Bear in mind that this list contains the opinions of only one passionate movie follower. It is by no means absolute. So, if you agree/disagree then please add your own comments to the form.

25. Ray Quirk vs The Number 5 Bus-

"The Specialist"

In terms of developing the plot of the movie this scene was utterly pointless, but who cares? As ever, Sly Stallone plays the nice guy with muscles, and kindly gives up his seat to a pregnant lady who is left standing- bless him- but along comes some inconsiderate goon to jump in the seat to the astonishment of surrounding passengers. You can guess what happens next...

24. Dutch vs The Predator-

"Predator"

If it bleeds, Arnie will kill it. In this, possibly his toughest challenge yet, he does battle with an outer space warrior who likes to skin his victims alive, and save the skulls to show his brothers and sisters back home. It's safe to say this isn't a routine victory for Arnie, who is picked up by the throat, tossed around like a rag doll, and beaten senseless for a majority of the fight. A classic man vs monster spectacle, which notches up another victory for the human race. Right on!

23. Joe Hallenbeck vs Some Cocky Moron-

"The Last Boy Scout"

In this hilarious scene, Hallenbeck (Bruce Willis) has been captured by the mob and asks for a cigarette. He gets his wish, but is takes a couple of knocks to the jaw for his trouble. He kindly warns the guy "If you touch me again I'll kill you." But does he listen?

22. Mickey O'Neill vs Good Night Anderson- "Snatch"

"One Punch Mickey" has been given orders not to knock out his opponent and throw the fight, or feel the wrath of "Brick Top".

21. John Spartan vs Simon Phoenix-

"Demolition Man"

In the year 2032 violence and crime is virtually unheard of. Fortunately for us, Wesley Snipes and Sylvester Stallone, who were both cryonically frozen in prison, are woken up and begin to slug it out in an epic final battle which leaves Phoenix (Snipes) decapitated. Awesome.

20. Trevalyan/006 vs James Bond/007-

"Goldeneye"

In easily my favourite Bond film, Trevalyan (Sean Bean) does battle with 007 (Pierce Brosnon) with both men having personal scores to settle. Oooo you can feel the tension. For England James?

19. Tyler Durden vs Narrator-

"Fight Club"

I was always confused to how a person with a split personality could pull himself along the floor with his own hair. Anyways, the final scene where the film's unnamed protagonist (Ed Norton) brutally kicks the crap out of "himself" is still pretty awesome. If you haven't seen Fight Club where the hell have you been?

18. Daniel LaRusso vs Johnny Lawrence-

"The Karate Kid"

Who hasn't tried the crane kick? Daniel, barely able to stand, takes it Johnny and wins the all valley karate championship, even gaining respect from his opponent. Of course, all the credit should go to his mentor Mr Miyagi. What a legend.

17. Maximus Decimus Meridius vs Commodus- "Gladiator"

Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife; and he will have his vengeance. The so called "slave" Maximus (Russell Crowe) is trained with formidable combat skills, which lead to his rise in popularity with Rome's blood thirsty audience, and the eventual overhaul of the ruthless emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix)

16. Frank Leone vs Gateway Prison Guards-

"Lock Up"

A man can only be pushed so far until he reaches breaking point. One night a stranger in a wheelchair visits Leone's cell and informs him that the Warden made a deal to reduce his jail time, and in exchange, this stranger will rape his girlfriend Melissa. Not taking this too well, Leone goes berserk and tries to escape, but is soon captured by the guards. It's 3 on 1 but he still comes out on top. Let's not forget the classic line "Rape This!" preceding a blow to the family jewels. Gets me fired up every time.

15. T-800 vs T-1000-

"Terminator 2: Judgement Day"

In short, but brilliant scene, John Connor's protector and killer first meet at the Galleria. They proceed to shoot each other senseless and smash up the decor. Why use humans when you can use robots. Sorry, I mean "Cybernetic Organisms".

14 John Rambo vs Some Dude in Thailand-

"Rambo III"

The rest of the movie wasn't much cop, but shortly after the opening credits Rambo ignites our screens with an explosive stick fight. Why use fists?

13. Bruce Lee vs Bob Wall-

"Enter The Dragon"

In this one sided contest Bruce Lee straight up owns his opponent. Watch him dance.

