They say life begins at 40… but why not start living the life before you reach 40 and watch these fun, heartwarming and powerful movies?
Here are 60 of the must-watch movies that women who are nearly in their 40s have grown to be very familiar with and are worth watching.
1. The Godfather
- Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan
- Genre: Crime, Mafia, Drama
The ageing patriarch of an organised crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.
Why women should watch it:
This powerful movie is about family, friends and money – loving your family, keeping your friends, and organising your money.
“Great men are not born great, they grow great.”
2. Reservoir Dogs
Stars: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen
Genre: Thriller, Crime, Drama
After a simple jewellery heist goes terribly wrong, the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is a police informant.
Why women should watch it:
Simply because… it’s full of men… hot, hot men!
“Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or are you gonna bite?”
3. The Shawshank Redemption
- Stars: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton
- Genre: Drama, Mystery, Crime
Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency.
Why women should watch it:
It could teach women about courage and determination to survive even in the most hopeless cases, having self-worth and dignity.
“Every man has his breaking point.”
4. American Beauty
- Stars: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch
- Genre: Romance, Satire, Comedy
A sexually frustrated suburban father has a mid-life crisis after becoming infatuated with his daughter’s best friend.
Why women should watch it:
It’s about insecurities in one’s self and relationships and how to deal with these.
“It’s a great thing when you realise you still have the ability to surprise yourself. Makes you wonder what else you can do that you’ve forgotten about.”
5. Kill Bill
- Stars: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime
The bride awakens from a four-year coma. The child she carried in her womb is gone. Now, she must wreak vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her – a team she was once part of.
Why women should watch it:
Never mess with a betrayed angry mumma.
“Some things, once you do, they can never be undone.”
6. Memento
- Stars: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano
- Genre: Thriller, Drama, Crime
A man juggles searching for his wife’s murderer and keeping his short-term memory loss from being an obstacle.
Why women should watch it:
It shows how people are willing to risk their lives to fight for the one they love.
“We all need mirror to remind ourselves who we are.”
7. Bridget Jones’s Diary
- Stars: Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
A British woman is determined to improve herself while she looks for love in a year in which she keeps a personal diary.
Why women should watch it:
The film tells women to love and be comfortable in your own skin.
“It’s a truth universally acknowledged that when one part of your life starts going okay, another falls spectacularly to pieces.”
8. Bridesmaids
- Stars: Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne
- Genre: Comedy, Romance
Competition between the maid of honour and a bridesmaid over who is the bride’s best friend threatens to upend the life of an out-of-work pastry chef.
Why women should watch it:
This fun movie could be your guide to actually being a good bridesmaid and a friend most of all.
“At first, I didn’t know it was your diary. I thought it was a very sad handwritten book.”
9. Gone Girl
- Stars: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris
- Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Drama
With his wife’s disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it’s suspected that he may not be innocent.
Why women should watch it:
The movie highlights the importance of trust in a relationship.
“When two people love each other and can’t make that work, that’s the real tragedy.”
10. Into the Wild
- Stars: Emile Hirsch, Vince Vaughn, Catherine Keener
- Genre: Adventure, Drama
After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.
Why women should watch it:
Sometimes, finding your soul and purpose in life can be found in the simplest of things.
“The core of man’s spirit comes from new experiences.”
11. My Best Friend’s Wedding
- Stars: Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
When a woman’s long-time friend reveals he’s engaged, she realises she loves him herself and sets out to get him, with only days before the wedding.
Why women should watch it:
Most women with guy best friends can relate to this romantic movie, but even those who can’t find this one a must-watch.
“If you love someone, you say it, you say it right then, out loud. Otherwise, the moment just passes you by.”
12. Cold Mountain
- Stars: Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Renée Zellweger
- Genre: Romance, History, War
In the waning days of the American Civil War, a wounded soldier embarks on a perilous journey back home to Cold Mountain, North Carolina, to reunite with his sweetheart.
Why women should watch it:
It’s a story about love and war and how love conquers all.
“What you lost will not be returned to you. It will always be lost. You’re left with only your scars to mark the void. All you can choose to do is go on, or not. But if you go on, it’s knowing you carry your scars with you.”
13. Clueless
- Stars: Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Teen
A rich high school student tries to boost a new pupil’s popularity, but reckons without affairs of the heart getting in the way.
Why women should watch it:
I have watched this one a gazillion times (I have actually memorised some of the lines lol!), but this movie is one you shouldn’t miss.
“I’m not prude. I’m just highly selective.”
14. The Help
- Stars: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer
- Genre: Romance, Drama, History
An aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African American maids’ point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.
Why women should watch it:
This moving movie is about hate, hope and perseverance and it would help educate people about the effects of racism.
“I can’t just leave you two here when things are getting bad from the mess that I created.”
15. Gone with the Wind
- Stars: Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Thomas Mitchell
- Genre: Romance, Drama, War
A manipulative woman and a roguish man conduct a turbulent romance during the American Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
Why women should watch it:
It is the greatest movie of all time!
“After all, tomorrow is another day.”
16. 13 Going on 30
- Stars: Jennifer Garner, Mark Ruffalo, Judy Greer
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Fantasy
A girl makes a wish on her thirteenth birthday, and wakes up the next day as a 30-year-old woman.
