Love to Women: Feminist Films
The films that make up this list reflect or illustrate the basic principle of feminism, which, stated simply and famously, is that women are not doormats (nor are they objects of any kind). These movies assert and celebrate that women have the right to self-determination. I hope that you enjoy this list, these films, and the spirited girls and women that they depict.
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Notes: Except for the first five, the films are listed in alphabetical order.
For some of the movies, I indicated the country of origin for each, as well as what language or languages are spoken, and the country of setting. Not all of the films have such information within the list at this time but I will continue as I can. This information can be found within each film's IMDb page, however.
Vote in related polls here, here, and here.
Notes: Except for the first five, the films are listed in alphabetical order.
For some of the movies, I indicated the country of origin for each, as well as what language or languages are spoken, and the country of setting. Not all of the films have such information within the list at this time but I will continue as I can. This information can be found within each film's IMDb page, however.
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- DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsJodie FosterAnthony HopkinsScott GlennA young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.U.S.
Filmed in the U.S.; Set in the U.S.
Language: English - DirectorYimou ZhangStarsGong LiJingwu MaSaifei HeChina in the 1920s. After her father's death, Songlian is forced to marry the wealthy Master Chen. With three wives already, each living in a separate house, there is fierce competition for his attention and the privileges that are gained.China / Hong Kong / Taiwan;
Filmed in China; Set in China
Language: Mandarine - DirectorMartin RittStarsSally FieldBeau BridgesRon LeibmanA young single mother and textile worker agrees to help unionize her mill despite the problems and dangers involved.U.S. / English
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDanny GloverWhoopi GoldbergOprah WinfreyA tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry.U.S. / English
- DirectorVincent ParonnaudMarjane SatrapiStarsChiara MastroianniCatherine DeneuveGena RowlandsA precocious and outspoken Iranian girl grows up during the Islamic Revolution.France / USA;
Set in Iran;
Language: French. English, Persian, German - DirectorRobert AltmanStarsShelley DuvallSissy SpacekJanice RuleTwo roommates/physical therapists, one a vain woman and the other an awkward teenager, share an increasingly bizarre relationship.
- DirectorCristian MungiuStarsAnamaria MarincaLaura VasiliuVlad IvanovA woman assists her friend in arranging an illegal abortion in 1980s Romania.Set in Romania
- DirectorColin HigginsStarsJane FondaLily TomlinDolly PartonThree female employees of a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot find a way to turn the tables on him.U.S. / English
- DirectorJonathan KaplanStarsKelly McGillisJodie FosterBernie CoulsonAfter a young woman suffers a brutal gang rape in a bar one night, a prosecutor assists in bringing the perpetrators to justice, including the ones who encouraged and cheered on the attack.U.S. / English
- DirectorAlejandro AmenábarStarsRachel WeiszMax MinghellaOscar IsaacA historical drama set in Roman Egypt, concerning a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hope of pursuing freedom while falling in love with his mistress, the philosophy and mathematics professor Hypatia of Alexandria.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsEllen BurstynKris KristoffersonMia BendixsenA recently widowed woman is on the road with her precocious young son, determined to make a new life for herself as a singer.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsSigourney WeaverTom SkerrittJohn HurtThe crew of a commercial spacecraft encounters a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsSigourney WeaverMichael BiehnCarrie HennDecades after surviving the Nostromo incident, Ellen Ripley is sent out to re-establish contact with a terraforming colony but finds herself battling the Alien Queen and her offspring.
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczStarsBette DavisAnne BaxterGeorge SandersA seemingly timid but secretly ruthless ingénue insinuates herself into the lives of an aging Broadway star and her circle of theater friends.
- DirectorPedro AlmodóvarStarsCecilia RothMarisa ParedesCandela PeñaA comedy-drama about a bereaved mother, and overwrought actress, her jealous lover, and a pregnant nun.
- DirectorTim DisneyStarsNicole BeharieWill PattonAlfre WoodardA single mother struggles to clear her name after being wrongly accused and arrested for dealing drugs in an impoverished Texas town.U.S. / English
- DirectorFrancis LeeStarsKate WinsletSaoirse RonanGemma Jones1840s England, acclaimed but overlooked fossil hunter Mary Anning and a young woman sent to convalesce by the sea develop an intense relationship, altering both of their lives forever.
- DirectorKitty GreenStarsJulia GarnerOwen HollandJon OrsiniA searing look at a day in the life of an assistant to a powerful executive. As Jane follows her daily routine, she grows increasingly aware of the insidious abuse that threatens every aspect of her position.
