Every month, Prime Video — one of the best streaming services around — updates its already extensive library with fresh new movies and TV series for your binging pleasure. August 2026 has been no different, and with that influx of new streaming options comes one of the most harrowing dramas of the past few years.
"Women Talking" is a Sarah Polley-directed film starring some of the industry’s finest talents (Oscar winners Jessie Buckley and Frances McDormand among them) and centered on an increasingly timely discussion of female agency, bodily autonomy and systemic abuse.
If the 2022 indie sounds like a heavy watch, it’s because it is; but it’s also a vital and riveting one, thanks to that stellar all-star cast and a screenplay that nabbed Polley a deserved Academy Award. It didn’t make a ton of money at the box office (in fact, it only grossed $9 million against a $20 million budget, making it a veritable box office bomb). Still, if you weren’t one of the few who saw it in theaters, you can now catch up on the deeply moving drama on Prime Video.
What is 'Women Talking' about?
Adapted from Miriam Toews's acclaimed 2018 novel of the same name, “Women Talking” centers on the tragic story of a group of Mennonite women — played by Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, Judith Ivey, Sheila McCarthy, Frances McDormand, among others — who are being abused by the men in their close-knit, ultra-conservative community.
Much of the action of the film revolves around, as the title suggests, discussions between the women in the days leading up to the jail release of the accused men, as the mothers and daughters try to reconcile the harsh realities of the systemic abuse with their devout faith, and vote on their future: will they continue on as usual, remain in the community but fight back against the injustice, or leave their world altogether?
Why I recommend you stream 'Women Talking'
Though woefully underseen by the public, Polley’s gripping drama did manage to score a coveted Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards, no doubt, in part, for the way the film masterfully retains its tension and intensity despite very little physical action and balances intellectual complexities with emotional depth.
The raw lead performances, too, are reason enough to watch, with Jessie Buckley tapping into understandably seething fury over the hypocrisy and brutality of the community’s men, and Rooney Mara conversely offering up a quieter but no less devastating turn as a mother to be weighing what’s best for her and her child.
"While 'Women Talking' sometimes forsakes entertaining drama in favor of simply getting its points across, its message is valuable-and effectively delivered,” reads the critical consensus over on Rotten Tomatoes, where the film has a solid 90% approval rating.
Stream "Women Talking" on Prime Video now
