Dynamic Damsels in Distress

The "damsel in distress" story is a common movie theme. However, that doesn't mean that the damsel has to sit around and wait to be rescued. As 'The Purge: Anarchy' shows, along with some of our other favorites, today's damsels are more than capable of getting out of the most distressing situations. 

In typical fairy tale fashion, Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) needs to be rescued from a fire-breathing dragon. But 'Shrek' is hardly a typical fairy tale, and Fiona turns out to be a lot stronger – and a lot greener – than she at first appears.

Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) cross paths with several varieties of rotten men on their road trip across the Southwest. But even as the law closes in around them, they still have each other.

With the willowy Gwyneth Paltrow playing Pepper Potts, Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr.) girlfriend/CEO, you'd think she'd be in constant need of saving. But Pepper's smarts – and a dose of "Extremis" – help her survive untold dangers.

Quentin Tarantino's third feature reignited the career of 1970s blaxploitation star Pam Grier. Her Jackie Brown starts off as the puppet of gun runner Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson), but soon she starts cooking up her own schemes.

Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) is so naturally tough in 1991's 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day' that it's easy to forget how far she'd come since her relative helplessness against the first Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger).

Like Sarah Connor, Kim Mills (Maggie Grace) transforms from kidnap victim in the original 'Taken' (2008) to resourceful daughter who helps free her parents (Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen) from those pesky Albanian terrorists.

The meek heroine who must defend herself because most of her friends are dead is such a horror movie trope that fans have a term for her: "final girl." There are countless examples; we'll go with Neve Campbell's Sidney Prescott.

Walking the plank is the very definition of distress for damsel Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley). It's just one of the perils she endures – with impeccable dignity – after being captured by the accursed pirate crew of the Black Pearl.

Here's one imperiled teen you don't want to mess with: Hayley Stark (Ellen Page), a tiny vigilante who turns the tables on a sexual predator (Patrick Wilson). This freaky indie introduced Page to a wider audience. What an introduction!

Kate Capshaw played a true damsel in distress in this classic's 1984 sequel, but who could stand her? We prefer Karen Allen as the feisty Marion Ravenwood, who saves Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) almost as much as he saves her.

Quvenzhané Wallis fully deserved to be the Oscars' youngest-ever Best Actress nominee. She's remarkable as Hushpuppy, a girl who can survive dire poverty, a terrible father, and even a devastating storm with her resilience intact.

In this thriller, an innocent hotel manager (Rachel McAdams) is strong-armed into an assassination plot by a psycho (Cillian Murphy) sitting next to her on a plane. But she's got some surprises up her sleeve.

Headstrong Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) can ride into the darkest, most dangerous corners of the Old West, though she comes to appreciate being under the wing of crusty old Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges).

When a senator's daughter (Brooke Smith) is kidnapped by a serial killer, FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) struggles to find her. Meanwhile, this strong-willed girl knows that the way to her captor's heart is through his poodle.

Slave Leia. It's the ultimate image of the damsel in distress. But three films into the original 'Star Wars' saga, we know that the good princess (Carrie Fisher) can take care of herself – even when it comes to strangling Jabba the Hutt.