Feminist Must-Watch List
Ongoing list of my recommended empowering movies & TV for women
If you’re going to sit down and watch a whole movie or binge watch a TV show, why consume mindless or worse, sexist & misogynistic drivel?
Welcome to my on-going list of highly recommended flicks and shows if you want to feel empowered as a woman.
These are not simply “badass” female leads (ie male-written characters played by women) nor are they the phony empowerment types that are actually laced with misogyny (looking at YOU Miss Congeniality). These heroines are ambitious, courageous, intelligent, complex women. They break rules, own their power, lead with heart, and question the roles they were told to play. They experience change, they heal, they become. And yes, sometimes they do have to kick some actual ass. These are women we are inspired by because we can see ourselves in them.
(And don’t be surprised when the best shows only have 1 season because their Patriarchal daddy cancelled them too early; it just confirms how much of a threat they considered the ideas these shows presented.)
Reclaimed Wisdom Key
I’ve identified 9 aspects that makes a show/movie empowering for women, by my standards.
Each show receives up to 3-4 icons to indicate which bit of wisdom it will help you reclaim.
(You can Ctrl + F and input the icon to only search for titles with that bit of wisdom if you like. Each is an an accordian style – so click to view the description & wisdom key.)
👩🏽🤝👩🏻 ~ Sisterhood is a source of strength
🧭 ~ You can choose your own path
🧠 ~ Your intelligence is powerful
👄 ~ Your voice deserves to be heard
🔥 ~ Your power is yours to wield
🏹 ~ Your ambitions are worth pursuing
🚧 ~ You can break barriers
👑 ~ You are capable of leading
🌱 ~ You are allowed to become
*Special Note for Shadow Journey Stories:
Not every story here offers a comfortable resolution or feel-good story. Some stories reveal wounds we don’t talk about, expose systems that harm, and ask difficult questions about power, justice, and survival. Some may have you questioning what it means to be “good.” A 🌘 marks these stories that venture into the darker parts of the human experience. It also serves as a trigger warning.
🌘 ~ Shadow Journey (heavier themes, trauma, violence, or morally complex)
Drama
Movies
Erin Brockovich
(True story)
A struggling single mother, Erin Brockovich, uncovers evidence that a powerful utility company has poisoned a small town’s water supply. Determined to hold the corporation accountable, she fights for justice despite having no formal legal training.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🚧👑
Hidden Figures
(True story)
Three brilliant Black women mathematicians at NASA work to overcome racial and gender discrimination while helping launch America’s first astronauts into space. Each strives to prove her abilities and claim the recognition and opportunities she has earned.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧠👄🚧
Big Eyes
(True story)
Artist Margaret Keane struggles to reclaim credit for her famous paintings after her husband falsely takes ownership of her work. She must find the courage to challenge him publicly and reclaim both her career and identity
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭👄🔥🌱
On the Basis of Sex (inspired by True events)
Young lawyer Ruth Bader Ginsburg sets out to challenge laws that discriminate on the basis of sex. She fights a landmark legal battle that could reshape American law and advance gender equality.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🚧👑
Little Women
(Based on the novel by louisa may alcotT)
The four March sisters grow into adulthood while pursuing their own dreams, loves, and ambitions in the years following the Civil War. At its heart, Jo March strives to become a successful writer without sacrificing her independence
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🏹🌱
Practical Magic
(Based on the novel by Alice Hoffman)
Sisters Sally and Gillian Owens come from a family of witches cursed so that any man they love will die. Together they must confront the family curse, embrace their magic, and choose their own path rather than living in fear. It may be classified as a romance by many, but this is really a story about sisterhood, ignoring society’s judgements, and embracing your inner witch.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🔥🌱
Promising Young Woman
Haunted by the sexual assault and death of her best friend, Cassie dedicates her life to exposing the men and institutions that enable violence against women. Her pursuit of justice forces everyone around her, including herself, to confront the cost of a culture built on complicity.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👄🔥🚧+ 🌘
Suffragette
(inspired by True events)
Working-class laundress Maud Watts becomes involved in the British women’s suffrage movement after witnessing the injustices women face. As the movement grows more militant, she risks her family, livelihood, and freedom to fight for women’s right to vote.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻👄🚧👑
Thelma & Louise
