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The Last Action Heroines

© Amanda Cuda

Geena Davis as a pirate? Angela Bassett as a brutish futuristic limo driver? How many people remember these images?

Fortunately, few. The conventional wisdom of the movies (and movie-goers) has always been that women's action pictures don't sell. Why? Though contemporary Americans pride themselves on being evolved and intelligent, this is the conclusion they've arrived at: no one wants to see a girl with a gun. Hence, despite the fact that many respected actresses have tried their well-manicured hands at action, few have done it more than once. Hence, the lack of female counterparts to Sly, Arnold,Bruce, Jean-Claude and the like.

However, those who claim women belong only in cross-over action dramas like "Silence of the Lambs" and "Thelma and Louise" should think again.

There actually have been two successful female action stars. By that I mean women who've starred in a string of successful action pictures -- not realistically themed "action dramas," but bone-crushing popular entertainment.

To resist delaying suspense any longer,I give you the women's names: Sigourney Weaver and Pam Grier.

The two represent different ends of the action genre. Weaver is best known for the "Alien" films which, in their prime, were popular intelligent thrillers. Though they've declined in quality, they continue to be high-tech entertainments (and don't forget -- there have been four. Which proves that, just like their testosterone counterparts "Rocky," "Rambo," and "Die Hard," female action pictures can go to the well once too often. Grier is the Van Damme or Segal of the female action genre -- a well-built toughie whose films are short on polish and high on action.

In a string of action-packed revenge thrillers with names like "Coffy," "Foxy Brown" and "Black Mama, White Mama," Grier portrayed steel-willed characters who kicked butt, spewed mindless dialogue and, of course, bared their breasts. Despite how cheesy the movies look today, they had a following when they first came out. And even now, their appeal is undeniable: In a day and age when crying on cue is a more important skill for an actress than holding a gun properly, it's nice to see a woman pursue action for action's sake.

Both Weaver and Grier played gritty, fearless characters and audiences, at least for awhile, responded.

But the bloom, sadly, is off the rose. Weaver pursues more high-brow works like "Death and The Maiden," and even the seemingly untameable Grier has her own sitcom on Showtime. However, their collective example should be an inspiration aspiring action heroines. After all, the time is ripe for a new tough gal to take over the screen and make her foremothers proud.

The copyright of the article The Last Action Heroines in Women on Film is owned by Amanda Cuda. Permission to republish The Last Action Heroines in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.