We all know the type. The bubbly, quirky, artistic female love-interest in what seems like every movie. She’s interesting and strange, and swears this one indie rock song will change your life forever. (Just think of literally any character Zooey Deschanel has ever played).
It always happens the same way: the soulful, brooding male character is living a sheltered life, and doesn’t realize it until this woman appears, inspires him to do something he’s never done before, and disappears after he’s learned to embrace life’s infinite adventures. It’s incredibly predictable, and puts an emphasis on a fantasy world where boys can save girls just by being romantically interested in them. And yet, the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope persists in so many great films.
Check out our picks for the top five best “Manic Pixie Dream Girls” in movies.
5. Natalie Portman in Garden State
The point of her character is that she’s adorably weird, but it’s ok because she’s hot. Plus she changes Zach Braff’s life around just by playing him a song by The Shins, which is totally relatable.
4. Kirsten Dunst in Elizabethtown
Dunst’s performance as the bubbly flight attendant trying to help Orlando Bloom embrace life again is what originally inspired film critic Nathan Rabin to coin the term “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” back in 2007. She’s the cookie-cutter MPDG: sunny, beautiful, childlike, and existing solely to help her man pursue his own happiness.
3. Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s
This movie is a classic, and Audrey Hepburn was the quintessential MPDG long before the term even existed. Her iconic performance as opinionated party-girl Holly Golightly is just one of the many MPDG roles she played, in which she manages to snag a (very rich) older man because she just happens to be his “dream girl”.
2. Scarlett Johansson in Her
Despite her character being a computer, Scarlett Johansson as the voice of Samantha definitely fits the classic MPDG description. Joaquin Phoenix is depressed and lonely until he falls in love with her and she turns his life around. While the idea of falling in love with a computer may seem far-fetched, this movie captures the idea of the MPDG in a fresh, unique way.
1. Zooey Deschanel in 500 Days of Summer
Of course, Zooey Deschanel has to be number one on the list. Her vintage dresses and ukulele-strumming make her the queen of Manic Pixie Dream Girls. Not to mention she’s one of the few people who can actually pull off those bangs. It’s no wonder Joseph Gorden Levitt’s character was so hung up on her for the entire movie. But, in classic MPDG fashion, it took losing her for him to realize she wasn’t actually “The One”, but ” she was the one he needed to meet to make him a better person for when he met ‘The (actual) One'”.