With this weather, you could cozy up with your friends and rewatch Clueless or To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before for the ninetieth time, or you could invest some time in a new movie that could bring you closer together with unexpected tears and/or laughter. Here are some unconventional movies to watch with your gal pals that you won’t see on the internet’s chick flick lists:
Obvious Child (2014)
Obvious Child, which stars Jenny Slate (Zootopia, Gifted) as an unemployed stand-up comedienne Donna Stern who finds out she’s pregnant after a brief but charming one night stand. The unplanned pregnancy forces Donna to confront the reality of adulthood, which includes making the decision to get an abortion and breaking the news (of the pregnancy and abortion) to Ryan, the guy who knocked her up.
While I wasn’t the biggest fan of the stand-up comedy included in the movie, I found the rest of the movie charming and refreshing, and particularly reflective of the attitude of today’s idea of an independent woman. The entire cast has great chemistry- Donna and Ryan’s relationship was believable, realistic, and adorable, and best friends Donna and Nellie have a friendship that is a dime-a-dozen. While Donna’s unplanned pregnancy brings unwanted drama into her life, it does push her to realize the support system that she has with her friends as well as reach for (and receive) support from people she otherwise wouldn’t have before the dilemma.
Obvious Child is a short and refreshing watch for a group of friends who don’t want to invest themselves into something too serious and may be tired of the same old, same old cliche chick flick.
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
Do you want to watch a movie that will inspire you and your friends? You should check out Memoirs of a Geisha, starring Ziyi Zhang (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and featuring Ken Watanabe (Inception, Godzilla, Batman Begins) and Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Tomorrow Never Dies). In the movie, Chiyo (Ziyi Zhang) and her older sister are sold by their father to geisha houses after the death of their mother because he can no longer financially support them in their impoverished fishing village. Chiyo is separated from her older sister and is forced to live a life of servitude and gratitude in the geisha house, where after years of vigorous training and bouts of humiliation and abuse she is eventually chosen to be trained as a Geisha and transforms from Chiyo to Sayuri, ultimately becoming the most celebrated Geisha in all of Japan.
Memoirs of a Geisha is essentially a Cinderella story that is set in 1920’s Japan, with Chiyo’s journey beginning before the eruption of World War II and her battle to survive during the American occupation of Japan. While one of the main complaints about this movie would be the lack of fluency in English of the main actors (particularly the child who plays young Chiyo and Ziyi Zhang), it doesn’t take away from the main character’s connection with the audience. Memoirs of a Geisha is a cinematic beauty that is both a feast for the eyes as well as the ears with a score by John Williams.
If you and your friends want to watch a serious but uplifting movie, this is the movie to watch.
Wonder Woman (2017)
If you haven’t watched the most acclaimed and empowering female superpower movie of the century, you might as well watch it with a group of your fave gal pals. Wonder Woman follows the origin story of Diana (Gal Gadot) an Amazonian princess who is being raised and trained in seclusion on the island of the Amazons. When American World War I spy and pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) crashes on the island, Diana rises to the occasion to leave home, fights in the war to end all wars, falls in love with humanity, and realizes her true power and strength.
Wonder Woman is a movie that this generation needed. Diana faces and defies all kinds of adversity, from men and women, god and human, and succeeds because of how strong the sense of justice within herself is. There are some downsides though- the general themes of love and the battle between good and evil are at this point pretty cliche and the side characters and even the main antagonist are forgettable. However, the movie itself is low risk and high reward, in that it’s not taxing or stressful to watch, rather it’s impactful in the strides it is taking for women in the industry and empowering in that a female protagonist in an action movie doesn’t need to sacrifice her compassion and emotion in order to be kickass.
Set It Up (2018)
This Netflix original rom-com features two corporate executive assistants in New York City who decide to team up in order to pair their workaholic bosses together- giving the assistants more time for their own personal lives. During their outlandish and borderline manipulative shenanigans to get their bosses together, Harper (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie (Glenn Powell), begin to realize that they might be falling in love with each other.
