olga kurylenko – Action Girl Books

*This Pict warrior is the embodiment of silent vengeance*

Movie

Centurion (2010)

Ever wish for a physical female antagonist in a historical adventure? Look no further. Set in the second century, when Britain was the uncivilised wild north of the Roman Empire, this movie has a serviceable plot and epic battle scenes. The opposition are the Picts to the north of Hadrian’s Wall, who believe in equal opportunity recruitment.

Quintus Dias (Michael Fassbender) is captured during an assault on a fortified garrison. After the Picts slaughter the other Romans, their leader spares the prisoner because he speaks their language. General Titus Virilus (Dominic West) and a legion of men are sent north to retaliate. For support, the ambitious governor also recruits Etain, a mute female scout, who shows off her combat skills in her introductory scene.

Dispatching a slave assassin “proves” Etain’s loyalty, but the tense, silent woman sends out alarm signals constantly. If she’s not sharpening her blade at camp, she stares coldly at the Romans and always seems on edge. So, it’s no surprise when she betrays the legion after an ambush in a misty forest. Dias escapes and joins up with the survivors, and with the general taken prisoner, the centurion assumes command.

The journey south is fraught with danger. A traitor sacrifices a fellow soldier to wolves to save himself, and later plots to murder the centurion to cover his tracks. The governor views the legion’s defeat as a disaster, and orders assassins to silence Dias. This includes a beautiful woman who fetches poisoned wine after Dias makes it to presumed safety. Several women are in the Pict army, notably an archer named Aeron (Axelle Carolyn) who dispatches her foes with lethal accuracy.

The bow woman serves as a “mini-boss” in the final battle and gets her own one-on-one fight scene. But Etain steals the show as a silent, ever-present threat. The male Pict leader has historical immunity, so the female becomes Dias’ nemesis, the final warrior that stands between him and his goal.

Villainess

Etain (Olga Kurylenko)

For a woman who doesn’t speak and relies on gestures to imply threat, Etain is a frightening foe. It’s debatable whether she’s a true villain given her hellish backstory. When she was a child, Romans slaughtered her village and cut out her tongue. So it’s reasonable to hate their guts, and it’s a stupid move by the governor to trust his men’s safety to this vengeful woman.

Etain still ranks in the Goddess tier because it’s rare for a female warrior antagonist to get much action. This movie bucks the trend, and she’s a relentless opponent that makes the other dangers seem minor in comparison.

Every great villainess needs a fantastic kill or establishing scene. Etain gets her moment when the Pict leader releases the captured general, offers him a sword, and pits him against the spear-wielding warrior. Virilus puts up a good fight against Etain, but his period in captivity has left him weak. As the Pict crowd jeer, he falls to her superior combat prowess and stamina. The victorious Etain walks off with no emotion – it was just another kill to her.

Olga Kurylenko is an action veteran, but this is a different role, which she handles admirably. After Etain paints her face and sets off on horseback, the film becomes a hunt and kill saga. The Romans regard their pursuer as unnatural, and an attempt to outsmart her ends badly. Etain is a skilled tracker, and her Pict warrior group finds the tired legion easy pickings. North of the border is a cold, unforgiving place when you have a huntress on your tail.

Dias and his men find respite with Arianne, an exiled Pict woman who’s mistrustful at first. Good thing the centurion speaks her language, and the Romans find temporary comfort in her home. Eventually Etain tracks her quarry down, and a tense hide and seek scene follows as the huntress searches the property. Arianne has her own reasons for hating Etain, so she doesn’t betray the Romans. Fed and rested, they will need their strength for the battle ahead.

The few remaining men reach the “safety” of a garrison, but it’s deserted, and the army has retreated behind Hadrian’s Wall. Tired of running from Etain – and realising a fight is inevitable – the survivors fortify their position. When the huntress arrives with her brutal Pict army, the stage is set for an epic battle that doesn’t disappoint.

Like any feared leader, Etain has underlings to do her bidding, so she sends them in first to soften the Romans. The lesser warriors don’t last long, and ultimately it’s the surviving Romans against the two chief lieutenants: a tough axeman brute and the female archer Aeron. It takes a lot of fighting – and heroic sacrifice – to bring down the more competent Picts. A decent melee fighter, Aeron gets a gory death when a Roman stabs an arrow into her eye.

With the battle going poorly, Etain rides in for the inevitable duel with Dias. The warrior woman is a good match for him, able to fight unarmed and with a sword now she’s used her favourite spear. Multiple fights occur at once, but the cutaway shots to other Romans and Picts are short. For once, the villainess has a fantastic last encounter before the centurion’s scripted victory.

*When the action starts, these women won’t be stopped*

Movie

Momentum (2015)

When compiling my list, one goal was to vary the content as much as possible. So I included protagonists who commit serious crimes, and anti-heroines just as ruthless as the bad guys, even if their intentions are noble. The main character in Momentum fits into both categories.

For viewers who prefer outright villainy, there’s a cold-blooded – and especially hard to kill – henchwoman. More than enough to justify placing these deadly women in my rankings.

