So you’ve been studying for the past six hours straight. You walk out of Butler and squint into the sun, morosely shaking your head. You promised yourself that you would NEVER leave all of your work to one day again. Ever. But you also promised yourself that you were going to wake up for that 8:30AM lecture every Monday and that you were finally going to sign up for that cardio class. But…things haven’t gone exactly to plan. Instead of beating yourself up, realize that you’re not the only one. When you get back to your dorm, recoup from that awful day of studying with one of these films, all starring leading ladies who have it less than figured out but manage to be completely awesome regardless.
1. Amelie (2001)
Don’t let the kind of creepy poster turn you away from this amazing French film! The movie is about Amelie, a twenty-something waitress in Paris whose life is changed by a random discovery. Amelie is shy and keeps to herself, dreaming of interacting with others, but often preferring the dreams to actually taking action. Then, she discovers a time capsule in a hidden hole in her wall. She daydreams of returning the box to its owner, except this time she makes the dream a reality. This good deed leads her on a path of helping others and, along the way, she manages to help herself. Amelie definitely doesn’t have her plan figured out and deals with her social awkwardness just like the rest of us, but she manages to use her shyness to help other people out and be completely adorable in the process! Dealing with the subtitles is completely worth it for this beautiful story.
2. Uptown Girls (2003)
Molly is the adult daughter of a famous rock star. With a hundred million dollar trust fund, she never had to worry about taking care of herself. That is until her accountant made off with all of her money. Now, she has to learn how to grow-up fast. She luckily snags a job as a nanny, but doesn’t know what she has in store when the kid she’s baby-sitting turns out to be more responsible than she is. This movie is silly, sad, and heartfelt all in one. After watching Brittany Murphy’s hilarious failures, you’ll feel much better about the few things you may have let slip. And young Dakota Fanning can teach you a lesson about staying on top of things.
3. Girl, Interrupted (1999)
This movie tells the story of Kaysen, a recent high-school graduate in 1960’s America. She dreams of becoming a writer and shuns her parents desire for her to go to college. But she can’t see a way of pursuing her dream and is soon checked into a psychiatric hospital after she takes a whole bottle of aspirin. And you thought you had problems. So, after hitting rock bottom, she begins to pick herself up and figure out how to live her own life instead of the life that’s expected of her.
4. Mulan (1998)
I know what you’re thinking. Mulan? Isn’t that a Disney movie for like, little kids? Okay…yes it is a Disney movie, but I refuse to believe that this movie was not made specifically for college girls trying to figure it all out. Mulan is the definition of awkward clumsiness. The scene where she manages to draw a mustache on the matchmaker made me laugh when I was seven and still makes me laugh today. She’s confused about where she belongs and who she really is. Sound familiar? When her aging father is called to war, she knows she has to take his place. The only problem is that she has to convince everyone that she’s a man or risk being put to death. Despite being this clumsy, confused girl, she manages to save all of China. If that’s not completely inspiring, I don’t know what is. And the soundtrack is just amazing. Here’s a little motivating sneak peak of the awesomeness that is this movie:
5. Girls (2012-Present)
So you had a pretty tough time in the library and a two hour movie just isn’t going to cut it. You need to binge on some TV and Girls may be just what you’re looking for. This HBO show follows 4 girls through their insane lives in NYC. Hannah, the main character, is struggling to survive as a writer, Marnie thinks she has her whole life planned out, Shoshanna is constantly worried about fitting in and Jessa is just…Jessa. These four girls will make you grateful (or jealous) that your life isn’t so crazy. The show is hilarious but also makes you think about what being a girl in our generation means. None of them seems to have it figured out (even if they may think they do) and they all manage to survive and thrive regardless.