We love watching ladies kick ass on the big screen. We also enjoy seeing realistic depictions of women — and that includes their imperfect appearances. Unfortunately, those two things rarely go hand in hand.
It’s hard not to roll your eyes when a heroine emerges from an intense action sequence or rain-soaked make-out without a hair out of place. No, literally. Movie hair is always perfect. Where is the frizz? The flyaways? Don't they get sweaty or oily running around in those skintight bodysuits? How come we always emerge from 40-minute Pilates sessions with a bird's nest on our heads, while Jessica Alba and ScarJo can fight fiery villains to the death and still look like they're filming a goddamn Pantene commercial? Oh, right — Hollywood.
Well, we’re calling B.S. on the whole “perfect hair” business. Ahead, we present you with eight choice scenes in which her hair should actually look like total shit — or at least not post-salon perfect.
Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson)
Marvel's Avengers & Captain America Franchises (2012-present)
Watch ScarJo drop-kick her evil Soviet captors and save Captain America's ass without a single red ringlet gone amiss.
Jane Smith (Angelina Jolie)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith(2005)
The actress may as well have been born with permanent sex-hair — her perfectly tousled locks are as much a part of her signature look as her lips. And it holds up in this all-out brawl with her agent hubby (Brad Pitt) complete with fiery explosions — and not a singed strand in sight.
Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Kate Mara)
Fantastic Four (2015)
Rain, tornadoes, lightning bolts, vortexes, electric storms — Sue's weather-manipulating abilities are endless. Apparently, they include the power of humidity and wind-resistant hair, too. (All thanks to a nifty wig.)
Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba)
Sin City (2005)
You'll notice that during this sad, romantic scene in the snow, Nancy's hair remains flawless despite the many, many snowflakes melting in it. (Bruce Willis' hair holds up pretty well, too, but that's kind of standard for dudes IRL.)
Savannah Lynn Curtis (Amanda Seyfried)
Dear John (2010)
Making out in the rain is a romance-movie cliché. So are frizz-free waves during a summertime downpour in South Carolina. HOW?! Nicholas Sparks, that's how.
Natalie (Cameron Diaz)
Charlie's Angels (2000)
Girlfriend goes from sweaty clubbing to almost getting choked to death and still looks like she just just walked out of Drybar.
Lori Quaid (Kate Beckinsale)
Total Recall(2012)
Beckinsale's badass agent does some black-belt worthy karate, spars with Jessica Biel's character, narrowly escapes a fiery explosion, and still maintains her gorgeous coif — some of the most voluminous waves we've ever seen.
Arwen (Liv Tyler)
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Arwen rides for miles and miles on horseback, her long mane flipping in the breeze as she and Frodo flee from the Nazgûl. Then she summons a literal wall of water. But at the end of the scene, her pin-straight hair appears freshly flat-ironed and shiny as ever.
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