6. Gaylen Ross (Francine Parker) Dawn Of The Dead (1978)
George A. Romero quite often tends to give his actresses the meatiest parts in his movies and, in Gaylen Ross, we find perhaps his finest protagonist in Francine, TV Producer, zombie shooter and, by and large, most sensible person in the whole film. From the opening moments in a newsroom rapidly falling apart as the zombie apocalypse takes hold, Francine is clearly the only member of the team acting with a sense of calm as she takes control of camera shots, organises interviews and takes out of date rescue stations off the air. The opening shot, however, shows that Fran is as terrified as anyone as she awakes from a nightmare. From here, she decides to go in the newsroom chopper with her boyfriend Stephen and SWAT team members Roger and Peter. Upon finding an abandoned shopping mall, the group clear the space of zombies and hole up in the upper areas. It's through the boredom, and Fran's confession that she is pregnant, that causes the arguments to start. It is Fran, though, who remains the stalwart as she looks at ways to protect her unborn child through flying lessons and gun practice. Ross' performance holds the whole film together. The men, as a whole, show they are too tempestuous and even the stoic Peter submits to material wealth. In Fran, we see a woman who needs to take control as society crumbles around her and in Ross, Romero found the best actress he has worked with thus far.
