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Kiki’s Delivery Service
I’ve mentioned the Miyazaki film Kiki’s Delivery Service a couple of times already on this blog, as an example of what I call “reverse Girls Underground” – that is, when the protagonist starts out in...
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Nightbreed
Just a quick note on an “Honorable Mention” – the movie Nightbreed based on a Clive Barker story. This is an example of “If the story were about her” – the protagonist’s girlfriend Lori goes in search...
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The Cats of Tanglewood Forest
“‘I don’t want to be in a new world,’ Lillian said. ‘Maybe so,’ the crow said, ‘but you don’t want to go back to the old one just yet, because over there you’re a dead little snakebit girl.'” The Cats...
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Witch’s Sister
This one is really just an Honorable Mention, but I’m featuring it because of how influential this series was to me when I was younger – I rediscovered it at the library recently, and realized it was,...
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The Forbidden Library
“But this was the way the world was. It was deeper and stranger and scarier than she’d ever imagined, but it was real. To forget, to give up now, would just be giving in to her fear. And Alice’s...
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The Riverman
The Riverman by Aaron Starmer isn’t a GU book, but it deserves a mention here – and not just because it was so unique and riveting that I was literally unable to put it down, and read it all in a...
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American Horror Story
This is another example of “If the Story Were About Her“. If you watch the first season of the television show American Horror Story from the perspective of the daughter, Violet, it appears to be a...
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Housebound
I just watched the movie Housebound, and while it wasn’t quite a full GU story, it was at least worth an Honorable Mention here. For one thing, it all takes place in a house (like so many of my...
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The Courage of Cat Campbell
“Believing in yourself and your magic is half the battle.” I picked up The Courage of Cat Campbell by Natasha Lowe figuring it might be a GU book because of the genre (intermediate fantasy) combined...
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Mr. Frost
I just watched Mr. Frost for the first time – somehow I missed this 1990 gem with Jeff Goldblum, who I love, and had to track it down on Youtube. Partway through it occurred to me that it was probably...
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Raven Speak
Raven Speak by Diane Lee Wilson is set in ancient Norway, during a winter with no end. Asa’s clan is dying of disease and starvation. Her father, the chieftain, has sailed off in search of food, and...
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At the Devil’s Door
At the Devil’s Door is a fairly mediocre horror movie but with an honorable-mention level GU plot. You might think that the first character you meet, a teenage girl, is the Girl Underground, but it’s a...
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The Final Girls
The Final Girls is probably just an Honorable Mention as far as the GU archetype goes, but worth mentioning, as it cleverly references the old slasher movies that are often themselves Girls Underground...
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The Near Witch
The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab is really only an Honorable Mention as far as the GU archetype goes, but well worth reading. Teenager Lexi lives in a small village named Near (in some undefined time...
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The Door
I was excited for The Door by Andy Marino because the title so nicely alludes to “portal” part of Portal-Quest Fantasy (of which Girls Underground is an example), however it turned out to only be an...
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American Fable
I just had a chance to watch the independent film American Fable, and while it’s not quite the classic GU story, it hits enough points (and the general tone) to warrant an Honorable Mention here. It is...
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The Giant Under the Snow
The Giant Under the Snow by John Gordon is another great children’s fantasy book from the late 60’s, like The Gruesome Green Witch and A Walk Out of the World, albeit only an Honorable Mention as far...
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Dig Two Graves
Dig Two Graves was unfortunately less creepy and supernatural than the trailer made it seem, but nonetheless it’s at least an Honorable Mention as a Girls Underground story. Jake, a young teenage girl,...
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A Cure for Wellness
A Cure for Wellness is a movie with a lot of potential to be something truly original and creepy, and it has some stunning visuals, but ultimately it was very disappointing for me, especially in the...
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The Girl With All The Gifts
I just re-watched The Girl With All The Gifts (so good it merited a second viewing), and decided it qualifies as at least an Honorable Mention as a Girls Underground story (there’s a lot more going on...
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