Female Directors: Their Gifts from 1995 to 2020

By: Kaitlyn Herdé

In Women’s History Month, there are plenty of ways to acknowledge and celebrate the accomplishments of women. In a pleasurable manner to pass time and look at attractive people living relatively simple lives, I give you some of Stories Untold’s film recommendations of movies directed by women.

Ladybird dir. by Greta Gerwig (2017)

For Saoirse Ronan lovers, this film is about her role as a senior in high school, who calls herself Ladybird, and wants to live her life as beautifully and quickly as possible. She’s interested in theatre, boys, and college applications, and the movie follows her as she tries to get through all of that with a few arguments with her mother in between.

Booksmart dir. by Olivia Wilde (2019)

For the extra studious people who wish they went out more in high school, you can imagine the experience with Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein), best friends who have spent their entire high school careers studying harder than anyone else. But on the night before graduation, they attempt to live the social life of those four years with some parties.

Twilight dir. by Catherine Hardwicke (2008)

For those interested in a classic love triangle featuring Robert Pattinson’s glittery chest, you can follow Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) as she moves from Arizona to Washington to live with her father (Billy Burke). After she makes some new friends, she thinks it might all work out, only to learn that she’s developing connections with two unusual boys, Edward (Robert Pattinson) and Jacob (Taylor Lautner).

Unpregnant dir. by Rachel Lee Goldenberg (2020)

For those interested in reproductive rights and a good laugh, you can follow Veronica Clarke (Haley Lu Richardson) and her ex-best friend, Bailey (Barbie Ferreira), as they leave Friday night to travel 1,000 miles for Veronica’s abortion, attempting to avoid her boyfriend (Alex MacNioll), a pro-choice couple, and a bit of unaddressed tension, with hopes of getting back by Sunday night.

Clueless dir. by Amy Heckerling (1995)

For the chic kids who didn’t get their license on time, Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone) will have you totally buggin’. Attempting to pass debate class and help the new girl (Brittany Murphy) fit in, she finds herself stranded in a parking lot, stuck with her loser ex-step brother (Paul Rudd), and accidentally caught in the middle of a few blossoming relationships.

Emma. dir. by Autumn de Wilde (2020)

For the cool kids looking into for a glimpse into the book that gave you Clueless, watching this movie will give you a look into the complicated rules and cues of matchmaking in the early 19th century as Emma Woodhouse (Anya Taylor-Joy) pairs people up, not expecting herself to be involved at all in the way that she is.

Knock Down the House dir. by Rachel Lears (2019)

For AOC lovers, this documentary will take you through the story of her campaign for the Congressional primaries along with those of Amy Vilela, Cori Bush, and Paula Jean Swearengin. Each of the women share the behind the scenes of their campaigns: opponents, primary issues, and what inspired each of the women to start their campaigns.

Set It Up dir. by Claire Scanlon (2018)

For those who cry at sports games or sports results, Harper (Zoey Deutch), the lovable assistant who just wants a break, is going to be one of your favorite female leads. Needing time off to write a jaw-dropping article for her boss, Kirsten Stevens (Lucy Liu), she teams up with a pickle-stealing assistant at her office building by the name of Charlie (Glen Powell) to get his boss (Taye Diggs) with hers. A friendship develops as they meddle, along with maybe something more.

The Half of It dir. by Alice Wu (2020)

For the kids who are or were always reviewing others’ essays, Ellie Chu (Leah Lewis) understands. She spends most of her time managing train schedules with her father (Collin Chou), until one day after school, her classmate, Paul Munsky (Daniel Diemer) asks for her help with a different sort of writing assignment: one for a gorgeous senior at school, Aster Flores (Alexxis Lemire). But as Ellie helps Paul, she finds herself a little more interested than she means to be.

Yes, God, Yes dir. by Karen Maine (2019)

For Stranger Things fans looking to see more of Natalia Dyer, this movie shows her life as a quiet private Catholic school student name Alice who finds herself a bit more interested in sex than anyone else seems to be. Feeling that she needs to cure these sinful thoughts right away, she signs up to go to a church camp, only to find that she’s not alone in her interest.