30 Best Recent Movies to Watch On Netflix Germany (Page 2)

This movie’s energy is completely intoxicating.

It’s the directorial debut of renown British/Nigerian actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, but it feels like the work of a veteran.

In a true story told in English and Chichewa (a language from Malawi), a young boy is expelled from school because his parents couldn’t afford tuition. At the same time, his village is struck by a variety of natural circumstances that bring them the threat of drought and famine.

The young boy sneaks into the library in the hopes of making a windmill and saving his village, and you can guess what follows from the title.

The triumph of engineering and a boy with a dream; mix in an incredibly interesting culture, full of unique family dynamics and a thought-provoking intersection between religion, tradition, and technology. The result is a delicate but uplifting movie, not to be missed.

Genre: Drama, Family, History

Actor: Aissa Maiga, Bruno Chitsulo, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Eddie Mbugua, Edwin Chonde, Felix Lemburo, Fredrick Lukhere, Grace Msiska, Hope Chisano, Joseph Marcell, Kelvin Chimpokoser, Khalani Makunje, Latifa Tambala, Lemogang Tsipa, Lily Banda, Lomuthi Jere, Maxwell Simba, Noma Dumezweni, Owen Chikanken, Philbert Falakeza, Raymond Ofula

Director: Chiwetel Ejiofor

Rating: TV-PG

This is the first film directed by actor Macon Blair (so good in both Blue Ruin and Green Room), and while it is shaggy and tonally all over the place, there is a lot to recommend here. First off, I’m a huge fan of the (underrated) Melanie Lynskey, so I was primed to like this movie from the get-go. After Ruth’s (Lynskey) home is broken into, she seeks revenge against the perpetrators with help from her martial arts obsessed neighbor Tony (Elijah Wood, sporting an impressive rat-tail). What starts out as an empowering journey for Ruth & Tony quickly teeters into dangerous and increasingly violent territory. This movie is probably not for everyone, but if you’re a fan of 90s indie films and don’t mind some violence mixed in with your dark humor, then you will enjoy this small, well-acted film.

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Asha Sawyer, Audrey Walker, Chris Doubek, Christine Woods, Dana Millican, David Yow, Derek Mears, Devon Graye, Elijah Wood, Gary Anthony Williams, Jana Lee Hamblin, Jane Levy, Jared Roylance, Jason Manuel Olazabal, Jeb Berrier, Lana Dieterich, Lee Eddy, Macon Blair, Marilyn Faith Hickey, Matt Orduna, Maxwell Hamilton, Melanie Lynskey, Michelle Moreno, Myron Natwick, Ray Buckley, Robert Longstreet, Sharae Foxie, Taylor Tunes, Wrick Jones

Director: Macon Blair

Rating: Not Rated, TV-MA

Iceland is a country of vast lands but limited population - only about 300,000 people can call themselves Icelandic. On the other hand, 8 million people have connecting flights through Iceland every year. 

In this setting of mass movement, a single mother dealing with poverty is offered a chance to turn things around - a job as a border agent. One of her first days, she comes across an asylum seeker on a connecting flight from Guinea Bissau to Canada, trying to cross with a fake passport. 

Their stories don’t only intertwine as border agent and asylum seeker, but as two mothers. And Breathe Normally is about struggling with poverty both in Europe and coming from a place like Guinea Bissau. It’s a beautiful, plot-heavy statement on the importance of solidarity and of seeing the human behind the country of origin or race. 

Genre: Drama

Actor: Ísold Uggadóttir, Babetida Sadjo, Bragi Arnason, Gunnar Jonsson, Kristín Þóra Haraldsdóttir, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson, Sólveig Guðmundsdóttir, Sveinn Geirsson, Þorsteinn Bachmann

Director: Isold Uggadottir

Rating: TV-14

This lovely romance is about Ellie, a straight-A student who takes money from a classmate, Paul, to write love letters for him. Ellie does this to help with the household bills but there is one big problem: the girl Paul is in love with is also the girl Ellie has a crush on.

