Sally Hawkins

Set in 1968, Made in Dagenham fictionalizes a true story about a group of female sewing machinists employed by Ford who were tired of being classified as unskilled labor and went on strike for equal pay. Their efforts ultimately led to the Equal Pay Act of 1970. The women are led by Rita O’Grady (Sally Hawkins), a modest working-class woman who continues to surprise herself and others with her natural aptitude to organize, negotiate, and lead an important political cause that is still relevant.

The run up to the Oscars is dominated by best-of lists, and - with few exceptions (including the Women Film Critics Circle Awards) - most of those lists end up looking just about the same: dominated by men, featuring only a small handful of female performers. Which is why it was so exciting this past weekend to see The New York Times list of the year's best. While not quite chock full of women, the list does draw attention to some fine filmmaking and performances by women that are not likely to draw attention at the major awards ceremonies this year. If you missed any of these in the theaters last year, you'll want to make sure to add them to your DVD queues this year.  Highlights after the jump...