Anti-Heroine

Alexis Faraday (Olga Kurylenko)

The protagonist is a professional thief, and straight from the outset, it’s clear she’s not a woman to mess with. Make that person, because the armed robbers are masked during the opening bank heist in Cape Town, South Africa.

The crooks wear sleek black outfits with body armour and voice modulators. Those conveniently light up in different colours, so we can tell the four apart. In one bizarre moment, a drugged-up robber quotes Dirty Harry to a terrified security guard while sounding like a robot.

The voice distortion and form-concealing outfit might fool the hostages into thinking the heist crew are all male. But anyone who’s read the blurb in advance or seen this trick before (most viewers, I suspect) won’t be deceived. But we still get an awesome reveal moment after the crazy robber shoots it out with Alex and her mask comes off in the struggle.

While the protagonist has a moral compass (no killing innocents), she is ruthless. When the bank manager doesn’t cooperate, she punches out his tooth, then forcibly re-inserts it to bypass a biometric security lock. And Alex has no problem executing her treacherous crew member, even if the lunatic had it coming.

Olga Kurylenko as a tough girl with a mysterious past? Familiar territory by now, but the actress plays these parts well, which explains why producers keep casting her.

Villainess

Ms Clinton (Shelley Nicole)

The villains are “cleaners” (translation: professional killers) employed by an unnamed senator. The big bad is played by Morgan Freeman, who always seems to be cast as a politician. James Purefoy is the evil Brit (there had to be one) and the antagonist with the most screen time.

His character is Mr Washington, whose team includes the equally ruthless Mr Jefferson, Mr Monroe and Ms Clinton. These are either code names based on former US presidents or one amazing coincidence. Since Clinton is female and the film predates 2016, perhaps the filmmakers assumed a certain woman would become president, which seems presumptuous now.

Clinton is a skilled fighter who kickboxes Alex’s partner into submission. The bad guys want a data drive stolen during the heist, which holds vital information about the Senator’s plans. After Washington’s crew torture the poor guy to death, Alex retrieves the MacGuffin and goes on the run.

Somewhat refreshingly, Ms Clinton is more professional than sadistic. Mostly calm, with the occasional smile and snarky comment to suggest she enjoys her work. Like the other cleaners, she’s a competent operative. Alex often evades the opposition through ingenuity, rather than their being hopeless.

However, the expected confrontation between the two women never transpires. The climax – in an airport terminal – has the crippled Alex outsmarting the villains by detonating a bomb. A risky move, but the security staff identifies Clinton as the threat. Probably because she strikes first and beats them up while Alex grapples with Mr Washington.

The cleaners are difficult to kill. Before this point, the baddies have survived explosions, a knife to the back, and stab wounds. So the outnumbered Ms Clinton was never going down easy. She takes out several men despite starting the fight unarmed. Until a more sensible guard shoots her. Yes, that’s right – killed by an unnamed character. Original, perhaps, but unrewarding.

As for Alex, she outsmarts Mr Washington and makes a memorable anti-heroine. Too bad the movie failed at the box office, and the sequel setup – with the senator still at large – will probably remain unresolved.

Honourable Mentions: Professional Killers

The Courier (2019) – Agent Simmonds (Alicia Agneson)

Olga Kurylenko has made a name for herself as an action star. In this movie she’s a motorcycle courier with – yes, you guessed it – a mysterious past. Mostly set in London, the story begins when she delivers a package to a safe house. Bad move, since it’s a disguised cyanide dispersal device. Say goodbye to a key witness.

As in Momentum, the main villain directs his business from overseas. Gary Oldman is the big-name baddie: a criminal boss sporting an eyepatch. His inside woman is Simmonds, a corrupt Interpol agent who murders her colleagues for financial gain.

Despite being fourth on the credits, Alicia Agneson’s character dies in the first twenty minutes. Presumably, her prominent position is because she has multiple dialogue lines in a movie where most characters don’t speak. Before the villainess leaves us, she shoots the courier (and stupidly assumes she’s dead), gets her ass kicked in retaliation, and ends up on the losing side.

A disappointment, but the treacherous agent looked fantastic in a gas mask.

Full Disclosure (2001) – Michelle (Penelope Ann Miller)

Michelle is a secondary character, but still features prominently on the movie poster. Why? The ruthless and efficient hitwoman is the most interesting part of this dull political thriller.

Reporter John McWhirter (Fred Ward) investigates the murder of a prominent businessman. The muddled conspiracy surrounding his death leads to many encounters with recognisable B-movie actors. Christopher Plummer’s FBI boss is the definition of shady. Rachel Ticotin is a Middle Eastern love interest, and Virginia Madsen has an extended cameo as John’s newspaper editor.

Plot elements go nowhere, notably the Algerians behind the assassination, who don’t feature at all in the second half. Before they disappear, they hire Michelle to tie up loose ends, which gives viewers something to get excited about. The blonde woman is a cold professional who murders and tortures people as if it’s normal. After she eliminates the assassins, John is next on the list.

Fortunately, the reporter has a secret hiding spot in his apartment, allowing his female guest to surprise Michelle. The disappointing duel has the assassin chase the woman, and John uses her own silenced pistol to kill her. Then some postmortem shots to remind us how great the character was.