12. Jake LaMotta vs Sugar Ray Robinson-

"Raging Bull"

The biography of real life boxer Jake LaMotta boasts that he was never knocked down once. Here, the brutal fighter is played by Robert De Niro and takes the beating of his life from his most famous opponent Sugar Ray Robinson. And still he stands.

11. Chun Li vs Vega- "Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie"

Not to be confused with that crock of shit live action adaptation starring Van Damme, this brilliant animated movie stays true to its video game roots, and has some of the best fight scenes in anime history that I've witnessed. Watch in awe.

10. Gino Felino vs Everyone-

"Out For Justice"

Before Steven Seagal piled on the pounds and started playing the guitar he went into American bars and kicked everyone's arses just for the hell of it. The pick of his fights comes when he is on the search of Richie Madano, who foolessly shot his cop friend in broad daylight. He walks into a bar, asks a few questions, slaps a few people around, and even breaks jaws with a pool ball in a hanky. Hilarious.

9. Tang Lung vs Colt -

"Way of the Dragon"

Aside from the very disturbing moment when Chuck Norris strips down to reveal his insanely hairy chest, this is a must see.

Lung (Bruce Lee) is matched all the way, but eventually defeats Colt, who is then covered with his white gi to represent respect and admiration. A good fight gentlemen. Next time bring the wax.

8. Rocky Balboa vs Tommy Gunn-

"Rocky V"

Ok, this one is going to cause some controversy. I could have quite easily included every one of the fights from films I-VI but I've selected this one because it sees Rocky with his classic "street fighter" persona. He came from the gutter and, due to bankruptcy, he ends up back there, taking under his wing the up and coming fighter Tommy Gunn. When Tommy dumps his mentor and sells out; thus failing to gain respect from the fans he goes hunting for Balboa and challenges him to a fight. Reluctant at first, Rocky walks back to the bar, only for Paulie to get a crack to the jaw for getting involved. "You knocked him down now why don't you try knocking me down now?" says Rocky. Into the alley they go. Completely unrealistic, but I still love it. Nothing like seeing a guy with a mullet get his arse kicked by a down-on-his-luck-snow-white-underdog.

7. John Matrix vs Bennett-

"Commando"

In quite probably the most over the top action movie in cinema history, Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken out the entire world's army and is now one on one with a guy who wants to "shoot him in the balls." On the contrary, Arnold would prefer if he "stuck a knife in him." It all gets a bit homoerotic in the end, but you still got to love it.

6. Raphael vs Leonardo-

"TMNT"

Despite its critics, I loved the new Turtles movie, and I'm not even that fond of CGI. In this brilliant scene, Raphael has had enough of Leonardo being the big leader of the Turtles clan and sticks it to him. The animation is wonderful, and its great for nostalgia seeing two classic cartoon characters slog it out in a contemporary form. There ain't no room for grown men in Jim Henson suits here; the turtles have an edge, and are as cool as ever.

5. Sean Archer vs Castor Troy-

"Face/Off"

One of the most insane action movies ever made. Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage) has been relentlessly pursued by FBI agent Sean Archer for years after the execution of his son. Troy is arrested, but has been knocked into a coma, and things get messy when the FBI discover his briefcase and the plans to blow up Los Angeles. Archer must assume the physical appearance of his sworn enemy and find out the location of the bomb by interrogating Troy's brother in prison. Unfortunately, Troy then wakes up from his coma and foils Archer's plan; this all results in a spectacular final cat and mouse chase scene that ends up on the beach, where Archer (who is really Troy) and Troy (who is really Archer) beat the living crap out of each other. You get me?

4. Ellen Ripley vs The Alien Queen -

"Aliens"

All be it with the aid of a cargo loader, Ripley had some balls taking on the queen of the alien nest. Even with a squad of trained marines getting their arses kicked beyond belief, and the previous experience of the Alien taking over her ship, she wasn't bothered. In this, one of the most intense and accomplished science fiction films ever made, the female heroine and the alien end up tumbling into a large airlock, which Ripley then opens, expelling the queen into space. Not bad for a woman eh?

3. Nick DiMarco & Kristi Jones vs Stingray-

"Undeletable"

Regrettably, I am yet to see the entirety of this film, but this heavily overracted and deliberately stereotypical (well at least I think it is) fight scene was brought to my attention via the internet. Some dude named "Stingray" licks his knife and does battle with a police officer, and then this chick gets involved. Its all pretty ridiculous, but I loved every minute of it.