This might seem like the set-up for a standard Netflix comedy (and if you’re thinking Bergerac, you’re right, it is based on the famous play) but as the introduction of the film reads: “This is not a love story … not one where anyone gets what they want."

It is in fact, personal work from a brilliant and quality-focused director, Alice Wu. Her last movie, Saving Face, a pioneering lesbian romance set in an Asian American context, was released a long 15 years ago.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Actor: Abigail Donaghy, Alec Tincher, Alexandre Bagot, Alexxis Lemire, Becky Ann Baker, Billy Thomas Myott, Catherine Curtin, Collin Chou, Collin Chou Siu-Lung, Cronin Cullen, Daniel Diemer, Emma Diner, Enrique Murciano, Haley Murphy, Joan Jaffe, Joe Lanza, Leah Lewis, Logan Riley Bruner, Lucas Kane, Macintyre Dixon, Matt Meinsen, Patrick Noonan, Patrick T. Johnson, Spencer Wawak, Wolfgang Novogratz

Director: Alice Wu

Rating: PG-13

This Eddie Murphy comedy had all the ingredients to be both a famous movie and an award-winner, but neither happened. It tells the true story of Rudy Ray Moore, a comedian who became famous for creating a character called Dolemite, a pimp, and who later attempted to make his own movie based on the same character. Murphy plays Rudy, but there are also other recognizable faces in supporting roles: Chris Rock, Wesley Snipes, Keegan-Michael Key, Snoop Dogg, and many others. It's above all a funny movie, but being Eddie Murphy's first R-rated movie since 1999, it's also a realistic portrayal of both 1970s L.A. and the struggles of being a black filmmaker at the time.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, History

Actor: A.J. Tannen, Aaron Craven, Akono Dixon, Aleksandar Filimonović, Amy Keys, Baker Chase Powell, Barry Shabaka Henley, Bob Odenkirk, Brandon Stewart, Bubba Ganter, Chelsea Gilson, Cheryl Francis Harrington, Chris Rock, Claude Phillips, Cole S. McKay, Craig Brewer, Craig Robinson, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dale Gibson, David B. Lyons, Demetrius Hodges, Denise Milfort, Eddie Murphy, Erik Kilpatrick, Garland Whitt, Gerald Downey, Henry Monfries, Ivo Nandi, Jamaal Lewis, Jernard Burks, Jill Savel, John Michael Herndon, Joshua Weinstein, Kazy Tauginas, Keegan-Michael Key, Kezii Curtis, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Lamar Usher, Leonel Claude, Li Eubanks, Luenell, Michael Peter Bolus, Mike Epps, Milan Carter, Monique StaTeena, Phil Abrams, Quartay Denaya, Ron Cephas Jones, Sade E. Moore, Saudia Rashed, Snoop Dogg, T.I., Tasha Smith, Tituss Burgess, Tommie Earl Jenkins, Toni Duclottni, Wesley Snipes

Director: Craig Brewer

Rating: R

An 80-minute documentary about a diver who gets stranded in the deep sea with 5 minutes of oxygen left, while the nearest rescue team was 30 minutes away. This type of diving in the depths of the sea, as someone explains, is like “going into space but underwater”.

The documentary uses genuine footage from the dive as well as interviews of people who were present. Still, some parts of this incredible story can’t be explained. And if like me you’re not familiar with diving, everything will have more appeal. The vessel they use is quite impressive, the duration of its dive is obscene (28 days!), and lastly: the divers inhale helium (and speak with a funny voice) the whole time they are down there.

