Jane Campion is widely regarded as one of the most respected directors of her generation, with a signature style that is all her own. No matter which genre she’s working in, she manages to bring out the richness and complexity of those performing for the camera, and she also recognizes that there is a power unique to movies that cannot be replicated.
However, she has also shown that she is adept at working in TV, and so it’s worth taking an in-depth look at her work, which has earned praise from the users at the Internet Movie Database.
10 In The Cut (2003) - 5.3
One of the key aspects of Campion’s style as a director is a keen attention to visual detail, even if that means that the story itself doesn’t make as much sense as it would in the hands of a less artistic director. That is certainly the case with her movie, In the Cut, which focuses on a teacher, played by Meg Ryan, who finds herself involved with a detective, played by Mark Ruffalo. Among other things, the movie is noted for having Ryan play against type (she’s more noted for her roles in many romantic comedies).
9 Holy Smoke! (1999) - 5.9
Campion’s movie Holy Smoke! is notable for a number of reasons. First, it is one of her movies that most clearly shows why she is highly regarded as a visual stylist, and she has a keen sense for what makes a movie image seem to leap off of the screen. Second, it also features two very strong performances from Kate Winslet (in one of her best roles) and Harvey Keitel.
Third, it deals with a powerful subject, as Kietel’s character attempts to help Winslet escape the domineering influence of a cult.
8 The Portrait of a Lady (1996) - 6.2
The Portrait of a Lady is, as the title implies, an adaptation of the novel of the same name by the noted author Henry James, in which a young and wealthy woman is manipulated and exploited by others. As with so many of Campion’s other movies, this movie has an attention to visual detail and atmosphere, immersing both the characters and the viewer in this world that is more than a little sinister and, at times, quite unsettling to inhabit. What’s more, it also stars Nicole Kidman in one of her best roles.
7 Two Friends (1986) - 6.4
In addition to directing many feature movies for theatrical release, Campion has also shown that she has a deft hand with the tricky genre of the television movie. As this movie’s title suggests, it focuses on the extraordinary friendship between two young women. However, rather than moving forward chronically, it actually goes backward, showing the evolution of their friendship and helping the viewer to understand why it is that it was always doomed to be temporary.
6 Sweetie (1989) - 6.8
Sweetie is notable for being Jane Campion’s first feature movie, but even this early in her career there were indications of just what kind of a director she would turn out to be. The movie, focusing as it does on the fraught dynamics within a poisonous family, is a cautionary tale about the nature of familial bonds, and how easily what should be a bastion of love and care can become nothing more than a terrible form of tyranny.
As with so many of Campion’s movies, it is chilling and compelling and beautiful all at the same time.
5 Bright Star (2009) - 6.9
If there’s one genre that Campion has worked in consistently, it would be the period drama, and she has created some of the finest examples of that genre in the movies. In Bright Star, the subject is the poet John Keats, who is played in the movie by Ben Whishaw. Between Campion’s direction and Whishaw’s sensitive performance, the movie manages to not only give the viewer an understanding of the poet’s life but also captures some of the spirit that has made his work so influential and appealing, even after his early death.
4 The Power of the Dog (2021) - 7.0
The Power of the Dog is sure to be seen as one of the best movies of Benedict Cumberbatch, who delivers a truly powerful performance. Here, Campion shifts her generic focus to the western, but as always her signature visual style is very much in evidence, and she uses her director’s skills to plunge into the depths of her characters and their tormented psychologies, even while she uses the movie to explore some of the themes that are common to the western as a genre.
3 Top of the Lake (2013-2017) - 7.5
In addition to working in movies, Campion has also shown that she is adept at creating exciting, pensive, and well-constructed television series, as she demonstrated with her series Top of the Lake. Featuring Elizabeth Moss in one of her best roles, it focuses on a detective investigating two separate murder mysteries. Given that this series has Campion at the helm, the pleasures come not just from the investigation plot but also the skill with which she manages to create a visual image.
2 An Angel At My Table (1990) - 7.5
There are many things to enjoy about An Angel at My Table, another of Campion’s earlier works. Like Bright Star, An Angel at My Table is based on a true story, in this case on a series of autobiographies written by the New Zealand author Janet Frame. The movie follows her throughout her life, and in addition to strong performances from the various women chosen to play Frame, the movie also features Campion’s visual touches, and the landscapes are especially evocative.
1 The Piano (1993) - 7.6
The Piano is arguably Campion’s masterpiece, the movie that put her on the map in terms of a director. It’s a beautiful and haunting movie about the nature of desire, and it focuses on a mother and daughter who come to New Zealand as part of an arranged marriage. Holly Hunter gives an especially moving performance as Ada, a woman who communicates only through sign language and through her playing of the titular piano. More than anything else, however, the movie is about one woman’s extraordinary efforts to assert her own identity in a rigidly patriarchal world.
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