2. Rocky Balboa vs The USSR-

"Rocky IV"

In another ridiculously over the top fight scene, The Italian Stallion manages to overcome superhuman strength of Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren), and the entire country of Russia to defeat Communism once and for all. It's all very American, and all very patriotic, and the ranks easily at the top of many people's guilty pleasures list for entertainment value.

1. Martin Riggs vs Mr. Joshua-

"Lethal Weapon"

Even after all these years I am yet to see a better man-on-man fist fight than this hardcore encounter on Detective Murtaugh's front lawn. Mel Gibson and Gary Busey go at it like animals while the police crowd around and watch; there's everything from dropkicks, headlocks, elbows, headbutts, poles to the face; this is how fight scenes should be done.

The unnamed narrator and main character (played by Edward Norton) is portrayed as a hopeless slave to modern conveniences. Norton excellently plays the apathetic, Joe Everyman, that any viewer that has ever worked in a cubicle will be able to sympathize with. The narrator's Down to the subtle facial expressions, tics and idiosyncrasies of the main character. The fear, rage, insanity and humor comes out in every aspect of Norton, and his disbelief in his own actions give this manic-depressive tragic hero a true sense of believability. Jack's dialect and inner monologue are perfectly rendered in monotone throughout the piece. A viewer gets the feeling that the story is being told to them by an old friend in the distant future, because emotion is so far removed from narration. However, the voiceover almost always seems natural, as if it is coming from Jack's mind at the time.

An insomniac, the narrator (commonly called “Jack” by avid fans) finds himself so completely devoid of emotion that he goes to therapeutic groups for those with terminal diseases. This is all until he meets the man that changes his life, Tyler Durden. Performed by Brad Pitt, the soap salesman that knows an whole lot about homemade explosives and social trends begins to rub off onto Jack in a very profound way. After Jack is forced to move out of his apartment, he has nowhere to go but Tyler's run down house on Paper Street. After a night of talking and a few drinks, Tyler's only request is to have Jack hit him as hard as he can. This sparks the idea for the fight club that eventually meets every day of the week, and turns into an underground cult that spreads all over the country. The truly blindsiding revelation and the all too shocking resolution to this story together are really what leave a viewer speechless, but it is the entrancing love triangle (if you could call it that) that draws the viewer in emotionally.

The off-beat, life-apathetic Marla Singer is played by Helena Bonham Carter. Her relationship to Jack began when she showed up one day at his Testicular cancer support group. Completely unsympathetic to the dying people around her, “Marla's philosophy on life is that it could end at any minute. The tragedy…is that it doesn't”. As a native Britton, Carter does an excellent job of adapting to an American accent. The sarcasm, suicidal tendencies, and sexual suggestion come out masterfully through her heavily shadowed eyes and cheap lipstick. Towards the end of the film, her frustration and confusion are culminated perfectly to the mood of each scene. While Carter is seen throughout the movie as being callous and almost insane, a second more complete viewing of the film can really allow true sympathy for an otherwise pitiless soul.

The costumes are really what define the characters, as some of the main themes of the story are corporate takeover and commercial living. Marla is always seen in her thrift store clothes (that she paid for selling stolen clothes), while Jack is dressed in his standard button down that he brings on every business trip. Tyler, hating all the models in Calvin Klein ads, dresses in old, sometimes worn out generic shirts, often with strange or outlandish designs. These things give each character their personality, along with yet another level of depth to the reality and believability of the movie as a whole.

The soundtrack, performed and written by the Dust Brothers, is experimental to say the least. From the opening scene, which begins with the camera exiting Jack's brain, the music is entirely unconventional in composition, with more sound effects than instruments. Throughout the film, the music is not only at the most intense of scenes, but in the most mundane, putting emphasis on the criticism of modern complacency. Though appropriate, the soundtrack does not flow in any way from song to song, leaving the moviegoer constantly intrigued and off balance, much like the plot itself. The final track in the movie is the Pixies' song “Where Is My Mind”, which aptly wraps up the film completely, and also leaves the viewer with the eerie sensation of drifting as the credits roll.

