Maire Claire
10 Feel-Good Feminist Films To Watch
By Melissa Mason
March 6, 2021
To help you out with that, we’ve rounded up our favourite films that feature strong female leads and a message of female empowerment. Why not make a binge session for your weekend?
1. Booksmart
This Olivia Wilde-helmed film from 2019 follows two best friends as they navigate their final weeks of high school, after whip-smart Molly feels they might have aced their grades, but they haven’t done any partying.
2. The Hairy Bird
A classic 90s flick that’s highly underrated, The Hairy Bird stars Kirsten Dunst, and follows the adventures of a group of teenage girls at a prestigious boarding school in the 60s as they learn their all-girls school is set to become co-ed. Together, they fight against the system (and you’ll now forever say “Up yours Ziggy with a Wah-Wah brush”).
3. Erin Brockovich
An absolute classic that we’re sure you’ve all seen, Erin Brockovich of course follows the true story of an everyday woman who managed to take a giant business to court (and nail them) for health breaches when it came to one of their chemical plants.
4. The First Wives Club
Is there anything better than watching Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler and Diane Keaton get even with their cheating/lying ex-husbands and then open a women’s shelter? Um, no there isn’t.
5. Dumplin’
An adorable Netflix film, Dumplin’ stars Jennifer Aniston and follows her teen, Dolly Parton-obsessed daughter who enters a beauty pageant and steals the show.
6. Hidden Figures
Hell yeah, shining a light on the women doing the hard work behind the scenes to get something major done – in this case, history-making moments like putting a man in space first. With epic performances from Octavia Spencer and Taraji P. Henson, this is a must-watch.
7. A League Of Their Own
A sport film set in America during World War II, this success story about the first professional female baseball league, and a team kicking goals (well, hitting home runs) is all heart and laughs.
8. Mad Max: Fury Road
Okay, maybe not exactly feel-good but definitely empowering, what we loved the most about Mad Max: Fury Road was how central Charlize Theron’s character, Furiosa, was to the plot – a turning point for the franchise which usually focused on Max (Tom Hardy).
9. Homecoming: A Film By Beyonce
DAMN, if you can watch a documentary on Beyonce and not be strutting like the lady-boss you are, did you really watch a documentary on Beyonce?
10. She’s The Man
Hey, we said feel-good, ok? Amanda Bynes kills it as Viola, a soccer star who finds her all-girls team cut from her school program. So what does she do? Impersonates her brother and joins a boys team – and destroys everyone on the field. It’s fun, it’s silly, it’s empowering.
