Our sizzling six offer a daringly different take on the clichéd chick flick.

Beauty in Trouble [3]
A beautiful woman is torn between a burgeoning relationship with a wealthy, older suitor and a faltering loyalty for her ex-husband. Jan Hrebejk subtly portrays the seductive allure of the West for post-Communist societies through an immensely enjoyable comic drama.

Twisted Sister [4]
German superstar Heike Makatsch (whom you might remember as Alan Rickman’s secretary in uber-chick-flick Love Actually) writes and stars in this sophisticated and compelling exploration of a generation’s obsession with youth and the destructiveness of sibling rivalry.

Year of the Dog [5]
Comedy writer Mike White gets behind the lens in this fatalistically funny tale of a woman’s best friend. Molly Shannon is the canine-loving heroine, obsessively mourning the untimely end of her beagle. Stealthily subversive, it’s a hugely satisfying bittersweet comedy.

Solitary Fragments [6]
A gripping, delicately interwoven dual narrative that explores the secret lives of women as mothers, daughters, lovers and victims. Understated and emotionally rich, it gracefully moves between the story of a single mother and the chaotic lives of a female-dominated family.

A casa de Alice [7]
Ignored by her husband and sons, Alice finds her life take an unexpected turn when a man from her past returns and secrets begin to surface. Celebrated documentarian Chico Teixeira’s first narrative feature film simmers with sexual frankness and genuine investment in its characters: a real Latin gem.

Gentlemen Marry Brunettes [8]
Sisters are doing it for themselves in this classic follow-up to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. A highlight of our Anita Loos retrospective, Jane Russell and Jeanne Crain shine as showgirls Bonnie and Connie, who head for the hotspots of Paris, decked out in Dior.

Laura Smith