“Winona Ryder: an inhabited actress”, on Arte: portrait of a Hollywood child-terrible

ARTE – SUNDAY APRIL 10 AT 11:20 P.M. – DOCUMENTARY

Who could have imagined that this little girl raised in a hippie community on the Californian coast would become a Hollywood actress chaining roles at Burton, Coppola or Scorsese? Winona Ryder, an inhabited actressthe title sums up the character Lukas Hoffmann portrays in his documentary.

Nigel Goodall, her biographer, emphasizes the independence of mind that this native of Minnesota developed from an early age (in 1971), under the influence of her godfather, Timothy Leary (1920-1996), figure of the counter-culture and activist for the benefits of LSD.

Two years after her first foray into the cinema, in 1986 (at age 15), her big eyes, her innocent air and her undeniable talent led the young actress to spot the young actress by a director who was also a beginner with an already well-defined style: Tim Burton. She will turn with him beetle juice in 1988 and Edward Scissorhands in 1990. Two films that have become cults.

Winona Ryder is distinguished from the outset by audacious choices, refusing any conformism. “She wanted to punch the establishment”says Karron Graves, an actress.

Anxiety

But such a personality, in the Hollywood of the time, often fizzled out. The report shows the slumps of the actress, her difficulty in managing fame. The American star-system is rarely lenient with young actresses, and even less in the 1990s.

The overexposure in the press of her private life and her relationship with Johnny Depp wears out the actress, who has suffered from anxiety for several years. While she is on the verge of burnout, an opportunity presents itself to her which she is not refused: Francis Ford Coppola wants her in The Godfather III (1990). The ace ! “His body finally gave up”, confides Violet Lucca, American critic. Obliged to move away from the project after a malaise on the set, she will however find Coppola in 1992 for the adaptation of Dracula by Bram Stocker. A shoot that will prove difficult, the director would have manhandled the actress.

In 2001, Winona Ryder was arrested for shoplifting. After he is sentenced to a fine and community service, the love affair with Hollywood is in jeopardy. “The male stars could afford this kind of boredom, but for a woman it was without appeal”launches Violet Lucca.

Today, Winona Ryder has joined the club of those actresses who, as they approach their fifties, reinvent themselves thanks to the serial format, like Jessica Lange or Nicole Kidman. Stranger ThingsNetflix’s flagship fantasy series and a real global event in 2016, will allow the former Hollywood enfant terrible to reach a new audience.