Over the last few decades a brilliant array of deadly leading ladies have hit the big screen, big time, showing to the world of action cinema that being a bad-ass isn't mutually exclusive to the 'Boy's Club' alone. Thankfully, this year Transporter Refuelled showed that it wasn't the exception to the rule. So, to celebrate it's Home Entertainment release, made available on Blu-ray and DVD digital platforms from December the 26th, 2015, courtesy of Icon Film Distribution, we're now looking back at some other equally lethal leading ladies that'll kick ass, and take names. The Transporter Refueled
Anna - Transporter Refueled (2015)
Loan Chabanol takes the role of cunning femme-fatale Anna, in this brilliantly high speed, action packed, roller coaster guilty pleasure, which sees the return of reluctant action hero, Frank Martin (played here by Ed Skrein). Along with her three seductive sidekicks, Anna engages Frank to orchestrate the bank heist of the century -- which leads to him using his covert expertise and love for fast cars to outrun a sinister Russian kingpin, as well as staying one step ahead in a potentially fatal game of chess with a team of gorgeous women out for revenge.
Prowling through the woods, bow and arrow in hand, her braid hanging loose from her head as she hunts... Flick! Bullseye! Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss Everdeen, a character who not only encounters constant traumatic occurrences, but battles such a wide array of conflicting emotions throughout the films, it’s a shock she’s still standing by the climax. Deeply loyal, strong-willed, and as fierce as they come, Everdeen is one character you wouldn't want to mess with. Jennifer Lawrence has taken Suzanne Collins’ dashing protagonist, and made her quite potentially the defining action heroine of recent years.
Merida – Brave (2012)
Merida (voiced by Kelly Macdonald) is the courageous, free-spirited, gifted-archer and daughter of the Scottish King (Billy Connolly) and his Queen (Emma Thompson). Boldly she stands against the old traditions of her kingdom, and this defiance enrages the lords of the land, which causes a rift between her and her people. So as you may expect, Merida searches to discover the true meaning of being brave.
Perhaps the most controversial action heroine on the list, Hit-Girl, AKA Mindy Macready (played by Chloe Grace Moretz) is an 11-year-old, C-word spouting killing machine. Delivering dialogue that will make your ears bleed with deadpan brashness, Moretz has taken the character -- made famous by Mark Millar’s graphic novel -- and presented her to the world in a way no other could. Stealing the show alongside on-screen father Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) in Kick-Ass, her role in the sequel perhaps proved a standalone Hit-Girl film would be a good route to go down.
Hanna - Hanna (2010)
Not quite as gasp-inducing as Hit-Girl, Saoirse Ronan’s 15-year-old German assassin, Hanna, is introduced to us when she shoots a reindeer with an arrow. Suddenly realizing that she's missed the animal’s heart, quickly she pulls out a handgun and puts it out of its misery. BANG! Such is the character’s seriousness and almost alien-like movements, it’s a marvel that by the film’s end Hanna somehow becomes the beloved action heroine she currently is.
Quentin Tarantino and Uma Thurman came up with the idea of this character during the shooting of Pulp Fiction, a whole decade before the film hit cinemas. The Bride (revealed as Beatrix Kiddo in Vol 2) is a victim of an attempted massacre, a bullet to the head putting her in a coma for years. When she finally comes to, she seeks out each member of the Deadly Viper’s Assassination Squad, headed by her former beau, Bill (played by the late, great, David Carradine), looking for revenge. Dressed in her yellow jumpsuit, and with a Hattori Hanzo sword in hand, The Bride is one of the most memorable action heroines of the noughties.
Charlie’s Angels (2000)
Based on the 1970s television action comedy series of the same name, this film tells the story of three beautiful and highly trained private investigators played by Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, and Cameron Diaz. The kick-ass girls embark on a mission to save a kidnapped billionaire who created a top-secret voice ID software and keep that software out of the wrong people’s hands.
You don't need to look any further than Trinity’s opening scene in The Wachowski’s seminal sci-fi film, The Matrix, to see that Carrie-Ann Moss’ leather-clad computer hacker is a heroine for the ages. Initially Morpheus’ (Laurence Fishburne) first in command, she soon becomes a love interest for Neo (Keanu Reeves), even though her feelings doesn't dampen her ability to kick butt and capture audience’s wonder.
Sarah Connor - The Terminator (1984 - present)
Initially appearing in James Cameron’s first two Terminator films (The Terminator and its sequel, Judgement Day), Sarah Connor’s life has evolved beyond cinematic history. However, it's Linda Hamilton’s depiction that remains the epitome of the characters existence. A young student pursued by a deadly robot (Arnold Schwarzenegger) sent back in time to kill her before she gives birth to John Connor, a man who will go on to lead a successful future rebellion against the deadly Skynet. A very different take on the character was presented in the ill-fated television series, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, in which Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) depicted the character, whilst Emilia Clarke (also in Game of Thrones) reprises the Connor character in the fifth film installment, Terminator: Genesis, alongside Arnie himself.
Warrant officer Ellen Ripley starts out oh-so innocently, minding her own business until a unknown alien creature boards the Nostromo, leaving Ripley the lone survivor after it kills everybody else on board. Many have stated that Sigourney Weaver’s role isn’t simply the greatest action heroine, but the greatest female protagonist ever. With an on-screen life spanning three decades, the character’s evolution was overseen by such maestros as Ridley Scott, James Cameron (with Weaver turning in an Oscar nominated performance for the sequel, Aliens) and David Fincher.
THE TRANSPORTER REFUELLED comes to Blu-ray, DVD and digital platforms from December 26, 2015, courtesy of Icon Film Distribution.
LETHAL LADIES BACK ON THE BIG SCREEN
Reviewed by David Andrews
on
December 16, 2015
Rating:
Reviewed by David Andrews
on
December 16, 2015
Rating:
