Kate Winslet vs. Rachel Weisz
Battle of the British Babes

British actresses seldom get tagged as "babes." This is not a reflection on how pulchritudinous they are -- rather, it's a reflection of the way British actresses are stereotyped -- often unfairly -- as repressed, corset-clad ice princesses. They're less often called "babes" than more elegant names like "beauties" or "damsels" or "English roses," which may be why some of them are so eager to bust out of themr whalebone and show the world they're capable of being every bit as bawdy as their countryman Benny Hill (viz. Helena Bonham Carter in Fight Club or Minnie Driver in her recent guest spot on Will and Grace, to cite but two examples). But, for the most part, young British actresses who start their careers in stately film or TV mini-series adaptations of classic works of literature are associated with those forevermore, and have a hard time believably portraying...you know, hot sexy babes.

Somehow, Rachel Weisz and Kate Winslet have managed to avoid the Curse of the Costume Drama and gain reputations for being both talented actors and hubba hubba hotties. (And while this commentator's emphasis on their charms may give the impression that she herself has a crush on Winslet or Weisz or both -- which I do -- I'm not the only one; when I mentioned to Glark that I planned to write this story, he reminded me that Weisz and Winslet are the only two female celebrities he finds memorably attractive.) Though they have both put in their time in their share of costume dramas both traditional (Winslet in Hamlet; Weisz in Sunshine) and action-oriented (Winslet in Titanic; Weisz in The Mummy and its sequel), they've often played olde-tyme-y ladies who happen to enjoy the sex -- or at least sensuality (Winslet in Jude and Sense and Sensibility and Quills...and, again, Titanic; Weisz in The Mummy and Swept From the Sea). Sure, they rock the corsets, but one often gets the sense that it's just to highlight their frequently heaving bosoms.

The similarities between Winslet and Weisz don't end there; in fact, they get freakier. In 2001, they each starred as pretty much the only woman in a WWII epic (Winslet in Enigma; Weisz in Enemy at the Gates). In 2003, they'll each star as Americans in contemporary crime dramas (Winslet in The Life of David Gale; Weisz in Confidence). Winslet once wore an immaculate blonde pageboy in a movie called Heavenly Creatures; Weisz once wore an immaculate blonde pageboy in a movie called Beautiful Creatures. Oh, and both have (at different times) dated Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes. If ever two actresses were matching each other move for move -- who weren't billionaire identical teenage twins -- Weisz and Winslet were them.

Well, almost. Rachel Weisz has one-upped Winslet in one respect: playing the female lead in a contemporary romantic comedy (About a Boy). That may not seem like such a big deal -- especially in light of Winslet's several Oscar nominations -- until you consider what playing the female lead in contemporary romantic comedies has done for the careers of Sandra Bullock, Meg Ryan, and especially Renée Zellweger. Playing the title character in Bridget Jones's Diary brought Zellweger her first Oscar nomination and bumped her up onto the A-list. But what does that have to do with Kate Winslet? Well, she was up for the part. (And actually British. And definitely wouldn't have made such a big hairy deal about having to put on weight for the part because she probably wouldn't really have had to; in fact, when Winslet has publicly talked about her body lately, it's been to complain about the unrealistic silhouette airbrushed for her by the editors of British GQ.) While Winslet has absolutely proven that she's got dramatic chops to spare, we've never seen what she can do in a romantic comedy -- which is a shame, because it's plain whenever she does a TV interview that she has a great sense of humour and excellent timing. And, for our purposes, it's also a shame because it means Rachel Weisz has the very slightest lead in the British Babes race...for now.

Advantage: Weisz