Films About Women Opening This Week
Chi-Raq
“Chi-Raq” is a modern-day adaptation of the ancient Greek play “Lysistrata” by Aristophanes. After the murder of a child by a stray bullet, a group of women led by Lysistrata (Teyonah Parris) organize against the on-going violence in Chicago’s South Side, creating a movement that challenges the nature of race, sex and violence in America and around the world. (Press materials)
The Lady in the Van
The film tells the true story of Alan Bennett’s (Alex Jennings) strained friendship with Miss Mary Shepherd (Maggie Smith), an eccentric woman of uncertain origins, who “temporarily” parked her broken down van in Bennett’s London driveway… and proceeded to live there for the next fifteen years. (Press materials)
The Letters
Mother Teresa (Juliet Stevenson), recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, is considered one of the greatest humanitarians of modern times. Her selfless commitment changed hearts, lives and inspired millions throughout the world. “The Letters,” as told through personal letters she wrote over the last 40 years of her life, reveal a troubled and vulnerable women who grew to feel an isolation and an abandonment by God. The story is told from the point of view of a Vatican priest (Rutger Hauer) charged with the task of investigating acts and events following her death. He recounts her life’s work, her political oppression, her religious zeal and her unbreakable spirit. (Press materials)
My Friend Victoria (Opens in New York)
An 8-year-old black child named Victoria (Keylia Achie Beguie) is taken in for a night by the wealthy, white, well-intentioned family of one of her schoolmates.The experience haunts her for years to come, shaping her desires and offering a mirage of privilege that she dreams of but finds impossible to attain. As an adult (Guslagie Malanga), she drifts from job to job, but then unexpectedly reconnects with the family’s youngest son (Pierre Andrau) in an encounter that will reshape her life yet again. (Press materials)
A Royal Night Out
As WWII ends, and peace extends across Europe, Princesses Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon) and Margaret (Bel Powley) are allowed out to join the celebrations. It is a night full of excitement, danger and the first flutters of romance. (Press materials)
The Girl King (Also available on VOD and DVD)
“The Girl King” tells the story of one of the most iconic queens in history, Queen Kristina of Sweden. Crowned Queen in 1632 at the age of six and raised as a prince, Queen Kristina (Malin Buska) was a brilliant, yet enigmatic young leader who fought conservative forces to revolutionize Sweden while falling in love with her lady-in-waiting (Sarah Gadon) and exploring her awakening sexuality. Torn between conflicts of political, religious and personal aspirations, Kristina made one of the most controversial choices in history. (Press materials)
Films About Women Currently Playing
Janis: Little Girl Blue (Documentary) — Directed by Amy Berg
The Danish Girl — Written by Lucinda Coxon
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2
Carol — Written by Phyllis Nagy
Mustang — Directed by Deniz Gamze Ergüven; Written by Deniz Gamze Ergüven and Alice Winocour
#Horror — Written and Directed by Tara Subkoff
Ingrid Bergman — In Her Own Words (Documentary) — Co-Written by Dominika Daubenbüchel
Miss You Already — Directed by Catherine Hardwicke; Written by Morwenna Banks
Brooklyn
Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict (Documentary) — Directed by Lisa Immordino Vreeland; Co-Written by Lisa Immordino Vreeland and Bernadine Colish
10 Days in a Madhouse
Our Brand is Crisis
The Wonders/Le Meraviglie — Written and Directed by Alice Rohrwacher
Flowers/Loreak
Suffragette — Directed by Sarah Gavron; Written by Abi Morgan
I Smile Back — Written by Amy Koppelman and Paige Dylan
Truth
Crimson Peak
Big Stone Gap — Written and Directed by Adriana Trigiani
He Named Me Malala (Documentary)
The Keeping Room — Written by Julia Hart
Sicario
Breathe — Written and Directed by Mélanie Laurent
The Second Mother — Written and Directed by Anna Muylaert
Grandma
Learning to Drive — Directed by Isabel Coixet; Written by Sarah Kernochan
Inside Out
Films Directed by Women Opening This Week
Orion: The Man Who Would Be King (Documentary) — Written and Directed by Jeanie Finlay (Also available on VOD)
Following the death of Elvis Presley in 1977, a masked mystery man with the voice of The King emerged. Who was Orion? Where did he come from? And was he really the second coming of Elvis? At once a stranger-than-fiction music-industry mystery and a poignant investigation of fame, identity and destiny, “Orion: The Man Who Would Be King” gets the wild, behind-the-scenes story of a talented but overlooked artist who sold his soul for pop stardom — and wound up paying the price. (Press materials)
Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Jeanie Finlay
Imba Means Sing (Documentary) — Directed by Danielle Bernstein (Also available on VOD)
From the slums of Uganda to the streets of New York, “Imba Means Sing” weaves together the lives of three young Africans who have been selected to participate in the Grammy-nominated African Children’s Choir. The film is an intimate character portrait told through the perspective of eight-year-old Moses, the choir’s star drummer. Growing up in the slums of Kampala, Uganda, Moses and his family lack enough resources for him to even attend the first grade and know all too well that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to secure his future and change the course of his family’s life. Armed with his youthful resilience and infectious smile, the film follows his journey from poverty towards his dream of becoming a pilot as he works for an education and spreads the magic of his African childhood. (Press materials)
Rock in the Red Zone (Documentary) — Directed by Laura Bialis
On the edge of Israel’s Negev Desert lies Sderot, a city of factory workers and rock musicians — the children of refugees from North Africa and the Middle East. Despite being pummeled for years by homemade rockets, the people of Sderot persevere. In raucous Moroccan celebrations, they embrace newcomers. In quiet family dinners, they voice their dreams. And in the underground bomb shelters, they create music — a unique Sderot sound that has transformed Israeli music by injecting Middle Eastern influences into Western Rock. Into this intense cauldron of art, sand and bloodshed comes an American woman with a camera. Searching for a story about music, filmmaker Laura Bialis encounters a creative community that captivates her to love and changes the course of her life. (Press materials)
Films Directed by Women Currently Playing
Censored Voices (Documentary) — Directed by Mor Loushy
The 33 — Directed by Patricia Riggen
By the Sea — Written and Directed by Angelina Jolie
Love the Coopers — Directed by Jessie Nelson
Heart of a Dog (Documentary) — Written and Directed by Laurie Anderson
The Intern — Written and Directed by Nancy Meyers
Meet the Patels (Documentary) — Co-Directed by Geeta Patel
Rosenwald (Documentary) — Directed by Aviva Kempner
Films Written by Women Opening This Week
None
Films Written by Women Currently Playing
The Good Dinosaur — Written by Meg LeFauve
Karski & The Lords of Humanity (Documentary) — Co-Written by Katka Reszke
Room — Written by Emma Donoghue
Labyrinth of Lies/Im Labyrinth des Schweigens — Co-Written by Elisabeth Bartel
VOD/DVD Releasing This Week
The Kindergarten Teacher (DVD)
Partisan — Co-Written by Sarah Cyngler (DVD)
