Cate Blanchett's top five performances

From royal duties in Elizabeth to leather-clad antics in Thor: Ragnarok... Borderlands actress Cate Blanchett has a range to die for. This Australian icon is a woman of calibre who has enchanted us for over 20 years and who couldn't do a mediocre job if her life depended on it. Here are Blanchett's five most notable roles in an impeccable CV...

(5)

Lord of the Rings

A strange placement it may seem, as Blanchett doesn't appear much in Peter Jackson's beloved film trilogy, but the fact that she still feels central to the Lord of the Rings trilogy says a lot about her performance. Galadriel is a very difficult character to read, with Blanchett managing to both terrify with her icy eyes and be a smiling angel. Blanchett's mystery and beauty was tailor-made for the ancient elf and is one of the most faithful characters from Tolkien's magical world. She also managed to save the terrible Hobbit trilogy from oblivion thanks to her mere presence.

(4)

Carol

Cate Blanchett didn't just win Rooney Mara's heart when director Todd Haynes adapted a 50s novel, so to speak. Wow, we say - what a magnetic, electric performance! Cate Blanchett doesn't really need to say much to steal every scene; those sharp eyes and seductive charisma are more than enough to make us fall in love with her elegant title character. Rooney Mara was also brilliant, of course, but it was Blanchett who ultimately bewitched us with her supremely loving performance.

(3)

Blue Jasmine

Blanchett won an Oscar for the critically acclaimed Woody Allen comedy and it was certainly well deserved. Blanchett played a very difficult character to love, a narcissistic upper class wife who often becomes unbearable to follow, but we couldn't help but love the anti-heroine thanks to the vulnerability Blanchett brought to her. Blanchett was marvellously pathetic and desperate, with her heartbreaking mumbles on the bench there at the end making us genuinely sad in one of the more memorable performances from this top actress.

(2)

The Aviator

She may not look quite like Katharine Hepburn, but she sure as hell becomes Hepburn in Martin Scorsese's masterful biopic. So magically charismatic is Blanchett's portrayal of the Hollywood icon, that we have to admit we were a little taken with her eccentric charm and outspokenness. Her interaction with DiCaprio's tortured innovator was warming thanks to Blanchett's incredibly human portrayal, and we simply loved how Hollywood endearing this lady could be - and we're not just talking about Hepburn as a character.

BLANCHETT'S BEST ACTING PERFORMANCE

(1)

Tàr

There's really no competition here, and no doubt whatsoever: the role of controversial music conductor Lydia Tàr is Blanchett's sharpest portrayal. It's almost frightening how realistic Blanchett's character portrayal actually is, almost making you want to look away from her maestro - but it's impossible to look away from her nuanced tragedy. Blanchett has never inhabited an ego like this one, where we witnessed an inner orchestra of contradictory emotions and self-destructiveness. Tàr is not only one of the best films made in the last ten years, it is also Cate Blanchett's greatest triumph.

What is your favourite Cate Blanchett role?