Features, Films, Women Directors, Women Writers

Weekly Update for December 9: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You

Whoopi Goldberg in “Glee”
“All We Had”

Films About Women Opening This Week

All We Had — Directed by Katie Holmes; Co-Written by Jill Killington (Also Available on VOD)

Ruthie Carmichael (Stefania Owen) makes the best of bad circumstances, pulled along in the wake of the hard luck of her mother, Rita (Katie Holmes). From escaping a bad boyfriend to their car breaking down on the road to going broke, they continually find themselves in search of stability. When their attempt at settling in a new town hits a stumbling block, and as the shine wears off of the kind strangers who supported them when they had first arrived, even Ruthie struggles to keep it together. (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Katie Holmes.

Abattoir (Also Available on VOD)

A young reporter (Jessica Lowndes) happens upon a series of gruesome murders tied to real estate mysteries, where entire rooms have been dismantled and pulled from their foundations. The fact that those rooms were the exact settings for heinous tragedies sets her and a hardboiled cop on a search for the unimaginable. The stakes suddenly become very personal in this stylized and increasingly horrifying modern-noir. (Press materials)

Films About Women Currently Playing

“Jackie”

Jackie
Things to Come — Written and Directed by Mia Hansen-Løve
Best and Most Beautiful Things (Documentary)
The Eyes of My Mother ) (Also Available on VOD)
A Winter Rose
Videofilia (and Other Viral Syndromes)
Miss Sloane
Always Shine — Directed by Sophia Takal (Also Available on VOD)
A United Kingdom — Directed by Amma Asante (Playing in the UK)
The Edge of Seventeen — Written and Directed by Kelly Fremon Craig
Moana — Co-Written by Pamela Ribon
I Am Not Madame Bovary
Daughters of the Dust (Re-Release) — Written and Directed by Julie Dash
Arrival
The Love Witch — Written and Directed by Anna Biller
Elle
Shut In — Written by Christina Hodson
The Eagle Huntress
The Handmaiden
I’m Not Ashamed — Written by Bodie Thoene, Robin Hanley, Kari Redmond, and Philipa Booyens
Christine
The Girl on the Train — Written by Erin Cressida Wilson
American Honey — Written and Directed by Andrea Arnold
Denial
Queen of Katwe — Directed by Mira Nair
Ixcanul
Cameraperson (Documentary) — Directed by Kirsten Johnson
Finding Dory

Films Directed by Women Opening This Week

None

Films Directed by Women Currently Playing

National Bird (Documentary) — Directed by Sonia Kennebeck

Films Written by Women Opening This Week

Office Christmas Party — Co-Written by Laura Solon

“Office Christmas Party”

When a CEO (Jennifer Aniston) tries to close her hard-partying brother’s branch, he (T.J. Miller) and his Chief Technical Officer (Jason Bateman) must rally their co-workers and host an epic office Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client and close a sale that will save their jobs. “Office Christmas Party” also features Kate McKinnon, Olivia Munn, Jillian Bell, Rob Corddry, Vanessa Bayer, Randall Park, Sam Richardson, Jamie Chung, and Courtney B. Vance. (Press materials)

The Bounce Back — Co-Written by Staci Robinson

Father, author, and relationship expert Matthew Taylor (Shemar Moore) is on a whirlwind book tour promoting his new best seller, “The Bounce Back.” He’s got it all figured out until he meets the acerbic Kristin Peralta (Nadine Velazquez), a talk show circuit therapist who’s convinced he’s nothing but a charlatan. Matthew’s life is turned upside down when he inadvertently falls for Kristin and has to face a painful truth of his past relationship. (Press materials)

Films Written by Women Currently Playing

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them — Written by J.K. Rowling
Bad Santa 2 — Co-Written by Shauna Cross
Magnus (Documentary) — Co-Written by Linn-Jeanethe Kyed
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life — Co-Written by Kara Holden
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children — Written by Jane Goldman

TV Premieres This Week

“Madonna: Rebel Heart Tour”

Madonna: Rebel Heart Tour (Music Documentary) (Premieres December 9 on Showtime)

“Madonna: Rebel Heart Tour” spans all decades of the iconic superstar’s illustrious career, including songs from Rebel Heart to classic fan favorites like “Material Girl” and “Holiday.” Memorable highlights from the tour include her first-ever live concert performance of “Take a Bow,” acoustic versions of “Like a Prayer,” celebrity guest dancers during “Unapologetic Bitch,” and many more unforgettable moments. (Press materials)

Blood and Fury: America’s Civil War (Documentary) — Co-Written by Lara Fitzgerald (PremieresDecember 14 on AHC)

Told from a soldier’s point-of-view, “Blood and Fury: America’s Civil War” uses the war’s most significant battles — Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettsyburg, Battle of Nashville, and Petersburg — to illuminate both the bigger themes and revel in the smaller, little-known, and surprising stories of this brutal, hellish conflict. (Press materials)

Star — Co-Executive Produced by Pamela Oas Williams and Effie Brown (Series Premieres December 14on Fox)

