Brave

In Brave, what looks like a CGI rendering of Janet from The X Factor progresses to the last stage of the competition, where she has to be as spunky as the boys; if she wins, she'll be allowed to rule the kingdom of (judging by the accents it contains) Ireland, Scotland or a Walkabout pub. Something like that, anyway. The film poses the vital question: if you had the chance to change your fate, would you? As it's a Disney film, out August 2012, we imagine she'll choose "yes".

The Hunger Games

Due in March 2012, The Hunger Games introduces us to Katniss Everdeen, who, in some dusty future world, volunteers to represent her district at the Hunger Games to save her little sister's life. Some 24 teenagers go in, one comes out. In the trailer, Jennifer Lawrence's Katniss has her legs waxed and enters a beauty contest before she can make it through the first round of the competition. We can't wait for the scene where the boys are made pretty!

Arrietty

Available on Blu-ray and DVD in January, this is the animated story of a family of Borrowers – and Arrietty is the little girl who trails round after her dad like a scared mouse, until she makes friends with a full-size human boy. "When I saw you, I just wanted to find a way to protect you," he says. Yes, it's Why Do Short Girls Always Date Tall Men: The Movie.

Snow White & The Huntsman

Bella from Twilight's got some theoretical balls and a sword in this 2012 release. The sheer amount of mud in the trailer tells us this girl's not afraid to get her hands – or hair! – dirty. A true heroine for the L'Oréal generation. Although Charlize Theron's evil queen has ordered the Huntsman to kill Snow White because she's hotter. Typical girls, eh?

Haywire

Finally, Haywire (due in January) brings us a female action hero we can get on board with: Mallory Kane. She's tough, she's better at fighting than the blokes, and she's got a totally cute Louis Vuitton bag. She's also a professional assassin on the run from her former employer, who has turned against her and now wants to kill her. So far, so cliched, but she's played by mixed martial arts star Gina Carano, so she may actually stand a chance of being convincing.

Kick-Ass 2

Kick-Ass. Photograph: Rex

In the much-anticipated – if not actually green-lighted just yet – Kick-Ass 2, the now 11-year-old Hit Girl is a bitter, retired superhero. A tough break for Chloë Moretz, but welcome to Hollywood (past it by 11; she'll be due her first Botox sessions by the end of the year). It's been suggested that any sequel would be "dark", which – as the comic features Red Mist turning evil to recruit a gang of super-villains, the Toxic Mega Cunts, on Twitter – might be an understatement.