Want to kick back with your gal pals for a much needed movie night? We hear you. No matter if you're able to hang in person or are opting for a video-chat virtual hang, the choices for what to watch together can be overwhelming! That's why we've dug through Netflix's current selection of rom-coms, buddy comedies, tearjerkers, and female-focused fun to single out the very top of the crop. Whether you want something sweet, snarky, sentimental, suspenseful, silly, or savage, we've got you covered.
Here are the top 10 best options for a Gals Night In, all of which are now streaming on Netflix:
1. The Runaways
Having helmed music videos for the likes of Björk, Sheryl Crow, Christina Aguilera, and Fiona Apple, director Floria Sigismondi was a perfect pick to bring this banging biopic about the glass-ceiling-shattering girl group to the big screen. The Runaways barreled onto the male-dominated 1970s music scene with unbridled ambitious, raucous rebellion, and explosive charisma. Their magic and mayhem is recaptured with a crackling ensemble that boasts Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie, Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett, Stella Maeve as Sandy West, Scout Taylor-Compton as Lita Ford, and Michael Shannon as their mercurial manager, Kim Fowley. All this collides to make a film that's popping with exciting heroines, ferocious fashion, and a soundtrack that demands you crank up the volume.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
2. To All The Boys I've Loved Before
Based on Jenny Han's YA novel of the same name, this teen rom-com centers on wistful wallflower Lara Jean Covey (Lana Condor), who spends her school days steering clear of mean girls, then her nights dreaming of epic romances with various crushes. Her active imagination not only leads to whimsical fantasy sequences, but also to penning a series of love letters that she never intends to send. Naturally, the letters get out, leaving Lara Jean's most secret desires exposed! To dodge the reaction from one crush in particular, she conspires with kind-hearted jock Peter Kavinsky (It Boy Noah Centineo) to be her pretend boyfriend. Amid shared scrunchies, love-dovey lock screens, yogurt drinks, and one steamy hot tub tryst, things get complicated as their fake romance sparks real feelings. (For a DIY double-feature, pair Susan Johnson's praised pic with its love-triangle sequel, To All The Boys, P.S. I Still Love You(opens in a new tab).)
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
3. Carol
Want to swoon as a crew? Turn to Todd Hayne's glamorous adaption of Patricia Highsmith's novel The Price of Salt. Rooney Mara stars as a wide-eyed shop girl with ambitions of becoming a photographer. Yet, her path seems set and small, even amid the dazzling possibilities of 1950s New York City. She'll probably marry some man, have kids, and then become like the vacuous women who swan around the department store where she works. That is until she meets Carol, an elegant vision of womanhood, who catches her eye and calls her a girl "flung out of space." What begins as a fascination fast blossoms into an intoxicating romance. Brimming with color, lust, and texture, this critically adored drama embraces audiences with the thrill, threat, and freedom of forbidden love. Sarah Paulson, Jake Lacy, John Magaro, and Kyle Chandler co-star.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
4. Always Be My Maybe
What if the one who got away got a second chance? Back in the day, Sasha and Marcus were tight as a slap bracelet. But one fumbled night in a sweaty backseat seemed to shatter their future together. 15 years later, she's a world-renowned chef and he's — well — he's working for his dad's HVAC business and playing with his band on the side. Still, fate arranges for them to reconnect, which could mean Marcus (Randall Park) has a shot to show Sasha (Ali Wong) how he feels. However, the stakes get high when Keanu Reeves crashes the party, being all weird and hot and having the audacity to be Keanu Reeves! This Nahnatchka Khan-helmed laffer also boasts appearances by James Saito, Charlyne Yi, Karan Soni, Daniel Dae Kim, and Michelle Buteau.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
5. The Lovebirds
Want a romantic comedy with a solid streak of action? Michael Showalter, the helmer behind such envelope-pushing rom-coms as The Big Sick and The Baxter, offers a thrilling adventure of mistaken identities, murder, and mayhem. Smoke-show comedians Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani star as Leilani and Jibran, a couple who started out hot and heavy but have witnessed the passion slowly bleed out of their relationship. Then, what starts off as another night of mandatory fun and beleaguered bickering derails when they are framed for a hit-and-run homicide. Fleeing from cops and crooks, these two will have to team up to clear their names. Along the way, they rediscover their spark…as well as how good Rae looks in a unicorn onesie.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
