A Celebration of Trailblazing Women
by IMDb-Editors | created - 26 Aug 2020 | updated - 26 Feb 2021 | PublicIn celebration of Women's History Month, we spotlight documentary films on the trailblazing women who have challenged the status quo and changed history.
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1. RBG (2018)
PG | 98 min | Documentary, Biography
The exceptional life and career of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has developed a breathtaking legal legacy while becoming an unexpected pop culture icon.
Directors: Julie Cohen, Betsy West | Stars: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Ann Kittner, Harryette Helsel, Nina Totenberg
Votes: 15,071 | Gross: $14.02M
2. Jane (II) (2017)
PG | 90 min | Documentary, Biography
The life and work of the renowned primatology scientist, Jane Goodall, especially on her research about chimpanzees.
Director: Brett Morgen | Stars: Jane Goodall, Hugo Van Lawick, Hugo Eric Louis van Lawick
Votes: 5,668 | Gross: $1.72M
3. Mission Blue (2014)
95 min | Documentary, Drama
Feature documentary about legendary oceanographer, marine biologist, environmentalist, and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Sylvia Earle and her campaign to create a global network of protected marine sanctuaries.
Directors: Robert Nixon, Fisher Stevens | Stars: Barbara Block, James Cameron, Michael deGruy, Sylvia Earle
Votes: 2,147
4. The Beaches of Agnès (2008)
Not Rated | 112 min | Documentary, Biography
Agnès Varda explores her memories, mostly chronologically, with photographs, film clips, interviews, reenactments, and droll, playful contemporary scenes of her narrating her story.
Director: Agnès Varda | Stars: Agnès Varda, André Lubrano, Blaise Fournier, Vincent Fournier
Votes: 4,790 | Gross: $0.24M
5. Et la femme créa Hollywood (2016)
52 min | Documentary
The first talkie was directed by Alice Guy, the first color film was produced by Lois Weber, who directed more than 300 films over 10 years. Frances Marion wrote screenplays for the ... See full summary »
Directors: Clara Kuperberg, Julia Kuperberg | Stars: Sherry Lansing, Ally Acker, Dorothy Arzner, Cari Beauchamp
Votes: 77
6. The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo (2005 TV Movie)
90 min | Documentary
A documentary feature about the life of the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
Director: Amy Stechler | Stars: Heinz Berggruen, Estela de Bassagoda, Lila Downs, Arturo Estrada
Votes: 203
7. He Named Me Malala (2015)
PG-13 | 88 min | Documentary, Biography
A look at the events leading up to the Taliban's attack on Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai for speaking out on girls' education, followed by the aftermath, including her speech to the United Nations.
Director: Davis Guggenheim | Stars: Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai, Toor Pekai Yousafzai, Khushal Yousafzai
Votes: 4,798 | Gross: $2.64M
8. Becoming (II) (2020)
PG | 89 min | Documentary, Biography
Join former first lady Michelle Obama in an intimate documentary looking at her life, hopes and connection with others during her 2019 book tour for 'Becoming.'
Director: Nadia Hallgren | Stars: Elizabeth Alexander, Adrian K. Collins, Valerie Jarrett, Gayle King
Votes: 6,697
9. Free Angela and All Political Prisoners (2012)
Not Rated | 102 min | Documentary, Crime, History
A documentary that chronicles the life of young college professor Angela Davis, and how her social activism implicates her in a botched kidnapping attempt that ends with a shootout, four dead, and her name on the FBI's 10 most wanted list.
Director: Shola Lynch | Stars: Angela Davis, Eisa Davis, Brandon J. Dirden
Votes: 784
10. Mercury 13 (2018)
TV-PG | 78 min | Documentary
After rigorous testing in 1961, a small group of skilled female pilots are asked to step aside when only men are selected for the spaceflight.
Directors: David Sington, Heather Walsh | Stars: Wally Funk, Rhea Woltman, Sarah Ratley, Bob Steadman
Votes: 1,292
11. The Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers (2009– )
Biography
Each episode explores the fascinating "secrets" of one scientist or engineer, like the micro-biologist who moonlights as a professional wrestler or the bio-chemist who is also a beauty ... See full summary »
Stars: Laurie Santos, Mark Siddall, Rich Robinson, Ina Vandebroed
12. The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (2017)
TV-MA | 105 min | Documentary, Biography
Victoria Cruz investigates the mysterious 1992 death of black gay rights activist and Stonewall veteran, Marsha P. Johnson. Using archival interviews with Johnson, and new interviews with Johnson's family, friends and fellow activists.
Director: David France | Stars: Kurt Wolfe, Sue Yacka, Catherine Shugrue Dos Santos, Victoria Cruz
Votes: 3,203
13. First Daughter and the Black Snake (2017)
Not Rated | 94 min | Documentary
Winona LaDuke wants to grow corn and put up solar panels, but when a proposed oil pipeline threatens her sacred wild rice territory she must spring into action and defend clean water with treaties, slow food and spiritual horse rides.
Director: Keri Pickett | Star: Winona LaDuke
Votes: 48
14. Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed (2004)
Not Rated | 76 min | Documentary
A documentary on Brooklyn-based Congresswoman Shirley's Chisholm's 1972 presidential bid.