Genre: Documentary

Actor: Alex Parkinson, Chris Lemons, Duncan Allcock, Kjetil Ove Alvestad, Michal Cichorski, Richard da Costa, Stuart Anderson

Director: Alex Parkinson, Richard da Costa

Rating: N/A

This slow romance is set in a Seoul bakery during the 1990s. A boy fresh out of juvenile detention and a part-time employee fall for each other while working there. For a while, their existence is joyful and quiet as they sell bread and bond. However, the Asian financial crisis of 1997 forces the bakery to close. This makes them seek different jobs away from each other. As a romance, Tune in for Love is not original but it doesn’t need to. It’s just easy and enjoyable.

Genre: Drama, Romance

Actor: Choi Jun-young, Hae-In Jung, Heo Ji-na, Jang Se-won, Jung Eu-gene, Jung Eugene, Jung Hae-in, Jung Ji-woo, Jung Yoo-jin, Kim Go-eun, Kim Guk-hee, Kim Hyun, Kim Kuk-hee, Na Chul, Nam Moon-chul, Nam Mun-cheol, Park Hae-joon, Park Hae-jun, Park Se-hyun, Shim Dal-gi, Sim Dal-gi, Song Duk-ho, Yoo Yeol

Director: Ji-woo Jung, Jung Ji-woo

A thrilling French movie about a nuclear submarine division that is confronted with a world-ending scenario.

One sonar agent is at the center of the story, his exceptional hearing capabilities are the main resource of the submarine commanders he works for (one of whom is played by the masterful Reda Kateb).

Wolf’s Call tries very hard to be a Hollywood movie, but even if it serves as a reminder that countries like France don’t have to always make arthouse films to be noticed, the visual effects and the writing fall short of that big-budget feel.

Still, if you’re looking for a fun movie that’s full of surprises, solid acting, and a great heroism tale, you’ll love this.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller

Actor: Alexis Michalik, Antonin Baudry, Arthur Choisnet, Bastien Ughetto, Damien Bonnard, Etienne Guillou-Kervern, François Civil, Guillaume Clement, Guillaume Duhesme, Jean-Yves Berteloot, Léopold Bara, Marc Ruchmann, Mathieu Kassovitz, Nicolas Van Beveren, Omar Sy, Paul Granier, Paula Beer, Philippe Maymat, Pierre Cevaer, Reda Kateb, Sébastien Landry, Sebastien Libessart, Stefan Godin

Director: Abel Lanzac, Antonin Baudry

Rating: TV-14

The Platform is the closest thing to Parasite released so far. This interesting Spanish movie is about 90% a science-fiction drama and 10% a horror movie. It’s an allegory set in a future where prisoners live in vertical cells, and each cell has to wait for the cell above it to eat to get food. Depending on the floor where prisoners wake up, they might not get any food at all. This creates for disturbing situations that are hard to see as not representative of our modern societies.

Genre: Drama, Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller

Actor: Alexandra Masangkay, Algis Arlauskas, Antonia San Juan, Chema Trujillo, Emilio Buale, Gorka Zufiaurre, Iván Massagué, Ivan Massagué, Mario Pardo, Miren Gaztañaga, Miriam Martín, Txubio Fernández de Jáuregui, Zihara Llana, Zorion Eguileor

Director: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia

Rating: TV-MA

As the value of ivory appreciated by the Chinese middle-class, the demand for it has skyrocketed. This brought elephants to a dire outlook: extinction in as early as the next 15 years. “Traders in ivory actually want extension in elephants, the less elephants there are the more the price rises” as one of the commentators in the film says. To bring awareness to this threat, filmmakers went undercover for 16 months and followed the ivory from where it was stolen to where it hits the shelves of Hong Kong. The result is a genuine thriller, far more gripping than you’d expect from a documentary. It portrays the brave and hopeful men and women trying to combat these atrocities, the battle they may be losing, and all the obstacles they face. An extremely important watch.

Genre: Documentary

Actor: Andrea Crosta, Ian Stevenson, Kief Davidson, Prince William, Richard Ladkani

Director: Kief Davidson, Richard Ladkani

Rating: N/A, Not Rated