FemaleDirectors.com is a website for female-directed movies: you can find, play, and add them to your Netflix queue, and buy them on Amazon.com. Browse within our genres to find movies from the female perspective.
Gay & Lesbian
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2003
Rural Illinois resident Roy (Tom Wilkinson) declares after his 25th wedding anniversary that he has always believed he's a woman trapped inside a man's body. This shocks and angers some in his family and community, but some are unexpectedly supportive. It's up to Roy's shell-shocked wife, Irma (Jessica Lange), his kids and the entire community to come to terms with this stunning revelation. The film earned three Golden Globe nominations.

Directed by:

  • Jane Anderson
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 Average Rating


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    American Experience: Stonewall Uprising
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    American Experience: Stonewall Uprising

    2010
    Through eyewitness interviews and archival footage, documentary filmmakers Kate Davis and David Heilbroner recapture a pivotal moment in time that mobilized a generation of gay activists and marked the dawn of the modern Gay Rights Movement. Much like Rosa Parks's symbolic refusal to move to the back of the bus, gay bar patrons' refusal to comply with a police raid at Greenwich Village's Stonewall Inn in 1969 would change the course of history.

    Directed by:

  • Kate Davis
    • rating:3.7.png 3.7 Average Rating


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    Making Grace
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    Making Grace

    2005
    In this intimate documentary, filmmaker Catherine Gund examines lesbian motherhood through the eyes of longtime partners Ann Krsul and Leslie Sullivan, who desperately want to have a child. Charting their unconventional path toward parenthood, from the first tough decisions -- such as choosing a sperm donor and deciding who will carry the child -- to their joy at the birth of baby Grace, this moving film reveals a uniquely emotional journey.

    Directed by:

  • Catherine Gund
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Paris Is Burning
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    Paris Is Burning

    1990
    Penetrating the tight-knit community of minority drag queens living in New York City, Jennie Livingston's acclaimed documentary offers an early glimpse at the art of "voguing," the underground dance style later popularized by Madonna in her hit song. The film also explores issues such as racism, homophobia and AIDS, while offering a detailed examination of the intricate Ball culture, in which queens are judged for their style and expression.

    Directed by:

  • Jennie Livingston
    • rating:3.8.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    Foreign
    The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum
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    The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum

    1975
    A night spent with a suspected terrorist is the catalyst for a smear campaign against the otherwise unimportant Katharina Blum (Angelina Winkler). Katharina's life unravels as both the police and the news media strip her of all her dignity and sanity in this shocking attack on power abuse and yellow journalism. Directed by Volker Schlondorff and Margarethe von Trotta, this 1975 German film is based on an equally menacing novel by Heinrich Boll.

    Directed by:

  • Volker Schlondorff
  • Margarethe von Trotta
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 Average Rating


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    Camila
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    Camila

    1984
    A wealthy socialite and a young Jesuit priest fall in love and elope to a small Argentinean village, but tragedy ensues when their true identities are discovered in this affecting drama, which earned an Oscar nod for Best Foreign Film. Authorities have suppressed the telling of this story -- one of Argentina's most controversial and embarrassing episodes -- since the first attempt to put it on screen in 1912.

    Directed by:

  • Maria Luisa Bemberg
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    Fire
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    Fire

    1996
    Two Hindu women struggle with loveless, arranged marriages: Sita (Nandita Das), who discovers that her husband (Javed Jaffrey) has a mistress, and her sister-in-law, Radha (Shabana Azmi), who cannot give birth. As the lukewarm coals of their long-term relationships fade, the women ignite passion in their lives by finding comfort in each other. Director Deepa Mehta's drama is supposedly the first Indian film about lesbians.

    Directed by:

  • Deepa Mehta
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    The Children of Leningradsky
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    The Children of Leningradsky

    2005
    Nominated for an Academy Award, this gut-wrenching 2004 documentary examines the plight of homeless youngsters who've made Moscow's Leningradsky train station their sanctuary. While post-Cold War Russia rises as an industrial and economic power, its children continue falling through the cracks into a chasm engulfed by drugs, violence, sexual predators and the soul-killing dance of survival played out on the streets.

    Directed by:

  • Andrzej Celinski
  • Hanna Polak
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    Comedy
    Mamma Mia!
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    Mamma Mia!

    2008
    On the idyllic Greek isle of Kalokairi, single mom Donna Sheridan (Meryl Streep) goes into a tizzy when her bride-to-be daughter (Amanda Seyfried), in a bid to learn her father's identity, invites three of Donna's ex-lovers to the wedding. Buoyed by the tunes of ABBA, this effervescent yarn -- a Golden Globe nominee for Best Picture (Comedy or Musical) -- also stars Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård as the trio of potential dads.

