TOP LIST: 10 Films That Celebrate Women

Happy International Women's Day!!! In Zulu they say, "washaya umfazi, washaya imbokodo", which means "you strike a woman, you strike a rock". Women are indeed powerful creatures. Even with a caring and naturing side, they still manage to be strong and zealious. They breathe life into this world and deserve to be treated like queens. As Beyonce sings it, girls run this world, and so it is a great moment to have this day (and the rest of the month) to be celebrated. I have decided to compile a list of films that will help you do just that.

From movies about women of power to movies by powerful women, here is 10 films that celebrate the female gender:

1. For Colored Girls (2010)

In New York, a group of black women, most of whom live in the same Harlem apartment building, faces personal crises, heartbreak and other challenges. Crystal (Kimberly Elise) faces an unhappy existence as an abused lover. Jo (Janet Jackson) is a successful magazine editor, but her husband has a secret double life. Juanita (Loretto Devine) is a relationship counselor but cannot seem to get her love life in order. These three and others become bound together by their experiences.

This is absolutely one of my favorite films and my best movie based on women. Nothing is as inspirational as watching different women go through different struggles of life and emerge victorious. You are bound to relate to at least one of these powerful queens and I love how the plot didn't force them to confirm to certain measures of society but it just let them be.

2. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)

Andy (Anne Hathaway) is a recent college graduate with big dreams. Upon landing a job at prestigious Runway magazine, she finds herself the assistant to diabolical editor Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). Andy questions her ability to survive her grim tour as Miranda's whipping girl without getting scorched.

Meryl Streep was definitely a powerful actress for years but it was not until her role in "The Devil Wears Prada" that she was truly recognized for her powerful performance skills. Her role as Miranda is one of the most captivating female characters we have seen on TV thus far. She had both women and young girls dreaming of becoming the most powerful they could be; and Anna Hathaway's character was very easy to relate to for a lot of women and girls trying to make it in life.

3. Set It Off (1996)

After being fired from her job as a bank teller, Frankie (Vivica A. Fox) begins working at a janitorial service with her friends Tisean (Kimberly Elise), a single mother; Cleo (Queen Latifah), a boisterous lesbian; and Stony (Jada Pinkett), who is dealing with the recent death of her brother. The women are struggling with their finances, so they decide to start robbing banks. At first the group is successful, but they soon attract the attention of an obsessive detective (John C. McGinley).

It may not carry the most righteous story line to inspire women around the world, but this movie boasted of a cast ensemble that was made up of some of the most powerful female leads. They oozed with strength and rich personas, definitely something to celebrate this woman's day.

4. Columbiana (2011)

In 1992 Bogota, a little girl (Amandla Stenberg) watches crime lord Don Luis (Beto Benites) and his henchman Marco (Jordi Mollà) murder her parents. Fifteen years later, the now-grown Cataleya (Zoe Saldana), who is named for a Colombian orchid, works as a contract killer for her Chicago-based uncle (Cliff Curtis). Leaving a lipstick drawing of her namesake on every victim, Cataleya carries out her assignments with cold, frightening efficiency and dreams of avenging her family.

I swear this is the most powerful role in which we have seen Zoe Saldana. She slayed that Cataleya character like a true savage and left us staring right into the dust. Her performance was captivating and "Columbiana" is one of the strongest famale led films to date. The movie also pretty much launched young Amandla Steinberg's career, who did an amazing job as little Cataleya, and she has gone to build a phenomenal portfolio for her self.

5. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Years after the collapse of civilization, the tyrannical Immortan Joe enslaves apocalypse survivors inside the desert fortress the Citadel. When the warrior Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) leads the despot's five wives in a daring escape, she forges an alliance with Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy), a loner and former captive. Fortified in the massive, armored truck the War Rig, they try to outrun the ruthless warlord and his henchmen in a deadly high-speed chase through the Wasteland.

Yes, this movie has nothing to do with women but it has everything to do with a strong female lead. One glance at Charlize Theron in her Imperator Furiosa role in this post-apocalyptic action film and you will know why I love it so much.

6. The Iron Lady (2011)

In her twilight years, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Meryl Streep) reflects on her life and career as she finally prepares to dispose of the belongings of her late husband, Denis (Jim Broadbent). Daughter of a Grantham grocer, she successfully broke through a double-paned glass ceiling of gender and class. Thatcher became the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom and remained as such for 11 consecutive years, until declining popularity forced her to resign.

And she did it again! Oscar winning Meryl Streep gave a stellar performance as Margaret Thatcher in this insightful film. A movie about a powerful woman by a powerful actress!

7. Winnie (2011)

Following the life of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (Jennifer Hudson ), from her strict rural upbringing by a father disappointed she was not born a boy, to her giving up the chance to study in America in order to remain in South Africa where she felt more needed, through her husband Nelson Mandela 's (Terrence Howard) imprisonment. She then fces continuous harassment by the security police, banishment to a small Free State town, betrayal by friends and allies, and more than a year in solitary confinement. Upon her release, she continues her husband's activism against apartheid and, after his release from prison, suffers divorce due to her infidelity and political pressures. She also faces accusations of violence and murder and in the end, must own up to her actions in court, while many still remain loyal to her because of her fight against apartheid.

I know there was a lot of controversy surrounding the authenticity of this film, but there is definitely something to be taken from this compelling story. It tells about the life of one of the most powerful and influential women in Africa and Jennifer Hudson certainly didn't do a bad job portraying it.

8. Precious (2009)

Pregnant by her own father for the second time, 16-year-old Claireece "Precious" Jones (Gabourey Sidibe) can neither read nor write and suffers constant abuse at the hands of her vicious mother (Mo'Nique). Precious instinctively sees a chance to turn her life around when she is offered the opportunity to transfer to an alternative school. Under the patient, firm guidance of her new teacher, Ms. Rain (Paula Patton), Precious begins the journey from oppression to self-determination.

Stand up for all the young girls suffering abuse in the hands of their own parents but do not let that dampen their spirit; instead they press on hard to a better life for themselves. Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique certainly shed some light on a subject that so many young people in Africa can relate to but most are always either ignorant or fearful to address. And for that we say, take a stand and fight black woman! This is not all that you are!!!

9. The Hurt Locker (2008)

Staff Sgt. William James (Jeremy Renner), Sgt. J.T. Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldridge (Brian Geraghty) are members of a bomb-disposal unit in Baghdad. As their tour of duty enters its final weeks, the men face a set of increasingly hazardous situations, any of which could end their lives in an explosive instant.

Yes, another one that has absolutely nothing to do with women. As a matter of fact, it has an all male lead cast, but guess what? It was directed by the first and only female director to ever win an Oscar! Definitely another one to celebrate.

10. Hunger Games (2012)

In what was once North America, the Capitol of Panem maintains its hold on its 12 districts by forcing them each to select a boy and a girl, called Tributes, to compete in a nationally televised event called the Hunger Games. Every citizen must watch as the youths fight to the death until only one remains. District 12 Tribute Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) has little to rely on, other than her hunting skills and sharp instincts, in an arena where she must weigh survival against love.

Looking at the story line of the hunger games, the filmmakers could have easily opted for a male lead, but thank God they didn't and it went on to be greatly successful. It is one of the very few young adult adapted movies to have a female lead and Jennifer Lawrence keeps bringing the fire every single time!