Nastassja Kinski: Unforgettable (Forgotten) Actress

Nastassja. What a sexy and musical name. Kinski. Who could forget such a name? If you're a cinephile comme moi, that name is familiar. The name, Nastassja Kinski, is so unique to forget. Conversely, "Nastassja Kinski" is quite difficult to remember to pronounce, mainly because it's not an ordinary name. (I pronounce it as "nas-ta-sha.") Actually, it is pronounced as "nas-TAS-ya."

So, what comes to your mind whenever you hear the name, Nastassja Kinski? This?

Or maybe this?

How about this?

Daym. Her accent is like an explosion of cappuccino-flavored eroticism.

Still can't figure out who Nastassja Kinski is? You must be a fan of Angelina Jolie and her lips. But before Angelina Jolie and her lips, there was Nastassja Kinski and her lips. Those lips.

And yes, Nastassja's lips are the real thing. Here's the proof:

That's what Nastassja used to look like before she looked like this:

But before she looked like that, she looked like this:

Not the dog. The baby girl.

Nastassja Aglaia Nakszynski was born on the 24th of January 1961 in Berlin.

Her dad looked like this:

Seriously, he looked like this:

Almost no difference from his first photo. Kidding.

Seriously, it's hard to believe that this guy...

...is the father of this beautiful human being:

Sorry if I'm being shallow, but it's still a puzzle to me. I mean, Nastassja is just too beautiful for words.

I can't decide who's prettier: the flower or Nastassja.

Probably Nastassja.

Even with bunny teeth, she's still exquisitely ravishing:

I'm still trying to put two and two together.

(Munich, 1971. Image source here. Photo courtesy of Minhoi Loanic.)

She's already pretty as a girl who kinda looks like a long-haired boy. So, from whom did Nastassja inherit her good looks? Let's look at the photos of her mother to find the answer.

That's Nastassja's mom, Ruth Brigitte Tocki. The Internet says she's a model and an actress and a poet. But the photo says she kinda looks like Liv Tyler, another case of "beautiful woman with not-so-good-looking dad."

(Photo courtesy of Pure People.)

Now I know where Nastassja got her beauty, certainly not from her dad.

Nastassja would later grow up... looking like this:

13 year-old Nastassja Nakszynski made her feature film debut as a mute girl in Wim Wenders' Falsche Bewegung aka The Wrong Move. Here's how she looked like in that movie:

I told you, Nastassja is too beautiful for words. So the movie is still worth checking out even though she had no lines in it.

A few sexy roles later, Nastassja Kinski starred with Marcello Mastroianni in Stay As You Are, an Italian movie wherein she had this scene and this face:

Daym. Really. Thanks to Nastassja's mom!

After that movie with Mastroianni, Nastassja had her international breakthrough in Roman Polanski's Tess. I can't put into words how beautiful she is in Tess, so just behold:

I'm still speechless. Please carry on.

Rawr. That's all I can say right now.

The strawberry or the lips. The lips!

After the success of Tess, Nastassja Kinski became a household name in the US, starring in wild and sexy movies like 1982's Cat People.

Lucky leopard.

How dare you cage Nastassja?! Set her free and let her have breakfast!

Lucky puppy gets to have breakfast with Nastassja.

Nastassja ain't done with her breakfast yet, so just leave her alone.

While she's finishing her morning meal, let's accompany Nastassja while she's shopping for fruits somewhere in China. (Yeah. She's a multitasker!)

While she's at it, Nastassja decided to show us her juggling skills:

I'm really amazed.

Nastassja is not just a good juggler, she's also a good dancer. Proof? Here. That's from Exposed, a 1983 film co-starring ballet legend Rudolf Nureyev. (But he's not a dancer in that movie.) Aside from that dance scene, Nastassja also had this hairdo:

Which I think is better than this:

And this:

And this:

Or this:

But nothing beats her 'do in that 1996 L'Oréal ad:

Her hair. It has such a bounce.

Even when her hair's stealin' the show, Nastassja never fails to look good:

Even when she's playing hide...

...and seek:

Or even when she's tryin' to be ugly:

Sorry, Nastassja, that's a failed attempt to look ugly. You're still adorable.

Meanwhile, here's what happened to Nastassja after she got Exposed:

She fell in love with Jodie Foster.

"Hi, Jodie. I think you're cute."

"I'll do continuous cartwheels to prove my love for you."

"Forget it, Nastassja. I have to go back to Yale."

But Jodie wasn't really into Nastassja, which leaves Nastassja heartbroken:

(Daym, Jodie. I'm starting to question your dykehood. LOL.)

How dare she turn down Nastassja?! She might be in a bear suit majority of the film...

...but she's still Nastassja Kinski... in a bear suit:

Dejected by Jodie's rejection, Nastassja gave up her lesbianism to fall into Rob Lowe's arms.

And that's what happened in 1984's The Hotel New Hampshire.

