Top 5 Kick-Ass Movies for Girls (No Princesses Allowed)

Madeline Holler — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:33:00 GMT

My daughter saw Kung Fu Panda this weekend and she loved it. I asked her about her favorite characters and she described two "masters," both female, one of whom she liked because she "kicked high" and "took risks." Love that.

I've been thinking about this MomLogic post -- the Top 5 Worst Movies for Girls: Grease, Cinderella, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Little Mermaid and Clueless. They cite weak girl characters being saved and/or misused by boys, etc. Fine, we'll keep those out of the Netflix queue.

But what movies don't do that? What movies have ass-kicking, risk-taking female characters who, even if they're not perfect, manage to survive by their smarts and strength, who don't hesitate to give dehabilitating meanies a mental middle finger? Plus a good plot and lots of action?

Here are five that came to mind, though truthfully, I'll likely wait till the teen years on a couple of these:

1. Kill Bill: Because Uma kicks ass.

2. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Right after I saw this I couldn't wait to see it again with my daughter, whom I was pregnant with at the time. The lead girl, her female mentor. Tough chicks. Big swords.

3. Annie: I know, I know, Annie doesn't technically "kick ass." But she's tough ... secure with herself. The pluck! The optimism! The awkward but safe relationship with a rich, bald guy!

4. Bend It Like Beckham: Sports as a metaphor for life (tired, sure, but at least there are girls in this metaphor playing sports ... like a boy. Damn. But this one comes close.)

5. Whale Rider: Girl ignores elders and the power of nature to get what she wants. Shouldn't we all, shouldn't we all.

I've missed a million. I haven't? Oh wait, we're talking about movies starring strong girls who kick ass. Still, surely I've missed one or two. Send in your additions.

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Top 5 Kick-Ass Movies for Girls (No Princesses Allowed)