Two friends set out on a weekend getaway that turns into a cross-country flight after a violent encounter changes their lives forever. As they evade the law, they discover freedom, courage, and a refusal to return to the lives that once confined them.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🔥🌱 + 🌘
Mona Lisa Smile
In the 1950s, art history professor Katherine Watson challenges her students at an elite women’s college to imagine lives beyond marriage and traditional expectations. She encourages them to define success for themselves, even as society pressures them to conform.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🏹🌱
Colette
French writer Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette begins ghostwriting bestselling novels that are published under her husband’s name. As her confidence grows, she fights to claim authorship, creative freedom, and the right to define herself on her own terms.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭👄🔥🌱
Ever After
A Cinderella retelling. A fiercely independent young woman living under the control of her cruel stepmother refuses to accept the limited life chosen for her. Armed with intelligence, compassion, and courage, Danielle challenges the expectations placed on women of her time while fighting to create a future of her own.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠👄🌱
Now & Then
Four childhood friends reunite as adults and reflect on the transformative summer that shaped who they became. As young girls, they navigate friendship, family struggles, and the first steps toward discovering themselves.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🌱
Matilda
(Based off the novel by Roald Dahl)
A brilliant young girl who is underestimated by those around her discovers that her intelligence and unique gifts are sources of power. As she finds her voice and stands up against injustice, she learns she has the ability to shape her own future. A great one to watch with younger girls!
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🔥🌱
TV Shows
Wild Ambition Bloom
A determined young woman dreams of opening her own apothecary in a society that limits women’s opportunities. As she overcomes family opposition, social expectations, and business rivals, she fights to build an independent life through her skill, intelligence, and perseverance.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🏹🔥🚧
Good Girls Revolt
A group of young female researchers at a 1960s news magazine grow tired of being denied opportunities given to their male colleagues. Together they fight for equal treatment, professional recognition, and the chance to become reporters themselves.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧠👄🚧
Kevin can F**k Himself
Trapped inside the role of the cheerful sitcom wife, Allison McRoberts begins to question the life she has been performing for everyone else. As she confronts the reality beneath the laughter, she must decide whether she will continue shrinking herself to survive or finally take control of her own story.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭👄🔥🌱 + 🌘
Bomb Girls
During World War II, a group of Canadian women take jobs in a munitions factory, discovering new independence and purpose while the men are away at war. As they balance work, family, and changing expectations, they fight to prove women are capable of far more than society allows.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🏹🚧👑
The Bold Type
Three young women working at a global fashion magazine navigate friendship, careers, relationships, and the expectations placed on modern women. As they discover their voices and pursue their ambitions, they learn that success does not require becoming someone else.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻👄🏹🌱
The Great
(Loosely based on historical events)
Young Catherine arrives in Russia expecting a fairytale marriage to Emperor Peter III, only to find herself trapped in a cruel and absurd court. She begins plotting to overthrow her husband and become the ruler Russia needs.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🏹👑
Mrs. America
Set during the battle over the Equal Rights Amendment, this series follows the women on both sides of a defining cultural conflict. As activists, politicians, and organizers fight to shape the future of American womanhood, the story explores ambition, power, identity, and the complicated paths women take when deciding what freedom means.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🚧
The Paradise
A young woman from a modest background enters the glamorous world of England’s first department store, where she discovers new opportunities, new ambitions, and a version of herself beyond the life she was expected to accept. As she navigates love, class, and changing ideas of womanhood, she learns to trust her own abilities and aspirations.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🏹🌱
Cable Girls
Four women working as telephone operators in 1920s Madrid form deep friendships while navigating love, ambition, and personal freedom. Each strives to escape the limitations placed on women and build a life of her own choosing.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭👄🚧
Comedy
Movies
A League of Their Own
During World War II, a group of women seize the opportunity to play professional baseball while the men’s league is on hold. They fight to prove that women belong on the field and deserve to be taken seriously as athletes.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🏹🚧🌱
Barbie
When Barbie begins questioning the perfect world she’s always known, she journeys into the real world in search of answers about who she truly is. Along the way, she discovers that her worth isn’t defined by perfection or by the roles society expects her to play.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🔥🌱
9 to 5
Three overworked office employees join forces after growing tired of their sexist, abusive boss. Together they set out to transform their workplace and prove women are just as capable of leading as the men who overlook them.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻👄🚧👑
Moxie
Inspired by her mother’s rebellious past, a shy high school student anonymously publishes a feminist zine that sparks a movement against sexism at her school. As more girls join the cause, she discovers the power of speaking up and organizing for change.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻👄🔥🚧
Calendar Girls
After the death of a friend’s husband, a group of middle-aged women create an unconventional charity calendar to raise money for a local hospital. Their unexpected success challenges assumptions about aging, femininity, and what women are capable of.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🌱
Now & Then
Four childhood friends reunite as adults and reflect on the transformative summer that shaped who they became. As young girls, they navigate friendship, family struggles, and the first steps toward discovering themselves.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🌱
Legally Blonde
After being dismissed as superficial, Elle Woods enrolls in Harvard Law School to win back her ex-boyfriend. Instead, she discovers her own intelligence, confidence, and ambition, ultimately pursuing success for herself rather than anyone else’s approval.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠🏹🚧🌱
Private Benjamin
After a devastating personal loss, a sheltered young woman unexpectedly joins the Army and discovers that she is far more capable than she ever imagined. Through discipline, challenge, and independence, she learns to build a life based on her own choices rather than the expectations placed upon her.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🌱
The Great Race
A daring journalist joins a legendary cross-country race determined to document the adventure firsthand. Maggie Dubois refuses to be treated as a passenger, using her intelligence, courage, and determination to pursue the story she believes matters.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🏹🚧
TV Shows
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
After her seemingly perfect marriage falls apart, Miriam “Midge” Maisel unexpectedly discovers a talent for stand-up comedy. Determined to build a career in a male-dominated industry, she pursues success on her own terms while defying the expectations placed on women in the 1950s.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭👄🏹🌱
Grace & Frankie
After their husbands reveal they have fallen in love with each other, two very different women are forced to rebuild their lives from the ground up. Through unexpected friendship, new adventures, and hard-won self-discovery, Grace and Frankie prove that it is never too late to reinvent yourself.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🏹🌱
A League of Their Own
During World War II, a group of women seize the opportunity to play professional baseball while the men’s league is on hold. They fight to prove that women belong on the field and deserve to be taken seriously as athletes. (Yes, a TV show!)
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🏹🚧🌱
The Great
(Loosely based on historical events)
Young Catherine arrives in Russia expecting a fairytale marriage to Emperor Peter III, only to find herself trapped in a cruel and absurd court. She begins plotting to overthrow her husband and become the ruler Russia needs.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🏹🌱
Anne of Green Gables
(Based on the book series by Lucy Maud Montgomery)
Imaginative and outspoken orphan Anne Shirley is unexpectedly adopted by an elderly brother and sister on Prince Edward Island. As she grows up, she strives to find where she belongs while remaining fiercely true to her dreams, creativity, and sense of self despite pressure to conform. (Many versions, all great!)
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭👄🏹🌱
Action/ Thriller / Adventure
Movies
Enough
After escaping an abusive marriage, Slim realizes that protecting herself and her daughter requires more than simply running away. Forced to confront a system that failed to protect her, she trains herself to fight back and reclaim control over her life.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🚧🌱+ 🌘
Thelma & Louise
Two friends set out on a weekend getaway that turns into a cross-country flight after an violent encounter changes their lives forever. As they evade the law, they discover freedom, courage, and a refusal to return to the lives that once confined them.
