The 10 Best Instances of Female Cinematic De-Prettification

By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under Seriously Random Lists | Comments (68)

This morning, Bleeding Cool uncovered the first really good photo of Rooney Mara’s transformation for David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It’s as total a transformation as Noomi Rapace’s was in the Swedish version, which bodes well for Fincher’s adaptation (you know what else bodes well? That it’s Fincher’s adaptation).

I’m even more excited about the movie than I was before. And while it may not be considered much of a downgrade for certain goth-y types, for mainstream America, it’s a definite de-prettification given how stunning Rooney Mara looks in reality. So, why not? Here’s her de-prettification put into the context of nine other cinematic de-prettifications.

10. Renee Zelwegger in The Bridget Jones Diary

Renee Zellweger Bridget.jpg

9. Noomi Rapace in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

8. Rooney Mara in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

7. Mariah Carey in Precious

6. Salma Hayek in Frida

5. HiIlary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry

4. Cameron Diaz in Being John Malcovich

3. Emma Thompson - Nanny McPhee

2. Gwyneth Paltrow — Shallow Hal

1. Charlize Theron in Monster

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Comments

Wow, congrats on finding one decent picture of Hilary Swank. Not that big a transformation really - didn't they just cut her hair?

Posted by: astounded at January 12, 2011 3:26 PM

Call me crazy, but I've always thought Renee Zellwegger looked more pretty with the Bridget weight than in her normal iteration.
I just think she looks really pretty with the extra weight.

Posted by: ninetwenteetoo at January 12, 2011 3:26 PM

Erm, excu-u-u-u-u-use me, Hilary Swank looked hot in Boys Don't Cry!

Posted by: Caspar at January 12, 2011 3:28 PM

I don't like that Renee Whatersfatass no matter how skinny or fat her ass is.

Posted by: Baron von Tweed at January 12, 2011 3:32 PM

I'm with you, ninetweenteetoo. If I had to choose between Bridget Jones and Roxie Hart, I'll choose Bridget every time.

And Salma as Frida reminds me of a nickname that my sister and her friend Kristen have for each other: Señor Testosterone.

Posted by: Jelinas at January 12, 2011 3:33 PM

Yeah, I'm totally with Caspar on HSwank. HOT.

Posted by: Anna von Beav at January 12, 2011 3:34 PM

Why does Emma Thompson look like she is channeling Elizabeth Montgomery circa Bewitched?

Posted by: Mrs. Julien at January 12, 2011 3:35 PM

Renee Zelwegger in The Bridget Jones Diary

FUCK YOU!

Posted by: Jay at January 12, 2011 3:35 PM

Honestly, I don't think it counts if you're in a prosthetic fat suit. (GOOPY, I'm looking at you.)

But yeah, Rooney Mara looks... well, different! Good on her for taking it on.

Posted by: MM at January 12, 2011 3:40 PM

I want to go to a dive bar with Emma Thompson and have her tell me lovely stories about Alan Rickman over a pint or 17.

Posted by: Julie at January 12, 2011 3:44 PM

That's a stretch calling Mariah Carey Pretty! She was maybe pretty in the 90's.

Posted by: smithee at January 12, 2011 3:48 PM

Hillary Swank was never hot to begin with.

Posted by: camytaru at January 12, 2011 3:55 PM

I think Renee Zelwegger is far prettier as Bridget Jones than she is as the American Stick Insect she is in real life.

Posted by: Candace at January 12, 2011 3:56 PM

I'm trying to figure out why the Noomi Rapace transformation is a bad one...

Posted by: DeistBrawler at January 12, 2011 3:59 PM

if any woman can pull off a unibrow/mustache it's salma hayek.

Posted by: RomeoCranberry at January 12, 2011 4:02 PM

Me too, DeistBrawler.

Posted by: sailboat at January 12, 2011 4:02 PM

I never saw Noomi outside of the Lizbeth role and thought she was damn hot in those movies. Seeing that other picture of her though, she is just flat out gorgeous no matter what. I think her Lizbeth is better looking than Mara. It's the cheekbones maybe?

