Christina Ricci is categorically known for her offbeat film roles and, for this reason, it almost doesn’t make sense when she chooses to play someone who is “normal” or non-camp. Her forays into the status quo have never typically been carried off that successfully. Appearances in shows such as Ally McBeal and Grey’s Anatomy come to mind first and foremost. But even apart from certain TV cameos, Ricci has a few film roles under her belt that have been largely throwaway.
Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain: Something of a wannabe counterpart to the feel-good, coming of age style of Now and Then, Gold Diggers has little to offer other than Anna Chlumsky playing someone besides Vada in My Girl.
I Woke Up Early the Day I Died: Contrived and posthumously produced to mirror the style of director Ed Wood, this film is a veritable who’s who of washed up cast members, including post-Twin Peaks/Titanic Billy Zane, Nicolette Sheridan and Bud Cort. Christina Ricci should have known better than to force such a saturated amount of kitsch.
Small Soldiers: Before The Lego Movie, there was Small Soldiers. And it wasn’t supposed to be as comical.
Bless the Child: One thing Ricci never needed in her canon of work was a horror movie with Kim Basinger.
Home of the Brave: Capitalizing on the war in Iraq, this 2006 film–which should have been made for Lifetime–delights in its bathetic sentiment as 50 Cent, Chad Michael Murray and Jessica Biel bring Ricci with them on their crusade of bad acting.
New York, I Love You: Already doomed for disaster by virtue of living in the shadow of Paris, Je T’aime, Ricci’s segment is one of the least memorable–even with Orlando Bloom at her side.
Bucky Larson: Born to Be A Star: Maybe there’s something about movies with colons in them that naturally pre-damn them. Whatever the case, Ricci’s role as the waitress Bucky falls in love with is not only a failed attempt at playing a “nice, normal girl,” but it also shows her lack of business acumen by willingly getting involved with A Happy Madison Production.
There’s sure to be more poor film choices afoot in Ricci’s generally consistent career. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t savor the best versions of herself, in which she plays the offbeat beauty with less emphasis on waifishness than Winona Ryder.
