100 Memorable and Great
'Chick' Flicks
pt. 1


After examining the 100 Greatest Guy Movies Ever Made and the 50 Best Guy Movies of All Time, it only seemed fair to put together a list of gal films or chick flicks (a demeaning and damning term, however, since this sub-genre of film was traditionally known as the "woman's film" in the 30s and 40s). Chick flicks have often been put down as trite, sappy, emotional, soap-opera-ish, cliched, melodramatic, weepy, and trivial. Familiar quotes or taglines from each film have been included. A useful resource for this subject is The Rough Guide to Chick Flicks by Samantha Cook, and the book author's own site www.chickflickguide.com.

See other lists in this site related to this subject area, such as:


Often considered an all-encompassing sub-genre, they mostly include dialogue-laden, formulated romantic comedies (with mis-matched lovers or female relationships), tearjerkers and gal-pal films, movies about family crises and emotional catharsis, some traditional 'weepies' and fantasy-action adventures, sometimes with foul-mouthed and empowered females, and female bonding situations involving families, mothers, daughters and children.

Actors and actresses typically associated with 'chick' flicks include Meg Ryan, Barbra Streisand, Hugh Grant, Mel Gibson, Emma Thompson, Renee Zellweger, Gwyneth Paltrow, Reese Witherspoon, Drew Barrymore, or Julia Roberts, among others. From the following list, it appears that 'chick' flicks have become a prominent staple of films beginning in the mid-1980s and after. Compared to the earlier "woman's film," film critic Molly Haskell has written that the:

"chick flick", chirrupy and upbeat, sings a different tune, more defiant and ironic, postmodern and post-feminist, like the growling braggadocio of "grrrl power". Where "grrrl power" says "I can be cute and assertive too", "chick flick" says: "I'm emancipated but it's OK to long for romance, to get hung up on a guy, to obsess about mothers or children."

Note: The films that are marked with a yellow star are the films that "The Greatest Films" site has selected as the "100 Greatest Films".



100 Memorable and Great 'Chick' Flicks
(part 1, chronological)

  1. It Happened One Night (1934)
    Together for the first time!
    "I come from a long line of stubborn idiots."

  2. The Women (1939)
    It's all about men!
    "There's a name for you ladies, but it isn't used in high society, outside of a kennel."
    "I've had two years to grow claws, mother. Jungle red."
  3. The Philadelphia Story (1940)
    Broadway's howling year-run comedy hit of the snooty society beauty who slipped and fell - IN LOVE!
    "Put me in your pocket, Mike."
  4. The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
    "Oh, my Dear Friend, my heart was trembling as I walked into the post office, and there you were, lying in Box 237. I took you out of your envelope and read you, read you right there."
  5. Casablanca (1942)
    They had a date with fate in Casablanca!
    "Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday you'll understand that. Now, now... Here's looking at you, kid."
  6. Brief Encounter (1946)
    A story of the most precious moments in a woman's life!
    "I'm a happily married woman - or I was, rather, until a few weeks ago. This is my whole world, and it's enough, or rather, it was until a few weeks ago. But, oh, Fred, I've been so foolish. I've fallen in love. I'm an ordinary woman. I didn't think such violent things could happen to ordinary people.    "
  7. Sabrina (1954)
    All's fair in love . . . with Sabrina Fair and her men!
    "We could build a raft and sail on the Pacific Ocean, like Kon Tiki. Or we could climb the highest mountain like Annapurna."
    "Keep talking, David. Keep talking."
  8. An Affair to Remember (1957)
    "Why didn't you tell me? If it had to happen to one of us, why did it have to be you?"

  9. Pillow Talk (1959)
    It's what goes on when the lights go off!
    "Mr. Allen, this may come as a surprise to you, but there are some men who don't end every sentence with a proposition."
  10. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
    Holly Golightly, the craziest heroine who ever crept between the pages of a best-selling novel!
    "You can always tell what kind of a person a man really thinks you are by the earrings he gives you."

  11. Barefoot in the Park (1967)
    Break the rules! Make love! Fall over laughing!
    "Paul, I think I'm gonna be a lousy wife. But don't be angry with me. I love you very much -- and I'm very sexy!"
  12. Camelot (1967)
    Relive the songs. Relive the romance. Relive the music. Relive the drama. Relive the magic.
    "Don't let it be forgot / That once there was a spot / For one brief shining moment / That was known as Camelot!"
  13. Funny Girl (1968)
    People who see FUNNY GIRL are the luckiest people in the world!
    (Looking in the mirror) "Hello, gorgeous."
  14. Love Story (1970)
    "Love means never having to say you're sorry."
    "What can you say about a twenty-five-year-old girl who died? That she was beautiful and brilliant? That she loved Mozart and Bach, the Beatles, and me?"
  15. The Way We Were (1973)
    Some memories last forever.
    "I feel like I've been invited for drinks, and everyone else is staying for dinner."

  16. The Goodbye Girl (1977)
    Thank you Neil Simon for making us laugh at falling in love...again.
    "And I don't - like - the panties - hanging -- on -- the rod!"

  17. The Turning Point (1977)
    Deedee: "Oh, Emma... if only she knew what we know now..."
    Emma: "It wouldn't matter worth a damn..."
  18. Grease (1978)
    Grease is the word.
    "Men are rats. Listen to me, they're fleas on rats. Worse than that, they're amoebas on fleas on rats."
  19. Nine to Five (1980)
    The power behind the throne.
    "...Up until now I've been forgiving and forgetting because of the way I was brought up, but I'll tell you one thing. If you say another word about me or make another indecent proposal, I'm gonna get that gun of mine and I'm gonna change you from a rooster to a hen with one shot! And don't think I can't do it."
  20. Somewhere in Time (1980)
    Beyond fantasy. Beyond obsession. Beyond time itself... he will find her.
    "Is it you?"
  21. An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
    "You know something, you ain't nothin' special. You got no manners, you treat woman like whores and if you ask me you got no chance of being no officer."
  22. Sophie's Choice (1982)
    "The truth does not make it easier to understand."
    "No, I can't choose, please don't make me choose!"
  23. The Big Chill (1983)
    In a cold world, you need your friends to keep you warm!
    "They're either married or gay. And if they're not gay, they've just broken up with the most wonderful woman in the world, or they've just broken up with a bitch who looks exactly like me. They're in transition from a monogamous relationship and they need more space. Or they're tired of space, but they just can't commit. Or they want to commit, but they're afraid to get close. They want to get close, you don't want to get near them."
  24. Flashdance (1983)
    Take your passion... And make it happen!
    "Don't you understand? You give up your dream, you die."
  25. Terms of Endearment (1983)
    Come to Laugh, Come to Cry, Come to Care, Come to Terms.
    "It's after ten. I don't see why she has to have this pain...It's time for her shot. Do you understand? Do something! All she has to do is hold on until ten, and it's past ten. She's in pain. My daughter's in pain. Give her the shot. Do you understand me? Give my daughter the shot!    "

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Created in 1996-2008 © by Tim Dirks. All rights reserved.