Chasing the feel of watching Forrest Gump ? Here are the movies we recommend you watch right after.
Genre: Drama, Music
Actor: Anthony Smee, Bill Paterson, Carla Mendonça, Celia Imrie, Charles Dance, David Morrissey, David Shimwell, Delia Lindsay, Emily Watson, Grace Chatto, James Frain, Jon Rumney, Keylee Jade Flanders, Kika Mirylees, Linda Spurrier, Maggie McCarthy, Nick Haverson, Nyree Dawn Porter, Rachel Griffiths, Robert Rietti, Rupert Penry-Jones, Vernon Dobtcheff
Director: Anand Tucker
A mother and her two children move from Colombia to Queens, New York to join the father. Once there, he abandons them and moves to Miami.
With no family to fall back on, barely speaking English, an inexistent social welfare system and two little kids who require care; the mother quickly runs out of options. At first, she tries to sell empanadas in the street, then tries to become a temporary worker, but a mixture of obstacles keeps getting in the way.
Entre Nos is about the precariousness of the immigrant experience: about how quickly things can go wrong. But it’s also about how survival instincts and motherly love can stand in the face of complete desperation.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Andres Munar, Annie Henk, Anthony Chisholm, Clem Cheung, Eddie Martinez, Farah Bala, Felipe Bonilla, Jacqueline Duprey, Laura Montana, Paola Mendoza, Sarita Choudhury, Sebastian Villada
Director: Gloria La Morte, Paola Mendoza
Filmmaker Petra Costa tells the story of moving to New York from Brazil to follow her dream, the same one her mother once followed, of becoming an actress.
She carries memories of a third person who made the same move, a sister called Elena. Elena left her when she was seven-years-old, and after intermittent calls and messages, disappeared.
This documentary is a tale of three women: of their feelings separation, longing, and ambition. It’s made to be a visual poem of their story.
Genre: Documentary, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Elena Andrade, Li An, Petra Costa
Director: Petra Costa
Genre: Drama
Actor: Amber Havard, Rob Morgan, Sarah Albright, Troy Hogan, Yolonda Ross
Director: Annie Silverstein
A sweet and wholesome tale of two boys falling in love against the backdrop of 90s homophobia and social issues. Jamie is a heavily bullied high schooler whose only sanctuary is his family's low-income apartment. His mom Sandra decides to also make that apartment a sanctuary for Ste, another highschooler suffering from an abusive father and older brother. They share Jamie's bed and their prospect of friendship quickly turns into something else.
Beautiful Thing is beautifully scripted and never too emotional. In fact, whenever the story moves towards the emotional, a funny scene is introduced to ease the tension. Many of these scenes feature Sandra's boyfriend, a well-spoken hippie by the name of Tony. Features heavy British accents, subtitles may be necessary!
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Andrew Fraser, Anna Karen, Ben Daniels, Beth Goddard, Davyd Harries, Garry Cooper, Glen Berry, Jeillo Edwards, John Benfield, John Savage, Jonathan Harvey, Julia-Lee Smith, Liane Ware, Linda Henry, Marlene Sidaway, Martin Walsh, Meera Syal, Scott Neal, Sophie Stanton, Tameka Empson, Terry Duggan
Director: Hettie Macdonald
Demian Bichir was nominated for an Oscar for his role in this movie where he plays an illegal immigrant and father. You might be wondering "who is that?", but trust me you won't after watching this movie. The kindness, complexity, and authenticity he brings to this story are unparalleled.