Set It Up quickly tricks you into becoming more personally invested in the characters as the movie goes on. Harper and Charlie are relatable as young adults suffering from the wrath and frustration of their bosses, Kirsten (Lucy Liu) and Rick (Taye Diggs) respectively. You really root for the success of Harper and Charlie’s over-the-top antics because you can see that they really aspire to succeed in the industries they are in. The friendship and mutual respect Harper and Charlie form with each other is also quite sweet, especially when it makes way for an attraction that they didn’t expect. However, a dilemma causes not only Harper and Charlie’s moral compasses to be challenged but also their friendship.
If you and your friends like crazy antics movies such as She’s the Man (2006) or To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018), you might appreciate Set It Up. While it takes place in a more “adult” work setting, it still involves the very real emotions and morals that are risked in the very beginning in order to benefit the main characters.
Beaches (1988)
Do you want to uncontrollably sob with your best buddies? If so, the original Beaches (1988) might be the perfect dose of happiness and sadness for a night in. Beaches is a drama-dy about Hillary Essex (Barbara Hershey), a naive young heiress, and CC Bloom (Bette Midler), a poor cynical child entertainer, who form an unlikely but fierce bond throughout the years after a chance encounter. Their friendship becomes quite turbulent once love, success, and tragedy enter into the picture.
The original Beaches is a movie that you can truly appreciate as an adult woman. Beaches capture the true essence of friendship between two women by depicting both the good and the bad- the laughter and support but also the jealousy and frustration.
Beaches is a great watch if you want a movie that incites a lot of emotion and thought, without being a serious headache.
Happy Death Day (2017)
If you’re looking for something that will keep you on the edge of the seat (while also laughing), maybe you and your friends should watch Happy Death Day. The movie is a mystery slasher film centered around college student Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe), a self-centered sorority sister, who gets murdered by a masked murderer- only for the same day to repeat once she has died. Tree soon discovers that in order to stop time from going back, she must figure out the identity of her assailant and kill them. However, it’s not as easy as it seems.
With the second movie, Happy Death Day 2U, releasing in theaters February 13, 2019 (Rutgers actually gets a free advanced screening on February 6th) there is no better time than now to check out this thrilling movie. The main character isn’t the typical good girl that class horror slasher films like to protect- instead, she’s moody, self-centered, and at times cruel to the people around her. Tree’s frustration with her repeatedly going back in time eventually serve as a means of character development leading to the further success of getting a step closer to realizing the murderer’s identity.
The movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, making it an enjoyable watch even if you’ve already seen it. Whether you’re a scaredy cat or a slasher fanatic, you and your friends will be on a joy ride with Happy Death Day.
The Bodyguard (1992)
Are you and your friends craving a little bit of angst and romance (as well as an amazing, award-winning, chart-topping soundtrack)? Sounds like nothing would satisfy your cravings better than The Bodyguard starring Whitney Houston as Rachel Marron, a fiery world-renowned singer, and Kevin Costner (Dances with Wolves) as Frank Farmer, a retired straight-lace Secret Service agent. When Rachel Marron’s life is suddenly threatened by a stalker, her team hires Frank Farmer in order to protect her and keep her safe, however, not without some challenge and attitude on Rachel’s part. While the two fail to see eye-to-eye time and again, the unlikely duo fall for each other, and Frank fears that his personal involvement with Rachel may further put her in harm’s way.
One of the biggest complaints of this movie is Whitney Houston’s poor acting skills- and it’s true, she fails to deliver in a few particularly emotional parts. However, it’s hard to argue that Whitney’s powerhouse voice and stunning presence isn’t a perfect match with the character Rachel Marron. Rachel and Frank’s relationship is interesting in that they truly are from different worlds and refuse to see eye to eye on a lot of things, however, their attraction towards each other is something they cannot deny, forcing them to challenge a lot of their own ideas on trust and love.
The Bodyguard is mainly a thriller and often a comedy, however, there are many nuances of romance, angst, and action that makes this a compelling watch for just about any movie-goer.
Sometimes, there really is nothing better than hanging out with your friends while watching a movie. Hopefully, one (or more) of these movies will suit your squad’s fancy.