Best female performance in the movies

[PotterManiac007]

Helena Bonham Carter was teriffic as Bellatriz!

And among the students, it doesnt get better...big thumbs up to Evanna Lynch..just the most perfect Luna Lovegood..

[Dobby_26]

Originally Posted by PotterManiac007

Helena Bonham Carter was teriffic as Bellatriz!

And among the students, it doesnt get better...big thumbs up to Evanna Lynch..just the most perfect Luna Lovegood..

Same vote for both of them. Then again Maggie Smith was amazing too. I think Emma Watson did well too as well as Bonnie Hunt. My biggest dissapointments were Fleur and Cho. Cho was just not the girl in my head I guess and Fleur was supposed to be drop dead gorgeous, part veela for god sakes. Didn't see that in her actress.

[BethWeasley]

Evanna Lynch was amazing as Luna. She had that dreamy quality that Luna should have, that kind of unworldliness that makes people want to stay away from her. I love her bluntness as well - and on the other hand of the scale, I love how she cares fiercely for all her friends - and how she comforts Harry after his godfather has died. She was excellent. I recall JK saying that Evanna Lynch was 'perfect' as Luna, and I couldn't agree more. (And I love her dress in HBP, the christmas tree one, it was amazingly like Luna!)

Imelda Stauton as Umbridge was brilliant too. I loved it when she did that tiny little giggle at the beginning at the Feast, and I loved how they made her; that perfectly permed hair, the awful frilly pink clothes, and that kind of cruel nastiness lurking underneath the sickly sweet demaneour. I especially loved it when Harry kept talking "out of turn" in her class, and then she just screamed, "ENOUGH!" And then the, "You know, I really hate children." That just admitting of it - and when she slaps Harry, then the "What Cornelius doesn't know won't hurt him". That was wonderful, exactly Umbridge.

Emma Watson is perfect for Hermione. She's got that "Hermione"-ness just right; the bossy tone, the pronounication of every word - and I loved it in PS when she was waving her hand in the air a lot. It seems to me that she's grown a lot as a person in her acting skills - and as her character more, which is perfect, as Hermione matures quite a bit through the books - and it's good to see that the actors and actresses are maturing too. (And I just loved when Buckbeak had his head "chopped off" and she immediately turned to Ron, wrapping her arms around his neck. YAY for Hermione/Ron! )

Maggie Smith is excellent as McGonagall. I love the sternness she displays - which I think is also part of who she is a person - but then again I love the little moments of affection she has with her students - especially with Harry. I loved it when she danced with Ron in GoF and when she told Harry to get down from the wall and go to Potions in HBP, and to "take Weasley with you, he looks far too happy over there". I can't wait to see her scream, "NO!" in DH when she thinks Harry has died.

Then Julie Walters as Mrs Weasley is wonderful. She's so lovable, she's so believable. I didn't know what to expect when I saw her, but she was just right - she was exactly how I'd imagined her. I love how she always hugs Harry when she sees him - and in OotP, when she pats him on the face and says, "A bit peaky but you'll have to do until the meeting's finished." I love how she cares for him so much, like he's her proper son - and not just one of her own son's friends. She really, truly loves him, and I think Julie Walters plays that so well.

Jessie Cave as Lavender was exceptionally good, too. I loved how she's so giggly and airheaded and so...obsessed with Ron; she's like a little fan girl. It's hilarious, she's a brilliant actress. I loved the scene where she jumped on Ron's back, giggling after he promised he'd wear that obnoxious necklace, or where they were in the train compartment and she breathed along the door, writing her and Ron's initials together. (I also loved Harry and Ron's expressions, and how Hermione refused to go inside the compartment when she saw the writing. That was a bittersweet moment.)

Finally, I think Helena Bonham Carter was superb as Bellatrix. She captured that wonderful craziness that Bellatrix has - that cruel insanity that causes her to be such an formidable opponent. I loved the way she called, "I KILLED SIRIUS BLACK!" in that baby voice, just to taunt Harry - it was so perfect as Bellatrix, and when she hissed words at Snape about how "he'll just slither back to his little hole". She's perfect for Bellatrix, she's superb.

