Gimme your 5-Star ratings... for chick flicks

La Belle et La Bete (1946).

Most of mine would be more around 4 stars.

It’s interesting. I do genuinely believe, as far as personal experience goes, that men enjoy films about ‘romance and relationships’ less. Is that controversial? I also feel like films centred around female characters with few or no male characters tend to be less plot-driven or full of ‘action’. Which are pretty definitive characteristics.

I’d suggest that one could quite easily argue why Black Swan isn’t a ‘chick click’ and it’s due to its relatively dark tone, misanthropic take on female rivalry (rather than the more optimistic ‘sisterhood’ narrative of something like Birds of Paradise), and a relatively voyeuristic portrayal of women (including the sex scene). Whereas something like Booksmart is more obviously a ‘chick flick’, seeing as it centres the female experience and makes zero effort (imo) to make anything or anyone visually appealing or erotic in the basic ‘male gaze’ sense. To me the distinction is perfectly real.

I agree that ‘chick flick’ is a ridiculous term, but if you just Google ‘films for women’, you get the exact same results, so I think the gendered distinction is quite real. Can you think of any films exclusively about ‘romance and relationships’ (inasmuch as one can even determine what a film is ‘about’, but, say, with no subplots whatsoever except who marries who) that appeal to a large percentage of men?

I can’t.

(…Carrie? )

There are definitely a few assumptions ingrained in the whole idea of a ‘chick flick’, such as that women don’t like explicit heterosexual sex scenes (I’m judging by my own old thread right here) or seeing other scantily clad women walk around in films (though, as a lifelong fan of the Bond franchise, I can’t begin to understand why not), or graphic violence, but inasmuch as we can agree that women dislike these things, then yeah, I think ‘chick flicks’ (or films aimed at women, if you will), are definitely a thing.

Chick flicks are romance films that women dream of the perfect guy.

One of my 4 stars is Pride and Prejudice (2005). Mr Darcy is an ass but by the end, you want to be Elizabeth Bennett.

I just enjoy Matthew MacFadyen's acting. I loved him on Ripper Street.

Love the Pride and Prejudice films I've seen many of them. Same for Jane Eyre & Wuthering Heights which I think I've seen every production of them.

Check this out: EVERY Brontë adaptation IMDB list

You want to see an unknown chick flick with Victorian edge, see Firelight (1997).

Thanks MG. Victorian settings are always cool.

Chick flicks is what snobbish film school students call romantic comedies .

Among my 5 star rom coms:
Notting Hill (1999)
Love Actually (2003)
The Family Stone (2005)
Playing by Heart (1998)

Kate and Leopold is a chick flick. Who wouldn't want to be romancized by a Victorian era Hugh Jackman. I would say a 4 star chick flick.

Some of my favorites that could fall into this category are About Time, Silver Linings Playbook, and The Best Years of Our Lives, though they are all male-led, I guess.

Mean Girls being mentioned often in this thread doesn't jive with the dismissive nature of the term because Mean Girls is great.

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Chick flick is no more dismissive than Guy flick, and is less dismissive than Dick flick (the opposite of a Chick flick) a term I've seen used here on MoFo.

Literally Chick flick and Guy flick just describe movies that appeal usual to one gender. Though in my case I'm a guy who doesn't like most Guy action flicks and yet I have liked Chick flicks, if they are well done or just plain fun.

I do agree. Always had a weakness for him. Even as Tom he’s kind of endearing.

You mean, who wouldn't want to severe all his limbs while burning him alive? Now, this sounds more up your alley, Liz.

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San Franciscan lesbian dwarves and their tomato orgies.

Again not funny.

Certainly not funny for poor Hugh.

I don't use either term anyway, but let's just not deviate from the main point of my post, which is the fact that Mean Girls is great.

Theif, you must be on the younger side and relate more to that film.

I am older and relate to how Andie was treated in Pretty in Pink.

Trust me, I'm closer to Pretty in Pink than I am to Mean Girls #TeamDuckie

Pretty in Pink is why I can't stand James Spader as an actor. Stef is a pure d*ck!

Awe... Think Spader is a great actor. Hence, maybe why you hate him in Pretty in Pink"...