1. Sarah Connor (Terminator 2: Judgment Day)
I think Sarah Connor in T2 and Ripley in most of the Alien movies are similar in a great many respects, but Sarah goes even a step further than Ripley in the Alien movies. Sarah is the complete opposite of what she was in the first Terminator movie, and like Ripley in Aliens, it's a logical evolution of her character. But so many layers are organically added to that evolution. She is haunted and driven by the specter of Judgment Day, and the cause of stopping it comes above all else. Added to that are her memories of true, deep love for Kyle Reesewhich is past the prospect of creating a family unit at the end of Aliens (which also included a guy who looked like Kyle Reese); she has places to go past thatthe strained, awkward relationship with her son John that is lost between love and duty, and the uneasy truce (in her eyes) with the latest Model 101, this time sent into the past to protect John. And those are just the initial things she has to deal with. As the story unfolds, Sarah has to come face-to-face with the dichotomy of her mission's importance and the nuances of her own humanity, the fate of herself as well as those around her, the confusion between who she is underneath it all and what she has learned over the course of her life, the emotional and the logical, compassion and survival, creation and destruction, natural and unnatural, masculine and feminine, society and realitynot just through herself, John, and the Terminator, but through interaction with Miles Dyson. And where she winds up by the end of the story on her ragtag team is absolutely excellent to watch and think about. What's also really cool is that Sarah isn't even the primary focus at the beginning of the story. She's collaterala setback, a side mission for John. But she has a presence all her own just as much as the other characters, and proves to be crucial to the outstanding thematic success of the overall story. Sarah makes an awesome movie even better, and helps it achieve its uplifting and inspiring goal. It's awesome.
Conclusion
Romance should not be a larger part of the female experience than it is of the male experience. Rather than being seen as a kind of role to be fulfilled, female characters should just be seen as people and have the same opportunities in fictional representation as everyone else, especially when being portrayed by a media entity as big as Hollywood. I believe that all demographics would embrace more complicated female characters who are entertaining on their own, who don't have to be in a romantic situation by the end of the movie. And I don't mean female characters written as almost male charactersas I think I illustrated in this article, they can be very feminine and convey very interesting elements of the female experience. Women can be people and be just as interesting, both to us and for the actresses playing them. I say we make a point to suggest these kinds of characters to our friends and family more often as we watch them. Like those of any underrepresented characters out there, I think the movies and ideas to improve the situation are out there, and should be supported by us, the audience, more. Maybe Hollywood will respond. Crazier things have happened. I for one really want to watch a lot more Marion Cotillard movies. I have a feeling her work does a lot for this area. Also, I'm very excited to see and hopeful for In a World... Can you suggest any others below? What Hollywood characters do you think I should have included? What about characters from movies produced primarily outside the U.S.?