- DirectorGurinder ChadhaStarsParminder NagraKeira KnightleyJonathan Rhys MeyersTwo ambitious girls, despite their parents' wishes, have their hearts set on careers in professional football.
- DirectorOusmane SembeneStarsMbissine Thérèse DiopAnne-Marie JelinekRobert FontaineA black girl from Senegal becomes a servant in France.
- DirectorKathleen HepburnElle-Máijá TailfeathersStarsViolet NelsonElle-Máijá TailfeathersCharlie HannahAfter a chance encounter on the street, a woman tries to encourage a pregnant domestic abuse victim to seek help.Canada / Norway
- DirectorLizzie BordenStarsHoneyAdele BerteiJean SatterfieldSet ten years after the most peaceful revolution in United States history, it presents a dystopia in which the issues of many groups - minorities, liberals, gay rights organizations, feminists - are dealt with by the government.
- DirectorMatt RuskinStarsKeira KnightleyCarrie CoonChris CooperLoretta McLaughlin was the reporter who first connected the murders and broke the story of the Boston Strangler. She and Jean Cole challenged the sexism of the early 1960s to report on the city's most notorious serial killer.
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsJennifer TillyGina GershonJoe PantolianoTough ex-con Corky and her lover Violet concoct a scheme to steal millions of stashed mob money and pin the blame on Violet's crooked boyfriend Caesar.
- DirectorKen LoachStarsPilar PadillaAdrien BrodyElpidia CarrilloTwo Latina sisters work as cleaners in a downtown office building, and fight for the right to unionize.
- DirectorRobert GreenwaldStarsFarrah FawcettPaul Le MatRichard MasurAn abused battered wife has had enough of her husband beating up on her. Everywhere she turns for help, there's not much anyone will do. After he rapes her one night, she sets the bed on fire with him in it asleep.
- DirectorPhyllis NagyStarsElizabeth BanksSigourney WeaverChris MessinaA married woman with an unwanted pregnancy lives in a time in America when she can't get a legal abortion and works with a group of suburban women to find help.
- DirectorBruno NuyttenStarsIsabelle AdjaniGérard DepardieuMadeleine RobinsonCamille Claude impresses already-famous sculptor Auguste Rodin. He hires her as an assistant, but soon Camille begins to sculpt for herself and she also becomes his mistress. But after a while, she would like to get out of his shadow.France
Set in France
French - DirectorSophie GalibertStarsHannah AllineAngela NicholasCandice HeidenCherry has 24 hours to make the most important decision of her life: whether or not to keep an unplanned pregnancy.
- DirectorLasse HallströmStarsTobey MaguireCharlize TheronMichael CaineA compassionate young man, raised in an orphanage and trained to be a doctor there, decides to leave to see the world.
- DirectorJafar PanahiStarsMaryiam Palvin AlmaniNargess MamizadehMojgan FaramarziVarious women struggle to function in the oppressively sexist society of contemporary Iran.Iran
- DirectorAgnès VardaStarsCorinne MarchandAntoine BourseillerDominique DavrayCleo, a singer and hypochondriac, becomes increasingly worried that she might have cancer while awaiting test results from her doctor.France / Language: French
- DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsSusan SarandonTommy Lee JonesBrad RenfroA young boy who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to protect him when the District Attorney tries to use him to take down a mob family.
- DirectorWash WestmorelandStarsKeira KnightleyFiona ShawDominic WestColette is pushed by her husband to write novels under his name. Upon their success, she fights to make her talents known, challenging gender norms.
- DirectorRod LurieStarsJoan AllenGary OldmanJeff BridgesSenator Laine Hanson is a contender for U.S. Vice President, but information and disinformation about her past surfaces that threatens to derail her confirmation.
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsDiane KeatonJessica LangeSissy SpacekThree southern sisters try to come to grips with the meaning of their mother's suicide.
- DirectorVera ChytilováStarsIvana KarbanováJitka CerhováMarie CeskováAfter realizing that all world is spoiled, Marie and Marie are committed to be spoiled themselves. They rip off older men, feast in lavish meals and do all kinds of mischief. But what is all this leading to?
- DirectorDorothy ArznerRoy Del RuthStarsMaureen O'HaraLouis HaywardLucille BallWhen a troupe of danseuses becomes unemployed, one of them takes up burlesque dancing while another dreams of performing ballet.U.S. / English
- DirectorJulie DashStarsCora Lee DayAlva RogersBarbara OA languid, impressionistic story of three generations of Gullah women living on the South Carolina Sea Islands in 1902.