I've never found Hilary Swank to be very attractive.

Posted by: Paultera at January 12, 2011 4:02 PM

Good to see that Charlize wins, she should always win when it comes to deprettification. However Nanny McFee is one of the ugliest things I have ever seen.

RZ is cutest as Bridget Jones.

I'm not excited about the Fincher version of GWTDT, call me crazy but these movies do not need to be remade. Rooney looks like she is ready for Halloween. :(

Posted by: Mebe at January 12, 2011 4:06 PM

Rooney Mara, in that picture, looks like she's channeling Kathleen Byron as Sister Ruth.
creepy.
nifty.

Posted by: shawnp at January 12, 2011 4:06 PM

Ok, so at the risk of ruining my application for The Cool People, I have to admit to confusion about the second row of pictures for Noomi Rapace and Rooney Mara.
'Cause it looks like the same freakin' person to me. In the photos on the right I mean.

What am I missing?

Posted by: ada at January 12, 2011 4:19 PM

Rooney Mara is becoming a huge crush of mine, her delicate awkwardness and cool strength are just wonderful and I want and expect Good things for her.

Charlize Theron in Monster is the exact moment I began to take her seriously as an actress having simply Not gotten it before

Posted by: Nadine at January 12, 2011 4:21 PM

I wouldn't call that picture of Roony Mara for the American Girl With The Dragon Tattoo Deprettification. I would call it Hoooooooottt. I went "drooool*. Yup.

Also, Charlize definitely wins over Gwyneth and Emma because no fat suits or prosthetics were involved. She was actually committed to the ugly, which is far more admirable, in my opinion.

Posted by: DominaNefret at January 12, 2011 4:26 PM

I'm surprised you went for the fat suit just to fill out the list. Especially since you left off Demi Moore from Strip-Tease.

Posted by: superasente at January 12, 2011 4:26 PM

True story, I faced a woman in a Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournament who looked like a heavier version of Charlize Theron in Monster. My friends/teammates were terrified for me. However, other than REEKING of cigarettes (mmm, just what I want to roll around on the floor with for 5 minutes), she wasn't very good and it was a pretty easy match.

Renee looks better plumper. Maybe a couple pounds lighter than her Bridget weight is ideal, but I'd rather see her chunky than thin and pinched.

Posted by: Kait at January 12, 2011 4:35 PM

I can see why Fincher wanted Yolandi Visser for the part. He's using her bangs on Rooney Mara.

Posted by: Mrs Smith at January 12, 2011 4:40 PM

Salma Hayek was walking sex in "Frida," unibrow be damed.

And I hate that getting Renee Zelwegger to resemble an actual human being with a BMI above 16 counts as de-prettification. I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt during the scene when she gets on the scale and it reads *gasp* 130 lbs. Seriously, bite me. Then bite a sandwich. Extra mayonnaise.

Posted by: Dingles at January 12, 2011 4:45 PM

How about Nicole Kidman in The Hours? I mean she must have won the Oscar for wearing the fake nose, right? Because it certainly wasn't for her stiff unbearable attempt at acting in that film.

Posted by: PaddyDog at January 12, 2011 4:55 PM

Bad form on the Renee Zelleweger pick, Dustin. That's about the only time I've ever really found her to be pretty, as well as being the only role of hers I can stomach. She barely even squints!

Posted by: RobP at January 12, 2011 4:59 PM

Isn't it odd how Gwyneth's planet-busting girth in Shallow Hal seems to represent what we think she actually looks like on the inside?

Isn't it ironic?

Don't you think?

Posted by: D-Day at January 12, 2011 5:01 PM

A litte too ironic. Yeah, I really do think.

Posted by: superasente at January 12, 2011 5:06 PM

Shouldn't "deprettification" imply the subject was pretty to begin with?

I grant you Charlize and Salma buuuuut, Lemonface Zelwegger? Goopy Mcpaltrow? Mooraiah Carey? hahahahaha! Hillary "The Pectoral Wonder" Swank? Maybe Cameron, after a six-pack. Don't get me started on that #9 dude.