A Better Life is about the illegal immigrant experience, about the line between the fear of being caught and the aspiration for a better future. It's an excellent and important movie.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Abraham Belaga, Bobby Soto, Brigitte Sy, Carlos Linares, Chelsea Rendon, Demián Bichir, Dolores Heredia, Eddie 'Piolin' Sotelo, Eddie 'Piolin' Sotelo, Fayçal Safi, Francois Favrat, Gabriel Chavarria, Guillaume Canet, Isabella Rae Thomas, Joaquín Cosío, José Julián, Leila Bekhti, Nancy Lenehan, Nicolas Abraham, Slimane Khettabi, Tim Griffin
Director: Cedric Kahn, Chris Weitz
Former Congressman Anthony Weiner just doesn’t give up. After a 2011 scandal that had him resign from office, Weiner tries to make a comeback in this documentary that follows his 2013 mayoral campaign. His passion for public service is indisputable, and despite his shortcomings, it’s hard not to root for his go-getter attempts at a second chance. To this end, he wins and fails, with each outcome feeling more dramatic and consequential than the last. Things culminate upon the revelation of a fresh, new scandal, which disrupts his unlikely rise as a top candidate as well as the film’s production flow, which then takes a turn for the better (or worse, depending on your sympathies for Weiner).
Fast paced and brilliantly stitched, Weiner is a compelling account of a man who won’t back down, and of the people surrounding him who suffer from his obstinacy. The documentary is proof that even in our hypercritical age, it’s still possible to both humanize and criticize a “canceled” subject, all while maintaining level-headed humor and allure.
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Actor: Anthony Weiner, Bill de Blasio, Donald Trump, Howard Stern, Huma Abedin, J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner, John Waters, Jon Stewart, Lawrence O'Donnell, Stephen Colbert
Director: Elyse Steinberg, Josh Kriegman
Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Anh Hoa Nguyen, Hoa Hoi Vuong, Keo Souvannavong, Man San Lu, Ngoc Trung Tran, Thi Loc Truong, Tran Nu Yên-Khê, Vantha Talisman
Director: Anh Hung Tran, Tran Anh Hung
Set between the years 1977 and 2005, this Polish drama goes through various stages in the life of the controversial surrealist-expressionist painter Zdzisław Beksiński. The extensive video archive left behind by the artist was used to craft an intimate portrait of three interdependent people: Beksiński himself, his suicidal and neurotic son, and his wife.
Beksiński is superbly played by veteran actor Andrzej Seweryn, known for his appearance in numerous Andrzej Wajda films. Even though the film focuses less on Zdzisław's painting career and more on his relationship with his family, it will definitely inspire you to dig deeper into both his tragic life and impressively dark body of work.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Agnieszka Michalska, Aleksandra Konieczna, Alicja Karluk, Andrzej Chyra, Andrzej Seweryn, Danuta Nagorna, Dawid Ogrodnik, Jakub Wróblewski, Magdalena Boczarska, Zofia Perczynska
Director: Jan P. Matuszynski
Partially based on the 860-page memoir, "A White House Diary", and on the actual audio recordings Claudia Alta Taylor Johnson made during her time as first lady, The Lady Bird Diaries is an intimate reworking of a past we still know very little about. Told from the vantage point of First Lady Johnson candidly and in detail, the audio track shapes the whole film. All the archival footage is nicely complemented by hand-drawn animations to fit the missing images, but all the visuals are always in service of the narration. In this way, the documentary becomes a piece of history and an archive in itself, its illustrative functions – a crucial storytelling tool for posteriority.
Genre: Documentary
Director: Dawn Porter
Somehow an art house film, horror, and romance all in one, Let the Right One In explores the boundaries of its genres with unprecedented finesse, and offers a stunning alternative for those disappointed with recent vampire love stories. From its haunting minimalist imagery to its incredible score, it is persistently beautiful. The film follows twelve-year-old Oskar and Eli, drawing on numerous aspects of traditional undead lore, and still manages an impressive feat in feeling entirely fresh and devoid of cliche. Those in search of a terrifying movie might need to look elsewhere, but if what you're looking for is simply a great watch, don't pass this one up.