6. Adrift
Seeking a film that will make your heart race with elation, terror, and tragedy? Then check out this twisted tearjerker that's based on real events. In 1983, Tami Oldham was a twenty-something on an ocean-trekking adventure with the man of her dreams, a dashing British sailor named Richard Sharp. With a boat of their own, the world was their oyster. Then, a catastrophic hurricane hit, devastating their ship, their bodies, and their chances at survival. In Baltasar Kormáku's rapturously realized drama, Shailene Woodley and Sam Claflin bring this story of love and resilience to life. Be warned: You'll want tissues handy.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
7. Lady Bird
Being a teen girl is a unique hell. Few films capture this frenzy of hormones, angst, obstinacy, insecurity, and recklessness as deftly and humorously as writer/director Greta Gerwig's coming-of-age dramedy. Saoirse Ronan stars Lady Bird, a self-named 16-year-old girl who views her Catholic high school, working class constraints, and hovering mother as insufferable obstacles to her inevitable greatness. Ravenous to carve out her own identity, she throws herself at boys, into fights with her exasperated mother (Laurie Metcalf), and out of a car! Yet even in her most outlandish moments, this gonzo girl's journey feels achingly relatable. If you're game to feel 16 again, check out this critically heralded stunner that is specific, insightful, and achingly vulnerable. Tracy Letts, Beanie Feldstein, Lucas Hedges, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Timothée Chalamet co-star, sprinkling in humor, heartbreak, and f*ckboi-style hotness.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
8. Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room
Want to crack up and commiserate about the joys and trials of being a mom? Turn to sparkling stand-up comic Katherine Ryan. Bedecked in a bedazzled floral top with crisp red lipstick, she's a smirking vision of feminine beauty as she unfurls dirty jokes that'd make your father blush. The audience of her comedy special is welcomed in with a conspiratorial tone and invitingly mischievous grin, as if we're all girlfriends gathered for an all-you-can drink brunch. Her stories come fast, furious, and savagely funny, thanks to her cutting candor, feminist edge, and outrageous punch lines. Whether you want to chuckle over dating, parenting, Celine Dion, or Hamilton(opens in a new tab), Katherine is your girl.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
9. The Breaker Upperers
This hidden gem comes from New Zealand, the fertile comedy ground that gave us Taika Waititi, Flight of the Conchords, and What We Do In The Shadows. Waititi collaborators Jackie van Beek, James Rolleston, and Jemaine Clement team up for a deeply quirky buddy comedy about two long-time besties with a bonkers — but brilliant — business model. Need someone to dump your partner so you can avoid a messy confrontation? Call on Jen and Mel (co-writers/co-directors/co-leads van Beek and Madeleine Sami). For a reasonable fee, these fearless Breaker Upperers will impersonate police officers, play pregnant, or even fake your death to help you ghost an ex. Whatever the shenanigans, van Beek and Sami sparkle. Booming with wild humor and big heart, this comedy is guaranteed to leave you cackling.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
10. Banana Split
It can be brutal when your ex moves on to someone new, especially when his new girlfriend is pretty, nice, and cool. Sure, you could stew in jealousy — and who could blame you! But what if you befriended her instead? That unexpected turn is the inciting incident of Benjamin Kasulke's bubbly buddy comedy. After splitting with her hunky boyfriend Nick (Dylan Sprouse), eccentric April (co-writer Hannah Marks) was prepared to spend the summer in lonesome misery. Then, she partied with her ex's new girlfriend, the lovely Clara (Liana Liberato). Much to her surprise, they click instantly and intensely, becoming the bosom bestie each desperately needs. The trick is just never to talk about or tell Nick…but how long can that last? Surprisingly sweet and unapologetically silly, Banana Split is a total treat.
How to watch: Netflix(opens in a new tab)
