Good For Her: Five Horror Films that Explore Feminine Rage

Feminine rage is a subgenre of horror that has slowly become increasingly popular. Have you ever found yourself watching a movie and thought, “Good for her?” Well, this is a list of those movies. Supporting women’s wrongs has never been more fun.

Jennifer’s Body (2009) 

When it comes to good for her and female rage, Jennifer’s Body is a great place to start. We follow Jennifer Check and Needy Lesnicki, two best friends who have grown up together in Devil’s Kettle, Minnesota. The two best friends could not be more opposite. Jennifer is in color guard, popular, beautiful, and somewhat rude. Needy is introverted, awkward, and in a steady relationship with her boyfriend, Chip. Despite their contrasting personalities, their friendship has remained as strong as ever.

Jennifer and Needy venture out to their town bar one night to see an indie band perform. What starts as a fun night quickly turns dark, when a catastrophic event changes the town forever. Without giving too much away, a big change has happened for Jennifer, and the indie band they saw may have had more to do with it than they lead on. Jennifer has now found herself with an entirely new appetite, one where only the boys from school can suffice. It is now up to Needy to figure out what has happened and stop Jennifer from her deadly new streak. But Jennfier will not be stopped that easily.

This is a great film if you are looking for a dark comedy horror. The mix between horror and comedic relief is done just enough to keep you laughing while still delivering all the grotesque fun. When this film came out it received harsh reviews from critics and the audience. Many people would argue that the movie was ahead of its time. The writer, Diablo Cody, has even shared her thoughts on how the film was not marketed to the correct audience. Today, this film has created somewhat of a cult following and has marked its place in the horror world. Jennifer Check has truly become a staple in female horror.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics – 46% Audience – 35%

IMDb: 5.5/10

Promising Young Woman (2020)

This film entered the horror genre and slightly stayed under the radar after its release. Promising Young Woman offers a whole new light to horror for women, tackling a powerful perspective on female revenge like no other. While the film does not center around the usual horror tropes such as slashers or ghosts, it unveils the scary and real aspects of many women’s experiences.

Cassie Thomas is a woman in her 30s, who has dropped out of medical school and now spends her days working in a coffee shop. At night, however, she has acquired a much darker hobby. She spends her evenings pretending to be drunk while in bars. This may sound unusual, but Cassie has a good reason for this. She wants to find and confront men who are willing to take advantage of her if they believe she is truly drunk. As the movie goes on we find out there is a much bigger back story to why Cassie dropped out of medical school and chose this path of revenge for herself. The perfect opportunity presents itself to her, allowing her to finally right the wrongs of the past. 

This film explores female rage in a creative and somewhat satisfying way. There is nothing more terrifying than a “nice guy” who uses his kindness as his weapon to manipulate and hurt women. The film did tremendous reviews when it was released. Many people found it to be a fun and refreshing take on feminine rage surrounding the issues many women face today. 

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics – 90% Audience 87%

IMDb: 7.5/10

Last Night In Soho (2021)

This is a fun film that mixes horror and mystery, intertwined with some supernatural elements. The qualities all wrapped together really set this apart from your everyday supernatural horror movie. The film goes back and forth in time as our main protagonist, Eloise, starts to have dreams that take a much darker turn. It becomes difficult for her to understand what is real and make-believe.

Eloise is an aspiring fashion designer who has recently started at the London College of Fashion. Unfortunately, Eloise could not feel more out of place when she arrived at the school. She eventually moves out of her dorm and takes place in an older woman’s spare room for rent. This is where Eloise begins to have vivid dreams about a woman named Sandie, from the 1960s. Sandie is an aspiring singer and exudes the confidence and style that Eloise has always wanted. The dreams become a way for Eloise to live vicariously through Sandie, and apply that to her real life when she wakes up. However, these dreams start to mix with reality and they quickly take a turn for the worst. While Sandie’s life appears to be glamorous, it unveils itself to be anything but that. But she certainly didn’t let those who wronged her get away with it. Eloise is now putting pieces together and realizing that these dreams have just revealed a decades-long secret that she must now confront in order for her to move forward in life.

While the film did not exceed at the box office, it gathered praise from reviewers. Many people found the film thrilling and visually stunning. The movie does a wonderful job of shedding light on how women can not only be taken advantage of by men in power, but mistreated and abused as well. Uniquely and subtly, it even touches on the importance of sisterhood and how often women need each other.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics – 75% Audience 90%

IMDb: 7/10

You’re Next (2011)

This slasher follows a family dinner that is quickly turned into a nightmare when their secluded home deep in the country is surrounded and invaded by masked intruders. From start to finish, the movie follows a very tense and gruesome path with creative kills that lack nothing when it comes to gore.

Erin is a young woman joining her fiance, as they travel to his family’s isolated home. What starts as a tense and awkward reunion for the family quickly turns deadly when they discover a group of masked men have surrounded their home with the intent to kill. However, Erin is more skilled and prepared to fight than anyone imagined. She refuses to sit by in fear and wait for her timely demise. Instead, she fights back and wastes no time setting traps throughout the house. As the events unravel Erin starts to find that this is no random attack and people she thought she could trust may be more involved than they lead on.

This film received a mix of reviews during its release. Many viewers found it to be fun, giving it a great mix of brutality while still keeping that dark humor prevalent. The shocking twists and relentless killings are what made it the cult classic it is today, for many.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics – 80% Audience 60%

IMDb: 6.6/10

The Menu (2022) 

This film is another unconventional horror movie. It adds a wonderful mix of dark comedy never missing a chance to leave you completely unnerved. While there is minimal gore and jumpscares, the terror and tension is there. This film is a good example of being with the wrong person at the wrong time. Deconstructing, how we treat those around us and how that can lead to an unfortunate ending.

In the film, we follow Margot Mills, who is joining her date for the evening, Tyler to an exclusive restaurant on a private island by a celebrity chef, Julian Slowik. A small group of very wealthy and elite people are also joining them. Once the dinner begins it is done in a very interesting way. Slowick speaks with the group before each course, explaining what they are about to consume. However, as the night goes on, each course and the speech Slowick gives grows increasingly more uneasy. The evening starts to unravel and the reason behind each person at that restaurant is revealed. Slowick was intentional with who he invited for their last meal. Slowick has found that his love for cooking has become mundane and overshadowed by his customer’s lack of appreciation and love for his cooking. However, Margot has not been chosen by Slowick as she was a replacement for Tyler’s original date. Margot must now fight and find a way to escape the evening. All while understanding why Slowick has decided to personally choose these people for his last meal.

The film explores many different versions of horror for real-life situations. Whether that be sexual harassment in the workplace or mistreatment by those who feel superior to us. It ventures to share the idea that while people can have everything, they will still go around life demanding more and being ungrateful. One of the many praises this movie received was its ability to create such a tense and thrilling atmosphere. 

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics – 88% Audience – 76%

IMDb: 7.2/10

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