When it comes to movies, good acting and direction are pretty crucial to bringing a story to life - and a leading lady channeling raw emotion and captivating energy is a surefire way to grab my undivided attention. So, to celebrate International Women’s Day, I’ve curated a list of 14 movies from across the best streaming services with phenomenal female leads - and they all have over 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Whether you’re a Netflix, Hulu, or Prime Video subscriber, the list contains films from as early as Hollywood’s Golden Age right up to the 2020s. I’ve also included different genres to emphasize one thing that the best actresses often can do so spectacularly; range.
Of course that includes drama, a broad genre in itself that’s featured throughout the list from the romantic Little Women (2019) to the gripping crime drama Fargo (1996). Also, let’s not forget horror, a genre that in recent years has seen a resurgence in its cult status thanks to full-throttle performances like those seen in Titane (2021).
Whether you’re a horror buff or looking for an easy-going watch, these compelling performances from some of the most talented actresses in movie history are bound to entertain and move you this International Women’s Day.
Netflix
Little Women (2019)
RT score: 95%
Director: Greta Gerwig
Runtime: 135 minutes
Age rating: PG
Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women has been reimagined numerous times over the years, and Greta Gerwig’s take remains true to the classic period drama - but with a stellar cast of legendary and contemporary actresses. It recounts the life of the March sisters through the eyes of Jo (Saoirse Ronan), following each of the sisters Meg (Emma Watson), Amy (Florence Pugh), and Beth (Eliza Scanlan) as they grow into adulthood and follow their different paths in life. With the additions of established actresses Laura Dern and Meryl Streep, Little Women is packed with familiar and incredibly talented faces.
Roma (2018)
RT score: 96%
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Runtime: 135 minutes
Age rating: R
While Alfonso Cuarón scooped up the Oscar for Best Director, Yalitza Aparicio got a nod for Best Actress for her performance as Cleo in Roma. Set in 1970s Mexico City, the movie follows a year in the life of Cleo, a live-in housekeeper taking care of four children in an upper-middle class family. As complications arise between her employers Sofia (Marina de Tavira) and Antonio (Fernando Grediaga) and Cleo’s own life becomes increasingly complex, Roma tackles themes of friendship, family and fealty.
Halloween (1978)
RT score: 96%
Director: John Carpenter
Runtime: 91 minutes
Age rating: R
A must-watch for any horror fan, Halloween saw Jamie Lee Curtis become a household name with her portrayal of Laurie Strode, redefining the role of female characters in horror. After breaking out of an institution for murdering his sister, Michael Myers comes back to a small Illinois town to find his next victim. As dusk falls on Hallowe’en, he stalks babysitter Laurie, starting a night that ends in a bloodbath of terror.
Hulu
Titane (2021)
RT score: 90%
Director: Julia Ducournau
Runtime: 108 minutes
Age rating: R
Titane is a French-language movie by female director Julia Ducournau offering a unique approach to body horror, integrating eroticism and fetishism. Alexia (Agathe Rousselle) has a near-death experience in a horrific car accident, after which she has a medical-grade titanium implant fixed into her skull. Working as a go-go dancer for underground car shows, Alexia develops a strange obsession with automobiles - one that borders fetishism.
Nomadland (2020)
RT score: 93%
Director: Chloé Zhao
Runtime: 108 minutes
Age rating: R
There are two reasons why Nomadland bulldozed through the 2021 Academy Awards. The first is Frances McDormand’s performance as the main character, Fern, and the second is Chloe Zhao’s directing abilities, which led to her being the second woman to win an Oscar for Best Director. In Nomamdland, Fern navigates the aftermath of losing everything to the Great Recession while coming to terms with the loss of her husband, culminating in a journey through the American West where she meets fellow modern nomads who adopt her into their community.
Plan B (2021)
RT score: 96%
Director: Natalie Morales
Runtime: 108 minutes
Age rating: TV-MA
Another movie with women both in front of and behind the camera, Plan B can be placed in a similar ballpark to Booksmart (2019) thanks to its modern, comedic high school setting following best friends Sunny (Kuhoo Verma) and Lupe (Victoria Moroles). After Sunny has her first sexual encounter at a party, she has 24 hours to find a Plan B pill. Traveling through South Dakota, she’s accompanied by her best friend on an unconventional road trip.