Director: Shola Lynch | Stars: Shirley Chisholm, Walter Cronkite, George Wallace, Ralph Abernathy
Votes: 325
15. Dolores (I) (2017)
Not Rated | 95 min | Documentary, Biography, History
In the 1950's, a working-class wife and mother of eleven children helps to establish a farmer's union, which later develops into a platform for feminism and gender equality.
Director: Peter Bratt | Stars: Dolores Huerta, Martin Luther King, Luis Valdez, Ricardo S. Chavez
Votes: 374 | Gross: $0.56M
16. Seeing Allred (2018)
TV-14 | 96 min | Documentary, Biography
Women's rights attorney Gloria Allred takes on the biggest names in American culture as coverage of sexual assault allegations in the media become more prevalent.
Directors: Roberta Grossman, Sophie Sartain | Stars: Gloria Allred, Lisa Bloom, Hillary Clinton, Bill Cosby
Votes: 1,466
17. Anita: Speaking Truth to Power (II) (2013)
Not Rated | 76 min | Documentary, History
A profile of Anita Hill, the African-American lawyer who challenged Clarence Thomas' nomination to the US Supreme Court and thus exposed the problem of sexual harassment to the world.
Director: Freida Lee Mock | Stars: Jill Abramson, Joe Biden, John Carr, Orrin Hatch
Votes: 589
18. Feminists: What Were They Thinking? (2018)
86 min | Documentary
Feminists: What Were They Thinking? takes aim at our current culture revealing all too vividly the urgent need for continued change.
Director: Johanna Demetrakas | Stars: Bella Abzug, Laurie Anderson, Phyllis Chesler, Judy Chicago
Votes: 2,479
19. All In: The Fight for Democracy (2020)
PG-13 | 102 min | Documentary
The documentary takes a look at the history, and current activism against voter suppression; barriers to voting that most people don't even know is a threat to their basic rights as citizens of the United States.
Directors: Lisa Cortes, Liz Garbus | Stars: Carolyn Abrams, Robert Abrams, Stacey Abrams, Debo Adegbile
Votes: 2,061
20. Hillary (2020)
TV-MA | 63 min | Documentary, Biography
A look at the life and work of Hillary Rodham Clinton, interweaving biographical chapters of her life with behind-the-scenes footage from her 2016 U.S. presidential campaign.
Stars: Hillary Clinton, Jennifer Palmieri, Amy Chozick, Peter Baker
Votes: 2,690
21. Unladylike (2020– )
Documentary, Biography, History
Stars: Julianna Margulies, Lorraine Toussaint, Lisa Ling, Lisa Wilkerson
Votes: 12
22. She's Beautiful When She's Angry (2014)
Not Rated | 92 min | Documentary, History
A documentary that resurrects the buried history of the outrageous, often brilliant women who founded the modern women's movement from 1966 to 1971.
Director: Mary Dore | Stars: Chude Pamela Allen, Alta, Judith Arcana, Nona Willis Aronowitz
Votes: 1,654 | Gross: $0.42M
23. Gloria: In Her Own Words (2011 TV Movie)
TV-14 | 61 min | Documentary
[HBO] HD. A vivid portrait of Gloria Steinem whose career as a journalist and a pivotal member of the feminist movement has left an indelible mark.
Director: Peter W. Kunhardt | Stars: Gloria Steinem, Phyllis Schlafly, Hugh Hefner, Chet Huntley
Votes: 192
24. Maya Angelou And Still I Rise (2016)
Not Rated | 114 min | Documentary, Biography, History
The first feature documentary about the remarkable writer, poet, actress, activist Maya Angelou.
Directors: Rita Coburn, Bob Hercules | Stars: Cicely Tyson, Guy Johnson, Diahann Carroll, Don Martin
Votes: 581
25. Finding Traction (2014)
G | 57 min | Documentary, Adventure, Biography
Finding Traction presents the inspirational story of ultra runner Nikki Kimball's quest to become the fastest person in history to run America's oldest hiking trail, the 273-mile Long Trail... See full summary »
Directors: Jaime Jacobsen, Charles Dye
Votes: 286
26. Ladies First (2017)
TV-G | 39 min | Documentary, Short, Sport
An inspirational survival story of Deepika Kumari who, as a girl born on the roadside to abject poverty in rural India, went in search of food, stumbled upon archery, and within 4 years became the Number One archer in the World.
Director: Uraaz Bahl | Star: Deepika Kumari
Votes: 562
27. Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am (2019)
PG-13 | 120 min | Documentary
This artful and intimate meditation on the legendary storyteller examines her life, her works and the powerful themes she has confronted throughout her literary career.
Director: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders | Stars: Toni Morrison, Hilton Als, Oprah Winfrey, Russell Banks
Votes: 922 | Gross: $0.88M
28. Knock Down the House (2019)
PG | 87 min | Documentary
A look at the people involved with various political campaigns during the 2018 U.S. congressional election.
Director: Rachel Lears | Stars: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Cori Bush, Joe Crowley, Paula Jean Swearengin
Votes: 12,971
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