J. Lo: Top 5 roles on the big screen

By Fernie Ruano Jr.

Singer/actress/producer Jennifer Lopez, born in The Bronx, New York to Puerto Rican parents in 1969, has been singing and dancing since Hector Lavoe ruled the record charts and Iris Chacon topped the TV ratings in Puerto Rico.

J. Lo scored her first acting role while still in high school, went ‘Fly” on In Living Colorin 1992 as a backup dancer and has been a big screen fixture for close to 20 years, including her breakout and leading role in 1997’s Selena, a biopic about legendary Tejano music singer Selena Quintanilla-Perez.

The Boy Next Door, starring Lopez and Ryan Guzman opens in theatres Friday, January 23. Here are J. Lo’s Top5 performances according to #wordbyfernie.

1. Selena(1997): Lopez, known in part for her dancing and singing prowess, convinces in playing the often times tormented Mexican-American star. The role earned her worldwide recognition.
    
2. An Unfinished Life (2005): It opened to less than unflattering reviews largely because of its Hallmark, feel good premise, but Lopez is adequate, if not exceptionally likeable in the role of Jean, a grief-stricken rancher son’s wife.
    
3. Out of Sight (1998): Lopez scores rave reviews as a US Marshall on the hunt for a bank robber (played by George Clooney). All the chasing eventually wears moviegoers out, but the onscreen chemistry between Lopez and Clooney is on target.
    
4. Enough (2002): Slim, her name in the movie isn’t exactly apt for someone standing up to her rich turned abusive husband. But J. Lo does wonders for the women-empowering crowd as an abused wife that trains relentlessly in order to defend herself against her husband.
    
5. Maid in Manhattan (2002): The premise – single mother and maid falls for a hunky politician – is on the soft side and very predictable, but this romantic comedy makes you fall in love even more with Lopez, especially if you’re a woman and swear on fairytales.

Do you want to know more about this 305-reeking, beach-bumming, Cuban food-obsessed dude? Well, then.. You can connect with Fernie @wordbyfernie (Twitter) and Fernie Ruano (Facebook). Who knows? If he really likes you, he might even give you his email.