Films About Women Opening

A Five Star Life — Directed by Maria Sole Tognazzi; Co-Written by Francesca Marciano and Maria Sole Tognazzi

It’s a debate as old as time: does a woman need a family in order to live a fulfilled life? Irene (Margherita Buy), a successful professional in her forties, inspects the quality of luxury hotels for a living. She’s a “mystery guest,” swooping in on unsuspecting locales to judge their standards to exacting perfection (the promptness of concierge, the arrangement of cutlery, the temperature of wine). And she does so “freely,” aka husband-less and child-less. Her only connections lie with her sister, married and mother of two, and her best friend, an unplanned father-to-be. But while wandering the stunning locales of Paris, Sweden, and Marrakesh, Irene rings from emptiness. She travels alone, eats alone, and sleeps alone, but disguised in such glamorous surroundings, who would ever think about loneliness? A Five Star Life is about journeys, specifically Irene’s, but also the viewer’s, for intimacy, which, as the film states, is a “personalized concept.” Through trial and error, Irene strikes a balance between maintaining her independence and fostering human connection. A fulfilled life is lived to one’s own choices, on one’s own time, no matter where you travel. (Kelcie Mattson)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with director Maria Sole Tognazzi about A Five Star Life.

Films About Women Currently Playing

Tammy — Co-Written by Melissa McCarthy
Gabrielle — Directed by Louise Archambault
Heatstroke — Directed by Evelyn Purcell
The Amazing Catfish — Written and Directed by Claudia Saint-Luce
Belle — Directed by Amma Asante; Written by Misan Sagay
Obvious Child — Written and Directed by Gillian Robespierre
The Fault in Our Stars
Maleficent — Written by Linda Woolverton
We Are the Best!
Lucky Them — Directed by Megan Griffiths; Co-Written by Emily Wachtel
Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return — Co-Written by Randi Barnes
Moms Night Out — Co-Written by Andrea Gyertson Nasfell
Ida
The Other Woman — Directed by Melissa Stack
Under the Skin
Finding Vivian Maier (doc)

Films Directed by Women Currently Playing

Nothing Bad Can Happen — Written and Directed by Katrin Gebbe
Beyond the Edge — Written and Directed by Leanne Pooley
Hellion — Written and Directed by Kat Chandler
Citizen Koch (doc) — Co-Directed by Tia Lessin
The Only Real Game (doc) — Directed by Mirra Bank
Night Moves — Co-Written and Directed by Kelly Reichardt
Palo Alto — Written and Directed by Gia Coppola
Fed Up (doc) — Co-Written and Directed by Stephanie Soechtig

Films Written by Women Opening

Sex Tape — Co-Written by Kate Angelo

Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel are a married couple who make a sex tape and quickly regret it when it circulates beyond their control the next day. In TheWrap, I wrote, “Sex Tape is one of the timelier films of the summer, a sly commentary on how, thanks to the ubiquity of cameras and porn, we’re all now instilled with the desire to record and watch ourselves having sex, without really knowing as much as we should about the devices our cameras are attached to.” (Inkoo Kang)

Films Written by Women Currently Playing

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes — Co-Written by Amanda Silver

DVD/VOD

Nobody Can Cool — Written and Directed by DPYX (Filmmaker team Marcy Boyle and Rachel Holzman)
Who’s Afraid of Vagina Wolf? — Directed and Co-Written by Anna Margarita Albelo