famke Janssen, and Anna Paquin, Berry
was hailed for her work as the first African-American comic book heroine on the
screen. Acclaim was not quite as forthcoming for her work opposite John Travolta
in Dominic Sena's cheesy thriller Swordfish, which touted itself as the first
movie to feature Berry baring her breasts. Unfortunately, it didn't allow for
equal exploitation of the talents that Berry possessed above her collarbone.
Berry again bared more than her character's inner turmoil in
Monster's Ball (2001), a romantic drama directed by Marc Forster that starred
the actress as a woman who becomes involved with a racist ex-cop (Billy Bob
Thornton) who oversaw the prison execution of her husband (Sean Combs). Berry
earned wide critical praise for her work in the film, as well as Golden Globe
and Oscar nominations for Best Actress. And though she may have lost out to
Sissy Spacek in the Golden Globes, her night at the Oscars found Berry the
favored performer as took home a statue for Best Actress. A momentous footnote
in Academy Award history, Berry's win marked the first time an African American
had been bestowed that particular honor. ~ Rebecca Flint, All Movie Guide
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