Why women should watch it:
When you’re young, you want to fast forward your life, but will you be ready to face it? This movie shows the lessons why it’s still great to be young.
“Well, Jenna, I know I made a lot of mistakes, but I don’t regret making any of them.”
17. Chicago
- Stars: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere
- Genre: Music, Crime, Comedy
Murderesses Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart find themselves on death row together and fight for the fame that will keep them from the gallows in 1920s Chicago.
Why women should watch it:
For love song and dance musical lovers, this one is for you.
“No, I’m no one’s wife. But, oh, I love my life and all that I am.”
18. Notting Hill
- Stars: Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts, Richard McCabe
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
The life of a simple bookshop owner changes when he meets the most famous film star in the world.
Why women should watch it:
It’s amazing how this movie can speak right to your heart.
“It’s as if I’ve taken love heroin, and now I can’t ever have it again.”
19. Romi & Michelle’s High School Reunion
- Stars: Mira Sorvino, Lisa Kudrow, Janeane Garofalo
- Genre: Comedy
Two dim-witted, inseparable friends hit the road for their ten-year high school reunion and concoct an elaborate lie about their lives in order to impress their classmates.
Why women should watch it:
This fun movie is simply teaching you to just be yourself.
“Why don’t you just go back to ignoring me like you did in high school?”
20. The Sweetest Thing
- Stars: Cameron Diaz, Thomas Jane, Christina Applegate
- Genre: Comedy, Romance
A girl finds she is forced to educate herself on the etiquette of wooing the opposite sex when she finally meets Mr Right.
Why women should watch it:
For singles who want to fall in love now, watch this.
“50% of what people say when they’re joking is true.”
21. Bad Moms
- Stars: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell
- Genre: Comedy
When three overworked and under-appreciated moms are pushed beyond their limits, they ditch their conventional responsibilities for a jolt of long overdue freedom, fun, and comedic self-indulgence.
Why women should watch it:
This is just what every overworked mum needs in her life!
“In this day and age, it’s impossible to be a good mom.”
22. Me Before You
- Stars: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Janet McTeer
- Genre: Romance, Drama
A girl in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralysed man she’s taking care of.
Why women should watch it:
A story about unconditional and selfless love, this movie will melt your heart.
“You are pretty much the only thing that makes me want to get up in the morning.”
23. The Devil Wears Prada
- Stars: Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Adrian Grenier
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
A smart but sensible new graduate lands a job as an assistant to Miranda Priestly, the demanding editor-in-chief of a high fashion magazine.
Why women should watch it:
This film will teach you how determination, skill, and positive attitude can make you stand above the rest.
“Details of your incompetence do not interest me.”
24. Mr and Mrs Smith
- Stars: Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Adam Brody
- Genre: Comedy, Action, Drama
A bored married couple is surprised to learn that they are both assassins hired by competing agencies to kill each other.
Why women should watch it:
The film shows how secrets can either ruin a relationship or make it better.
“There’s this huge space between us, and it just keeps filling up with everything that we don’t say to each other.”
25. Muriel’s Wedding
- Stars: Toni Collette, Rachel Griffiths, Bill Hunter
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
Muriel finds life in Porpoise Spit, Australia, dull and spends her days alone in her room listening to Abba music and dreaming of her wedding day.
Why women should watch it:
This romantic comedy that’s about female friendship, empowerment, and respect.
“That’s because now, my life’s as good as an Abba song.”
26. Dirty Dancing
- Stars: Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey, Jerry Orbach
- Genre: Music, Romance, Drama
Spending the summer at a Catskills resort with her family, Frances “Baby” Houseman falls in love with the camp’s dance instructor, Johnny Castle.
Why women should watch it:
Fall in love with love and dancing (and the dance instructor too) in this classic romantic movie.
“There are a lot of things about me that aren’t what you thought.”
27. Mean Girls
- Stars: Lindsay Lohan, Jonathan Bennett, Rachel McAdams
- Genre: Comedy, Teen
Cady Heron is a hit with The Plastics, the A-list girl clique at her new school, until she makes the mistake of falling for Aaron Samuels, the ex-boyfriend of alpha Plastic Regina George.
Why women should watch it:
Rumours, betrayal, secrets. This movie shows how a mix of those could ruin high school.
“On Wednesdays, we wear pink.”
28. Sweet Home Alabama
- Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Lucas
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
A young woman who’s reinvented herself as a New York socialite must return home to Alabama to obtain a divorce from her husband, after seven years of separation.
Why women should watch it:
Indeed, “home” is where the “heart” is.
“Since when does it have to be one or the other? You can have roots and wings.”
29. Thelma and Louise
- Stars: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Harvey Keitel
- Genre: Comedy, Crime, Adventure
Two best friends set out on an adventure but it soon turns around to a terrifying escape from being hunted by the American police as these two girls escape for the crimes they committed!
Why women should watch it:
It’s about female revenge and women empowerment.
“No, you’ve always been crazy. This is just the first chance you’ve ever had to really express yourself.”
30. Juno
- Stars: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner
- Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama
Faced with an unplanned pregnancy, an offbeat young woman makes an unusual decision regarding her unborn child.
Why women should watch it:
This movie teaches you how to handle teen pregnancies (if you happen to be a parent of a pregnant teen).
“I don’t really know what kind of girl I am.”
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