[AldeberanBlack]

1- Helena Bonham Carter
2- Julie Walters
3- Maggie Smith
4- Imelda Staunton
5- Emma Watson


All simply could not be improved upon as perfect embodiments of what their characters should have been

[SpiritThalia]

My personal favorites are the following (in no particular order; Its too hard for me to choose a number one for this):

Emma Watson:
I just can't imagine Hermione being played by anyone other than her. She gets the aspects of her character down pat.

Evanna Lynch:
Lynch just pulls off the dreamy personality of Luna perfectly; her voice helps a lot in that area! She manages to make Luna just as much as an enigma (though I'm not sure "enigma" is the right word) as she is in the books.

Imelda Staunton:
Although her Umbridge didn't look how I imagined her to be in the books, I still think that Staunton's portrayal of Umbridge was superb. She could seem sweet at one moment and mean, the next. The high-pitched giggle didn't hurt either.

[heathurrr]

I think I like all the female actors in the movies except Bonnie [she cant act].

Helena Bonham Carter does a ridiculously PERFECT job as Bellatrix. It's a little freaky actually.

[Shaun_MT]

People are tough on Bonnie but let's be fair. She has been given hardly any lines and her character is in some sort of limbo. Unlike the books where Ginny underwent a transformation. Ginny in the movies hasn't been given any moments of characterization. So Bonnie is stuck between playing Ginny as the shy, quiet girl from CoS with her little dialogue and subdued manner and Ginny the hell raiser who is outgoing, daring, funny and a little wild (her "Shut up" bit in HBP, "it's ghastly" from GoF, the Reducto bit in OotP). If Kloves wrote her a better part and changed Ginny a little bit Bonnie could have done better. I don't think she has the flare and the energy appropriate of Ginny but she's cast now and it's up to Kloves to change it so it suits Bonnie's strengths but remains true to the character. For example, Bonnie has a bit of a deadpan voice which, I think, hampers her when she tries to be a bit more expressive. So make Ginny a bit more deadpan and sarcastic. She's described as having a biting sense of humor so it wouldn't be out of character. A good example is her bit about Harry's blood in HBP.

[tripletkate607]

I think Evanna Lynch is absolutely perfect as Luna. She kind of seems like that in interviews also, so I'm not sure that she's actually acting, but she's still my favorite! And I wasn't a fan of Emma Watson before HBP, but I think she was tons better in that one. I love how the acting has improved with each movie - it just makes me that much more excited for DH!

[momof3muggles]

Helena Bonham Carter...wow. She made me hate/love Bellatrix! How can such a beautiful lady capture such a sinister, crazy, evil person so well?!

Julie Walters...captured that mom role well!

Maggie Smith..the perfect McGonagall.

Actually, I think for the "main" female characters, they were all pretty well portrayed.

[lightreading]

I root for Helena-- she was the absolute BEST Bellatrix, played her like the psychopath she is! And then Emma Watson-- she's the perfect Hermione!

[Tonks_Animagus]

Almost all of them were awesome to me, ecpecially the Bellatrix(!) and Luna Lovegood. I was disappointed however, from Fleur and Tonks. I was really looking forward to the actress who would play the so-called gorgeous veela, and well, let's just say I wasn't what we could call "impressed" And Tonks, well, even though I don't like Tonks in the books either, she should go for Tonks-ier hair and clothes. She reminded me of a soldier in the movies And she should have a little more screen time, just to let people who haven't read the books that she IS actually there.

[TheScribbler]

-Imelda Staunton was fantastic as Umbridge. She looked perfect for the part, and her mannerisms (down to the little "hem, hem" cough) were spot on! I loved watching her performance, even if she made me loathe the character even more.
-Maggie Smith and Julie Walters are brilliant in their roles; they're stern sometimes, yet you love them.
-Emma Thompson, of course, did an awesome job as Trelawney.
-As for the younger actors, I love Evanna Lynch, Emma Watson (some of the time), and Jessie Cave actually

[Amandurz]

I absolutely despise Umbridge (obviously) but Imelda Staunton was wonderful, portrayed her perfectly.

I'm also surprised to see that not many people have mention Julie Walters who played Molly Weasley, I thought she was great, definitely my favourite

Emma Watson was pretty terrible at acting in the first three in my opinion, but she's definitely improved. But Bonnie Wright would have to be my favourite of the younger ones. I don't really know why...

