Favourite Female Performances

[Lottery]

Because the women just don't get enough credit (from me).

Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive
Kinuyo Tanaka in Life of Oharu
Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence
Karuna Banerjee in the Apu Trilogy
Linda Hamilton in Terminator 2: Judgement Day
Sigourney Weaver in Aliens
Faye Wong in Chungking Express
Catinca Untaru in The Fall
Bibi Andersson in Persona
Margarita Terekhova in The Mirror

BONUS ROUND:

Audrey Tautou in Amelie
Irene Jacob in The Double Life of Veronique
Emily Watson in Punch Drunk Love

[Mel]

Without overthinking it, first role that comes to my mind:

• 
  Isabelle Adjani in Possession

It is so memorable, that I don't feel need to give more at the moment.

[polkablues]

Jennifer Connelly in Waking the Dead
Everlyn Sampi in Rabbit-Proof Fence
Bjork in Dancer in the Dark
Keira Knightley in Pride and Prejudice
Carey Mulligan in An Education
Morjana Alaoui in Martyrs
Amy Adams in Junebug
Saoirse Ronan in Atonement
Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream
Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich

Whee! Lists!

[samsong]

let's just get this out of the way: renee falconetti in the passion of joan of arc is the single greatest female performance ever put on film.

now, some favorites that have yet to be mentioned (of which i would've included naomi watts, isabella adjani, and gena rowlands)

giulietta masina - nights of cabiria
moon so ri - oasis
marion cotillard - the immigrant
lauren bacall - to have and have not
beulah bondi - make way for tomorrow
juliette binoche - certified copy
rosalind russell - his girl friday
gillian anderson - the house of mirth
katharine hepburn - the philadelphia story
joan crawford and mercedes mccambridge - johnny guitar
ingrid bergman - autumn sonata
tatum o'neal - paper moon
mia farrow - the purple rose of cairo
gloria swanson - sunset boulevard
barbara stanwyck - forty guns
maggie cheung - in the mood for love
madhabi mukherjee - charulata
joan fontaine - letter from an unknown woman
alison steadman - life is sweet

[max from fearless]

Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence
Amy Wright in Wise Blood
Ingrid Thulin, Liv Ullmann, Harriet Andersson, Kari Sylwan in Cries and Whispers
Lee Remick in Wild River
Kathy Burke in Nil By Mouth
Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven
Juliette Binoche in Three Colours Blue
Diane Keaton in Reds
Sandrine Bonnaire in A Nos Amour
Setsuko Hara in Tokyo Story
Faye Wong in Chungking Express
Marie Rivière in The Green Ray
Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive
Julie Christie in Mc.Cabe and Mrs. Miller
Jodie Foster in Silence of the Lambs
Anamaria Marinca in 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Adèle Exarchopoulos in Blue Is The Warmest Colour
Sharon Stone in Casino
Mercedes McCambridge in Johnny Guitar
Faye Dunaway in Network
Maggie Cheung in In The Mood For Love
Elisabeth Shue in Leaving Las Vegas
Emily Watson in Breaking the Waves
Susan Tyrrell in Fat City
Elodie Bouchez in The Dream Life of Angels
Ana Torrent in Cria Cuervos

Mieko Harada in Ran
Melora Walters in Magnolia

[max from fearless]

Oh and I forgot, Kate Dickie in Red Road....

[MacGuffin]

Ruth Gordon - Harold And Maude

[max from fearless]

Amanda Plummer and Mercedes Ruehl in The Fisher King
Katrin Cartlidge and Lesley Sharp in Naked

[OstrichRidingCowboy]

Ethel Merman in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

[jenkins]

marlene dietrich is my john wayne

[wilder]

Some that haven't been mentioned...

Oksana Akinshina - Lilya 4-Ever
Sandrine Bonnaire - La Ceremonie
Katrin Cartlidge - Claire Dolan
Judy Davis - Husbands and Wives, Naked Lunch
Mia Farrow - Rosemary's Baby
Yekaterina Golubeva - Twentynine Palms, everything
Pam Grier - Jackie Brown
Isabelle Huppert - The Piano Teacher
Diane Keaton - The Godfather, Interiors, Shoot the Moon
Jessica Lange - Men Don't Leave, The Postman Always Rings Twice
Andie MacDowell - Sex, Lies, & Videotape
Heather Matarazzo - Welcome to the Dollhouse
Julianne Moore - Safe
Mary Tyler Moore - Ordinary People
Patricia Neal - A Face in the Crowd
Charlotte Rampling - Under the Sand
Miranda Richardson - Spider, Dance with a Stranger
Emmanuelle Riva - Amour
Theresa Russell - Bad Timing
Sissy Spacek - 3 Women
Johanna ter Steege - The Vanishing (1988)
Elizabeth Taylor - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Emma Thompson - The Remains of the Day
Liv Ullman - Face to Face, Scenes from a Marriage

[max from fearless]

Just wanted to say HELL YESSS to Katrin Cartlidge in Claire Dolan, Pam Grier in Jackie Brown, Oksana Akinshina in Lilya 4-Ever (what happened to her??? remember her having a bit part in the end of the second Bourne movie...) and Miranda Richardson in Spider -- what an incredibly slept on performance, her and Ralph's...

[polkablues]

Elodie Bouchez in The Dream Life of Angels

Good god, yes. I don't know how I forgot that one.

Also, Jutta Lampe in Marianne and Juliane.

Also also, Anna Friel in Me Without You.

[Fernando]

[jerome]

Linda Manz in Days of Heaven