Linda Hamilton

I remember seeing Linda Hamilton in "Terminator" and then again in "Terminator II". What a difference! In Terminator she played a naive, young girl who was more or less caught up in events that were far larger than life. The change in both the actress and the character in the next film were phenomenal.

Linda buffed up for the part (obviously) and the character had morphed into a gun-toting, scowling, serious, world-saving she-devil. The scenes within the psychiatric ward were extremely well played, and I still get chills when I view her skidding on the floor under Arnold (the Terminator). The look of shear, raw fear was extremely believable, as was the pure rage she showed as she tried to gun down the engineer who was responsible for the end of the world.

I haven't seen much of Linda in the years since, although it is obvious from her filmography that she's been very busy.

One of the reasons why I rate Linda so high on the list is I get the feeling she is her own woman. She seems to play independent, strong women, and her acting skills are such that I really believe what's happening on the screen. In fact, I was not that thrilled with Terminator III, and one of the reasons is the film is somehow missing something special - and that something is Linda Hamilton.

Filmography