[Snuffy]

Originally Posted by vampiricduck

I really liked Julie Walters performance as Mrs Molly Weasley. She really is very motherly and very classy in the role. The colours in her costumes, the continuous smile and that inane ability to just transform into something angry and still so protective as a parent. She actually really reminds me of my Mom! And I wasn't expecting that at all at all. I thought she would be very angry and stubborn, but she actually stands out as a casually classy lady.

If I had to choose a second, I'd go with Helena Bonham Carter. I never thought she would work in the role, but then when I saw her, I was seriously impressed. The madness in her head and the complete corruptibility of logic is a great way of playing her, and the incessant giggling and harsh cruelty is brilliant. I see her as Voldemort's foremost General, and I love what Bonham Carter did with her role. She really was exceptional.

You honestly didn't think Helena wasn't going to make a good Belletrix? Seriously? Out of all the characters in the books and the possible actors/actresses that could possibly play them, Helena was a no brainer. Helena has a long history of playing a mad witch like character in almost every single movie she's ever been in.

[MC2456]

Originally Posted by vampiricduck

If I had to choose a second, I'd go with Helena Bonham Carter. I never thought she would work in the role, but then when I saw her, I was seriously impressed. The madness in her head and the complete corruptibility of logic is a great way of playing her, and the incessant giggling and harsh cruelty is brilliant. I see her as Voldemort's foremost General, and I love what Bonham Carter did with her role. She really was exceptional.

She's my first favourite female actress! I think she was a shoo-in for the role. I heard she had to tone down her performance. Tone down? Someone give her a ladyship, quick!

[canismajoris]

Originally Posted by Snuffy

You honestly didn't think Helena wasn't going to make a good Belletrix? Seriously? Out of all the characters in the books and the possible actors/actresses that could possibly play them, Helena was a no brainer. Helena has a long history of playing a mad witch like character in almost every single movie she's ever been in.

But I think that's exactly what I didn't like about her performances. When she's on screen I see the actress, not the character. Maybe it's the way she plays it, maybe it's the screenplay, or maybe it's me, but her Bellatrix seems jarringly out of place, as though the character were superimposed onto the script at the last second and nobody really put any thought into it.

[Trixa]

Originally Posted by canismajoris

But I think that's exactly what I didn't like about her performances. When she's on screen I see the actress, not the character.

I think HBC is unable to transform herself which is quite devastating for an actress. If you look at her films from the last ten years or so you will see that all her characters have the same hairdos that she herself sports in her real life. (And this is just one example.) While other actresses go blond, short, red, put on weight or lose weight, Helena seems to be expecting the character to transform into her and not the other way around. In my opinion she hasn't made much attempt to understand Bella's personality or give her some depth. .She simplified Bella, IMO while other actors, like Ralph Fiennes, tried to give their characters more depth rather than take away some. For while Bellatrix is unstable she is also talented, aristocratic, arrogant and dangerous. In the movies, I for one didn't see any of these traits and the witch Helena plays could hardly be called dangerous or prodigiously skilled. Just my opinion of course.

[WildOldDan]

Howdy Pards,

Ah...the truth of it is, then, that I thought all of the ladies in the Harry Potter films did a truly outstanding job in portrayin' their particular characters. Every last one of them.

Adios for now. Talk to ya on down the trail.

Wild Ol' Dan

[dasisternie]

Helena Bonham Carter was great. I liked her portrayal except I wish she was a little more aristocratic, not just completely crazy, which is what Helena does best.

I agree with the argument that Carter forces roles to fit her, and has really only one character, but she does that character type so well that I don't think it will hurt her in the future, because crazy villains are always popular.

Maggie Smith was excellent as always.

Most of the characters in the movies were excellently cast really, I was impressed.

[Snuffy]

Originally Posted by canismajoris

But I think that's exactly what I didn't like about her performances. When she's on screen I see the actress, not the character. Maybe it's the way she plays it, maybe it's the screenplay, or maybe it's me, but her Bellatrix seems jarringly out of place, as though the character were superimposed onto the script at the last second and nobody really put any thought into it.

I guess my point is Bellatrix is sadistic, evil, obsessive, and many other things which fits the same persona that Helena is known for so it was an obvious fit. I do agree though, like in HBP, they could have done her character on screen more justice. But I don't think its Helena's fault, I think its more the screen play or directing myself.