Irina Spalko, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) Director Steven Spielberg has likened Blanchett's performance as a nefarious Russian agent to that of a dominatrix, owing to her severe haircut, military presence, and, er,  bullwhip.

Queen Elizabeth I, Elizabeth (1998) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) Director Shekhar Kapur saw some authority in the then-unknown Australian actress, who ruled over England with a long red mane and a basso profundo that intimidates.

Connie Falzone, Pushing Tin (1999) Cate as an Italian Long Island housewife Yep. Her accent is impeccably coarse in this dramedy about a group of young marrieds (among them, Billy Bob Thornton, Angelina Jolie and John Cusack) whose lives intertwine.

Meredith Logue, The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) As an American heiress who might blow Tom Ripley's cover, Blanchett nailed the idle boredom of the rich with a sing-songy voice and a penchant for inappropriate flirting.

Petal, The Shipping News (2001) A bedraggled, brunette Blanchett plays a really bad wife and mother who leaves her faithful husband (Kevin Spacey) and sells her kids on the black market so she can run off with her new lover.

Galadriel, The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-2003) Blanchett strapped on some prosthetic ears and a very long blond wig to play a literally glowing queen of the elves.

Magdalena Gilkeson, The Missing (2003) This prairie gal reunites with her deadbeat dad (Tommy Lee Jones) when her daughter is kidnapped by a power-mad medicine man.

Cate/Shelly, Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) Jim Jarmusch tapped Blanchett to play herself and a fictional, non-famous cousin in a stream-of-consciousness scene in which the pair meets for coffee and smokes in a hotel bar.

Katharine Hepburn, The Aviator (2004) Cate's Oscar-winning Kate kept Hepburn's larger-than-life accent and persona intact without veering into parody.

Lena Brandt, The Good German (2006) As a German-Jewish femme fatale whose intentions are unclear, Cate enlists an American war correspondent (George Clooney) in locating her missing husband, who might be a WWII-era war criminal.

Jeanine, Hot Fuzz (2007) Don't remember Cate in Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead follow-up She played Jeanine, Nick Angel's CSI girlfriend who dumps him at the beginning of the film - without ever removing her hazmat suit and surgical mask.

Jude Quinn, I'm Not There (2007) Director Todd Solondz's inspired, gender-bending casting gave us several Bob Dylans, including Cate's, a wiry, neurotic singer named Jude who wrestles with life's big questions as fame comes calling.