Edited by Lester Brathwaite
Liya Kebede is the latest in a long line of catwalkers to add the foreboding hyphenate “actress” to her title. But unlike so many models before her, she has taken a quieter route towards the big screen. Desert Flower, opening this Friday exclusively at New York’s Angelika and in Los Angeles, is based on the story of Waris Dirie, a victim of female circumcision who was sold into marriage before becoming a model in the late-80s. Heady stuff. Kebede could become a legitimate actress (and thus earn the title, “former model” like Charlize Theron and Uma Thurman), but what about the other model-actresses who have left their own memorable impressions on cinema?