2. Ginger Snaps (2000)
Female werewolves are not as common in horror, but Ginger Snaps is one of the few films that smartly pairs the supernatural curse with another real-life “curse” that most young women undergo: getting their first period. The story follows a pair of outcast sisters with a taste for the macabre and a desire to escape the mundanity of suburbia. After Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) is bitten by a dog, she goes through odd changes, becoming more aggressive, hypersexual, and menstruating heavily.
Ginger Snaps skillfully interweaves themes of girlhood with lycanthropic folklore, such as questioning whether a silver navel piercing can offer a cure or seeking animalistic revenge on the cruel, bullying popular girls. With its feminist edge, Ginger Snaps is a sharp and wickedly funny take on teenage humiliation, not only a fierce werewolf film but also a great coming-of-age story.