Shot with multiple flashbacks, Fight Club is directed very uniquely. While the story has a very real flow to it, the narrator often goes off on tangents to describe certain aspects of his life. In fact, the whole movie is a flashback in and of itself. The camerawork is interesting in that it cooperates with the narration of the story. As Jack describes something, a close up of the object, or possibly a computer generated image, is shown almost as one would a storybook. The director also included many aspects of Jack's imagination as real things to minimize his sense of reality and judgment.

Overall, Fight Club is probably one of the best dark comedies of its time. The film is artfully rendered with the flow, intrigue and purpose of an entire novel, while still attaining the popular feel of modern movies. As one of the most explosive movies of its era, the Norton-Pitt team made this movie a cult favorite with their lovably mischievous antics. With each subsequent viewing of the movie comes a deeper understanding of the characters and setting, making this movie a must-see for any movie lover, cynic or aspiring social reject.

Well, just came back from watching Taken at the cinema. What a film!

I’ve heard a lot of people say that the reviews for this film haven’t been good, well all I can say is, this film is fantastic.

Could be film of the year for me!

Liam Neeson plays his part brilliantly; also the film has a great but simple story line. A gang kidnaps his daughter, he goes out and rescues her.

But this is no walk in the park; oh no this is Liam Neeson using his skills from playing a Jedi Knight in Star Wars and from using his skills from playing the baddie in batman.

Liam Neeson is not playing about in this film; the director has done a fabulous job in depicting him in a hard, cold and calculating way. I was taken aback by the events that unfolded before me on screen.

This film had me gripped to my seat. At no point in the film was I bored, my mind didn’t even wonder about football fixtures or anything. This is a great film, Bravo.

Five stars. Peace.

The secret of the fascination for heroes that Hollywood has been able to create lies in a secret: the stories in those movies have the power to take us to another place where we are both ourselves and at the same time we are somebody else, somebody stronger, since heroes possess all of the human attributes only amplified. This characteristic is what turns them into role models and archetypes, in which the values of intelligence, loyalty, courage, beauty and goodness reach their highest point. Umberto Eco, an Italian semiologist, once wrote that “the positive hero must embody, besides all of the imaginable limits, the strength exigencies that the regular citizen feeds on and cannot satisfy” This would be the simplest explanation, or maybe just one, of why people like action heroes. But what we must find out is why people like female action heroes.

Let us then examine Wittmier's lines and what movies have fulfilled them, which ones did not, and finally what seems to be the ultimate result. The lines that Wittmier proposes are mentioned below, each one followed by a possible explanation as to how they apply to a few movies and television shows featuring female action heroes:

1. The hero usually suffers a great loss, which makes him [or her] set off on a quest.

In “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider,” we learn that her father had died several years ago, which is an episode that deeply affects Lara. He had died in the battlefield and she never had a chance to say goodbye, which is what makes her feel worse. So when she learns about the Triangle of Light, she goes on the quest of trying to acquire it before anybody else can, namely Manfred Powell, so that she can get her chance of seeing her father one more time and saying good bye.

In “Charlie's Angels” the loss and/or the knowledge of a future loss is what sets them off on their quest. Eric Knox and Vivian Wood had teamed up to find Charlie and kill him. Even though the Angels had never seen Charlie, he was like a father to them. Besides, the former two had kidnapped Bosley, the girls' friend and “boss,” to use him as bait to find Charlie, so that was a loss they had already experienced. These two losses triggered their going after the bad guys and stop them.

Sidney Bristow, the main character from the television show “Alias,” suffered several losses in the duration of the series: the first one was her fiancé's murder, then came her friend Francie's murder, her friend Will Tippin's having to go to witness protection program, her mother's betrayal, Dixon's wife's murder, and many more. All of these losses led to her trying to find the ones responsible for all of that and either take them in custody or kill them. Moreover, when she finds out that she had a sister, which was in a way also a loss because she had lost the opportunity of sharing her life with her, she sets on a quest to go and find her.

If we take a look at “Catwoman,” for example, her quest differs from the previous three. She was killed by order of Laurel Hedare, the owner of the company she was designing for. After a cat mysteriously revives her, she sets on a quest to try and find who killed her, and take revenge. However, she did not really lose anything because after all she is alive now. They did take her life however, but she came back much stronger than before and in the end she likes it, so she gained more than she lost.

