Girls Who Can Kick Your Ass: The Bride (Uma Thurman, Kill Bill)

Quentin Tarantino realized all his favorite grind house archetypes in Kill Bill with Uma Thurman's The Bride. She's a Frankenstein-ish amalgamation of ancient samurai, kung fu master and spaghetti western gunslinger. Looking great in a yellow jumpsuit previously worn by Bruce Lee, The Bride is sassy, comical and boasts exceptional moves, the pedigree for an action hero. But Tarantino and Thurman also lend her some emotional weight. After all, what drives her to kill is pure maternal instinct.