Blockbuster role models

As the summer draws to a close, so does the season of Hollywood blockbusters. Our screens have been filled with action, adventures and fairy tales and in all of them women shared, if not stole, the screen. What skills can we learn from the reel lives of these blockbuster heroines?

Snow and steady

Before her well publicised fall from grace, Kristen Stewart, as Snow White in Snow White and the Huntsman, was admirable for one marked trait: steadiness. This Snow White is no drama queen. She is quiet. Focused. Her strength is not physical, nor does it lie in her external beauty, charm or the vocal gymnastics of the Disney version. No, instead, she relies on the strength of her mind, spirit and heart to defeat her more superficial foe. You wouldn't catch a modern day Snow awkwardly oversharing her innermost thoughts and revealing vulnerabilities — and nor should you. We can learn from her premeditation and self control. There are times when speaking out is critical, but often keeping your counsel while staying locked on your goals will give you the upper hand.

Unmoved by the magic

In marked contrast, we give you Cody Horn as Brooke from Magic Mike. A medical assistant who lives in a prefab apartment in South Florida? That's no fairy tale. But Brooke wins marks for self protection, a trait that women socialised to take care of others often neglect. You see, while Brooke was a good sister who looked out for her brother's best interests, she was a rather laissez-faire guardian and let him get on with it. That is, until he and his buddy Mike invited chaos into her life. Brooke protected her home, her finances and her heart. Because she knows what we must: You can't be good to anyone if you're not good to you.

Katniss the strategist

There's a lot to admire about Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games. Talk about a woman who knows how to prioritise. She got into that ridiculous mess by sacrificing herself for her family, and once there, had only one thing on her mind: winning. Did she miss home? Sure. Was she torn between two men? Uh huh. Does she care when it's a question of survival? Not so much.

Katniss played the game using immense physical skill and her mind. She knew how to work the PR of the situation, dressing the part and delivering the right lines to win support. There's an allegory here, ladies. Life is a game, and we have to play it to the full — and in calculated and precise ways when it matters most.

The ultimate cat's meow

Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises is everything you want to be: clever, wry, sexy and super-fit. Plus, she has style! Her collection of little black dresses could turn us green with envy — and who doesn't need sunglasses that convert to cat ears? This is a woman who knows how to build a personal brand.

Key to that brand is her resolute and unapologetic commitment to her femininity. She purrs, she works her feminine wiles, she uses her female powers of persuasion and critical thinking and in the end, she still looks for love. Does that sound familiar? We hope so. We all have it in us to be super women, never taking any feminine trait for granted.

Photo credits:  Kristin Stewart - Universal,  Cody Horn - WENN,  Jennifer Lawrence - Lionsgate,  Anne Hathaway - Warner Bros.

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