Religious Patriarchy CritiqueFilms

Kaouther Ben Hania combines testimony, reenactment, and visible performance to examine how violence, maternal authority, political upheaval, and extremist recruitment move through one Tunisian family.

Adapted from Judy Blume's groundbreaking 1970 novel, follows 11-year-old Margaret Simon as she navigates puberty's physical changes, religious exploration, and identity formation. This warm and honest coming-of-age film explores female adolescent experiences, mother-daughter relationships, religious freedom, and the universality of women's intergenerational experiences through a delicate perspective.

A drama film written and directed by Sarah Polley, adapted from Miriam Toews' novel of the same name. Set in a Bolivian Mennonite community, following a group of women who gather to discuss their future after discovering systematic sexual assault by men in their community. The film deeply explores important issues including religious patriarchy critique, collective trauma and healing, women's political awakening, and the power of silence versus voice.

During Algeria’s Black Decade, a student turns fashion into collective defiance as armed fundamentalism closes public space around women’s bodies, education, and friendship.

A 17th-century New England folktale from Robert Eggers, this spooky picture is more than a supernatural horror - it's an exercise in female rebellion during a time when anyone 'different' was declared a witch.

10-year-old Saudi girl Wadjda dreams of owning a green bicycle to race with her male friend Abdullah. This groundbreaking work is the first feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia and the first directed by a Saudi woman, exploring complex themes of female freedom, social constraints, and cultural transformation through a girl's desire for a bicycle.

Director Maryam Keshavarz's coming-of-age drama focuses on a wealthy Iranian family, particularly headstrong teenager Atafeh whose relationship with her friend Shireen evolves from friendship into romance and even eroticism, alongside her brother's journey from recovering drug addict to religious extremist. This vibrant exploration of sexual rebellion showcases high school protagonists confronting patriarchal oppression, culminating in a penetrating examination of women's treatment under Iranian theocracy.

Based on Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical graphic novel, this black-and-white animated film tells the story of an Iranian girl's coming-of-age before and after the Islamic Revolution, profoundly exploring women's survival and resistance under religious totalitarianism.