110 Movies Like Thor: Ragnarok (2017) (Page 6)

For kids and kids-at-heart who find Jim Henson's technical mastery of puppets riveting, this documentary on the classic and still-contemporary Sesame Street provides a ton of behind-the-scenes footage that's endlessly fun to watch. Street Gang rebuts any arguments that could be made about children's TV being low-effort—showing just how much craft is needed in a show like this. But more importantly, the film's first act illustrates the risky process of building Sesame Street from the ground-up, specifically as programming for inner-city Black children who weren't getting the education they deserved. It's nothing short of an inspiration to see this ragtag group of creatives and communication experts—none of whom wanted to take sole credit—coming together like a superhero team to create one of the most iconic and enduring TV shows in American history.

Genre: Documentary, Family

Actor: Bob McGrath, Brian Henson, Caroll Spinney, Christopher Cerf, Dizzy Gillespie, Emilio Delgado, Fran Brill, Frank Oz, Fred Rogers, Holly Robinson Peete, James Earl Jones, Jesse Jackson, Jim Henson, Joan Ganz Cooney, Joe Raposo, Johnny Carson, Johnny Cash, Jon Stone, Lisa Henson, Lloyd Morrisett, Loretta Long, Matt Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Norman Stiles, Odetta, Orson Welles, Roscoe Orman, Sonia Manzano, Stevie Wonder, Will Lee

Director: Marilyn Agrelo

Life can get tough if you move to another country. You have to adjust to the language, to the culture, and to the community you choose to move to, and that’s just if you decided to make the move intentionally. But some of these difficulties can be made much easier to bear with a good friend. Shun Li and the Poet is centered on a friendship between two immigrants in a Venetian island town, and although they come from other sides of the world, the kindnesses they share as strangers, and the intimacy they keep when they share more of their life stories, prove to be lovely. It might be a tad slow for some viewers, but the contemplation and celebration of their shared humanity makes for a lovely watch.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Giuseppe Battiston, Marco Paolini, Rade Serbedzija, Roberto Citran, Zhao Tao

Director: Andrea Segre

When talking about resistance against colonial powers, nonviolent resistance, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, is oftentimes touted as the most righteous and morally correct path to take. However, most people forget that this violence is done in response to the violence enacted upon them, and that violent resistance has worked alongside the non-violent path, with a serious rationale behind their methods. The Legend of Bhagat Singh remembers one of the Indian revolutionaries that devoted their lives to the cause, though in a different way from Gandhi. The film has some inaccuracies, and it emphasized the romance he might have had with the unmarried woman later known as Bhagat’s widow, but the Legend of Bhagat Singh is an interesting portrait of a revolutionary that needs to be discussed more.

Genre: Crime, Drama, History

Actor: Ajay Devgan, Ajay Devgn, Akhilendra Mishra, Amrita Rao, Bhaswar Chatterjee, D. Santosh, Farida Jalal, Mukesh Tiwari, Raj Babbar, Sitaram Panchal, Sushant Singh, Swaroop Kumar

Director: Rajkumar Santoshi

In Tina Mabry’s first full length feature film Mississippi Damned she tells the story of three poor, Black adolescents as they advance into adulthood. The story is mostly centered on Kari Peterson, portrayed by Tessa Thompson, who has fallen witness and victim to violence/abuse since her childhood. As she navigates her trauma while facing poverty and familial issues, we begin to understand the inner machinations of Kari and those who have harmed her.

While Mississippi Damned isn’t particularly easy to digest, I consider it essential. As unflinchingly brutal as this film is, it taught me a lot about trauma and how to navigate my own. With performances as powerful as these, it’s impossible to forget this film.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Adam Clark, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, D.B. Woodside, Malcolm David Kelley, Malcolm Goodwin, Michael Hyatt, Simbi Khali, Tessa Thompson

Director: Tina Mabry

Rating: TV-MA

Written, directed and starring the auteur Stephan Chow, Kung Fu Hustle is a distillation of decades of Hong-Kong Cinema's greatest export : the martial arts comedy. Full of numerous allusions and witty nods to other greats in the genre, this film is nonetheless entirely fresh and new. Equal parts hilarious and breathtakingly action-packed, Kung Fu Hustle showcases an enormous amount of raw talent, cinema magic and ass-kicking for any true cinema connoisseur.

Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Fantasy

Actor: Alex Lam Chi Sin, Bruce Leung, Bruce Leung Siu-Lung, Bruce Siu-Lung Leung, Charlie Yuen Cheung-Yan, Cheung-Yan Yuen, Chi Ling Chiu, Chi-Sing Lam, Chiu Chi-Ling, Danny Chan, Danny Chan Kwok-Kwan, David Hung, Dong Zhi Hua, Dung Chi-Wa, Eva Huang, Fan Tiantian, Feng Xiaogang, Fung Hak-On, Hark-On Fung, He Wenhui, Huang Shengyi, Jazz Lam, Jia Kangxi, Kai Shi Chen, Kang Xi Jia, Kwok Kuen Chan, Lam Chi Chung, Lam Suet, Lam Tze-chung, Leung Siu Lung, Oliver Wong Yui-Man, Qiu Yuen, Shengyi Huang, Siu-Lung Leung, Stephen Chow, Steven Fung Min-Hang, Suet Lam, Tenky Tin Kai-Man, Wah Yuen, Wellson Chin Sing-Wai, Xiaogang Feng, Xiaolong Ding, Xing Yu, Yang Neng, Yuen Cheung-Yan, Yuen Qiu, Yuen Wah, Zhang Mingming, Zhang Yibai, Zhi Hua Dong, Zhihua Dong, 释彦能

Director: Stephen Chow

Rating: R

If you’re new to the story, I Don’t Expect Anyone to Believe Me feels difficult to understand. The film adaptation portrays the novel through abruptly cut sequences, meticulously framed naturalistic frames, and monologue and dialogue that mean more than what’s being said, on top of Juan Pablo’s gradual descent into a criminal network. It’s as disorienting as being in Barcelona feels for Mexican couple Juan Pablo and Val. However, this film feels like a new approach in adapting novels – the multiple perspectives and epistolary portions adeptly portrayed through typed up screens and alternating perspectives (and direction) between the couple. It doesn’t feel like something that you’ve likely seen before.

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama

Actor: Aimar Vega, Alexis Ayala, Ángel Zermen, Anna Castillo, Ariana Van X, Bel Gris, Bruna Cusí, Carmen Beato, Clara Roquet, Darío Rocas, Dario Yazbek Bernal, Jelen García, Juan Carlos Remolina, Juan Daniel Garcia Treviño, Juan Minujín, Natalia Portnoy, Natalia Solián

Director: Luis Fernando Frías de la Parra

Rating: R

It took a while to get going, but this packed hour was filled with the many fascinating gripes of Fern Brady, who comes across relatable in the most absurd way. I don't know if I just wasn't properly lubed up until about 25 minutes in, but the more you hear her talk about her aversion to marriage and muse about death and decline, her range as an animated and insightful person starts to really shine. And as engrossing as her stories can get, perhaps the most consistent thing she does is her voices—she is a hilarious character. Which is to say this felt honest, friendly, and absurd, in all the best ways.

Genre: Comedy

Actor: Fern Brady

Director: Phoebe Bourke

Rating: R

After the devastating Happy Old Year, we were excited to see the next of what Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit has to offer. Fast & Feel Love is a surprising one, purely because of how silly and unserious the entire film is. The satirical film follows a sport stacker whose passion to be the fastest blinds him to all the day-to-day tasks and life goals that have been pushed towards his girlfriend, and the film plays this basic conflict as dramatically as other action films would, with dynamic cinematography, an over-the-top soundtrack, and dramatic voice overs. The joke does get stretched a tad too long, but it humorously pokes fun at the infantile ways men in action films act, while still recognizing how this mindset is the way we cope in adulthood.

Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama, Romance

Actor: Anusara Korsamphan, Jirapat Uttamanan, Keetapat Pongruea, Napak Traicharoendetch, Nat Kitcharit, Urassaya Sperbund, Wipawee Patnasiri

Director: Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit