Males of the species are hereby thanked for their contributions to human civilization, but continued lapses of judgment (World War I, anybody?) confirm their lack of leadership ability. Women are better equipped to rule because women are more caring than men. Women are tougher than men. Women definitely are stronger than men.

So we noticed in a darkened movie house as we sat absorbed in the adventures of Diana, the warrior princess also known as Wonder Woman. In the excellent big-budget action film, “Wonder Woman,” a small band of good guys must save the day. They have gumption but wouldn’t make it out of the second reel alive without Diana and her sword, shield and heart. She’s got superhuman fighting skills and the ability to deflect bullets with her bracelets. Go ahead and call her a badass. She’s earned it.

You don’t need to possess a comic book collection or master’s degree in cinema studies to recognize the cultural significance of a female superhero starring in her own summer blockbuster. Nearly all the major action-adventure characters based on comics are male, among them: Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, Iron Man and Captain America. All the big Hollywood movies tell their stories. The few times a female character such as Catwoman or Supergirl got her own film, it was a flop.

“Wonder Woman,” based on the DC Comics character, looks destined to change the script. Critics are raving, and box-office projections look big. We caught a preview and loved it. It’s the rare popcorn flick with a message: Women rock. The Wonder Woman character, played by Gal Godot, made a cameo in last year’s “Batman v Superman.” If you saw it, you remember the scene in which she was knocked silly by Doomsday the monster and then got up with a wry smile on her face. C’mon, is that the best you got?

The subconscious mind of the typical male moviegoer is crammed with heroic images of tough guys fighting for truth, justice and the American way. Females, still fighting for equal treatment in society, don’t see nearly as many tales of their own sex’s valor. That’s got to have at least a subtle impact, especially on the psyche of girls. It also must impact boys who notice that nearly all take-charge action figures at the multiplex look like them.

This imbalance goes beyond comic book flicks. At the recent Cannes Film Festival, actress Jessica Chastain said she watched 20 movies and was disturbed by the weak portrayal of women, which she suggested was due to a dearth of female directors and writers. “I do hope that when we include more female storytellers, we will have more of the women that I recognize in my day-to-day life,” she said. “Ones that ... don’t just react to men around them. They have their own point of view.”

This puts pressure to succeed on films like “Wonder Woman,” directed by Patty Jenkins. Otherwise, more women won’t get the chance to make more female-driven action epics.

Back at the movie house, the early scenes of “Wonder Woman” implanted the idea of female empowerment. Jenkins’ direction had exactly the right touch. Diana and her tribe of super-cool, super-fit women looked beautiful as they trained for battle. Mostly they looked ferocious. If you’re ever in trouble, forget Superman — get in touch with Wonder Woman.

FROM AN EDITORIAL IN THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE