Weekly Update for October 6: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You

Films About Women Opening This Week

The Florida Project

Set on a stretch of highway just outside the imagined utopia of Disney World, “The Florida Project” follows six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) and her rebellious mother, Halley (Bria Vinaite), over the course of a single summer. The two live week to week at “The Magic Castle,” a budget motel managed by Bobby (Willem Dafoe), whose stern exterior hides a deep reservoir of kindness and compassion. Despite her harsh surroundings, the precocious and ebullient Moonee has no trouble making each day a celebration of life, her endless afternoons overflowing with mischief and grand adventure as she and her ragtag playmates fearlessly explore the utterly unique world into which they’ve been thrown. (Press materials)

Find tickets and screening info here.

Barracuda — Co-Directed by Julia Halperin

Merle (Allison Tolman) finds her life beginning to splinter when Sinaloa (Sophie Reid), the musician half-sister she never knew existed, appears on her doorstep in Texas. Initially distrustful of this enigmatic woman, a bond quickly forms between the two. As Merle allows her half-sister into her life, Sinaloa reveals a quiet fury through her music, and her fierce attachment begins to place Merle’s career aspirations, her relationship to her mother, and even her impending marriage in jeopardy. Merle fights to keep her world together while Sinaloa’s increasingly intense and erratic behavior threatens to erupt into something darker. (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Julia Halperin.

Find tickets and screening info here.

Una

“Una” follows a young woman’s journey to reclaim her past. Fifteen years earlier, Una (Rooney Mara) ran away with an older man, Ray (Ben Mendelsohn), a crime for which he was arrested and imprisoned. When she comes across a photo of him in a trade magazine, Una tracks him down and turns up at his workplace. Her abrupt arrival threatens to destroy Ray’s new life and derail her stability. Unspoken secrets and buried memories surface as Una and Ray sift through the wreckage of their past. (Press materials)

Find tickets and screening info here.

The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (Documentary) (Also Available on Netflix)

This documentary uses never-before-seen footage and rediscovered interviews in a search for the truth behind the mysterious 1992 death of black transgender activist and Stonewall veteran Marsha P. Johnson. (Press materials)

Find screening info here.

Take My Nose…Please! (Documentary) — Directed by Joan Kron (Opens in NY; Opens in LA October 13)

More than 15 million cosmetic procedures were performed in the US in 2014. And 90 percent of them on were done on women. Yet, for those who elect to tinker with Mother Nature, especially for high-profile women, plastic surgery is still a very dark secret. Funny women, though, are the exception. From Phyllis Diller and Joan Rivers to Roseanne Barr and Kathy Griffin, comedians have been unashamed to talk about their perceived flaws, and the steps taken to remedy them. “Take My Nose…Please!” follows two comedians as they deliberate about going under the knife. Emily Askin, an up-and coming improv performer, has always wanted her nose refined. Jackie Hoffman, a seasoned headliner on Broadway and on TV, considers herself ugly and regrets not having the nose job offered in her teens. And maybe she’d like a face-lift, as well. As we follow their surprisingly emotional stories, we meet others who have taken the leap — or held out. (Press materials)

Trafficked

In this story inspired by real characters, three girls from America, Nigeria, and India (Kelly Washington, Jessica Obilom, and Alpa Banker) are trafficked through an elaborate global network and enslaved in a Texas brothel, and must together attempt a daring escape to reclaim their freedom. (Press materials)

Dina (Documentary)

Dina, an outspoken and eccentric 49-year-old in suburban Philadelphia, invites her fiancé Scott, a Walmart door greeter, to move in with her. Having grown up neurologically diverse in a world blind to the value of their experience, the two are head-over-heels for one another, but shacking up poses a new challenge. (Press materials)

Find screening info here.

So B. It

A young girl named Heidi (Talitha Bateman), who lives with her mentally disabled mother (Jessie Collins), travels across the country to find out about her and her mother’s past. (Press materials)

My Little Pony: The Movie — Co-Written by Meghan McCarthy and Rita Hsiao

When a dark force threatens Ponyville and the Mane 6, they go on a journey to save their home and meet new friends and dangerous challenges along the way. (Press materials)

Find tickets and screening info here.

Bad Grandmas

Four grandmothers accidentally kill a con man. When his partner shows up, things go south quickly. (Press materials)

Better Watch Out (Also Available on VOD)

On a quiet suburban street, a babysitter (Olivia DeJonge) must defend a 12-year-old boy from intruders, only to discover it’s far from a normal home invasion. (Press materials)

Find screening info here.

Films About Women Currently Playing

Youth — Written by Yan Geling
Signature Move — Directed by Jennifer Reeder; Written by Lisa Donato and Fawzia Mirza
Window Horses — Written and Directed by Ann Marie Fleming
Blood Stripe — Co-Written by Kate Nowlin
Different Flowers — Written and Directed by Morgan Dameron
Chavela (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Catherine Gund and Daresha Kyi
The Sound — Written and Directed by Jenna Mattison (Also Available on VOD)
Te Ata — Written by Esther Luttrell
Battle of the Sexes — Co-Directed by Valerie Faris
Woodshock — Written and Directed by Kate Mulleavy and Laura Mulleavy
Unrest (Documentary) — Directed by Jennifer Brea; Written by Jennifer Brea and Kim Roberts
Victoria & Abdul
Bobbi Jene (Documentary) — Directed by Elvira Lind
Friend Request
mother!
Home Again — Written and Directed by Hallie Meyers-Shyer
The Unknown Girl
Napping Princess
Dolores (Documentary)
Tulip Fever
Polina — Written and Co-Directed by Valérie Müller
Leap! — Co-Written by Carol Noble
The Villainess
The Teacher
Marjorie Prime
Patti Cake$
The Glass Castle
Ingrid Goes West
Annabelle: Creation
Kidnap
Step (Documentary) — Directed by Amanda Lipitz
Atomic Blonde
The Midwife
Landline — Directed by Gillian Robespierre; Written by Gillian Robespierre and Elisabeth Holm
Girls Trip — Co-Written by Tracy Oliver
Wish Upon — Written by Barbara Marshall
Lady Macbeth — Written by Alice Birch
The Little Hours
Maudie — Directed by Aisling Walsh; Written by Sherry White
47 Meters Down (Also Available on VOD)
Lost in Paris — Co-Written and Co-Directed by Fiona Gordon
Beatriz at Dinner
Moka
Wonder Woman — Directed by Patty Jenkins
Love, Kennedy
The Women’s Balcony — Written by Shlomit Nehama
Paris Can Wait — Written and Directed by Eleanor Coppola
Hidden Figures — Co-Written by Allison Schroeder

Films Directed by Women Opening This Week

Faces Places (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Agnès Varda (Opens in NY; Opens October 13 in LA)

Eighty-nine-year-old Agnès Varda, one of the leading figures of the French New Wave, and acclaimed 33-year-old French photographer and muralist JR teamed up to co-direct this enchanting documentary/road movie. Kindred spirits, Varda and JR share a lifelong passion for images and how they are created, displayed, and shared. Together they travel around the villages of France in JR’s photo truck meeting locals, learning their stories, and producing epic-size portraits of them. The photos are prominently displayed on houses, barns, storefronts, and trains, revealing the humanity in their subjects and themselves. “Faces Places” documents these heart-warming encounters as well as the unlikely, tender friendship the directors formed along the way. (Press materials)

Maineland (Documentary) — Directed by Miao Wang

Filmed over three years in China and the U.S., “Maineland” is a multi-layered coming-of-age tale that follows two affluent and cosmopolitan teenagers as they settle into a boarding school in blue-collar rural Maine. Part of the enormous wave of “parachute students” from China enrolling in U.S. private schools, bubbly, fun-loving Stella and introspective Harry come seeking a Western-style education, escape from the dreaded Chinese college entrance exam, and the promise of a Hollywood-style U.S. high school experience. As Stella and Harry’s fuzzy visions of the American dream slowly gain more clarity, they ruminate on their experiences of alienation, culture clash, and personal identity, sharing new understandings and poignant discourses on home and country. (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Miao Wang.

The Cadillac Tramps: Life On The Edge (Documentary) — Written and Directed by Jamie Sims Coakley (Opens October 10 in LA for One Week Only) (Available on VOD October 13)

The 1990s were the Golden Age of the Orange County California music scene. Bands like The Offspring, No Doubt, Sugar Ray, and Social Distortion were blowing up the mainstream and selling millions of records around the world. Meanwhile, the undisputed kings of that scene, The Cadillac Tramps, were falling apart. Infighting, addiction, frustration, and dysfunction would tear the band apart at the peak of their success, but their bond would prove too strong to remain broken for long. “The Cadillac Tramps: Life On The Edge” is a humble, honest, and entertaining look at how five young men found each other in sobriety, created a lasting musical legacy that influenced Indie Rock’s biggest bands, and overcame the past. (Press materials)

Find screening info here.

Films Directed by Women Currently Playing

“The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin”: Tigerlily Pictures

The Pathological Optimist (Documentary) — Directed by Miranda Bailey
Tam Cam: The Untold Story — Directed by Veronica Ngo
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin (Documentary) — Directed by Jennifer M. Kroot
Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton (Documentary) — Directed by Rory Kennedy (Also Available on VOD)
The Tiger Hunter — Co-Written and Directed by Lena Khan
Loving Vincent — Co-Written and Co-Directed by Dorota Kobiela
I Am Another You (Documentary) — Directed by Nanfu Wang
Trophy (Documentary) — Co-Directed Christina Clusiau
School Life (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Neasa Ní Chianáin (Also Available on VOD)
Spettacolo (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Chris Shellen
Viceroy’s House — Written and Directed by Gurinder Chadha; Co-Written by Moira Buffini
Beach Rats — Written and Directed by Eliza Hittman
Lemon — Co-Written and Directed by Janicza Bravo (Also Available on VOD)
Whose Streets? (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Sabaah Folayan
Detroit — Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World (Documentary) — Co-Written and Co-Directed by Catherine Bainbridge
Pop Aye — Written and Directed by Kirsten Tan

Films Written by Women Opening This Week

Earth: One Amazing Day (Documentary) — Co-Written by Geling Yan

“Earth: One Amazing Day” is an astonishing journey revealing the awesome power of the natural world. Over the course of one single day, we track the sun from the highest mountains to the remotest islands to exotic jungles. Breakthroughs in filmmaking technology bring you up close with a cast of unforgettable characters. Told with humor, intimacy, and a jaw-dropping sense of cinematic splendor, “Earth: One Amazing Day” highlights how every day is filled with more wonders than you can possibly imagine — until now. (Press materials)

Find tickets and screening info here.

Bending the Arc (Documentary) — Written by Cori Shepherd Stern

A powerful documentary about the extraordinary team of doctors and activists — including Paul Farmer, Jim Yong Kim, and Ophelia Dahl — whose work 30 years ago to save lives in a rural Haitian village grew into a global battle in the halls of power for the right to health for all. Epic, yet intimate, the film is a compelling argument for the power of collective and personal vision and will to turn the tide of history. (Press materials)

Films Written by Women Currently Playing

Kingsman: The Golden Circle — Co-Written by Jane Goldman
Shot — Co-Written by Anneke Campbell
Logan Lucky — Written by Rebecca Blunt
The Fencer — Written by Anna Heinämaa
13 Minutes — Co-Written by Léonie-Claire Breinersdorfer
The Big Sick — Co-Written by Emily V. Gordon
Cars 3 — Co-Written by Kiel Murray

TV Premieres This Week

ID-0 (Premieres October 6 on Netflix)

The story of “ID-0” is set in the far future, where robots known as “I-Machines” are used for work in extreme environments such as deep space. Maya Mikuri (Minami Tsuda), a student at the Federation Academy, is piloting an I-Machine when pirates attack. She is rescued by an asteroid excavation company, and ends up being forced into working on their spaceship. (Press materials)

Spielberg (Documentary) — Directed by Susan Lacy (Premieres October 7 on HBO)

Through exclusive interviews with actors, family, and the filmmaker himself, this unprecedented documentary pulls back the curtain on the remarkable career of Steven Spielberg. (Press materials)

Bobbi Kristina (TV Movie) (Premieres October 8 on TVOne)

“Bobbi Kristina,” an honest look at the young woman (played by Joy Rovaris) at the center of the most talked-about stories in recent years. Our story begins immediately after Whitney Houston’s (Demetria McKinney) death and takes us into Krissi’s struggle to come to terms with her mother’s death and her own life. Even as she finds herself in an increasingly volatile relationship with Nick Gordon (Nadji Jeter), the young man with whom she grew up and ultimately fell in love. Even as she endures the pain of a strained relationship with her father (Hassan Johnson) and aunt Patricia Houston (Vivica A. Fox). Even as she wages her own war with addiction and physical abuse. (Press materials)

Valor (Premieres October 9 on The CW)

An elite unit of U.S. Army helicopter pilots called the Shadow Raiders is sent on a top secret mission to Somalia, a mission that goes terribly awry. Only two members of the team return safely: Warrant Officer Nora Madani (Christina Ochoa), one of the unit’s first female helicopter pilots, and her commanding officer, Captain Leland Gallo (Matt Barr), while the whereabouts of their comrade Jimmy Kam (W. Trè Davis) are unknown. Now back in the U.S., Madani and Gallo are the only ones who know the truth about what really went wrong in Somalia. With Nora still recovering from a gunshot wound she suffered during the mission, the commander of the Shadow Raiders, Col. Robert Haskins (Nigel Thatch), grounds her from flying. But when it’s discovered that Jimmy is alive and being held captive by a group of ruthless terrorists, Nora is determined to join Gallo back in the cockpit to rescue their friend. (Press materials)

Christina P: Mother Inferior (Comedy Special) (Premieres October 10 on Netflix)

Christina Pazsitzky hits Seattle with a biting dose of reality, telling truths about her childhood, getting older, and the horrors of giving birth. (Press materials)

Dynasty — Co-Created by Stephanie Savage and Sallie Patrick (Premieres October 11 on The CW)

Wealth, power, deception, and double-dealing… what does it take to build a dynasty? This new series is a modern re-imagining of the iconic primetime soap, centering on the powerful Carrington family as they defend their throne against the Colbys, new rivals and threats, and even each other. (Press materials)

I Love You, America (Talk Show) — Hosted by Sarah Silverman (Premieres October 12 on Hulu)

From inciting treason to telling poop jokes, Sarah Silverman has created her fair share of online chatter. With “I Love You, America,” she’s looking to connect with people who may not agree with her personal opinions through honesty, humor, genuine interest in others, and not taking herself too seriously. While it’s great to connect with like-minded people, Silverman feels it’s crucial, now more than ever, to connect with the un-like-minded. (Press materials)

The Rundown With Robin Thede (Talk Show) — Hosted by Robin Thede (Premieres October 12 on BET)

Comedian and former head writer and contributor for “The Nightly Show” Robin Thede gives her hilariously unique take on the week’s headlines in politics and pop culture in a fast-paced, no-holds-barred 30-minute late night show featuring biting social commentary, sharp sketch comedy, and in-your-face pop culture parody. (Press materials)

VOD/DVD Releasing This Week

The Beguiled — Written and Directed by Sofia Coppola (DVD, October 10)
Fallen — Written by Lauren Kate (DVD, October 10)
The Lure — Directed by Agnieszka Smoczynska (DVD, October 10)
Maudie — Written by Sherry White and Directed by Aisling Walsh (VOD/DVD, October 10)
One Percent More Humid — Written and Directed by Liz W. Garcia (VOD, October 10)
Wish Upon — Written by Barbara Marshall (VOD/DVD, October 10)
Rosenwald (Documentary) — Written and Directed by Aviva Kempner (DVD, October 12)

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

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