Despite being a child star Christina Ricci made a successful transition to successful and well respected adult actress.He ability to effortlessly move from blockbuster to more independent movies has made her one of the most reliable stars in Hollywood as well being willing to take on the more challenging and left of field roles that so many others avoid.With around forty movies under her belt before the age of thirty FemaleFirst takes a look at the top five Christina Ricci performances.

1. Black Snake Moan

Despite doing poorly at the box office last year Black Snake Moan is one of Ricci's finest big screen performances alongside Samuel L. Jackson.When Lazarus (Jackson), a divorced ex musician, finds Rae (Ricci) unconscious and badly beaten by the side of the road he takes her into his home and chains her to a radiator.Since Rae's boyfriend Ronnie (Timberlake) left to go to war she has been a wreck and has been taken advantage of by almost every guy in the town.

It appears that Rae has a physical need for sex. As Lazarus watches her twitch in pain trying to get her need under control he sees that he is her only chance of redemption.

Black Snake Moan may have disguised itself as a lusty, sex obsessed movie but actually it's a tale of morality and damaged people who help, and in an odd way, protect each other.

The pair create a great contrast: Jackson's straight, god fearing man to Ricci's out of control, wild child behaviour in a fearless performance from the young and often underrated actress.

While some critics were critical of the movie others claimed that it was Ricci's best ever performance and the best performance from Jackson since Pulp Fiction.

Director Craig Brewer has produced a great follow up to Hustle and Flow which really depicts well the Bible belt of Southern America as he highlights a hard and gritty Tennessee.

2. The Opposite of Sex

A Golden Globe nomination came Christina's way for her role as Deedee Truitt in 1998's black comedy The Opposite of Sex.

Sixteen year old Deedee runs away from Louisiana to live with her half-brother Bill, an English teacher who happens to be gay.

Lucia, Bill's sexually-repressed best friend, distrusts her. These suspicions are confirmed when Deedee lures Bill's boyfriend into bed and talks him into stealing $10,000 from Bill and running away with her to Los Angeles.

To make matters worse for Bill, his bitter ex-lover frames him for sexual harassment, causing a scandal in their quiet town.

This forces him and Lucia to go on a wild chase in search of Matt and Deedee in order to clear his name.

They are joined by Sheriff Carl Tippett, a friend, who begins to fall in love with Lucia.

The Opposite of Sex was met well by the critics and began Ricci's journey from popular child star to an adult and serious actress.

3. Monster

In 2003 Ricci took on the role of Selby Wall in the controversial Monster, which told the real life story of serial killer and former prostitute Aileen Wuornos.

Ricci played Aileen's lesbian lover Selby whom she met in a bar. Selby was a young woman sent by her parents to live with an aunt in order to cure her homosexuality.

Wuornos victim of a tragic, abusive upbringing quickly falls in love, and clings to Selby like a life preserver.

Unable to find a legitimate job but desperate to sustain her relationship with Selby, Wuornos continues working as a prostitute.

When one of her johns turns violent, Wuornos shoots the man in self-defense; the first in her tragic string of killings.

The film was met with overwhelming critical praise especially for the Charlize Theron who took on the role of Aileen and her co-star Ricci.

Theron went on to win the Best Actress Oscar but many believed the Ricci's performance was also worthy of recognition in the supporting category despite not receiving a nomination.

4. Buffalo '66

Buffalo '66 was one of Ricci first more adult pictures that highlighted her ability to tackle the more challenging and darker roles.

She starred alongside Vincent Gallo who portrayed Billy Brown, who has just been let out of jail.

Before returning home to visit his parents and murder the kicker who missed the field goal that sent him there in the first place (in order to repay a debt that he didn't have the money to extinguish), he kidnaps a bored ballerina (Christina Ricci) and makes her pretend that she is his wife.

Though she doesn't seem to object to the abduction, Billy is emotional, angry, and sensitive. As the trip progresses, including an explosive visit to his childhood home, where his indifferent parents still reside the two continue bicker back and forth, but begin to form a real bond.

5. The Addams Family

Despite all the role that have followed this breakthrough performance many Christina Ricci fans will always see the actress as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and it's sequel Addams Family Values.

When long-lost Uncle Fester (Christopher Lloyd) reappears after 25 years in the Bermuda Triangle, Morticia (Anjelica Huston) and Gomez (Raul Julia) ecstatically begin plans for a celebration that will wake the dead.

Meanwhile, an evil lawyer is plotting ways to get at the ghoulish family’s fortunes--which are stashed somewhere within a secret vault inside the family mansion.

Only the Addams’s daughter, Wednesday and the Addams’s detached hand servant, Thing, suspect that something rotten is afoot.

But can they prove anything before the vault is found and the Addams family is plunged into poverty.

Ricci's performance as Wednesday in The Addams Family was a box office draw and more screen time was given to the young actress in Addams Family Values because of her success.

Christina Ricci's new movie Penelope is released 1st February.

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw