A Life in Pictures

Annette Bening has established herself as one of the finest screen actors of her generation. After a decade in the theatre, culminating in a Tony Award nomination for her performance in Tina Howe's Coastal Disturbances, she made her feature debut in the comedy The Great Outdoors (1988) followed by a commanding performance as the Marquise de Merteuil in Valmont (1989). But it was the perfect projection of sass, charm and sexual frankness in playing Myra Langtry, a con artist in The Grifters (1990), that made Bening a star and for which she received her first BAFTA and Academy Award nominations.

There's something about Hugh Jackman that makes you suspect he would have been a success on the big screen no matter which cinematic era he was born into. His lithe physicality and fine comic timing would have served him well in the silent era; his good looks and debonair charm would have fit right in with the Douglas Fairbanks and Cary Grants of classical Hollywood; his roguish charisma and natural compassion would not have gone amiss in the gritty realism of the 60s and 70s; and there's no doubting he has the muscles to have gone toe-to-toe with the Arnies, Slys and Jean-Claudes of the 80s and 90s.

An undisputed visionary, Scorsese offers a fast-talking, fascinating insight into an incredible body of work, including Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and Shutter Island.