Galentine’s Day is here: 5 perfect movies to watch with your girlfriends on Netflix

Who says you have to always celebrate romantic relationships? These five movies are perfect for watching with your best girlfriends.

There are a few common rituals when hanging out with your best girlfriends on a night in. From deciding on what food and beverages you want to consume to catching up on all the latest, there’s always quite a bit of talking. But the biggest question of all is of course… what on earth to watch on Netflix.

You see, on a day like Galentine’s Day, it should be easy to settle in with your friends, a perfect movie already selected for you. But no group of gal pals is exactly alike, so we’ve instead narrowed it down to five instead of one. Each movie has a slightly different aesthetic, and if you put one on after the other to have a multiple-feature night, well, we won’t blame you.

Becoming Jane

For the more Austen-y inclined group of friends, Becoming Jane moves beyond all the adaptations of her novels. Arguing about which adaptation of Pride & Prejudice is the best is the kind of thing you do not undertake lightly.

Instead, Austen herself is the main character in this film, as played by Anne Hathaway, and she gets a romance of her own with James McAvoy, who actually gets to keep his hair for once in an acting role. In short, you get all of the romance and the period costumes, without any of the debating about the superior Mr. Darcy, because you really could make a case for either.

Black Panther

Not only does this movie have a lot of powerful women — from Okoye to Nakia to Ramonda to Shuri — there’s also a lot of eye candy. We’re not saying that Black Panther isn’t an extremely important movie, even if it’s not necessarily flat-out feel-good. We are saying, however, that it has a lot to offer beyond just being a mega-popular Marvel superhero movie.

We’re definitely talking about the Grammy-winning score (as well as the soundtrack). Definitely not Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, or Winston Duke. Nope.

Additionally, since it’s pretty long, you probably won’t need to come up with a follow-up movie. If you do, we definitely don’t suggest Avengers: Infinity War. Try Ant-Man and the Wasp instead, because it’s shorter and funnier.

Miss Hokusai

Miss Hokusai is perhaps the true outlier here, in that while a woman is the main character, it doesn’t have any real action. What it is, however, is a gorgeously animated story based on the real-life artist Katsushika Oi, daughter of Katsushika Hokusai. If someone in your friend group has something with The Great Wave off Kanagawa on it, then this is absolutely your pick.

Additionally, it’s pretty short, clocking in at 90 minutes, so you may have an easier time making this one a double feature than other titles on this list. In fact, it might actually pair well with Becoming Jane as two stories of women who made art.

Hairspray

For the musical-loving set who can’t get over early Zac Efron, there is no better pick than Hairspray. The story of Tracy Turnblad’s experiences in ’60s Baltimore is full of bops that’ll be stuck in your head for days after, but it also features a lot of strong female friendships.

Also, this movie somehow has Queen Latifah, James Marsden, Amanda Bynes, Michelle Pfeiffer, and more in its cast. In other words, there’s probably at least one actor that everyone can appreciate.

For bonus points, pick whose parts you’ll sing along to before the movie starts. Don’t be afraid to go for it. Who says you can’t be Link Larkin? Not us, and hopefully not your friends!

A Wrinkle in Time

The last title on our list is perhaps the most oddball, as it’s a movie primarily intended for kids. But Meg Murry’s story involves Mindy Kaling, Oprah, and Reese Witherspoon playing her guides on the journey, beautiful costumes, and ultimately the story of one girl learning about her own strengths while on a journey to rescue her dad.

What’s more celebratory than that for a group of friends? It’s hard to think of something off of the top of our heads.

What’s your favorite movie to watch with your girlfriends?