Weekly Update for November 11: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You

Films About Women Opening This Week

Arrival

Amy Adams takes the world on her shoulders as linguist Louise Banks. When space ships arrive across the globe, Dr. Banks is called upon for her expertise to try and communicate with the aliens. We see a woman attempting to understand the messages that these visitors are sharing, and forging a connection with them. This film is unabashedly about the female — how females can communicate and the love of a mother, all wrapped up in a sci-fi plot about the potential end of the world. Dr. Banks is a superhero and she doesn’t need to fly. (Melissa Silverstein)

The Monster (Also Available on VOD) (Available Now on DirecTV)

“The Monster” follows a divorced mother (Zoe Kazan) and her headstrong daughter (Ella Ballentine) who must make an emergency late night road trip to see the girl’s father. As they drive through deserted country roads on a stormy night, they suddenly have a startling collision that leaves them shaken but not seriously hurt. Their car, however, is dead, and as they try in vain to get help, they come to realize they are not alone on these desolate backroads — a terrifying evil is lurking in the surrounding woods, intent on never letting them leave… (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s guest post by “The Monster” producer Adrienne Biddle.

The Love Witch — Written and Directed by Anna Biller (Opens in LA; Opens in NY November 18)

Elaine (Samantha Robinson), a beautiful young witch, is determined to find a man to love her. In her gothic Victorian apartment she makes spells and potions, and then picks up men and seduces them. However, her spells work too well, leaving her with a string of hapless victims. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her desperation to be loved will drive her to the brink of insanity and murder. (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Anna Biller.

Elle (Opens in NY; Opens in LA November 16)

The story centers on Michele (Isabelle Huppert), a ruthless head of a video game company. After being raped in her home by an unknown assailant, Michele’s life changes forever. When she resolutely tracks the man down, they are both drawn into a curious and thrilling game that may, at any moment, spiral out of control. (Press materials)

Shut In — Written by Christina Hodson

A heart-pounding thriller starring Naomi Watts as a widowed child psychologist who lives an isolated existence in rural New England. Caught in a deadly winter storm, she must find a way to rescue a young boy before he disappears forever. (Press materials)

The Anthropologist (Documentary)

The film features the parallel stories of two women: Margaret Mead, who popularized cultural anthropology in America, and Susie Crate, an environmental anthropologist currently studying the impact of climate change. Uniquely revealed from their daughters’ perspectives, Mead and Crate demonstrate a fascination with how societies are forced to negotiate the disruption of their traditional ways of life, whether through encounters with the outside world or through climate change. (Press materials)

Films About Women Currently Playing

My Dead Boyfriend (Also Available on VOD)
The Watermelon Woman (Theatrical Re-Release) — Written and Directed by Cheryl Dunye
Beauty Bites Beast (Documentary) — Directed by Ellen Snortland
The Eagle Huntress
The Handmaiden
Ouija: Origin of Evil
I’m Not Ashamed — Written by Bodie Thoene, Robin Hanley, Kari Redmond, and Philipa Booyens
Certain Women — Written and Directed by Kelly Reichardt
Christine
Aquarius
Miss Hokusai
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
The Dressmaker — Written and Directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse
Sand Storm — Written and Directed by Elite Zexer
Bridget Jones’s Baby — Directed by Sharon Maguire; Co-Written by Helen Fielding and Emma Thompson
Mia Madre — Co-Written by Valia Santella
Ixcanul
Equity — Directed by Meera Menon; Written by Amy Fox
Ghostbusters — Co-Written by Katie Dippold
Our Little Sister
Cameraperson (Documentary) — Directed by Kirsten Johnson
Finding Dory

Films Directed by Women Opening This Week

National Bird (Documentary) — Directed by Sonia Kennebeck (Opens in NY; Opens in LA November 18)

“National Bird” follows the harrowing journey of three U.S. military veteran whistleblowers determined to break the silence around America’s secret drone war. With unprecedented access to first-hand information about the U.S. drone program through on-the-record sources, “National Bird” introduces us to Heather, a former drone imagery analyst who never left American soil but witnessed countless deaths and now suffers from PTSD; Daniel, a signals intelligence analyst-turned-activist who is now being investigated for espionage; and Lisa, whose guilt over her participation in the drone program and determination to reveal the truth leads her to Afghanistan, where she is confronted with stories of a horrendous incident. “National Bird” gives rare insight into America’s drone operations through the eyes of veterans and survivors, connecting their stories as never seen before in a documentary. (Press materials)

Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Sonia Kennebeck.

Films Directed by Women Currently Playing

Operator — Directed by Logan Kibens; Written by Sharon Greene and Logan Kibens (Also Available on VOD)
What Happened Last Night — Written and Directed by Candice T. Cain
Don’t Call Me Son — Written and Directed by Anna Muylaert
The Uncondemned (Documentary) — Written and Co-Directed by Michele Mitchell

Films Written by Women Opening This Week

None

Films Written by Women Currently Playing

El Jeremías — Written by Ana Sofia Clerici
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life — Co-Written by Kara Holden
Being 17 — Co-Written by Céline Sciamma
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children — Written by Jane Goldman
Masterminds — Co-Written by Emily Spivey

TV Premieres This Week

The Killing Season (Docuseries) — Co-Created and Co-Executive Produced by Rachel Mills (Premieres November 12 on A&E)

“The Killing Season” series follows documentarians Joshua Zeman and Rachel Mills as they investigate one of the most bizarre unsolved serial killer cases of our time: 10 dead sex workers discovered on Gilgo Beach, Long Island. Authorities believe these killings are the work of the Long Island Serial Killer, who after five years remains at large. Many of the victims, often referred to as the “Missing Missing,” are never accounted for and their murders are far less likely to be solved. Forging relationships with cyber-sleuths, journalists, and victims’ families, Zeman and Mills uncover connections that suggest Long Island is just the beginning. Zeman and Mills uncover a web of eerie connections to unsolved murders from Atlantic City to Daytona Beach and beyond — revealing that serial killers are targeting sex workers in record numbers, while using the Internet as their virtual hunting ground. (Press materials)

VOD/DVD Releasing This Week

Finding Dory (DVD, November 15)
Mia Madre — Co-Written by Valia Santella (DVD, November 15)
Kitty (Short) — Written and Directed by Chloe Sevigny (Refinery29, November 17)