Genre: Drama, Horror
Actor: Anders T. Peedu, Henrik Dahl, Ika Nord, Johan Sömnes, Kåre Hedebrant, Karin Bergquist, Karl-Robert Lindgren, Lina Leandersson, Malin Cederblad, Mikael Rahm, Pale Olofsson, Patrik Rydmark, Per Ragnar, Peter Carlberg, Tom Ljungman
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei directs his attention towards the ongoing refugee crisis, the biggest displacement of people since World War II. His documentary is apolitical and tries to focus on the human side of the picture. It's not a news report or a commentary on the causes of the situation. Instead, it's a combination of heartfelt stories spanning 23 countries that showcase people's battle for dignity and basic rights. A truly epic movie complemented by impressive drone footage that's as impressive as it is sad.
Genre: Documentary
Actor: Fadi Abou Akleh, Hiba Abed, Israa Abboud, Marin Din Kajdomcaj, Rami Abu Sondos
Director: Ai Weiwei, Weiwei Ai
The Safdie Brothers spent over a decade making films before their mainstream breakout with Good Time and Uncut Gems. Their rich backlog captures New York City in its raw vibrant glory. Daddy Longlegs is the sardonic semi-autobiographical portrait of the Safdies’ childhood spent with their father after their parents' divorce.
Lenny (Ronald Bronstein) is an awful dad whose parenting style ranges from the wildly irresponsible to the criminally negligent. While his behavior is often detestable and has few if any redeeming traits, the Safdies’ puncture through his demeanor and craft a sensitive portrait of fatherhood imbued with affection and feeling that could only originate from the well of a child’s capacity for forgiveness and love.
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Actor: Abel Ferrara, Alex Greenblatt, Alex Kalman, Casey Neistat, Dakota Goldhor, Dakota O'Hara, Danny Callahan, Eléonore Hendricks, Josh Safdie, Lee Ranaldo, Marc Raybin, Ronald Bronstein, Sage Ranaldo, Salvatore Sansone, Sean Price Williams, Seth Fleischaner, Steve Davis, Van Neistat, Wayne Chin
Director: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
Taking inspiration from neorealist classics, Chop Shop tells a thoroughly modern story about a pair of orphans contending with hard choices and blunt truths as they hustle to survive in New York City. But rather than take place in the concrete jungle, Ramin Bahrani’s third feature is set in an area of the city most of us aren’t familiar with: Queens’ “Iron Triangle,” an industrial zone crammed with scrapyards and car mechanic shops.
It’s in the upstairs room of one such shop that the bright young Ale (Alejandro Polanco) and his teen sister Isamar (Isamar Gonzalez) live, working days and nights downstairs to save up for the food truck that will give them a more stable life. This daily grind drives them into dark corners and onto the paths of unscrupulous adults, forcing the two kids to grow up beyond their years. Despite their plucky resilience, there’s still a childlike sweetness about them, which only further deepens the heartbreak of their situation. Polanco and Gonzalez give such emotionally raw and entirely believable performances that you’d almost think they were real siblings living lives like these. The fact that neither were professional actors before starring here makes their extraordinarily fluid performances all the more impressive, and helps burnish Chop Shop’s golden aura of genuine discovery.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Carlos Ayala, Laura Patalano, Nick Jasprizza
Director: Ramin Bahrani
This earnest documentary is about filmmaker and actress Maryam Zaree's journey to unravel the truth about her birth. Her parents are part of a generation of Iranian revolutionaries who were jailed, many executed, and now have taken exile in Europe. The torture and difficult prison conditions they experienced are cause for so much trauma that Maryam, born in prison, has not been told anything about her birth. Her mom, now Germany's first foreign-born mayor, cannot get past tears to tell a story that Maryam is determined to know.
Her mom is not the only one who is unable to tell the story, as Maryam's quest uncovers more silence. In the end, Born in Evin is as much about the question of "is the truth worth getting told?" as it is about the truth itself. It's a heartfelt exploration of trauma, both for the generation that experienced it and for the generation that follows.
Genre: Documentary
Actor: Marya Sirous, Maryam Zaree, Soraya Zangbari
Director: Maryam Zaree