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Kathryn Bigelow

Kathryn Bigelow

Kathryn Bigelow, according to Variety, is an audaciously talented filmmaker determined to push the envelope for women directors," and in the course of her career, she has distinguished herself as one of Hollywood's most innovative filmmakers.

In 1985, Bigelow directed and also co-wrote the stirring cult classic Near Dark. Produced by Steven-Charles Jaffe, the film was critically lauded as poetic horror, and as always, Bigelow's visual style garnered positive reactions from the press who described it as "dreamy, passionate and terrifying, a hallucinatory vision of the American night-world that becomes both seductive and devastating. Following the release of Near Dark," the Museum of Modern Art honored Bigelow with a career retrospective.

In 1991, Bigelow directed the action thriller Point Break, starring Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze. Executive produced by James Cameron, Point Break explored the dangerous extremes of a psychological struggle between two young men. Regarding Bigelow's work on the film The Chicago Tribune commended her astonishing filmmaking sensibilities and described her as "a uniquely talented, uniquely powerful filmmaker [who] has tapped in to something primal and strong. She is a sensualist in the most sensual of mediums.

When Bigelow's Strange Days" was released in 1995, film critic Roger Ebert called it a technical tour de force. In this film, Bigelow explored the unsettling prospects of computer-generated virtual reality and the impending new millennium. Strange Days received rave reviews and was highly praised for its energy and unique, intense visuals. Film critic Janet Maslin, in The New York Times, stated that Bigelow is furiously talented. Operating at full throttle, using material ablaze with eerie promises, she turns ‘Strange Days' into a troubling but undeniably breathless joyride." Starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett and Juliette Lewis, the film was co-written by James Cameron.

Prior to K-19, Bigelow directed The Weight of Water staffing Sean Penn, Sarah Polley, Catherine McCormack and Elizabeth Hurley. The film's world premiere was a gala screening at the 25th annual Toronto International Film Festival and drew praise from critics and filmmakers alike. Variety described the The Weight of Water as being "Bigelow's richest, most ambitious and personal work to date; imbued with suspense, benefiting from Bigelow's penchant for creating a visual sense of menace and an atmosphere of fear."


Note: This profile was written in or before 2003.

Kathryn Bigelow Facts

OccupationDirector, Producer
BirthdayNovember 27, 1951 (72)
SignSagittarius
BirthplaceSan Carlos, California, USA
Height5' 11½" (1m82)  How tall is Kathryn Bigelow compared to you?
Awards2010 Academy Awards: Best Director (for The Hurt Locker)
2010 BAFTA Awards: Best Director (for The Hurt Locker)

Selected Filmography

Zero Dark Thirty
The Hurt Locker
Point Break
The Loveless
K-19: The Widowmaker
The Weight of Water
Strange Days
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