Top Twenty Female Characters

December 16, 2008 at 5:53 am (Uncategorized)

In no order, really.

Holly Hunter as Ada McGrath – The Piano (Jane Campion, 1993)

As a mute piano player, Hunter gives a fearless, bare performance that leaves a huge impression.

Julie Christie as Constance Miller – McCabe and Mrs. Miller (Robert Altman, 1971)

A hotheaded but practical madam with a quirky charm and a hidden tenderness.

Moira Shearer as Victoria Page – The Red Shoes (Powell & Pressburger, 1948)

The best redhead evar, and a triumph of emotional clarity as well as physical expressiveness.

Louise Brooks as Lulu – Pandora’s Box (George Wilhelm Pabst, 1929)

Lulu’s sexual energy and doomed romances make her fascinating to watch.

Irene Jacob as Veronique/Weronika – The Double Life of Veronique (Krzysztof Kieslowski, 1991)

Absolutely luminous, Veronique and her double are this film.

Ellen Burstyn as Sara Goldfarb – Requiem for a Dream (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)

Sara’s descent into addiction is physically shocking and absolutely harrowing to watch.

Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker – Bonnie and Clyde (Arthur Penn, 1967)

Flighty but strong, lovely and tragic, one half of one of the best screen couples in history.

Kate Winslet as Clementine Kruczynski – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)

Hard to like, impossible not to love.

Princess Nausicaa – Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (Hayao Miyazaki – 1984)

Nausicaa is sort of a fantasy-hippie; a warrior princess with a deep respect for the earth and all its creatures.

Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond – Sunset Blvd. (Billy Wilder, 1950)

Deranged and lost in the past, Norma descends into madness and vanity after an affair with a younger man goes sour.

Vivien Leigh as Scarlet O’Hara – Gone With the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939)

Willful and stubborn to a fault, Scarlet is a survivor, and a ravishing beauty.

Q’orianka Kilcher as Pocahontas – The New World (Terrence Malick, 2005)

Both grounded and a dreamer at heart, Pocahontas’s personal journey of love and self-discovery is compelling and revealing.

Belle – Beauty and the Beast (Trousdale & Wise, 1991)

Smart, fiercely independent dreamer who refuses to bend to society’s expectations.

Diane Keaton as Annie Hall – Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)

Mixes ditzy and nerdy charm into one iconic Manhattanite.

Bibi Andersson as Alma – Persona (Ingmar Bergman, 1966)

Gives one of the sexiest monologues in film history – and the rest of her time onscreen isn’t bad either.

Kirsten Dunst as Claudia – Interview with the Vampire (Neil Jordan, 1994)

A frightening, emotionally mature portrayal of a girl who never ages.

Frances McDormand as Marge Gunderson – Fargo (Joel & Ethan Cohen, 1996)

A hugely pregnant police chief with a hilariously positive attitude in the worst circumstances.

Genevieve Bujold as Claire Niveau – Dead Ringers (David Cronenberg, 1988)

Takes a somewhat disposable role and makes it disturbing, unforgettable, and complex.

Audrey Tautou as Amelie – Amelie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)

Her optimism and creativity are infectious.

Marilyn Monroe as Sugar – Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959)

The sexiest, most charming blonde bimbo ever.