Ode to Dakota

I first saw Dakota Fanning in War of the Worlds, with Tom Cruise and Tim Robbins (who starred in one of my favorite films of all time - Jacob's Ladder), but she didn't register on my radar at the time, as she was still just a child, and I knew nothing about her. But she caught my attention several years later, when controversy erupted over her role in Hounddog (which was filmed at least two years before it finally got released). Then, she earned her place as one of my favorite actresses by co-starring in the rock biopic The Runaways alongside Kristen Stewart (all grown up since Panic Room, and following her minor but unforgettable role in Into The Wild).

Considering that I've only seen her in a small fraction of her many movie (and TV) roles (a situation I've been meaning to rectify for quite some time now, and am currently in the process of doing), the reason Dakota Fanning captivates me so much is that, in addition to her talent and personality, she is breathtakingly gorgeous. I'd wager that she is my perfect type. Mature for her young age, yet with a youthful vitality. Able to maintain a level head despite her celebrity status. And above all, she is the prettiest girl in the world (yes, even prettier than Emma Watson, though unlike Emma, Dakota unfortunately hasn't visited me in my dreams...yet). Blonde hair, impossibly fair skin, slender frame. And a very feminine fashion sense.

And because I'm vain, I want to share with you some of my favorite pictures of Dakota Fanning that I've come across on the web. I went into a frenzy and collected over 3,000 images over the past week, culled it down to a couple hundred favorites, and then picked the very best from those to share with you here! Though, there's still so many; I'm going to have to split them up. We start with young Dakota:

Dakota's too gorgeous to contain in a single post. Stay tuned for more!