We’ve been spending more time at home now since the resurgence of Covid cases this past few months, and I’ve taken the opportunity to watch more movies that I’ve heard of previously but had not gotten around to in the past.
In this list I selected movies that were lead by female cast, and it comes with my recommendation as it consist of not only an interesting plot and good acting from the lead actresses, but mostly due to the fact that these movies explores themes related to the topic of women empowerment and social issues related to women, which is worth to be openly discussed more often these days.
Below I list the title and year of the film’s release, and I talk about the general plot and central themes of these movies without giving away too much spoilers.
1. Bombshell (2019)
This is based off real life accounts of the women who worked for Fox News Network and the sexual harassment case filed against then Fox News CEO Roger Aisles. This was a high profile case in the US back then. Some of you may have heard of news anchor women Megyn Kelly, who was one of the women who stood by the sexual assault claim made a a fellow news anchor colleague who also worked at Fox News.
The theme of sexual harassment or abuse by men towards ladies in the industry is a mature one but a social issue most do not talk about enough, usually in Asian countries.
What I liked about the show is that these ladies were strong, intelligent and determined persons despite their looks and TV popularity, and how they still chose to overthrow a giant in the industry, with careful thought and deliberation even when all odds are against them. The CEO has many strings attached to people of influence in the industry, and many backed him up against the claims, these ladies risked being blacklisted from the media industry, and will not be able to find work again, especially if they did not succeed to prove their case. They fought media and even their own female colleagues to get justice and to bring to surface the dirty deeds from the men who they worked with or for. The show also showcased the girls who chose to kept quiet although wronged and the damage that was inflicted on their self worth and trust with men.
It brings to mind my own personal experiences in the past and how most girls tend to sweep it under a rug over time as years pass. Sexual harassment is more rampant than you think, and can happen from strangers or even people we know. We need to look out for the girls around us , and make this topic less taboo to protect the vulnerable and spread awareness. Even for men, its a reminder to have an eye out for these ladies in their lives.
2. Enola Holmes (2020)
This will do well for the younger audience but I myself enjoyed watching it for the wit and humor, but what drew me to watch this movie was mainly the plot that the well known Sherlock Holmes had an equally gifted and clever younger teenage sister who was on a quest to solve the mystery of her missing mother, and along the way solving a major case that was affecting their country. In fact towards the end it was hinted she was possibly more talented than her older brother.
Why do we need shows like these? Sherlock Holmes was written in a time when women did not hold many positions, or had very limited involvement in the main workforce, and being a detective would be a very uncommon thing for girls in that era.
They displayed the main character, both young a female, to have the tenacity and intelligence to work her way through her many challenges to get to where she wanted to be, and to find out what she needed to answer her questions surrounding her mother. They also showcase how her personality contrasted with both her brothers, Mycroft and Sherlock and their dysfunctional relationship. All in all, this movie’s worth a watch.
3. Promising Young Woman (2020)
This one takes the cake from this list for me. If you had to choose one movie from this list, and you are above 18 years of age, choose this. I saved the best for last in this category. The movie’s trailer was both intriguing and dark, enough to pique my interest and made me seek it out.
The movie’s surrounds a young lady who dropped out of medical school a few years past, and is deeply disturbed and vengeful due to a past event that had occurred. At night she goes around meeting men and getting to know them, despite compromising conditions. I cannot talk too much about this film without giving away too much information that may spoil it for you, but what I can say is the theme again is about sexual abuse and rape.
What consents as rape and what if it happens within circles of ‘friends’ of people we know, where is the line crossed? Under social pressure, would people be able to tell the difference between non consensual sex, and understand the boundary of when a girl or guy is violated?
The movie is very entertaining, and can get pretty dark, it may even be classified as dark humor. I would give this a four out of five stars ranking, both for the story line, the dialogue and the cinematics (some of the scenes in the movie are filmed with very bright and ‘innocent’ backgrounds, to contrast the dark thoughts of the female lead and the heavy topic at hand).
That’s it for this list, do check out above movies if you are in the mood for female casted shows. Personally, I think they would make a great ‘girl’s night’ movie selection for a change.