Reclaimed Wisdom
👩🏽🤝👩🏻🧭🔥🌱+ 🌘
Promising Young Woman
Haunted by the sexual assault and death of her best friend, Cassie dedicates her life to exposing the men and institutions that enable violence against women. Her pursuit of justice forces everyone around her, including herself, to confront the cost of a culture built on complicity.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠👄🚧
The Girl with the Dragon tattoo
Brilliant hacker Lisbeth Salander teams up with an investigative journalist to solve the decades-old disappearance of a wealthy family’s young heir. As the mystery unfolds, she uses her intelligence, resilience, and fierce determination to confront powerful men who have abused and exploited women.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🏹🌱
TV Shows
Killing Eve
MI5 investigator Eve Polastri becomes obsessed with capturing the brilliant assassin Villanelle, leading the two women into a dangerous psychological game of cat and mouse. As their lives become increasingly intertwined, Eve is forced to confront her own desires, ambitions, and capacity for darkness.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🌱+ 🌘
The Power
(Based off the novel by Naomi Alderman)
Teenage girls around the world suddenly develop the ability to generate electricity from their bodies, radically shifting the global balance of power. As women realize the implications of their new abilities, societies are forced to reckon with gender, violence, authority, and justice.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🚧🌱+ 🌘
Hanna
Raised in isolation and trained to survive by her father, teenage Hanna sets out to uncover the truth about her origins while evading the powerful organization determined to eliminate her. Along the way, she learns to navigate both the dangers of the world and what it means to become her own person.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🚧🌱
The Bluff
A former pirate living a quiet life is forced to confront the dangerous past she left behind when old enemies return to claim their revenge. As she fights to protect her family, Ercell must reconcile the woman she was, the woman she became, and the power she has always carried.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🌱
Animated
Movies
Kiki’s delivery service
Young witch Kiki leaves home to spend a year living independently, as tradition requires, and starts a flying delivery business in a new town. As she struggles with self-doubt and burnout, she learns that confidence and purpose come from trusting herself rather than seeking others’ approval.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🏹🌱
Mulan
To save her aging father from war, Mulan disguises herself as a man and joins the Imperial Army. Through courage, ingenuity, and perseverance, she fights to protect her family while proving that her worth has nothing to do with society’s expectations of women.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🚧🌱
Princess Mononoke
Raised by wolves, San is determined to protect the forest and its spirits from human destruction. As war erupts between industry and nature, she fights fiercely for the world she loves while refusing to abandon her convictions.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🚧🌱
Moana
Chosen by the ocean, Moana sets sail beyond the reef to save her island from ecological collapse. By embracing her calling and trusting her own instincts, she becomes the leader she was always meant to be.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🏹👑🌱
Spirited Away
After her parents are transformed into pigs, ten-year-old Chihiro enters a mysterious spirit world to save them and find a way home. Along the journey, she discovers her own courage, compassion, and resilience as she learns to rely on herself.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥🌱
Howl’s Moving Castle
(Based on the novel by Diana Wynne Jones)
After being cursed into the body of an old woman, Sophie sets out to break the spell and reclaim her life. Along the way, she discovers that her greatest strength lies not in changing her appearance, but in finding her own confidence, voice, and inner power.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🧠🚧🌱
TV Shows
Avatar: The Last Airbender
(Animated original series)
An epic journey of balance, friendship, and identity featuring some of animation’s most complex female characters. From Katara’s compassion and leadership to Toph’s independence and Azula’s complicated relationship with power, the women of Avatar challenge what it means to be strong. Enjoy multiple heroine’s journeys!
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧠🔥👑🌱
The Legend of Korra
(Animated original series)
Korra, a headstrong young woman and the new Avatar, struggles to master her abilities while facing political unrest, spiritual challenges, and threats to the balance of the world. Throughout her journey, she learns that strength is not just about fighting harder, but about vulnerability, adaptation, and becoming her own kind of leader.
Reclaimed Wisdom
🧭🔥👑🌱