liz whittemore – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

MOVIE OF THE WEEK Sept 11, 2026: DEAR MS.: A REVOLUTION IN PRINT (In Memoriam for Gloria Steinem and Robin Morgan)

September 6, 2026September 6, 2026 Jennifer Merin alice gu, betsy bozcech, Cate Marquis, Cecilia Aldarondo, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print, documentary, gloria steinem, jane fonda, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, liz whittemore, loren king, motw, Movie of the Week, Ms, nell minow, Pat Carbine, salima koroma, sandie angulo chen, sherin nicole, women's movement

In a time when what it means to be a feminist seems to be as hotly contested as it ever has been, it’s illuminating to look back at the 1970s, when the “women’s lib” movement was hitting the mainstream. By telling the story of the magazine that strove to support and further that movement, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print reminds us of how much has changed since then…and how far we have to go. (AWFJ.org featured Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print as our MOTW on July 2, 2025, we do so again to honor Ms. Magazine co-founders Gloria Steinem and Robin Morgan, recently deceased.)

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK September 4, 2026: VIRGINIA WOOLF’S NIGHT & DAY

August 30, 2026September 6, 2026 Jennifer Merin betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Elyas M'Barek, Haley Bennett, Jack Whitehall, jennifer merin, Jennifer Saunders, Justine Waddell, leslie combemale, Lily Allen, liz whittemore, loren king, Misia Butler, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, Sally Phillips, Timothy Spall, Tina Gharavi

Based on the famous author’s 1919 novel, director Tina Gharavi’s Virginia Woolf’s Night & Day is an earnest feminist drama that centers on an intelligent young woman who’s chafing at the sexism and social limitations of life in 1910 Edwardian England. As she struggles to find a life path that’s not wholly controlled and defined by men, Katharine (Haley Bennett) must decide whether to prioritize intellectual or emotional fulfillment — unless there’s some way she can manage to have both.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK August 28, 2026: IF I TELL YOU

August 23, 2026August 25, 2026 Jennifer Merin Allison Miller, betsy bozdech, Bill Heck, carol kane, Cate Marquis, Etienne Kellici, if I tell you, Jennifer Manocherian, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, lisa O'Donnell, liz whittemore, loren king, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, Suncatcher Productions, Tessa blake

The consequences of misunderstandings and painful secrets become achingly clear in director/co-writer Tessa Blake’s family drama If I Tell You. Based on the book <em>Closed Doors by Lisa O’Donnell and old mostly through the eyes of 12-year-old Michael (Etienne Kellici) — who doesn’t realize why his usually happy household is on the verge of falling apart one otherwise idyllic Midwestern summer — it’s an earnest story about finding hope amid darkness.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK August 21, 2026 – FREEFALL: A RECKONING FOR BOEING

August 17, 2026August 18, 2026 Jennifer Merin 737 MAX, aviation, betsy bozdech, Boeing Corporation, Cate Marquis, Dreamliner, Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing, jennifer merin, John Barnett, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, Mark Bailey, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, Rory Kennedy, sandie angulo chen, whistleblower

Watching Rory Kennedy’s pressing, powerful documentary Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing — the follow-up to Kennedy’s equally compelling 2022 film Downfall: The Case Against Boeing — it’s impossible not to dwell on two thoughts: First, these days, the act of choosing to step foot on an American-built plane kind of feels like playing a game of Russian Roulette, and second, it’s appalling how blatantly this country continues to prioritize profits over people’s lives.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK August 7, 2026: COOKIE QUEENS

August 2, 2026August 8, 2026 Jennifer Merin Alysa Nahmias, betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Cookie Queens, Girl Scout Cookies, girl scouts, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, Roadside Attractions

Does the sight of a girl in a brown sash (or blue or green vest) immediately make you crave Thin Mints? If so, you’re definitely not alone. But chances are you haven’t spent too much time thinking about how those cookies got into the girl’s hands — or just how many boxes of them she has to sell if she wants to go to camp next summer. Alysa Nahmias aims to change that with her engaging documentary Cookie Queens.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK July 31, 2026: WILD INSIDE

July 26, 2026July 30, 2026 Jennifer Merin betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, central park zoo, eurasian eagle-owl, flaco, hbo documentaries, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, Penny Lane, sandbox films, wild inside