2. The hero generally has a mentor or helper who helps him [or her] on his quest.

Lara Croft requires the help of Mr. Wilson, a friend of the family and archaeologist, so that he can explain to her what the clock that she had found was for. Moreover, she has Bryce, the computer and technological expert, to provide her with gadgets of all kinds to both help her train and to make her quests easier.

The Angels have Bosley who helps them whenever they need him. He does so by communicating then with Charlie, working undercover with them, and basically helping them however he can, like he did for example at the end of the movie when he found the means of transport.

Sidney Bristow counts on Marshall's help, the software experts of the CIA. He is also in charge of inventing state-of-the-art devices that help her in her missions. Moreover, her father, who works with her at the agency, functions as a mentor to her.

Patience Phillips discovers a sort of mentor after she becomes Catwoman. This person is the woman who owns Midnight, the cat that revived and converted Patience. The woman gives her information about what exactly happened to her and what the story behind catwomen really is. After Patience collected all this knowledge she decides how to go on with her new life.

3. The hero must face a set of trials, which allow him [or her] to overcome “evil”.

Lara Croft faces, among other obstacles, stone monkey soldiers, a giant stone goddess, and most of all Manfred Powell who, she learns, had killed her father. After she fights him especially, she overcomes evil, that is to say, she is relieved of that calamity that surrounded her, and moves on triumphant.

Dylan, Natalie and Alex faced a bombing terrorist, men who were hired to kill them, and Knox and Wood whom they had to defeat. They had success in every one of these tasks, and in this way they not only faced but also vanquish the malevolence of their enemies.

Sidney Bristow had to face her fiancé's death, her mother's betrayal, and having to work undercover for an organization the CIA was investigating, among other tasks. Despite of those calamitous experiences, she could work out the situation victoriously.

Catwoman does not seem to undergo any trials. We could say that when she was acting as Patience she had to lie to the man she liked, police officer Tom Lone, not to reveal her other identity, since there was an order issued by the force to catch Catwoman. In the end, he finds out who she is and then understands that she was not guilty of what she had been accused. However, this trial does not seem to be on the same level and the previous three.

4. The hero narrowly escapes death, usually more than once.

Lara escapes from death many times: from the robot at the beginning of the movie, from the men that break into her house to steal the clock, from the stone creatures in Cambodia, and from Manfred Powell.

The Angels evade death from two bombs, a shoot out, many different men that intended to kill them, and of course from Eric Knox and Vivian Wood.

Sidney Bristow is probably the one who faced death the most. She was even once captured by the North Koreans and was about to be executed when someone saved her. Moreover, she faced many shoot-outs, had to dismantle bombs with Marshall's help, engaged in serious physical combat repeatedly, besides the fact that she is constantly working undercover and that alone puts her in considerable danger if she is ever to be caught.

In “Catwoman,” the hero-to-be Patience actually dies before she transforms from the regular woman into Catwoman. After that episode, even though she is under attack in several occasions she does not seem to think she is in any danger, she became fearless so she does not believe she is facing death. However, she does become frightened once at the end of the movie after Laurel Hedare stabs her, but she quickly recovers from it and wins the fight.

5. The hero escapes the “evil villain's” stronghold or destroys him [or her].

When Lara is fighting Manfred Powell, the evil villain, she ends up killing him.

All of the Angels escape the attacks of the villains, included the attacks by the main villain, Knox, who dies due to the Angels' intelligence and expertise.

Sidney Bristow, even though sometimes she is kept hostage or caught by the villains, always ends up being rescued or escapes by her own means. Furthermore, she sometimes also destroys the villains, like she did with Lauren, one of the most evil villains in the show.

Catwoman fights the movie's evil villain Laurel Hedare at the end of the movie, which concludes with the latter's accidental death.

6. The hero is then reintegrated into society with a new status, wealth, or marriage to the princess.

This point, even though it seems more to apply to a medieval novel, may apply on these movies as well if we take the basic meaning of the line, which is that after the hero has finished his or her quest there is a change or a reward for them.

In the case of Lara Croft, after she undergoes her quest and returns home, she seems happier and satisfied. So much so that she decides to put on a dress to visit her father's grave, like a sort of homage to him since she had flatly refused to wear that same dress before when Hillary the buttler offered - which, judging by the way she answered him when he did, it made us believe that she always refuses because that is not her style.

