Troy's Top Ten Female Action Stars

[TroyTheAverage]

10
Michelle Yeoh

Michelle first broke onto the scene for me in the Jackie Chan movie Supercop and the follow up Supercop 2. Although she was in Tomorrow Never Dies, I had never seen it. The next movie I remember her from was the very successful Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Michelle blew me away in this movie. I watched it a handful of times and was mesmerized by her looks as well as what she was able to do in the movie. She is a trained dancer and does not know Martial Arts, She relies on her dance discipline for the moves. And the fact that she does many of her own stunts makes her even more badass. I remember her being in the Mummy sequel, but don't remember much of the movie so I can't recall her doing a lot of action scenes in there. Although that was the last I had seen of her since I have not watched any of her other movies and they have been few and far between, for Supercop, Supercop 2 and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon it is enough to land her at number 10.

9
Carrie Anne Moss

Who didn't love Carrie Anne Moss' character Trinity in The Matrix movies? She was one of the reasons that I thought the first Matrix movie was so kickass. The opening scene with her sitting alone in the room and taking on all the cops when they busted down the door was pretty damn awesome. There is not much more to say as she was kicking ass and taking names in all three movies. This may be her only action series and she may not be considered an action heroine but her role as Trinity alone garnered her spot number 9 and a well deserved spot.

8
Jessica Alba

Anyone who has ever seen Dark Angel I am sure woud agree with me here. She is an ass kicker. Her role as Max in that show made her an action star in my eyes. Jessica went on to star as Susan Storm in the movie Fantastic Four and its sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer where her action talents were again put on display. Next up was Into The Blue where she starred with Scott Caan and Paul Walker. Although best known action wise for her role in Dark Angel as Max and the Fantastic Four movies as Susan Storm, it is enough to cement her status at number 8.

7
Pam Grier

In at number 7 is Pam Grier. I first saw her on cable many moons ago in a movie called The Arena which was set two thousand years ago in Rome when women took over for men in the battle arena. Later after finding out who she was I started looking into more of her movies and found one of the greatest movies ever in Foxy Brown. I was mesmerized by Pam Grier. I'm not sure how to categorize this movie though as it had a bit of everything from comedy to action. Either way, this is the reason Pam is on the list, even if she had never done another action movie. Thankfully though that wasn't the case. Pam went on to star is some very good action movies as the heroine. Pam has starred in action movies such as Slow Burn, Jackie Brown, Above The Law, and Sheba Baby. She had found her niche in action movies and everyone should be thankful for it.

6
Jennifer Garner

Coming in at number 6 is Jennifer Garner. Jennifer's move into action was by way of the hit show Alias. The show was one of my favorites so it is really no wonder why Jennifer Garner is up this high on the list. Some may say she should either not be this high or should be on the list at all. But between Alias, Elektra and Daredevil, she deserves this place. As Sydney in Alias she was absolutely awesome and the reason I kept tuning in. It wasn't so much for her looks (though they didn't hurt) it was more for some of the action sequences week in and week out. I could stop with that, but I will also mention that I thought she was pretty good in Elektra even though the movie sucked. It had its moments even if the script was terrible. Either way, it was enough to land her at number 6.

5
Sarah Michelle Gellar

Buffy The Vampire Slayer comes in at number 5. Sarah Michelle Gellar is on here for her only action role that even comes to mind. Her turn as Buffy The Vampire Slayer for 7 years was enough to catapult her up to the top. She was fantastic in every way in this series. From the action to the acting there is not much that can be hated on with her. I wouldn't call myself a huge fan of the series but I watch it when it is on and I have seen every episode at least twice. I hated on this show the first season and then ended up watching it in reruns and found myself enjoying it. Sarah reportedly did a lot of her own stunts and that is the mark of a true action hero. Of course she has studied Tae Kwan Do, Kickboxing and boxing for many years so that helps. I wouldn't say that she was the best Buffy, but she is probably the baddest Buffy. Still have a soft place in my heart for the movie, but I didn't let that affect her rating.