Don't worry, girls. Nastassja is going to reclaim her dykehood in 1998's Your Friends & Neighbors, but this time she falls for Catherine Keener:

But before that, she would reunite with Wim Wenders in the contemplative Paris, Texas and in 1993's Faraway, So Close! (a decent follow-up to his heavenly Wings of Desire).

She is an angel in Faraway, So Close! (I wonder if all angels look as divine as Nastassja.)

Before she becomes an angel, Nastassja would hang out at a Harem (c. 1985), looking like this:

Those eyes are just as sexy as those lips. Why must you be so lovely, Nastassja?

Even when you're far away...

...or so close:

Even when you're just in bed... reading a book:

Daym. Even your profile is lovely:

After her time at Harem, she made that movie with this guy:

And then a few European movies here and there.

During the '90s, majority of Nastassja's filmography had American B movies in it.

Among those is this skydiving movie with Charlie Sheen:

I liked that movie mainly because of Nastassja, her accent, and this scene:

Cool.

Hmm... that skydiving movie wasn't so bad at all.

And then she had a One Night Stand with Wesley Snipes... in a movie, of course.

Daym. I hate her granny outfit. I generally dislike that specific ensemble: that skirt, those sandals, that blouse. Ew. I feel like I'm suffocating every time I see that granny outfit on a woman. But it's Nastassja, so it's just okay.

Actually, I don't mind if Nastassja is in a granny outfit or in this outrageous shiny I-don't-understand kind of dress:

...or even in this...

...or even when she has nothing but a cello on:

Sweet music.

After her (onscreen) one nighter with Snipes, Nastassja became a Bella Mafia:

I enjoyed that 1997 TV movie. I just find it a bit odd that Nastassja (and almost all of the cast) never seemed to grow old, even though they had this Giant-ish timeline. Nevertheless, Nastassja looked ethereal with that blonde hair.

Gee. She still looks gorgeous even when she's pissed:

And then she made that war movie with this guy:

A few B movies, TV movies, and European projects later, Nastassja made that 2003 TV movie TV mini-series adaptation of Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' perpetually adapted novel: Les Liaisons dangereuses aka Les liaisons dangereuses, Dangerous Liaisons, Valmont, Cruel Intentions, Untold Scandal, or even Not Another Teen Movie.

The TV movie mini-series is just okay. Well, let's just say that Cruel Intentions is better. Rupert Everett looks creepy; sort of like the evil uncle of pretty boy Ryan Phillippe. Catherine Deneuve's fake plump lips are equally scary; I'll just go with Sarah Michelle Gellar's portrayal. Leelee Sobieski and Nastassja Kinski are the only decent-looking ones among the main actors.

Nastassja plays Reese Witherspoon's Cruel Intentions character. I think Nastassja did a good job in this adaptation; she has more range as compared to her younger performances. She was convincing as the damsel in deep distress over a straight womanizing Rupert Everett. Good job, Nastassja!

I also find it amusing when Nastassja does a good job posing in a discreetly naughty manner:

Daym. There's just something (so stunning) about a thirty-something Nastassja.

Lovin' those toned abs. I'm thinking of going vegetarian too.

And more of Nastassja's discreetly naughty poses:

Got it, Nastassja. You're already sexy without taking something off.

And then some 31 years after she consistently worked onscreen, Nastassja took some time off:

"Zzzzz..."

Not even this guy could bring Nastassja out of her semi-retirement:

Nastassja was reportedly approached by that guy to play this character...

...in this movie:

Nastassja reportedly declined.

Around 2012, Nastassja made a quiet comeback with The Nightshift Belongs to the Stars. It is an Italian short film about "the courage to hope and the life affirming gift of organ donation." I have yet to see the film. IMDb says Nastassja is Sonia, which is also the name of her real-life daughter: Sonja.

Basically all of Nastassja's kids seem to have inherited her beauty:

Yes. Even her son looks like her.

A year after Nightshift, Nastassja had a minor role in Sugar, an American indie film about a homeless young woman. IMDb says Nastassja is Sister Nadia in the movie. I have yet to see the film.

In an interview, Nastassja said that she wants to "go back to acting but not all the time." She said she's working on a documentary. I'll sure watch out for that documentary.

I hope Nastassja's happy with whatever she decides to do in the future, 'cause I would always be her fan...

...whether she's blonde...

...or brunette:

or something in between:

Short hair...

...or long hair...

...or something in between:

Thick eyebrows...

...or thin eyebrows:

Short...

...or tall:

Gay...

...or straight...

...or even upside down:

Serious...

...or not so serious:

Tiny smile...

...or big smile:

Soft-spoken...

...or not so soft-spoken:

Dancing...

...or filming...

...or writing...

...or even when she's running:

Young...

...or young once:

Because, after all, she's still Nastassja Kinski...

...an unforgettable actress.

DISCLAIMER: No copyright infringement intended. I don't own or claim to own any of the photos used.