Penelope Is One To Watch. Again.

Penelope Cruz is quickly becoming one of my favorite actresses.

It seems after years of struggling to make a place for herself in Hollywood, Cruz has finally found a balance that works for her. Volver was her turning point. Finally everyone is taking her talent seriously. She makes time to do Spanish films with close friend Pedro Almodovar, but also works in A-list American fare like the Woody Allen comedy Vicky Cristina Barcelona, for which she won her first Oscar last year.

This year she has two big projects. The first is her fourth collaboration with Almodovar, Broken Embraces, due out November 20th. There are some parallels between their new movie and their real-life relationship. Cruz plays an aspiring actress named Lena who develops a close bond with a filmmaker she idolizes.

Just five days later, Rob Marshall's Nine hits theaters. Nine is a film adaptation of the award-winning stage musical, which in turn was based on Federico Fellini's classic film 8 1/2. The story is again about a filmmaker, this time played by Daniel Day-Lewis, as he works on his ninth film and tries to juggle his relationships with the many women in his life. Cruz will play Carla, the filmmaker's mistress, in her first musical. It's a role that won Jane Krakowski a Tony in 2004. Could Penelope be making yet another trip to the Kodak this year? I think so.

I found this video recently and thought it was interesting. It's about a year old. In it Penelope talks about when she fell in love with the movies, her early obsession with Almodovar, and how attending the Oscars made her crave cheeseburgers. It's worth a watch, if you've got a few spare minutes.