4
Angelina Jolie

It should come as no surprise that Angelina Jolie is in at number 4, and justifiably probably be higher. With movies such as Salt, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Wanted, Tomb Raider and Gone in Sixty Seconds she is truly a great action star. She far exceeded any expectations I had for her after watching Mr. & Mrs. Smith. From her acting to the action scenes I was mesmerized at how well she pulled them off. I've never been a big fan of hers but I loved her in those movies. My favorite of all of them being Mr. & Mrs. Smith where it combined just the right amount of comedy with some non stop action. She was also the lone bright spot in Wanted as Fox and it saddened me to see her die at the end. Although I didn't care for her as Lara Croft, it was definitely her jump to being a great action heroine so I don't hate on it to much. Salt was another bright spot in her action movie career and is a role I hope she returns to as she was magnificent. She is definitely this lists Bruce Willis just because of that role.

3
Sigourney Weaver

It is Ellen F'n Ripley. What more needs to be said? Sigourney ultimately got the role that was written for a man in the Alien franchise. Now the Alien movies may not be classified as action movies per se, I feel that Sigourney gets a nod here because of the action in them and what she did in that role. Even as the movies got worse over time, she was the bright spot of them and her star shined brightly. Even if she never does another action movie, sans Avatar, she will forever be placed in my top three of all time just for the Alien movies.

2
Kate Beckinsale

In at number 2 is Kate Beckinsale. After her turn in Underworld and the subsequent sequels it would be hard to imagine any list being complete without Beckinsale. She is truly a great heroine. Her role as Selene is one of those roles that could be justified as a once in a lifetime role. It catapulted her into super stardom as it is easily one of the best vampires vs. werewolves movie that has been made. She returned to the role with the just theatrically released Underworld: Awakening movie. She had a star turn in the disappointing Van Helsing movie after Underworld as well. Her new movie coming in August of 2012 is the Total Recall remake where she plays Lori, Douglas Quade's wife and she is one of the villains. Rumor has it that she has a great fight scene with Jessica Biel as well, so I can't wait to see that, even if the movie is garbage.

1
Milla Jovovich

Is there really anyone else that can be number one? Milla has made a career out of her action movies and is one of the only people on the list who could truly be considered an action star. From The Fifth Element to Ultraviolet to the Resident Evil movies she has solidified her place at number one and as of right now I don't see anyone overtaking it. She turned in a riveting performance in The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc that was the better of the two Joan of Arc movies that was released that year. This came two years after she showed her action chops in The Fifth Element playing LeeLoo who is the fifth element that can destroy evil. Although her role as Alice in the Resident Evil movies made her the action star that she is today. Her fight scenes and action sequences are some of the best around and she pulls them off convincingly. In Ultraviolet she plays another heroine who has to protect a kid who could ultimately destroy her. Again, she pulled it off beautifully and made the role work. The movie itself was kind of bland but she helped save it for me by being the action goddess that she is.



That is it for this edition and hopefully you all enjoyed it. I don't expect everyone to agree with the placements, so feel free to add your top ten to this as well.

 

[Postman Dave]

Really good list, Alba ahead of Moss was questionable until you reminded me of Dark Angel. Nice to see you've really thought this out.

And HAI TROY

 

[Kross Rhodes]

Sarah Michelle Gellar on here make me a happy camper.

And I love the Milla love. I am a big of hers. Fifth Element and the Resident Evil films are greatness.

Nice list.

 

[Fuji Vice]

Hey buddy, glad to have you back around here. One thing I wanted to mention earlier about this list but forgot was that I loved the inclusion of Pam Grier. First of all, I think she's really attractive, I loved her in Escape from LA (the only good part about that movie outside of Russell) and Jackie Brown, while not an action film, is also quite great.

 

[TroyTheAverage]

No female action list can be complete without Pam Grier on it somewhere.

 

[Wangman Page]

No female action list can be complete without Pam Grier on it somewhere.

Damn Straight.