From the creator of “Empire,” the new series “Star” pulls back the curtain on music’s gritty and dark reality. Featuring a soundtrack of original music, “Star” follows three talented singers — desperate for a new start and with ambitions of stardom — as they navigate the cutthroat music business on their road to success. Star, Simone, and Alexandra (newcomers Jude Demorest, Brittany O’Grady, and Ryan Destiny) journey to Atlanta to become music superstars. Reality soon dawns on the girls’ fantasies, and they start to learn that ambition often comes at too high a cost. Queen Latifah (“Bessie,” “Chicago”), Benjamin Bratt (“24: Live Another Day,” “Law & Order”), and Lenny Kravitz (“The Hunger Games”) also star. (Press materials)

VOD/DVD Releasing This Week

“Sand Storm”

Ata, Pintando Negro (Documentary) — Directed by Primavera Ruiz (Seed&Spark, Available Now)
Bridget Jones’s Baby — Directed by Sharon Maguire; Co-Written by Helen Fielding and Emma Thompson (DVD, December 13)
Equity — Directed by Meera Menon; Written by Amy Fox (DVD, December 13)
Girls Lost — Written and Directed by Alexandra-Therese Keining (DVD/VOD, December 13)
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children — Written by Jane Goldman (DVD, December 13)
Sand Storm — Written and Directed by Elite Zexer (Netflix, December 15)

Women and Hollywood in the News

Hollywood’s Rape Culture is a Reflection of Our Culture — The Guardian

Picks of the Week from Women and Hollywood

“Good Girls Revolt”

Save “Good Girls Revolt”
Maren Ade’s “Toni Erdmann” Tops Sight & Sound’s Critics’ Poll and Makes History

On Women and Hollywood This Week

“The Good Wife” Spinoff Gets a Premiere Date
Trailer Watch: Netflix’s Heartfelt Reimagining of “One Day at a Time”
Lydia Polgreen Hired as Editor-in-Chief at The Huffington Post
Rory Gilmore Might, Indeed, Be the Worst. Or She Might Be Seriously Depressed.
Help Us Roast the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards
“The Daily Show” Co-Creator Lizz Winstead to Release Pay-Per-View Special
Kate McKinnon to Star in “The Lunch Witch” for Amblin Entertainment
Trailer Watch: Love Triumphs in Amma Asante’s “A United Kingdom”
Making Childcare in the Film Industry Possible with The Wee Wagon Project
Ryan Murphy’s Push to Hire More Female Directors is a Huge Success
Denise Di Novi Books Second Directing Gig Before Her First Film is Released
Cheryl Boone Isaacs Wins Will Rogers Award
Whoopi Goldberg to Produce Drama about Harlem Crime Boss and Her Politician Son
Annapurna’s Megan Ellison to Receive PGA’s Visionary Award
Trailer Watch: Christina Ricci Takes on Zelda Fitzgerald in Amazon’s “Z”
Shailene Woodley to Star in “Adrift”
Oscars 2017: Documentary Feature Shortlist Includes “13th,” “Weiner,” & More
Four White Men Put on UK Channel 4’s Board While Minority Woman Rejected
“Queen Sugar” Season Finale Was the Night’s #1 Cable Telecast for Women
Watch: “Rogue One” Clips Tease More of the Latest “Star Wars” Heroine
Trailer Watch: Emma Watson Steps Outside of “The Circle”
Helen Marten Wins the Turner Prize
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” “VEEP,” & More Land WGA Nominations
Sundance 2017 to Host World Premieres of Films by Barbara Kopple, Dee Rees, & More
Vanessa Redgrave Makes Directorial Debut with “Sea Sorrow”
Metropolitan Opera Premieres First Opera Composed By a Woman in 116 Years
Lynn Nottage to Make Broadway Debut with “Sweat”
Andrea Arnold’s “American Honey” Wins Big at British Independent Film Awards
Elizabeth Banks Options Lindy West’s “Shrill” For Television
Amy Schumer to Write and Star in “Barbie” for a Woman Director
Julie Delpy to Write, Direct, and Star in Family Drama “My Zoe”
Made in NY Launches Scriptwriting Contest for Women
Regina King to Star in Veena Sud’s “Seven Seconds” for Netflix
Dudeocracy Alert: Female “21 Jump Street” Written and Possibly Directed by Dude
“Hidden Figures” to Receive Ensemble Performance Award At Palm Springs Fest
Trailer Watch: Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman Tell “Big Little Lies”
Circus-Themed “High Wire” in the Works at Fox From Kathleen York

Weekly Reads from Around the Internet

Oscar Contender “Jackie” Is Good, but Not Good Enough by Stephanie Abraham
Why TV Needs ‘Weak’ Female Characters by Elizabeth Alsop
“Queen Sugar” Spent Its First Season Becoming the Most Political Show on TV by David Canfield
With Disney’s “Moana,” Hollywood almost gets it right: Indigenous people weigh in by Alli Joseph
Lucile Hadžihalilović on the subconscious storytelling that shaped “Evolution” by Katie Rife
“Always Shine’s” Sobering Female Rivalry by David Sims

Follow Women and Hollywood on Twitter @WomenaHollywood and Melissa Silverstein@melsil.

To contact Women and Hollywood, email melissa@womenandhollywood.com

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