An actress remembered at her best

When I saw that Brittany Murphy had died of a heart attack at age 32, I was surprised in the same way I was when I heard that Heath Ledger and Michael Jackson had died. Murphy never achieved the same level of celebrity as some others, but her sudden death has lead to speculation about the cause.

Though Murphy's star may have been fading in recent years, she had some good turns earlier in her career, including in one of my favorite movies.

She starred as Tai in "Clueless," which has remained one of my favorite movies ever since I saw it when I was a teenager. My mom rented it for me and my friends for a New Year's Eve party when I was 14. We tried to get it from the newly-opened Blockbuster in Morgan Hill, but it wasn't in. We ended up reserving it at National Video in Gilroy, and we got it just in time for the sleepover.

Murphy's turn as Tai is still endearing to me, with her curly red hair and Valley girl accent. Though she is not really the main character in the movie, she helps Cher (Alicia Silverstone) and her friend Dion (Stacey Dash) find a greater purpose in life - even if it is just making over the new kid. Tai is from the poor part of Los Angeles (which is most of it) when she transfer to a high school in the rich part of the city. Cher and Dion take Tai on as a project. They make her over and invite her to the cool parts, and even play matchmaker for her. Murphy is transformed from a clueless kid to a girl who becomes a little too full of herself, but it all works out in this funny movie. This is one of those movies that I can watch from any point because I pretty much have the dialogue memorized.

Murphy was at her best playing offbeat characters who seemed a little bit lost in their lives. When she played Molly Gunn in "Uptown Girls" she had a great chemistry with her young costar Dakota Fanning. Murphy's character is the daughter of a rock star who finds herself without many friends when her father dies and leaves her penniless. She takes a job working as a nanny for Ray (Fanning), who is a neglected kid whose rich mother ignores her. The two hate each other at the beginning, but eventually grow on each other.

Though Murphy mostly had roles in comedies and low-budget horror films (at the end of her career,) one of her best turns was in the drama "Girl, Interrupted." The movie is based on the experiences of writer Susanna Kaysen's recollection of spending a year and a half in a mental hospital in the '60s. Murphy plays a fellow patient, Daisy Randone. Daisy is a fragile girl with an eating disorder and Murphy embodied her struggle well. Though Angelina Jolie nabbed a supporting actress Oscar for her turn in the movie, Murphy perhaps would have been nominated if her role had had a bit more screen time.

According to Internet Movie Database, Murphy had roles in more than 64 movies, television shows or as a voice on animated series. She was well-known as the voice of Luanne on "King of the Hill" and she is in three movies that are in post-production, though it is unclear if or when they will be released. I may not see the new movies, but I am likely to watch her again in "Clueless," in the first role in which I saw her.