- DirectorSherry HormannStarsSoraya Omar-ScegoIdriss Abdillahi HoufanehAwa Saïd DararWaris Dirie, born 1965 in Somalia, flees at thirteen when sold to be a mans fourth wife. She works as a maid at the Somalian embassy in London, then in a McDonald's where she's discovered and becomes an international top model. Then, in 1997 she speaks up against female genital mutilation.Country: UK | Germany | Austria | France;
Set in Somalia and the U.K.
Language: English | Somali | French - DirectorSusan SeidelmanStarsRosanna ArquetteMadonnaAidan QuinnA bored New Jersey suburban housewife's fascination with a free-spirited woman she has read about in the personal columns leads to her being mistaken for the woman herself.
- DirectorGeorg Wilhelm PabstStarsLouise BrooksJosef RovenskýFritz RaspAfter falling pregnant by a pharmacist and refusing to marry, a young woman is ejected from her home and sent to a strict girls' reform school.
- DirectorEmile ArdolinoStarsPatrick SwayzeJennifer GreyJerry OrbachSpending the summer at a Catskills resort with her family, Frances "Baby" Houseman falls in love with the camp's dance instructor, Johnny Castle.
- DirectorDiane KurysStarsMiou-MiouIsabelle HuppertGuy MarchandA Jewish refugee marries a soldier to escape deportation to Germany. Meanwhile a wealthy art student loses her first husband to a stray Resistance bullet; at the Liberation she meets an actor, gets pregnant, and marries him.France
Set in France
French, English - DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsJulia RobertsAlbert FinneyDavid BrisbinAn unemployed single mother becomes a legal assistant and almost single-handedly brings down a California power company accused of polluting a city's water supply.
- DirectorRobert M. YoungStarsFarrah FawcettJames RussoAlfre WoodardA woman takes revenge on the man who invades her home and tries to rape her.
- DirectorTodd HaynesStarsJulianne MooreDennis QuaidDennis HaysbertIn 1950s Connecticut, a flustered housewife faces a marital crisis and mounting racial tensions in the outside world.
- DirectorJoel CoenEthan CoenStarsWilliam H. MacyFrances McDormandSteve BuscemiMinnesota car salesman Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson.
- DirectorYorgos LanthimosStarsOlivia ColmanEmma StoneRachel WeiszIn early 18th-century England, the status quo at the court is upset when a new servant arrives and endears herself to a frail Queen Anne.
- DirectorJohn WatersStarsDivineDavid LocharyMary Vivian PearceA spoiled schoolgirl runs away from home, gets pregnant while hitch-hiking, and ends up as a fashion model for a pair of beauticians who like to photograph women committing crimes.
- DirectorAndrea ArnoldStarsKatie JarvisMichael FassbenderKierston WareingEverything changes for 15-year-old Mia when her mum brings home a new boyfriend.
- DirectorSean BakerStarsBrooklynn PrinceBria VinaiteWillem DafoeSet over one summer, the film follows precocious six-year-old Moonee as she courts mischief and adventure with her ragtag playmates and bonds with her rebellious but caring mother, all while living in the shadows of Walt Disney World.
- DirectorJack HillStarsPam GrierAntonio FargasPeter BrownA voluptuous vigilante takes a job as a high-class prostitute to get revenge on the mobsters who murdered her boyfriend.
- DirectorJon AvnetStarsKathy BatesJessica TandyMary Stuart MastersonEvelyn, an ordinary housewife, visits a nursing home and befriends the old lady Ninny. Together, they bond over stories from the past about two intrepid women of Whistle Stop Cafe.
- DirectorVirginia WilliamsAn account of a brave woman running to become the President of Afghanistan.USA
Set in Afghanistan
English, Dari, Pushto - DirectorChris BuckJennifer LeeStarsKristen BellIdina MenzelJonathan GroffFearless optimist Anna teams up with rugged mountain man Kristoff and his loyal reindeer Sven in an epic journey to find Anna's sister Elsa, whose icy powers have trapped the kingdom of Arendelle in eternal winter.?
- DirectorMichael CristoferStarsAngelina JolieFaye DunawayElizabeth MitchellThe story of the life of Gia Carangi, a top fashion model from the late 1970s, from her meteoric rise to the forefront of the modeling industry, to her untimely death.
- DirectorLukas DhontStarsVictor PolsterArieh WorthalterOliver BodartA promising teenage dancer enrolls at a prestigious ballet school while grappling with her gender dysphoria.