The captivating story of an escaped Eurasian eagle-owl named Flaco and the diverse city that embraced his flight to freedom is at the heart of director Penny Lane’s (Our Nixon, Nuts!) engaging documentary Wild Inside. Using Flaco and his adventures in Manhattan to anchor the film and give it structure, Lane spreads her own wings to thoughtfully explore a range of opinions and positions related to animal welfare and wellbeing.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK July 24, 2026: A LIFE ILLUMINATED

July 19, 2026 Jennifer Merin A Life Illuminated, betsy bozdech, bioluminescence, Cate Marquis, documentary, Edith Widder, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, monique jones, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, oceanography, sandie angulo chen, Tasha Van Zandt

If most people spent as much time thinking about what’s below the waves as they do what’s beyond the stars, chances are that more of them would know who Dr. Edith Widder is. But since that’s not the case, we can all be grateful to filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt for the excellent job she does presenting the pioneering oceanographer/marine biologist and her fascinating life’s work in the documentary A Life Illuminated.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK July 17, 2026: THE KIDNAPPING OF ARABELLA

July 12, 2026July 12, 2026 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments Benedetta Porcaroli, betsy bozdech, Carolina Cavalli, Chris Pine, italian films, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, Lucrezia Guglielmino, monique jones, motw, nell minow, sandie angulo chen, The Kidnapping of Arabella

Quirky and poignant, Italian writer/director Carolina Cavalli’s The Kidnapping of Arabella tells the story of a young woman named Holly, whose grief and childhood pain conspire to leave her believing that the space-time continuum has somehow brought her face to face with a younger version of herself. As she figures out what to do with that unlikely opportunity, she must ultimately face the reality she’d rather ignore. As the movie begins, Holly, who studies physics and is mourning the loss of her mother, is begrudgingly working at an ice rink, where she opts to blame small holes in the fabric of the universe for unusual moments like randomly finding a tooth on the ice. When, after scamming/bullying a fast-food worker into giving her a free order of fries, Holly encounters a feisty 8-year-old girl in the parking lot, she becomes convinced that the child is, in fact, her younger self, brought to her to give her a second chance at making better life choices. So when the girl offers to pay Holly for a ride to “anywhere but here,” they drive off together.

Reviews

MOVIE OF THE WEEK Archive: PETITE MAMAN (April 22, 2022)

July 7, 2026July 12, 2026 Jennifer Merin betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Céline Sciamma, french films, Gabrielle Sanz, jennifer merin, Joséphine Sanz, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, Nina Meurisse, Petite Maman, sandie angulo chen, Stéphane Varupenne

Quietly emotional and tenderly sincere, Petite Maman is a poignant tale about loss, connection, and growing up. Blending gentle fantasy elements with grounded, naturalistic performances, writer-director Céline Sciamma tells the story of 8-year-old Nelly, whose parents take her with them to clear out her mother’s childhood home after the death of her beloved grandmother. To her surprise, she finds much more waiting for her there than her mother’s old books and playthings.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK July 10, 2026: READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN

July 5, 2026July 5, 2026 Jennifer Merin Arash Marandi, Azar Nafisi, betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Daisy Miller, Eran Riklis, Golshifteh Farahani, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, marjorie david, monique jones, nell minow, Pride & Prejudice, Reading Lolita in Tehran, sandie angulo chen, The Great Gatsby, University of Allameh Tabatabei

It’s been more than 20 years since writer/English professor Azar Nafisi’s memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran became a New York Times bestseller — and nearly 50 since Nafisi began living through the events that inspired it. But her powerful story of politics, prose, and female perseverance under the shadow of Iran’s oppressive regime in the 1980s and ’90s feels extraordinarily timely in Israeli director Eran Riklis’ compelling adaptation which focuses on Nafisi as the main but includes other women’s stories that illustrate the many ways in which women have suffered in Iran since the revolution: Some were arrested and imprisoned, others were beaten, many have tense relationships with the men in their lives. The movie, like the book, makes it clear that the situation in Iran is complex and complicated: Nafisi loves her home and wants to believe it can have a better, brighter, more enlightened future — a sentiment that will likely feel all too familiar to many U.S. viewers these days.

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