Top 10: Contemporary Female Actors

Just a few days ago I published my Top 10 favorite contemporary actors (as opposed to all-time favorites, which I will perhaps publish one day too) here. This is finally time to give a piece of mind on female actors (not actresses) that I find particularly intriguing. It must be however stressed, that as with male actors I had no problem (in fact my initial list had over 20 names there), with female actors it gets pretty complicated. Not that there are no interesting females acting, of course not. It's just that for obvious reasons it is usually men that are observed more cautiously. Completely unfair, right? Well, that is the world we live in. A man's world. With no further ado, let's have a look at the prettier and/or more talented side of Hollywood.

10. Rebecca Hall

Favorite roles:
"Starter for 10," "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," "Frost/Nixon," in theatre: "Winter's Tale," "The Cherry Orchard" in The Old Vic London, directed by Sam Mendes.

9. Diane Kruger

Favorite roles:

"National Treasure," "Inglourious Basterds," "Copying Beethoven," "Goodbye Bafana".

 8. Amy Adams

Favorite roles:
"Catch Me If You Can," "Junebug," "Enchanted," "Charlie Wilson's War," "Doubt," "Julie & Julia," "The Leap Year," "The Fighter," "The Master."

7. Mia Wasikowska

Favorite roles:

"Defiance," "The Kids Are All Right," "Jane Eyre," "Restless," "Lawless."

6. Emma Stone

Favorite roles:

"Crazy Stupid Love," "The Help," "The Amazing Spider-Man," "Gangster Squad."

5. Scarlett Johansson

Favorite roles:

"The Horse Whisperer," "Ghost World," "Lost in Translation," "Girl with a Pearl Earring," "In Good Company," "Match Point," "Scoop," "The Prestige," "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," "The Nanny Diaries."

4. Marion Cotillard

Favorite roles:

"Big Fish," "A Good Year," "La Vie en Rose," "Public Enemies," "Inception," "Midnight in Paris," "Rust and Bone," "The Dark Knight Rises."

3. Eva Green

Favorite roles:

"The Dreamers," "Kingdom of Heaven," "Casino Royale," "The Golden Compass," "Perfect Sense," "Dark Shadows."

2. Jessica Chastain

Favorite roles:

"The Tree of Life," "The Help," "The Debt," "Coriolanus," "Lawless."

1. Carey Mulligan

Favorite roles:

"Pride and Prejudice," "An Education," "Public Enemies," "Brothers," "Never Let Me Go," "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps," "Drive," "Shame," "The Great Gatsby."