- DirectorDaniel AlfredsonStarsMichael NyqvistNoomi RapaceLena EndreLisbeth is recovering in a hospital and awaiting trial for three murders when she is released. Mikael must prove her innocence, but Lisbeth must be willing to share the details of her sordid experiences with the court.Sweden
- DirectorDaniel AlfredsonStarsNoomi RapaceMichael NyqvistLena EndreAs computer hacker Lisbeth and journalist Mikael investigate a sex-trafficking ring, Lisbeth is accused of three murders, causing her to go on the run while Mikael works to clear her name.Sweden
- DirectorNiels Arden OplevStarsMichael NyqvistNoomi RapaceEwa FrölingA journalist is aided by a young female hacker in his search for the killer of a woman who has been dead for forty years.Sweden
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsDaniel CraigRooney MaraChristopher PlummerJournalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for 40 years by young computer hacker Lisbeth Salander.
- DirectorRose TrocheStarsV.S. BrodieGuinevere TurnerT. Wendy McMillanA romantic tale about finding a soulmate. The only difference here is that both partners are women...in Chicago's lesbian community.
- DirectorSally PotterStarsJulie ChristieColette LaffontHilary WestlakeAn avant-garde exploration of a woman's life.
- DirectorAlfonso CuarónStarsSandra BullockGeorge ClooneyEd HarrisDr Ryan Stone, an engineer on her first time on a space mission, and Matt Kowalski, an astronaut on his final expedition, have to survive in space after they are hit by debris while spacewalking.
- DirectorVolker SchlöndorffStarsNatasha RichardsonFaye DunawayAidan QuinnUnder a dystopian religious tyranny, most women cannot conceive children. Those young women who can live in a form of sexual slavery to provide children for influential families.
- DirectorPhyllida LloydStarsMolly McCannClare DunneRuby Rose O'HaraA young mother escapes her abusive husband and fights back against a broken housing system. She sets out to build her own home and in the process rebuilds her life and re-discovers herself.Ireland
- DirectorTheodore MelfiStarsTaraji P. HensonOctavia SpencerJanelle MonáeThe story of a team of female African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsCary GrantRosalind RussellRalph BellamyA newspaper editor uses every trick in the book to keep his ace reporter ex-wife from remarrying.
- DirectorAli AbbasiStarsAlice RahimiDiana Al HussenSoraya HelliA journalist descends into the dark underbelly of the Iranian holy city of Mashhad as she investigates the serial killings of sex workers by the so called "Spider Killer", who believes he is cleansing the streets of sinners.
- DirectorGary RossStarsJennifer LawrenceJosh HutchersonLiam HemsworthKatniss Everdeen voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games: a televised competition in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to fight to the death.may require explanation?
- DirectorDonovan MarshStarsErica WesselsHlubi MboyaLeshego MolokwaneA special crimes investigator forms an unlikely bond with a serial killer to bring down a global child sex trafficking syndicate.Country: South Africa
Set in South Africa
Languages: English, some Akrikaans - DirectorKhadija Al-SalamiStarsReham MohammedNaziha AlansiRana MohammedTen year old Jemenite girl asks a judge in Sana'a to grant her a divorce from a horrible marriage, after she was married away to prevent a public scandal after a rape of her sister.
- DirectorTamara BassMeagan GoodStarsJoelle AshleyTamara BassShamicka BennFour friends, who met in high school and are bonded by an event, are suddenly forced back together when one of them suffers a crisis. It's a story of love, forgiveness and the incredible bond between women.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsLubna AzabalMélissa Désormeaux-PoulinMaxim GaudetteTwins journey to the Middle East to discover their family history and fulfill their mother's last wishes.
- DirectorKatja von GarnierStarsHilary SwankMargo MartindaleAnjelica HustonA little known, yet integral piece of American history: based on the lives of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, two young radical women who were instrumental in getting women the right to vote in America.
- DirectorTia LessinEmma PildesStarsAbbyJudith ArcanaHeather BoothPolice arrested seven women who were part of a clandestine network. Using code names, blindfolds and safe houses, they built an underground service for women seeking safe, affordable, illegal abortions calling themselves JANE.
- DirectorChantal AkermanStarsDelphine SeyrigJan DecorteHenri StorckA lonely widowed housewife does her daily chores, takes care of her apartment where she lives with her teenage son, and turns the occasional trick to make ends meet. However, something happens that changes her safe routine.
- DirectorJason ReitmanStarsElliot PageMichael CeraJennifer GarnerFaced with an unplanned pregnancy, an offbeat young woman makes a selfless decision regarding the unborn child.
