A hot topic lately is the lack of strong female leads in our media, especially in movies. While we still have a long ways to go on this, it does make me happy that there are some good movies out there that already display this. I wanted to highlight a few that released just this year!
The first movie I want to point out is Colossal (trailer) where Anne Hathaway plays Gloria, a woman who is at a low point in her life. She is unemployed, an alcoholic, and then gets kicked out by her boyfriend, who is tired of her behavior, from their shared apartment. She’s forced to move out of NY and back to her small hometown, where she discovers she is somehow controlling a kaiju (giant monster) that shows up in South Korea. The trailers make the movie look like a comedy, and it definitely has its funny parts, but it also has a dark side that the trailers don’t let on.
This is kind of a spoiler, but I feel it’s important to mention. I was not expecting the movie to make a point about toxic relationships. As it unraveled, it became both uncomfortable and refreshing. Uncomfortable because it’s a bad situation that happens too often in reality, and refreshing because it’s not frequently represented in media. Overall, I loved the quirky take on a kaiju movie while also displaying social issues. The ending might be far-fetched, but it leaves you with a satisfying feel.
