Film review: Wicked Little Letters
Lately I despaired of seeing anything at the theatre that’s worth the female audience’s time. There are a surprising number of horror films currently playing—someone should remind Hollywood that Halloween is still six months away. And a not insignificant number of movies are just the latest installment of popular franchises (e.g. Kung Fu Panda 4, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the fifth installment). Fresh and female viewer-oriented picks are light on the ground this spring. Then I discovered Wicked Little Letters would be released this month, an R-rated comedy that combines two of my...
Read MoreValentine’s Day movie picks for women
This Valentine’s Day let’s treat ourselves to a romance or romantic comedy that has much to offer us: the female audience. Instead of settling for regressive narratives packaged as great love stories, let’s indulge in a truly enjoyable movie, preferably with a huge bowl of popcorn and a box of chocolates. Streaming platforms still haven’t quite got their Valentine’s Day Collections sorted out—as far as female viewers concerned. For instance, the Disney channel’s collection includes these dubious suggestions, to name just a couple: Pretty Woman (1990) and Beauty and the Beast...
Read MoreChristmas movie: Little Women (2019)
My holiday favourites have changed over the years but there are some films I’ve seen so many times that I’ve lost track, including It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol—the 1951 adaptation starring Alastair Sim—and The Sound of Music. However, writer-director Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s beloved novel, Little Women, has surpassed these classics as my new favourite because it seems tailor-made to delight the female audience. If there’s one movie that should be on every woman’s Christmas watch list, it’s Little Women. Most of us are...
Read MoreFilm review: Nyad (2023)
Nyad had a limited release in theatres at the end of October before airing on Netflix on November 3rd. I didn’t get to see it on the big screen, but it’s the type of movie that doesn’t need one to be enjoyed (I’ve watched it twice on my TV). No matter the screen size, it’s an inspiring biopic—especially for the older female audience. Nyad should appeal to most adult women but particularly to women over 60, something this film analyst rarely gets to say. Few movies are made about older women, star women over 40 or portray older women as strong and capable. Nyad does all that and...
Read MoreIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Movie theatres didn’t spoil the female audience in September. I’ve lost track of all the new horror and action movies currently on offer (neither genre typically has much to offer female viewers). Our best options appear to be The Miracle Club and My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3. The former, starring the usually highly entertaining Maggie Smith, is disappointingly mediocre. The latter, written and directed by Nia Vardalos, a Canadian, isn’t nearly as much fun as 2002’s My Big Fat Greek Wedding. For these reasons, I’ve chosen to discuss a summer release: Indiana Jones and the Dial of...
Read MoreFilm review: Barbie
The movie of the summer—or the year, it may turn out—is a great treat for the female audience. You may have stopped playing with Barbies when you were five. You may detest the unrealistic beauty ideal the iconic doll has promoted for decades with her anatomically impossible body. If so, you aren’t alone, and American writer-director Greta Gerwig has created a brilliant comedy you may just find wonderfully enjoyable. The first time I watched Barbie, on July 20, the theatre was full of groups of women and mother/daughter duos that laughed throughout the movie. The second time I saw it, on...
Read MoreBones of Crows
For the very first time, I find myself writing about a movie with a protagonist that shares my old French name:Aline {my mum preferred an unusual spelling). Canadian filmmaker Marie Clements’ newest film, a drama titled Bones of Crows, tells the story of a residential school survivor named Aline Spears—and it’s not your typical theatre fare. Moreover, parts of it were shot on Vancouver Island, including in Esquimalt, Victoria and Saanich. When I saw Bones of Crows in Victoria at the beginning of June, many audience members remained in their seats after the end credits finished rolling...
Read MoreFilm review: Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret
A story about an 11-year-old girl praying to God to make her breasts grow and her period come isn’t an obvious movie pick for a middle-aged audience—but only if you don’t take into account that the story is a film adaptation of a cherished novel by the beloved and bestselling author, Judy Blume. When you do, it makes perfect sense that the theatre is full of women in their forties, fifties and sixties, as it was when I saw it. And it’s giving them plenty of laughs. The delightful, entertaining movie does justice to Blume’s unapologetically honest story about girlhood and naturally...
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