/Emma Thompson has way too much class to be on this trash list

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at January 12, 2011 5:06 PM

You say "De-Prettification," I say, "making her look like a person who might not have stylists and trainers and eye cream made of unicorn tears."

Posted by: Angeleno Ewok at January 12, 2011 5:09 PM

Rooney Mara is Kate's ugly sister. I would take her De-Prettification version over her usual plain jane look.

Posted by: L.O.V.E. at January 12, 2011 5:12 PM

My answer is the same as always — no threesomes unless it's boy-boy-girl. Or Charlize Theron.

Posted by: valerie at January 12, 2011 5:13 PM

What about the reverse? Sarah Jessica Parker looked much better in Alien than usual.

Posted by: Paultera at January 12, 2011 5:20 PM

Noomi Rapace straight works it in the Girl look, like, seriously. Maybe hotter in that getup.

Posted by: Caroline at January 12, 2011 5:26 PM

What about the reverse? Sarah Jessica Parker looked much better in Alien than usual.
Posted by: Paultera at January 12, 2011 5:20 PM

Hehehehe, what you did there, I see it.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at January 12, 2011 5:28 PM

That's Mr-sogynist, rio.

Posted by: Jim Doggie at January 12, 2011 5:50 PM

I'm trying to figure out why the Noomi Rapace transformation is a bad one...

Me too, DeistBrawler. I think the transformation is an improvement.

Posted by: Robert at January 12, 2011 5:55 PM

Another one for the Renee-is-hotter-as-a-fatty club.

Posted by: Big Moo at January 12, 2011 6:08 PM

Is Hillary Swank hot or not? A painting can be beautiful. But I don't wanna bang a painting.

Posted by: HopeHope at January 12, 2011 6:17 PM

So apparently "de-prettyfying" means...not wearing make-up or being fat. Because that's what most of these are. Which is a little depressing.

I second that Renee "The Squinter" Zellweger looks much better when she isn't a bobblehead.

Also, I know I have a touch of the gay, but Noomi looks way, way hotter in character.

Posted by: Kristobel at January 12, 2011 6:19 PM

I'm with Robert and Diest, Noomi is seriously hot as Lisbeth.

and Renee Zellweger hasn't been hot since Jerry Maguire.

Posted by: FyreHaar at January 12, 2011 7:06 PM

"De-prettification"? I guess that's right. Noomi Rapace wasn't pretty as Lisbeth Salander - she was frickin' HOT.

Posted by: MelBivDevoe at January 12, 2011 8:09 PM

Hillary Swank is hot. Arguments to the contrary are ignorant.

Posted by: Dave at January 12, 2011 8:31 PM

I bet Zuckerberg is really kicking himself now.

Posted by: DarthCorleone at January 12, 2011 8:38 PM

I'm sure Noomi's very pretty in real life, but that Before pic is a little...toothsome and not all that flattering. I was way into Lisbeth's look, though...hotness for sure.

Posted by: stryker1121 at January 12, 2011 8:57 PM

Deprettifying also apparently means making your light eyes and hair dark...

Posted by: jzhz at January 12, 2011 9:55 PM

I'm confused. Aren't you the same author who wrote the post about how gross skinny women are? And now you wrote a post criticizing Renee Zellwegger's appearance in Bridget Jones? WTF.

Also, Frida Kahlo is always hot.

Posted by: erm at January 12, 2011 10:00 PM

Rooney is rong..er wrong. All wrong.

I have a very bad feeling about the Americanized (translation:Dumbed down for the masses.)Millennium Trilogy. There's also talk of how Fincher changed the ending of the first book.

The first film will do well in the States,but might suffer in comparison everywhere else. Hopefully this will spare us from the sequels.

Posted by: thecurious at January 12, 2011 10:15 PM

I'm gonna have to disagree with the Noomi Repace one because I think she's so cute in GWTDT!! In a weird way. She's cute in real life too.

Posted by: Theseus at January 12, 2011 10:47 PM

I'd say it's an improvement for Rooney. Before I'd confuse her with a million other actresses. Then again I do have a thing for goth women.

