Vacation Vixen: Michelle Rodriguez

I think M-Rod’s Pocahontas is showing. And, strangely enough, that’s not a euphemism.

My Weekend Crush

Oh Michelle, Michelle. I have not seen “Machete” yet. But my reluctance has nothing to do with Michelle Rodriguez. In fact, M-Rod is pretty much the reason I would go see “Machete.” Well, that and the eye patch. What I like about her, beside her obvious ridiculously rocking body that makes you want to bite your fist on sight, is that she is unapologetically the tough girl. She embraces her strength, she knows it makes her different. And, to be blunt, she doesn’t give a fuck. She realizes because she doesn’t play the girlfriend or the victim, her roles are limited. As she said before:

“I could give two shits. I only wanna be someone or I respect or someone that I consider interesting or fun. I’m here to entertain people and make a statement about female empowerment and strength and that’s what I've done for the last 10 years, and people can call it typecast, but I pigeonholed myself and I put myself in that box for saying no to everything else that came on my plate.”

You have to respect that. In an industry where too many actresses feel forced to make too many concessions to make it – be the eye candy, take off your clothes, get rescued, play dumb – Michelle has made practically none. She exists solely, it seems, to be fierce. Like I was saying, respect. Happy weekend, all.

Tank Top Tuesday

So the dog days are definitely here. July threw down a sweltering gauntlet and I’ve never known August as a month to back down from a challenge. I expect sun. I expect warmth. Basically, I expect to sweat. So, then, what’s a gal – like poor, sweaty, sticky, glistening Gillian Anderson – supposed to do to beat the heat? Well, for one, a tank top helps. But I’m sure I can do better in the helpful advice department. What can I say? I’m a giver.

Emily DeschanelSpending a day at the beach is always a cool option.

Ashley GreenePulling at one’s clothing will help unstick them from your body.

Helen MirrenSitting near an open window will help you catch a breeze.

Katee Sackhoff & Tricia HelferRiding a motorcycle will really help you catch a breeze.

Michelle Rodriguez & companionSharing a cold beverage with a friend will cool down your core.

BeyoncéWearing short-shorts will cool your lower body.

Sigourney WeaverWearing just your skivvies will cool your whole body.

Carla Gugino

Jumping into the pool will bring down your temperature instantly.

Ashleigh Sumner, Cathy DeBuono & Jill BennettWhen all else fails, just make things hotter.
[Via “And Then Came Lola.”]

So, there you have it. Some simple, fool-proof ways to keep cool this August. Or was that hot? Either way, always wear a tank top.

Tough it out

Michelle Rodriguez is many things. Tough. Resilient. Smoking hot in a tank top. But what she isn’t too often on screen is alive. Her characters have the unfortunate tendency to end up dead. How dead and how often? Well, off the top of my head:

Resident Evil – Dead
BloodRayne – Dead
Lost – Dead
Fast & Furious – Dead
Avatar – Dead

So, that’s a lot of resting in pieces. Now, Michelle has her own thoughts on why this keeps happening. She told io9.com at Comic-Con:

“Because I don’t take my clothes off, and I'm nobody’s girlfriend. The writers are new to the whole tough girl thing, and they don’t know what to do with [me]. We’ve got the dude who’s strong, so what do we do with the chick who’s strong? We kill her. Eventually they’ll get used to it, and maybe Salt will change a thing or two.”

Now, I haven’t always agreed with Michelle on everything, but right here she is right on the money. Hollywood doesn’t know what to do with the tough girl. And women who consistently play tough, well they really don’t know what to do with them. Oh, wait, they do – kill them.

Michelle was also her delightfully colorful and non-PC self again when speaking with The Playlist at Comic-Con. [Hat tip, Norma Desmond!] When asked about being typecast as “The Tough Girl,” she let loose. Witness.

“Oh baby, I was typecast the minute I did a film called, 'Girlfight' years ago. That has nothing to do with anything, it just to do with... you allow yourself to be typecast. If I decided I didn’t want to be typecast tomorrow I’d just go do an indie film where I play some poor girl who goes through some excruciating experience and win myself an award for crying or being raped [breaks into laughter] or playing someone with mental illness. But at the end of the day I’m not in it for the acting. If I were in it for the acting then I would be worried about people not giving me the opportunity to express my vast array of emotions on the screen.

I could give two shits. I only wanna be someone or I respect or someone that I consider interesting or fun. I’m here to entertain people and make a statement about female empowerment and strength and that’s what I've done for the last 10 years, and people can call it typecast, but I pigeonholed myself and I put myself in that box for saying no to everything else that came on my plate. Saying no to the girlfriend, saying no to the girl that gets captured, no to this, no to that and eventually I just got left with the strong chick that’s always being killed and there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Nope, Michelle, nothing at all. Well, except for the dead part. Those are some mighty big swipes she is taking, but I would expect nothing less from an actor who says she isn’t in it for the acting. So how about letting the strong chick live instead? Come on, Hollywood, are you ready to be strong?

Vacation Vixen: Michelle Rodriguez

Is it bad that my first thought when I saw this was,“I wonder how many ladies have woken to find her in their kitchen?”

Tank Top Tuesday: Lost Edition

I never watched “Lost.” Not one episode. Not even five minutes. Never. But I still felt curious about the finale this weekend. As a person who prides herself on her pop culture prowess, I just had to know. How does it end? So I watched the last 15 minutes. Yes, yes – I know. You can’t just watch the last 15 minutes of any show and expect to understand. So, basically I had no idea what was going on. But from a lot of regular watchers’ initial reactions, I wasn’t the only one. [Spoilers Alert: If you haven’t watched the finale, SKIP TO THE PICTURES!] So, dude, how about that Sixth Sensing of the finale? We’re all seeing dead people. In church! And then there was a dog! I honestly don’t know what to make of it all, but I do know that I commend “Lost” for spinning a hell of a yarn that engrossed a hell of a lot of people for six seasons. Well, that and employing some gorgeous, gorgeous women and stranding them on a desert island with a wardrobe full of tank tops. So long, “Lost,” I hardly knew you.

Evangeline Lilly (Kate)Michelle Rodriguez (Ana Lucia)Maggie Grace (Shannon)Rebecca Mader (Charlotte)Yunjin Kim (Sun)Emilie de Ravin (Claire) Cynthia Watros (Libby)Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet)She even looks good all dirty and bedraggled in her tank top.

So I guess the only question now is who is your favorite twosome?

Libby & Ana LuciaJuliet & Kate

What? I said I didn’t watch, not that I didn’t keep track of who was who and who looked particularly hot in a tank top.