Meryl Streep in The Bridges of Madison County (1995)

Yes, she's famous for her chameleon physicality in service to character — the accents, the gestures, the wigs, the whole technical shebang. But I've never seen an actor actually alter her center of gravity as beautifully as Streep does playing Francesca Johnson, the Italian-born, Iowa-stranded farm wife who doesn't run away with a sexy photographer in this classy rescue of a junky love story. As her hands reach — to cook food or to caress the new man at her table — Streep also appears to sink, spine, butt, and soul, firmly into the ground. Watch her: She's the embodiment of middle-aged wisdom confronting desire. —Lisa Schwarzbaum