Posted by: Uda at January 12, 2011 11:19 PM

This is relevant: http://blog.okcupid.com/index.php/the-mathematics-of-beauty/

Posted by: susie derkins at January 12, 2011 11:56 PM

Posted by: astounded at January 12, 2011 3:26 PM
---
I, too, will brook no badmouthing of Hillary Swank, sir! (Or madame.) Pistols at 10 paces at dawn. Choose your second!

On another topic: I'm always puzzled why they don't just find a homely actress who could use the paycheck, rather than using a pretty actress they have to ugly up to the point you can't suspend disbelief of the knowledge that this is a hot woman just play-acting.

I guess what I'm saying is, Kathy Bates doesn't get enough work.

Posted by: , at January 13, 2011 12:44 AM

Remind me again why they're remaking the trilogy?

Posted by: cinekat at January 13, 2011 4:30 AM

Remind me again why they're remaking the trilogy?

Posted by: cinekat at January 13, 2011 4:30 AM

------------------------------------

I'm sure Fincher will do something interesting with it, but yeah, I'd prefer an original from him.

Mariah Carey's chest bulges scare the shit out of me.

Posted by: zeke the pig at January 13, 2011 4:40 AM

Skinny Zellwegger terrifies me. I always found Mara to be plain-looking... pretty sure, but nothing spectacular. That cover is amazingly hot.

Posted by: earthmanjack at January 13, 2011 5:07 AM

That is a crappy pic of Noomi Rapace. Check her out in interviews on the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo DVD, she is pretty damn hot and the transformation was extraordinary.

Rooney Mara looks like she is dressing as Lisbeth Salander for Halloween. Since when does Lisbeth have a big tattoo on her chest that says SALANDER? She's all about being anonymous so that doesn't really make much sense.

Posted by: TylerDFC at January 13, 2011 6:49 AM

Renee looks great as Bridget Jones. I think the scene in the first film where she's wearing a black dress at a book launch is the best she's ever looked.

Cold Mountain may have been a better choice.

Posted by: KateMC at January 13, 2011 10:06 AM

Frida McPoyle?

Posted by: solammente at January 13, 2011 11:21 AM

I agree with the top of the list but Theron's look did include prosthetics. It's just that they're really, really good ones, along with excellent make-up. So, if you're going to disqualify on that, you've got to knock off all of the top three.

Posted by: Not a hair splitter at January 13, 2011 12:26 PM

did my comment just magically disappeared? man who am I? the new pookie? Dustin I just said you came off a little misogynist I didn't call you one! maybe you should re-read your list.

Posted by: rio at January 13, 2011 3:04 PM

There are some categories here... gaining weight, drastically different makeup/hair, and no make up. I agree with the winner, but I think Cam deserves second place. She looks bad sometimes anyway, but she looked really awful in that movie.

Posted by: StephanieM at January 13, 2011 3:33 PM

I will add my 2¢ to the disagreement to RZ being 'deprettified' as Bridget. That end scene in which Mark Darcy finds her on the stoop of her building... she's veritably *oozing* Brigitte Bardot. Absolutely stunning.

She looks far better with curves than angles.

Posted by: sandra at January 13, 2011 8:32 PM

Oh, and Renée was NOT fat in that film. :)

Posted by: sandra at January 13, 2011 8:36 PM

Am I the only one taken aback by the Gwyneth Paltrow in Shallow Hal photo? She is actually acting there; the character looks really hurt. I didn't see the movie so I can't say if she's great in it or not, but based on that shot, it looks like she did a pretty good job to me.

Charlize for the win.

Posted by: Groovy Violet at January 14, 2011 10:19 AM

Noomi is hot in real lifer, HOTTER as Lisbeth.
I want to be her AND make out with her, it doesn't get better than that.

Posted by: ninetwenteetoo at January 14, 2011 12:44 PM

How could Halle Berry in "Losing Isaiah" not have made the cut? I think this reveals that just about anybody can look pretty bad without makeup, nice hair, etc.

Posted by: samantha t at January 14, 2011 1:58 PM

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The 10 Best Instances of Female Cinematic De-Prettification

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