Militza Natasha Jovovich was born to be a star. Her mother, Galina Jovovich, was a stage actress in her native Ukraine. The family moved to California when Milla was only five. At age 11, Milla decided to go into modeling. By the time she was 12, she was featured on the cover of Lei. At the time she unknowingly created something of a controversy – such a young model had rarely been used to sell cosmetics. However, modeling awarded Milla with exposure and opportunities. Opportunities she would take advantage of.

Only a few short years later she began acting, and landed her first high-profile role in Return to the Blue Lagoon. A laundry list of films would follow, building towards an impressive resume for a “mere model”. And somehow, in between her modeling and acting careers, she managed to start a music career as well. She released her first commercial album, “The Divine Comedy”, in 1993 to excellent critical acclaim, considered by some to be one of the best albums of the 90s. Milla has yet to follow it with another album, but she has recorded songs for use on soundtrack compilations, and still fronts a new band called Plastic Has Memory whenever she gets the time.

Amazingly, all three careers are still going strong.

And you thought your day was full…

Milla Jovovich is, to me, the most inspiring human being on this planet. If I hadn’t first discovered her while reading magazines that made my fellow Jr. High classmates question my sexuality, I would have found her years later when she was kicking zombie ass in Resident Evil. But what I find most amazing about Milla is that she still manages to retain a charming and charismatic personality even when off-screen. Milla is all about having a good time, and it shows in her films. In something of what I feel is a necessary ode to the last true and talented down-to-earth celebrity, I have decided to take the task of doing a series of articles and reviews chronicling every film that Milla Jovovich has starred in.

This all may sound a bit obsessive, and to a large degree it probably is. But screw obsessive. Milla does not get nearly enough attention for her cinematic work, and I intend to change that. Starting now.

I can’t speak for Milla, but it appears to me that she chooses her roles based on how much she will enjoy playing the part. She’s not looking for critical approval – though if it comes, no doubt she’d be pleased – but rather for something she will enjoy taking on. She wants something that will be fulfilling to her, not to a stodgy old white guy in the Academy. There is much to be said about that. And her range is rarely recognized. Milla is able to juggle different ends of the dramatic spectrum with a balance few other actresses can claim. She can play a femme fatale or a stoner or a messenger of God with an entirely convincing charm; a charm all her own. Despite this, it seems that many of her films go overlooked, maybe because the mainstream films on her resume draw the most attention. Resident Evil was never intended to win an Oscar, yet many critics judge it as if it was intended to be a follow-up to Ben-Hur. Milla deserves her due. And it’s about time someone gives it to her.

So that said, with this series my objective is to examine every film in Milla’s resume and analyze them both as a film and with regard to how Milla contributes to the film. Here follows, in alphabetical order, the cinematic achievements of Milla Jovovich. Reviews, features and analyses of each of these films will follow as time goes on. Read, enjoy, and most of all, love the Milla. Because I sure as hell do.

.45 (2005)
Chaplin (1992)
The Claim (2000)
Dazed and Confused (1993)
Dummy (2002)
Fade Out (2005)
The Fifth Element (1997)
He Got Game (1998)
Kuffs (1992)
Married... with Children' - Fair Exchange (1989)
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999)
The Million Dollar Hotel (2000)
The Night Train to Kathmandu (1988)
No Good Deed (2002)
Resident Evil (2002)
Resident Evil: Afterlife (2006)
Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
Return to the Blue Lagoon (1991)
Two Moon Junction (1988)
Ultraviolet (2005)
You Stupid Man (2002)
Zoolander (2001)

P.S. Do you remember how in The Fifth Element, without Milla the world would have been destroyed? There is some truth in that. I am sure of it