St. Thomas Libraries Blog

Today we celebrate the accomplishments of women in all areas of society, social, political, and economic.
To help you celebrate the day, we put together some of our favorite documentaries, made by women, for everyone to learn more about what it means to be a woman today.

 The F Word
Summary: Why does the word “feminism” have so many different meanings in the United States? Men and women from diverse backgrounds are interviewed to try to answer this question while creating a platform for discussion about gender roles, stereotypes, and the feminist movement.

A Girl Like Her
Summary: A girl like her reveals the hidden history of over a million young women who became pregnant in the 1950s and 60s when “nice girls” didn’t get pregnant. It was a time when young women were routinely expelled from high schools and colleges and banished to maternity homes or distant relatives where they could give birth, surrender their babies for adoption, and start over with a clean slate. But did they? The film combines footage from educational films and newsreels – that both reflected and shaped the public’s understanding of single pregnancy during that time – with the voices of these mothers as they speak today about the long-term impact of surrender and silence on their lives.

Wonder Women! : The Untold Story of American Superheroines
Summary: A nuanced critique of gender and heroism in popular culture as well as a powerful dose of Vitamin F(eminism) for the undernourished. From the birth of the 1940s comic book heroine, Wonder Woman, to the blockbusters of today, Wonder Women! looks at how popular representations of powerful women often reflect society’s anxieties about strong and healthy women. Wonder Women! reveals the complicated negotiations girls and women face as they attempt to achieve confidence, strength, and agency in a society often at odds with those goals. Yet it also inspires through its evocative images, upbeat soundtrack, and richly contextualized history of American superheroines — including the everyday wonder women and action girls in our midst. The film goes behind the scenes with Lynda Carter, Lindsay Wagner, comic writers and artists, and real-life superheroines such as Gloria Steinem, Kathleen Hanna, and others who offer an enlightening and entertaining counterpoint to the male-dominated superhero genre.

Come check out these films and more on this topic at the Music and Media Collections in OSF 104A.

By Nicole Wanttie

Happy Valentine’s Day Tommies,
Love is in the air. To help you feel the love, we’ve gathered a few of our favorite romcoms to share with you all. Take a look at some of the films we have available for you to check out!
10 Things I Hate About You. Modern day adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew”. Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles) is beautiful, smart and quite abrasive to most of her fellow teens, meaning that she doesn’t attract many boys. Unfortunately for her younger sister, Bianca (Larisa Oleynik), house rules say that she can’t date until Kat has a boyfriend, so strings are pulled to set the dour damsel up for a romance. Soon Kat crosses paths with handsome new arrival Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger). Will Kat let her guard down enough to fall for the effortlessly charming Patrick?

Mamma Mia (2 Disc Collection) New to our collections is the 2-disc collection of Mamma Mia and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again sing Along Editions. Mamma Mia is the story of a bride-to-be trying to find her real father told using hit songs by the popular 1970s group ABBA. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again: “Join the celebration, sing and dance, and discover how it all began! … Sophie … is now pregnant, and like her mother Donna … she’ll need to take risks.”
Titanic A timeless love story born of tragedy that created an international phenomenon. This epic masterpiece is destined to sweep audiences anew into the journey of a lifetime. If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, try checking our online display for more movies on our streaming databases.

Have a particular film in mind that you want but still haven’t found it on there? Come into the Music and Media Collections in OSF 104A. We’ll be happy to help you find what you’re looking for.

By Nicole Wanttie

The Holiday season is approaching fast and if you’re not already in the holiday spirit, these movies may do the trick.

Jingle all the Way

“A father vows to get his son a Turbo Man action figure for Christmas. However, every store is sold out of them, and he must travel all over town and compete with everybody else in order to find one.”

Filmed right here in the Twin Cities!

All is Bright

“While out on parole, Dennis reluctantly takes a job selling Christmas trees with his old buddy Rene in order to make enough money to buy his estranged daughter the piano she’s always wanted.”

The Nutcracker
“The story of The Nutcracker is loosely based on the story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, about a girl who befriends a nutcracker that comes to life on Christmas Eve and wages a battle against the evil Mouse King.”

Come into the Music and Media Collections (OSF Library 104A) to see what movies we have on our holiday display that are available for check out.

A Christmas Carol
“At first, miserable, greedy old Scrooge can’t tolerate the revelry of Christmas, much less comprehend its meaning. But visits from his former business partner’s ghost and three cautionary specters from the past, present and future force the man to soul-search.”

It’s a Wonderful Life

A man is saved from a suicide attempt by an angel and is then shown how important he is to the people who love him. A Christmas classic.”

By Nicole Wanttie