    Directed by:

  • Phyllida Lloyd
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    Married... with Children: The Most Outrageous Episodes: Vol. 2
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    Married... with Children: The Most Outrageous Episodes: Vol. 2

    1987
    Not your usual family, the less-than-lovable Bundys, headed by the boorish Al, attempt to survive a generally miserable middle-class existence while next-door neighbors Steve and Marcy Rhoades try to keep their property values from plummeting. Episodes in this outrageously hilarious collection include "A Man's Castle," "Raingirl," "Have You Driven a Ford Lately," "If Al Had a Hammer" and "Who'll Stop the Rain?"

    Directed by:

  • Gerry Cohen
  • Linda Day
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 Average Rating


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    Fatso
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    Fatso

    1980
    Fearing he's just one plate of linguini away from a heart attack, overweight bachelor Dominick DiNapoli tries to shed a few pounds and ends up gaining the love of a good woman in this touching romantic comedy.

    Directed by:

  • Anne Bancroft
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    The Heartbreak Kid
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    The Heartbreak Kid

    1972
    While honeymooning with his new wife in Florida, Lenny Cantrow (Charles Grodin) begins to rue his nuptials. When his irksome spouse gets stuck in their hotel room with a nasty sunburn, footloose Lenny meets gorgeous blond coed Kelly (Cybill Shepherd). She soon provides all the incentive he needs to ditch his new bride. But Lenny isn't home free with Kelly -- his hot pursuit of her quickly hits a brick wall of resistance: her loathing father.

    Directed by:

  • Elaine May
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Faith & Spirituality
    The Trouble with Angels
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    The Trouble with Angels

    1966
    Two teens turn a staid convent upside down with their youthful glee and zany antics. Although the pair gets in trouble for transgressions like invading the nuns' quarters and substituting soap for sugar in the kitchen, their charm wins everyone over.

    Directed by:

  • Ida Lupino
    • rating:3.8.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    The Jews: A People's History
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    The Jews: A People's History

    2009
    Exploring 4,000 years in the history of the Jews -- from their ancient roots in the Middle East all the way to modern-day Judaism -- this exhaustivedocumentary weaves stories from the past and present to reveal a rich tapestry of Jewish identity. Seeking to represent the diversity of the Jewish people, director Nina Koshofer's ambitious film spotlights Jews both rich and poor, famed and obscure.

    Directed by:

  • Nina Koshofer
  • Sabine Klauser
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    The Preacher's Wife
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    The Preacher's Wife

    1996
    When God overhears a church preacher (Courtney B. Vance) despairing the potential loss of a youth center, he dispatches an angel (Denzel Washington) to help him out. Trouble is, the preacher isn't easily convinced that his guardian angel is the real thing. An inspired reworking of the uplifting 1940s movie The Bishop's Wife, The Preacher's Wife stars Washington and Whitney Houston at their dazzling best.

    Directed by:

  • Penny Marshall
    • rating:3.3.png 3.3 Average Rating


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    Sunday School Musical
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    Sunday School Musical

    2008
    When financial woes threaten their church's future, a group of teens, led by one talented performer, enters a song and dance competition in hopes of winning a heavenly cash prize. Starring Candise Lakota as Savannah, this heartwarming and energetic Christian spin on the tremendously popular High School Musical franchise features 21 songs, including seven originals by composer Don Raymond. Rachel Goldenberg directs.

    Directed by:

  • Rachel Goldenberg
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Now and Then
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    Now and Then

    1995
    Waxing nostalgic about the bittersweet passage from childhood to puberty in this tender coming-of-age tale, four childhood girlfriends -- Teeny, Chrissy, Samantha and Roberta -- recall the magical summer of 1970. During their walk down memory lane, they reconcile experiences with boys, secrets, bullies and more. Lesli Linka Glatter directs; Gaby Hoffmann, Ashleigh Aston Moore, Cloris Leachman, Thora Birch and Christina Ricci co-star.

    Directed by:

  • Lesli Linka Glatter
    • rating:3.8.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    Now and Then (1995)
    A heartwarming movie about four childhood girlfriends who, in adulthood reunion, relive their experience of the life-changing summer of 1970, including a mystery death, divorce, standing up to the boys, first kiss, and the meaning of true friendship. Each explores her unique identity amidst family and friends. Beautifully directed by Lesli Linka Glatter.
    - Frances   
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