My Favorite Performances of 2012 (Female)

M - Skyfall
"You don't get this, do you? Whoever's behind this, whoever's doing this, he knows us! He's one of us! He comes from the same place as Bond, a place you say doesn't exist: the shadows!"

Peggy Dodd - The Master
"This is something you do for a billion years or not at all. This isn't fashion."

Honorable Mentions:
Mickey - Trouble with the Curve

Maria Bennett - The Impossible
"Lucas, look at this place. They're so busy in here. You get to go and do something. Go help people. You're good at it."

Sara Orheim - The Orheim Company

Maya - Zero Dark Thirty
"I'm the motherfucker that found this place. Sir."

Honorable Mentions:
Maggie Beaufort - Lawless

Suzy - Moonrise Kingdom
"I always wished I was an orphan. Most of my favorite characters are. I think your lives are more special."

Frances - Frances Ha
"Sometimes it's good to do what you're supposed to do when you're supposed to do it."

Hushpuppy - Beasts of the Southern Wild
"I hope you die and after you die I'll go to your grave and eat birthday cake all by myself."

Mrs. Bishop - Moonrise Kingdom
"He's not dumb... But I guess he is kind of sad."

Romina - The Place Beyond the Pines
"You fucked up my son's life; therefore, you fucked up my life."

Tilda, Megan's Mom / Mexican Woman / Sonmi-451 / Sonmi-351 / Sonmi Prostitute - Cloud Atlas
"Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others. Past and present. And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future."

Alma Reville - Hitchcock
"You shouldn't wait until half way through. Kill her after thirty minutes."

Anderson - Dredd
"Welcome to the inside of your head. It's kind of empty in here."

Ruby Sparks - Ruby Sparks
"Naming your dog after him? It's a little disrespectful. Think about it. You're a novelist. You think this guy's the greatest. So you name your dog after him to cut him down to size. This way, you can put him on a leash... and yell "Bad Scotty" and feel all superior because you pee inside. Kill your idols, man. I'm all for it."

Juniper - Mud

Broomhilda von Shaft - Django Unchained
"Hey, big troublemaker."

Nicole - Flight
"You choose it? Well, I don't see a whole lot of choice going on here!"

Mary Todd Lincoln - Lincoln
"No one is loved as much as you by the people. Don't waste that power."

Native Woman / Jocasta Ayrs / Luisa Rey / Indian Party Guest / Ovid / Meronym - Cloud Atlas
"I don't know. I'm just trying to understand why we keep making the same mistakes... over and over."

Eve - Skyfall
"Sometimes the old ways are the best."

Darius - Safety Not Guaranteed
"I guess I remember being happy when I was a kid. Back when you just naturally expect good things to happen. Before my mom died."

Sara - Looper
"Listen up, fucker! I have shot and buried three vagrants in the past year! So I don't care what hobo sob story you've got. I get a dozen a week, pal. It cuts no cash for me. But if you show your face here again, I will cut you the fuck in half!"

Bertha Minnix - Lawless
"You're an outlaw Jack."

Ma-Ma - Dredd
"You're a piece of work, Dredd. But so am I. You think I didn't know I'd get busted some day? Goes with the territory. This entire level is rigged with enough high explosives to take out the top fifty stories. If they go, the rest go too."

Angela - Seven Psychopaths