Lori Petty

In Point Break (1991), Lori Petty's Tyler Endicott speaks directly while the men can seem rather pleased with themselves. Kathryn Bigelow makes Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze's fascination with each other compelling, but it can leave everyone else outside the conversation. We were relieved when Petty cut through that self-absorption with a bit of plain speaking. She gives the film someone worth listening to beyond its central pair, without making her supporting part feel like a bid to take over.

Petty's raspy voice and quick delivery are distinctive, and her physical energy suits the offbeat outsiders she is often cast to play. Those qualities need a purpose beyond announcing that a character is unconventional. In Point Break, Gary Busey's Agent Angelo Pappas pushes his scenes along through force and combustible energy; Petty helps by being direct. We would not ask for less of Busey, but having both approaches makes the company more interesting. Bigelow gives Petty a useful place in a film whose dialogue sometimes gets carried away.

The early films moved from Cadillac Man (1990) to Point Break and Penny Marshall's A League of Their Own (1992), where she played Kit Keller. The competitive, athletic sister was a natural use of Petty's physical confidence. Tank Girl (1995) then put her scrappiness at the centre, casting her as the title character. Her gusto is an attraction, though the film drew mixed reviews.

After the mid-1990s, smaller films and television became a larger part of her work. She wrote and directed The Poker House (2008), and later found renewed television visibility as the recurring character Lolly Whitehill in Orange Is the New Black. For a first encounter, though, we would still choose Point Break: the chases are worth the evening, and Petty offers welcome company between them.