- DirectorLisa CholodenkoStarsAnnette BeningJulianne MooreMark RuffaloTwo children conceived by artificial insemination bring their biological father into their non-traditional family life.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsUma ThurmanDavid CarradineDaryl HannahAfter awakening from a four-year coma, a former assassin wreaks vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsUma ThurmanDavid CarradineMichael MadsenThe Bride continues her quest of vengeance against her former boss and lover Bill, the reclusive bouncer Budd, and the treacherous, one-eyed Elle.
- DirectorKim Do-YoungStarsJung Yu-miGong YooKim Mi-kyungKim Ji-yeong, an ordinary woman in her 30s, suddenly shows signs of being inhabited by others such as her late mother and older sister, and the stories of the people connected to her.
- DirectorRobert BentonStarsDustin HoffmanMeryl StreepJane AlexanderAfter his wife leaves him, a work-obsessed Manhattan advertising executive is forced to learn long-neglected parenting skills, but a heated custody battle over the couple's young son deepens the wounds left by the separation.
- DirectorLou AdlerStarsPeter DonatDiane LaneMarin KanterThe media and disaffected teens mistake the acerbic rants of an obnoxious teenage punk rocker as a rallying cry for the women of America, launching her and her talentless group to national stardom.
- DirectorGreta GerwigStarsSaoirse RonanLaurie MetcalfTracy LettsIn 2002, an artistically inclined 17-year-old girl comes of age in Sacramento, California.
- DirectorTony KayeStarsNoam ChomskyBill BairdFlip BenhamA graphic documentary on both sides of the abortion debate.
- DirectorSean FineAndrea NixStarsRachel MaddowJessica McDonaldSam MewisIt is a no-holds-barred, inside account of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team's ongoing fight for equal pay.
- DirectorTodd FieldStarsKate WinsletJennifer ConnellyPatrick WilsonThe lives of two lovelorn spouses from separate marriages, a registered sex offender, and a disgraced ex-police officer intersect as they struggle to resist their vulnerabilities and temptations in suburban Massachusetts.
- DirectorGreta GerwigStarsSaoirse RonanEmma WatsonFlorence PughJo March reflects back and forth on her life, telling the beloved story of the March sisters - four young women, each determined to live life on her own terms.
- DirectorRichard PearceStarsSissy SpacekWhoopi GoldbergDwight SchultzTwo women, black and white, in 1955 Montgomery Alabama, must decide what they are going to do in response to the famous bus boycott led by Martin Luther King.
- DirectorJonathan KaplanStarsMichelle PfeifferDennis HaysbertStephanie McFaddenDevastated by President Kennedy's assassination, Dallas-based hairstylist Lurene Hallett boards a bus for the funeral in Washington D.C. where she meets a perplexing father and his daughter who greatly impact her journey.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsTom HardyCharlize TheronNicholas HoultIn a post-apocalyptic wasteland, a woman rebels against a tyrannical ruler in search for her homeland with the aid of a group of female prisoners, a psychotic worshiper and a drifter named Max.
- DirectorAlek KeshishianStarsMadonnaDonna DeLoryNiki HarisDocumentary following singer Madonna on her controversial Blond Ambition tour in 1990.
- DirectorJoshua MarstonStarsCatalina Sandino MorenoGuilied LopezOrlando TobónA pregnant Colombian teenager becomes a drug mule to make some desperately-needed money for her family.Country: Colombia | Ecuador | USA;
Set in Colombia and the U.S.
Language: Spanish | English - DirectorCosta-GavrasStarsJack LemmonSissy SpacekMelanie MayronWhen an idealistic American writer disappears during the Chilean coup d'état in September 1973, his wife and father try to find him.
- DirectorMike NewellStarsJulia RobertsKirsten DunstJulia StilesA free-thinking art professor teaches conservative 1950s Wellesley girls to question their traditional social roles.
- DirectorOusmane SembeneStarsFatoumata CoulibalyMaimouna Hélène DiarraSalimata TraoréWhen a woman shelters a group of girls from suffering female genital mutilation, she starts a conflict that tears her village apart.Country: Senegal | Burkina Faso | Morocco | Tunisia | Cameroon | France;
Set in Burkina Faso;
Language: Bambara | French - DirectorDeniz Gamze ErgüvenStarsGünes SensoyDoga Zeynep DogusluTugba SungurogluWhen five orphan girls are seen innocently playing with boys on a beach, their scandalized conservative guardians confine them while forced marriages are arranged.
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsJudy DavisSam NeillWendy HughesA proud young woman in early 20th century Australia must choose between marriage and independence.Australia
Set in Australia
English