Film
Girls State
Girls State follows young female leaders from across Missouri as they build a government from scratch at an immersive week-long summer program. It's a fascinating, occasionally messy portrait of ambition, idealism, and the real mechanics of power—watching teenagers negotiate, compromise, and clash over actual stakes. Essential viewing for anyone curious about how political conviction forms, or what happens when you remove the adults from the room.
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Boys State2020
The spiritual predecessor that inspired this film. Watches the same experiment unfold with male participants in Texas, offering a striking comparison in leadership styles, priorities, and how gender shapes political engagement in unexpected ways.
But Some find the format repetitive if watched back-to-back. The pacing can drag during procedural moments, and not every delegate's arc is equally compelling.
The Social Dilemma2020
Examines how young people navigate influence and decision-making in a world shaped by technology and algorithmic manipulation. Shares Girls State's concern with how the next generation forms convictions and builds community.
But Often feels preachy and oversimplifies complex issues. Some sequences lean toward alarmism rather than nuance, which undercuts its credibility.
Hoop Dreams1994
A landmark documentary about ambition and systems. Like Girls State, it follows young people with real stakes as they navigate institutions designed to sort and rank them, revealing what those systems actually demand.
But At over three hours, it's a significant time commitment. Some viewers find the pacing glacial, and certain sections feel digressive.
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The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
The Act of Killing2012
Both films trust the camera to capture how people understand themselves and their role in larger systems, without voiceover judgment. Both reveal character through process and negotiation rather than declaration.
Documentary that puts subjects in control of their own narrative, asking them to stage and perform their own stories. Like Girls State, it's fascinated by how people construct identity and justify power when given the stage to do so.
But Deeply disturbing—it documents perpetrators of genocide. The ethical questions around giving a platform to unrepentant killers trouble many viewers, and it requires emotional stamina.
More like this (6)
The Dawn Wall2017
Captures the intensity of two people working toward an audacious goal under pressure. Explores negotiation, compromise, and what it costs to stay committed when things get genuinely hard—themes that run through Girls State.
But Primarily a climbing film, so if you're not drawn to that world, the technical detail may feel esoteric or tedious.
Knock Down the House2019
Follows four women challenging the political establishment in 2018. It's directly concerned with how women enter politics, the resistance they face, and the different approaches they take—echoing conversations in Girls State.
But Leans heavily on one candidate's narrative, which some felt was unbalanced. Also fairly explicitly pro-progressive, so conservative viewers may feel preached at.
RBG2018
Documents Ruth Bader Ginsburg's path to power, shaped by obstacles and strategy. Complements Girls State by showing how early conviction and political acumen in women eventually reshape institutions.
But Reverential in tone, which some find hagiographic. It doesn't engage seriously with criticism of her record or decisions.
Becoming2020
Michelle Obama reflects on how she navigated ambition, institutions, and power. While radically different in scope from Girls State, it speaks to how women enter spaces not designed for them and the internal conflicts that arise.
But Very personal and reflective rather than analytical. Some find it lacks critical distance, reading more as a memoir than investigation.
Minari2021
Both examine how young people inherit and resist the ambitions of the adults around them. Both are genuinely concerned with what democracy and opportunity actually mean—not the slogans, but the lived experience.
A narrative film about ambition, generational difference, and what gets sacrificed in pursuit of the American dream. While Girls State is documentary, Minari dramatizes the same tensions between idealism and survival, between what we want and what's demanded of us.
But Slow, meditative pace. Requires patience with quiet scenes and unstated emotion. Some viewers find the family dynamics muted or find the ending unsatisfying.
Shirley2020
Where Girls State shows girls performing versions of leadership within existing systems, Shirley asks what happens when a woman refuses to perform at all. Both are interested in the gap between external expectation and internal reality, between the role and the person.
A speculative biography of author Shirley Jackson during a period of creative crisis. It's a radical recasting of what ambition looks like in a woman who refuses to perform what others expect, making it a provocative mirror to the high-achieving girls in Girls State.
But Deliberately oblique and hostile toward the viewer in places. The tone is dark and the pacing can feel deliberately frustrating. Not cathartic or comforting.
People
Cast
- Faith GlasgowSelf
- Cecilia BartinSelf
- Nisha MuraliSelf
- Brooke TaylorSelf
- Emily WorthmoreSelf
- Maddie RowanSelf
- Tochi IhekonaSelf
Directing
- Amanda McBaineDirector
- Jesse MossDirector
Production
- Aurora BrachmanCo-Producer
- Khaula MalikCo-Producer
- Davis GuggenheimExecutive Producer
- Jonathan SilberbergExecutive Producer
- Laurene Powell JobsExecutive Producer
- Nicole StottExecutive Producer
- Sarah HaasLine Producer
- Amanda McBaineProducer
- Jesse MossProducer