The Angels, after escaping death, rescuing Bosley and saving Charlie seem to be more appreciated by him and they are given well deserved vacations, therefore enjoying some kind of new status.

As for Sidney Bristow, one of her many quests, one of the most significant ones for her, was to save her love interest Michael Vaughn from his wife's clutches, Lauren, who was a traitor. She pretended to be a CIA agent when she actually worked for a criminal organization. She married Vaughn to obtain extra information from the agency that was of great importance for the organization she worked for. When Sidney finally defeats her and saves Vaughn, she gains him back (they used to be a couple) and starts a new chapter in her life as regards her relationship with him.

In “Catwoman,” after Patience dies and is revived she returns to society with a completely new status: as a catwoman.

7. There has to be a happy ending.

In “Tomb Raider,” Lara achieves her goal of seeing her father one more time and she also destroys the man who killed him, to then return to her normal life.

In “Charlie's Angels,” the girls save Charlie and they go on well-deserved vacations.

In “Alias” Sydney and Vaughn live happily ever after.

In “Catwoman,” Patience takes revenge on the woman who tried to kill her, and her reputation is cleared. She decides to go on saving other people who may need her help, although by doing so she leaves her boyfriend because she prefers to focus on saving other people. That ending is not so happy for him.

As we can see, “Catwoman” did not fulfill all of these rules established by Wittmier, and incidentally it is the one of the movies that did not receive a good acceptance neither by the critics nor the audience. Wittmier adds that “heroes must strictly follow the pattern of hero archetype in order to receive acceptance. Any deviation from this pattern leads to undermining the character's familiarity and acceptability.” This is exactly what happened to “Catwoman:” since the main character did not follow the archetype she was not accepted too well.

However, this list is not the only one that has been created or researchers have come up with; Christina Larson presented her own list in her article “Seven Mistakes Superheroines Make: Why the Latest Action-babe Flicks Flopped.” According to her, every female action hero that has broken at least one of the rules she mentions has failed to receive a positive reception by the audience. Those rules are:

• Do fight demons. Don't fight only inner demons.
• Do play well with others. Don't shun human society.
• Do exhibit self-control. Don't exhibit mental disorders.
• Do wear trendy clothes. Don't wear fetish clothes.
• Do embrace girl power. Don't cling to man hatred.
• Do help hapless men. Don't try to kill your boyfriend.
• Do toss off witty remarks. Don't look perpetually sullen.

Let us analyze two of the movies featuring female action heroes that have failed to be accepted by the majority of society, and check if what Larson claims is true. In “Catwoman,” Patience Phillips ends up shunning human society when she decides to leave all of her life behind, including her boyfriend, to save people in danger. Moreover, she does wear fetish clothes. “Elektra” also wears fetish clothes, she does exhibit mental disorders and is sullen rather than witty. Moreover, she seems to struggle too much with her inner demons, and at least at the beginning she did shun human society. We do not see any of these rules broken neither in “Tomb Raider” nor in “Charlie's Angels,” or even in “Alias,” even when Alex from “Charlie's Angels” and Sidney from “Alias” have been shown wearing fetish clothes, but that was only as a cover in a mission, not because that is what they had chosen to wear emblematically. We can conclude, then, that Larson was indeed right: if a female action hero breaks any of the rules mentioned above, the audience, that is to say society, will not accept them or the movie or television show will flop.

Moreover, there is also a key to a good action movie, as Stephanie Mencimer states in her article “Violent Femmes.” She assures that there should be “an inverse relationship between the amount of special effects and the amount of dialogue. Talk too much and the heroine loses her mystique and starts to remind men of their ex-wives.” Here lies another mistake that “Catwoman” made. Patience talks too much in comparison to Lara Croft or Charlie's Angels. In addition, the movie puts a lot of emphasis on the sentimental relationship between Patience and Tom Lone, and also on what happens within Patience herself as she undergoes and tries to cope with the changes that turned her into Catwoman.After including this entire dilemma there is not a lot of action in the movie, not as much as in other action movies which have been successful.

