Reese Witherspoon's on again off again fling with romantic comedies

With Hollywood’s charm and power winding down lately for a variety of reasons, there seem to be fewer genuine movie stars out there than any other time within the last hundred years. It looks like the days of amazing actors and actresses that could carry a movie with their talent, charisma and almost God-like presence is gone, but that doesn’t mean Tinsel Town doesn’t still have some tricks up its old sleeve. People still want to see movies; they still desire to let the
silver screen take them to a different reality, away from stress and worries, from work and kids, even for two hours on a Friday night. And most of all, they still want stars to love and admire.

One of those few movie stars left is definitely Reese Witherspoon. The diminutive actress has been working in the business ever since she was a child, and around the turn of the century, she slowly started to make her mark as an adult actress, with roles in films like "Cruel Intentions" and "Election", the latter being based on a John Perotta novel. It was this role that started her reputation as a serious actress, and she received numerous awards and a _Golden Glob_e nomination. In fact, her role was so successful that it put her in danger of being typecast.

Reese Witherspoon's portrayal of Tracy Flick was voted as the 45th Greatest Movie Performances of All Time by Premiere Magazine.

But all that changed in 2001, when her career exploded with her role as Elle Woods, a fashion student and daddy’s girl who suddenly decides she wants to study law, in the blockbuster "Legally Blonde". The movie was a box-office hit and started a
cultural phenomenon, while Reese was dubbed “the new Meg Ryan” by the Hollywood press.

This sparked the most commercially successful part of her career so far, with the next few years being filled with successful projects like "Sweet Home Alabama", "Legally Blonde 2" and Just like heaven making her the new millennium’s queen of romantic comedies.

To prepare for her role as Elle, Reese Witherspoon spent two weeks studying the behavior of sorority girls, as she did not wish to portray a stereotypical airhead sorority image. She also observed women shopping from the café at Neiman Marcus, and attended law school for a day.

But Reese knew that her talent and versatility meant she could widen her scope beyond romantic comedies, and at the height of her career she started exploring different roles, in movies like "Vanity Fair" or "Walk the line". It was her role in the "Johnny Cash" biopic that forever accomplished her as an actress, with awards like the Golden Globe, BAFTA, and The Academy Award all won for best actress in a leading role.

But unfortunate movie choice and personal problems have slightly dimmed her stars for the next few years, and she also started doing more work behind the scenes during that time, as head of her own successful production company.

Reese Witherspoon won her Oscar for "Walk the Line", where she played June Carter, true love of Johnny Cash. The Academy Awards weren't the only ones who recognized her that year; she also won the Golden Globe and the BAFTA.

Last year, however, she came back to the roles that made her insanely popular in the first place. So what's behind Reese Witherspoon's return to romantic comedies? An offer that she couldn’t refuse and a movie produced by a legend of the genre. Producer, director, and screenwriter Nancy Meyers made history with movies like "Something’s Gotta Give", "Father of the Bride" or "It’s Complicated", and when producing her new movie "Home Again" she only had Reese in mind for the lead role. Reese herself admitted that while she didn’t specifically seek to return to romantic comedies, but having known and admired Myers for many years and having found the script so compelling, she knew this was a perfect time and
a place for her to return to what made her insanely famous in the first place.