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
Hannah Free
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Hannah Free

2009
One of them is a free-thinking butch lesbian, the other a married homemaker -- together, they've managed to sustain a decades-long love affair that's transcended time and place in this drama from helmer Wendy Jo Carlton. Sharon Gless -- a gay icon since her "Cagney & Lacey" days -- plays the "out" partner, Hannah, and Maureen Gallagher plays her married and now-comatose best friend and lover, Rachel, in this film based on a play by Claudia Allen.

Directed by:

  • Wendy Jo Carlton
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 Average Rating


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    To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar
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    To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar

    1995
    In this wacky comedy, three New York drag queens (Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze and John Leguizamo) on their way to Hollywood for a beauty pageant get stranded in a small Midwestern town for the entire weekend when their car breaks down. While waiting for parts for their Cadillac convertible, the flamboyant trio shows the local homophobic rednecks that appearing different doesn't mean they don't have humanity in common.

    Directed by:

  • Beeban Kidron
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 Average Rating


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    Paris Was a Woman
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    Paris Was a Woman

    1996
    Between the World Wars, Paris was the world's artistic capital, attracting cultural titans like Gertrude Stein and others. Through home movies and intimate storytelling, this documentary re-creates the mood of this unique female artistic community.

    Directed by:

  • Greta Schiller
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 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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    Drama
    What's Cooking?
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    What's Cooking?

    2000
    This multicultural comedy-drama set in Los Angeles's middle-class environs paints an intriguing portrait of family tensions as four ethnic clans -- Latino, black, Jewish and Asian -- get ready for Thanksgiving dinner. The intertwining tales follow the families as minor frustrations escalate into heated battles and skeletons come out of the closet. Mercedes Ruehl, Kyra Sedgwick, Alfre Woodard, Dennis Haysbert and Joan Chen lead the superb cast.

    Directed by:

  • Gurinder Chadha
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    The Safety of Objects
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    The Safety of Objects

    2001
    Four intersecting tales shed light on the difficult lives of suburbanites. Esther (Glenn Close) nurses her comatose son (Joshua Jackson) while ignoring the rest of the family, and workaholic attorney Jim (Dermot Mulroney) overlooks his wife (Moira Kelly), losing control when he doesn't get an expected promotion. Meanwhile, Annette (Patricia Clarkson) and her family struggle to survive her divorce, and Helen (Mary Kay Place) seeks excitement.

    Directed by:

  • Rose Troche
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Streetwalkin'
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    Streetwalkin'

    1985
    This gritty drama follows the downward spiral of Cookie, a runaway who ends up as a hooker in New York City. When things get violent, Cookie tries to flee again, but her enraged pimp will stop at nothing to keep her under his thumb.

    Directed by:

  • Joan Freeman
    • rating:3.5.png 3.5 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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    Special Interest
    Black Coffee
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    Black Coffee

    2005
    Director Irene Lilienheim Angelico steers this documentary series about a simple subject -- coffee -- into compelling territory by chronicling its long and often complicated history throughout the world. Beginning with the bean's discovery in Ethiopia, Angelico traces how coffee came to be one of the most craved beverages in the world, boosting economies, sparking revolutions and spreading the love of caffeine everywhere.

    Directed by:

  • Irene Lilienheim Angelico
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    The Life and Death of Owen Hart
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    The Life and Death of Owen Hart

    1999
    This documentary profiles professional wrestler Owen Hart (younger brother of WWF star Bret Hart), whose life and career with the World Wrestling Federation were cut short via tragic means -- a fatal accident during a live pay-per-view stunt. While Owen was attempting to swing down from the rafters of a Kansas City arena, his safety harness failed, and he fell 75 feet to his death in front of masses of horrified fans.

    Directed by:

  • Sally Blake
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    Born to be Wild: The Leading Men of American Ballet Theatre
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    Born to be Wild: The Leading Men of American Ballet Theatre

    2004
    Fans of the American Ballet Theatre will delight in this documentary that profiles the renowned company's four lead male dancers: Angel Corella, Vladimir Malakhov, Jose Manuel Carreno and Ethan Stiefel. Find out how each dancer got started in classical ballet, learn about their individual approaches to the discipline and their strengths onstage, and view clips of their best performances from the beginning to the apex of their careers.

    Directed by:

  • Judy Kinberg
    • rating:3.7.png 3.7 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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    Children & Family
    Unstrung Heroes
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    Unstrung Heroes

    1995
    Steven Lidz (Nathan Watt) is 12 years old, confused and angry. Overwhelmed by life with an ailing mother (Andie MacDowell) and an emotionally distant father (John Turturro), Steven runs off to live with his two eccentric uncles (Michael Richards and Maury Chaykin). There, he finds a measure of solace in his uncles' strange and endearing idiosyncrasies -- and makes the transition from boyhood innocence to a young man's understanding of life.

    Directed by:

  • Diane Keaton
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    The Colt
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    The Colt

    2005
    In war-torn 1864 Virginia, trooper Jim Rabb's (Ryan Merriman) only solace after the loss of his brother is his mare, Jen, who gives birth to a colt. Although Jim's commanding officer sees the colt as a burden, the two horses soon endear themselves to the brigade. When they unexpectedly become used as pawns by the Confederates, however, Jim must risk everything to save the animals and his own honor.

    Directed by:

  • Yelena Lanskaya
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    The Blue Butterfly
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    The Blue Butterfly

    2004
    The fact that entomologist Alan Osborne (William Hurt) is at the height of his career doesn't stop precocious 10-year-old Pete Carlton (Marc Donato) from asking him to grant his life's wish: the opportunity to catch a rare Blue Morpho butterfly. After all, with a terminal illness, the boy has no time to spare. Based on a true story, this stirring adventure includes breathtaking natural footage shot on location in the rain forests of Costa Rica.

    Directed by:

  • Lea Pool
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    Shrek (Full-screen)
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    Shrek (Full-screen)

    2001
    It ain't easy bein' green -- especially if you're a likable (albeit smelly) ogre named Shrek (Mike Myers). On a mission to retrieve a gorgeous princess (Cameron Diaz) from the clutches of a fire-breathing dragon, Shrek teams up with an unlikely compatriot -- a wisecracking donkey (Eddie Murphy). This is the full-screen version of the film and includes a featurette, character interviews and more.

    Directed by:

  • Andrew Adamson
  • Vicky Jenson
    • rating:4.2.png 4.2 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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