We can find a correlation to the latter fact to what we see in the opening images of the Charlie's Angels DVD version. The first thing we see is the dark figure of a man walking towards the screen and from that man three women are formed: the Angels. Moreover, the fact that Minerva was both a fighter and a searcher of peace also reminds us of female action heroes. These women do not use violence unless absolutely necessary, which shows a contrast to what male action heroes do in practically every movie, and is also in connection to what the god Neptune did when he chose to create the horse. Moreover, she was also smart and handled different skills; we can also see these same attributes in female action heroes. Besides being extremely skilled in combat and martial arts, the three “Charlie's Angels” speak Japanese, German, know how to dismantle a bomb, can drive a race car, know how to scuba dive, and Natalie even knows how to recognize a bird from its singing, what helped them find the location where Bosley was being kept hostage. In “Alias,” Sidney Bristow has multiple skills; she also is remarkably skilled in hand to hand combat, she speaks several languages, knows how to operate multiple state-of-the-art technological gadgets, etc. Lara Croft from “Tomb Raider” can also fight anyone skillfully regardless the weapon of choice or chance, or even with her bare hands; she also speaks different languages, escapes from her enemies time and time again, even by falling down a waterfall and emerging unharmed, and much more.

Another goddess, Venus, was the goddess of beauty and love and was born full of charms, so much so that all the gods were fascinated with her and they all wanted her as their wife; another goddess yet, Diana, was the queen of hunting and therefore she was of a savage nature. The best example of this nature was how she caused the "death" of Actaeon: one day when Diana was bathing in a creek Actaeon was unfortunate enough to accidentally come close that place, what angered Diana so much so that she turned him into a deer.

We can see then two more attributes that these goddesses had and were passed on to female action heroes and, why not, to many women in general nowadays. In the case of Venus, she was so beautiful that men were captivated by her, which is reminiscent of how the public today accepts pretty action heroes (which constitutes the majority of them) much more than they do the ones that are not so. However, beauty is not the only thing that the public wants to see, although it certainly does not hurt. In movies like “Elektra” and “Catwoman” that star Jennifer Garner and Halle Berry respectively, both very beautiful women, the earnings and reviews for them were not good at all and so those movies were big flunks. However, if more attributes are added to beauty then the formula for success could be reached. What we find in the goddess Diana is one of the attributes: she is aggressive, and if a man crosses the line with her then she will make sure it will cost him dearly, which is a feature that we also find in female action heroes.

We could dare say that the female action hero icon did not enter the protagonist world of Hollywood and did not become so widely accepted simply over night, but it actually did so in steps. What seems to have been one of the steps was the introduction of women with secondary roles bearing female action hero characteristics in male action heroes' movies. This is the case, for example, of one of James Bond's movie, “Tomorrow Never Dies.” In this movie, the traditionally strong, solitary and famous for his many sexual conquests hero James Bond, in this instance played by Pierce Brosnan, ends up accomplishing his mission with the help of no one else but a woman named Wai Lin, played by Michelle Yeoh. Ironically enough, he could not have done it all by himself, like he had always done so in the past, and he needed the help of a woman. Another man in the same situation was Jackie Chan who is recognized for always portraying characters that are extremely skilled in martial arts, always works alone and always succeeds. However, in one of his latest movies he teamed up with a strong woman played by Claire Forlani, as was the case of “The Medallion.” Now women have moved on from the shadow of the male action hero and are doing the work all by themselves, having become the protagonists of their own adventures.

Humbert, Juan. 1984: 41, 42, 44.

Ibid. 45.

Ibid. 62, 63.

Elektra is a woman who was revived from a fatal wound by a master called Stick. He then becomes her trainer until it is time for her to leave; when she does she becomes an assassin. A criminal organization called The Order of The Hand hires her to seize a father and his daughter, Mark and Abby Miller. However, she becomes attached to them and decides to team up with them against the ones who hired her.

Then, in part two of their journey, evil space robots ventured to earth to destroy Bill and Ted. Then as the “evil” Bill and Ted kill the “good” Bill and Ted they must use their energy to break through life and destroy the “evil” robots before they destroy their girls. Friendship was the major key point in the relationship of Bill and Ted, fought together, died together, lived together, learned together, and defied the odds together. By their strong bound to each other they were able to defeat the obstacles in their way, without that bound neither one would have passed or defeated the evil robots.