Max
Fargo (1996)
RT score: 94%
Director: Joel Coen
Runtime: 107 minutes
Age rating: R
When curating this list, I decided one Frances McDormand film just wasn’t enough. Before snagging her second and third Oscars for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2021) and Nomadland (2020) respectively, McDormand won her first in 1997 for playing police officer Marge Gunderson in Fargo. After car salesman Jerry (Willam H. Macy) gets himself into some serious debt, he takes desperate measures and hires two men to kidnap his wife in hopes that his father-in-law will pay a hefty ransom that will cover his debt.
Aliens (1986)
RT score: 98%
Director: James Cameron
Runtime: 137 minutes
Age rating: R
Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) is a legendary character credited for subversing gender roles and paving the way for powerful women characters in both science fiction and horror. Aliens is the sequel to 1979’s Alien, and is considered to be one of the best sequel movies ever. After she’s found floating in space, Ripley is called to help a team of marines battle extraterrestrials that have invaded their space colony.
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
RT score: 98%
Director: Victor Fleming
Runtime:101 minutes
Age rating: G
The oldest entry on our list, but a timeless and heartwarming story nonetheless that also put 16-year-old Judy Garland on the Hollywood map - and made her one of the first divas in popular culture. Just like in the 1900 children’s book by L. Frank Baum, Dorothy Gale gets swept into a tornado which takes her to the land of Oz. Desperate to find her way home, she meets the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), Tinman (Jack Haley), and Lion (Bert Lahr) on her way to the Emerald City to see the Wizard (Frank Morgan). In addition to Garland as the heroic Dorothy, Margaret Hamilton’s performance as the Wicked Witch of the West makes for an iconic movie villain.
Prime Video
Tár (2022)
RT score: 91%
Director: Todd Field
Runtime: 158 minutes
Age rating: R
My personal favourite movie of 2022, Cate Blanchett proves once again why she is Hollywood royalty. In Todd Field's psychological drama, Blanchett plays Lydia Tár, a world famous conductor and the first woman music director of the Berlin philharmonic - making her way to the top of the ranks in a heavily male-dominated industry. Her career speaks for itself but when she is faced with accusations of misconduct, layers of her character are peeled back and the truth unveils itself.
Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
RT score: 94%
Director: Dan Kwan & Daniel Scheinert
Runtime: 132 minutes
Age rating: R
Michelle Yeoh and Stephanie Hsu are a mother-daughter duo that reduced cinema audiences to tears with their performances in Everything Everywhere All At Once, earning them both Oscar nominations and seeing Yeoh become the first Asian woman to win Best Actress. Evelyn Wang, a Chinese immigrant, is transported through a chaotic adventure across the multiverse, and with each encounter, she’s faced with a multitude of lives she could have led (including a world where everyone lives with immense hotdog fingers…)
Bottoms (2023)
RT score: 90%
Director: Emma Seligman
Runtime: 88 minutes
Age rating: R
Another woman-directed entry with a woman-led cast, Bottoms even features a soundtrack by leading pop girl Charli XCX. It’s one of the newer releases on our list and a fantastic Gen Z high school comedy starring two talented upcoming actresses; Ayo Edebiri (FX’s The Bear) and Rachel Sennott (Shiva Baby). Unhinged in its comedy, the movie sees the two unpopular high-school girls accidentally form a women’s fight club in an attempt to get the attention of popular cheerleaders they’re crushing on.
Paramount Plus
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
RT score: 96%
Director: Roman Polanski
Runtime: 136 minutes
Age rating: R
Being the third horror film on this list, it goes to show that women and horror go together like cheese and fine wine. Just like Halloween (1978) made Jamie Lee Curtis a horror icon, Rosemary’s Baby did the same for Mia Farrow. After moving into a New York apartment with her actor husband Guy (John Cassavetes), the couple befriends their strange neighbors, and when she falls pregnant, Rosemary (Farrow) notices things aren’t quite right. After being isolated from her group of friends and experiencing mental torment, the truth is unveiled when she gives birth.
Arrival (2016)
RT score: 94%
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Runtime: 116 minutes
Age rating: PG-13
Amy Adams is captivating in Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi drama Arrival, for which she received a BAFTA nomination. Adams plays linguistic professor Louise Banks who takes charge of a team of investigators when mysterious spaceships land in different locations across the world. Before global conflict breaks out, the team must work with limited time on their hands to find a way to communicate with the alien invaders - taking risks that could cost the human race.
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