You may or may not be having a tough couple of weeks, and if you are, it’s totally valid! Now that the feelings of despair are subsiding, it might be time to take some action. But first, what better way to inspire you to enact change than some movies that are all about starting a revolution. I have the perfect list for you! Before you take on the world, take a gander at this list of 7 movies that will inspire you to start a revolution.

V For Vendetta (2005)

“Remember, remember the 5th of November”, is a famous line from V For Vendetta–and British history–and most Americans certainly won’t forget the 5th of November either. The Wachowskis are an iconic duo that have so much social commentary in all of their movies, and this one is no different. The film takes place in a totalitarian theocracy where genocide is disguised as morality. Natalie Portman stars as Evey as she and the infamous V (Hugo Weaving) burn it all to the ground.

The Color Purple (1985 / 2023)

There are two versions of The Color Purple and both are absolutely worth watching. The Color Purple follows the life of Celie, an African American woman experiencing incredible abuse and bigotry in the South. She is married off to a man who is equally as abusive as her family, which is when she decides she must find friendship and connection anywhere she can. This film shows how quickly one can lose their identity, but equally as quickly find it again through defiance and challenging what one may deem as the status quo.

They Live (1988)

What if you had a pair of sunglasses that could show you truly what the world is all about? That’s what John Nada (Roddy Piper) finds in They Live and it shows him how truly abhorrent the world he is living in is. Everywhere he turns there are advertisements that request everyone to obey and fall to consumerism and turn into mindless cogs. Nada is determined to fight for true humanity amidst an array of subliminal messages that steal the life from those who read them.

The Matrix (1999)

Another Wachowski great, The Matrix is all about revolution. Do you take the red pill or the blue pill? Neo (Keanu Reeves) is the chosen one who must travel the matrix in order to defeat an intense group of AI disguised as secret service agents determined to assimilate everyone. Neo and the rest of his crew make it their life mission to rip apart the façade that the dystopian world they’re living in presents. Its humanity or die, and this group of individuals is willing to die for the cause.

A League Of Their Own (1992)

A League Of Their Own is a must-see for anyone remotely interested in sports and abolishing sexism. After World War II depletes majority of the male athletes as they get sent to fight, an all-female baseball team from the Midwest pops up and plays tough to secure their spot in a legitimate position. A League Of Their Own has a movie and a TV show, and both are worth the watch. Both adaptations cover a pivotal moment in history, which is the formation of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The league no longer exists, but this was just the beginning of the fight for equality among men and women.

Hidden Figures (2016)

John Glenn gets all the credit for being launched into orbit in 1962. However, he couldn’t have done it without hardworking Black women; Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, at NASA. Hidden Figures is the story of these brilliant mathematicians and how they successfully were the brains behind the operation which led to the US leading the Space Race. The movie covers the gender and racial disparity that, unfortunately, does still exist today.

Selma (2014)

Selma focuses in on the 1965 voting rights marches that occurred between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. These marches were organized by Martin Luther King Jr., James Bevel, John Lewis, and Hosea Williams. Selma famously follows the trailblazing path these individuals took to achieve the right to vote. Selma gets bonus points for focusing in on the women who stood beside those at the frontlines and how their support carried the revolution.