481 Best BIPOC Stories to Watch (Page 29)

Movies about the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color set against the backdrop of White-majority Western countries.

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421. Eye of the Storm, 2023

Eye of the Storm may not directly address COVID-19, but the film clearly draws similarities to the latest pandemic with the 2003 outbreak of the SARS virus. Panic, confusion, and miscommunication over the latest news are shared experiences between the two. These experiences are seen between the interlocking stories of the people quarantined in the hospital, and it’s easy to feel the fear and frustration surrounding them all. The film presents the issues of the overwhelmed healthcare system quite well, but its last moments leave a lot unresolved. While the film figures out the virus’ origin in its universe, the film leaves the healthcare workers’ stories hanging. It understandably reflects the uncertainty present with COVID-19, but it makes the film’s ending feel unsatisfying.

Genre: Drama, Family

Actor: Angel Lee, Chen Chia-kuei, Chia-Kuei Chen, Chloe Xiang, Chun-Chih Huang, Hsieh Ying Shiuan, Jing-Hua Tseng, Lou Yi-an, Simon Hsueh, Tseng Jing-hua, Tzu-Chien Kuo, Wang Bo-chieh, Yung-Cheng Chang

Director: Chun-Yang Lin

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422. Crypto Boy, 2023

Crypto Boy may seem, at first, to primarily warn against the allure of cryptocurrency, but at heart, it’s a family drama centered around an ambitious man and his immigrant Egyptian father. The Dutch Netflix film is actually a whole family affair, with writer-director Shady El-Hamus casting his brother Shahine and their father Sabri Saad in a real and relatable struggle between generations. That being said, the film is definitely less interested in the actual cryptocurrency scam presented. It takes such a predictable route that the protagonist comes off as foolish, rather than understandably ambitious. With his parallel to the villain, the film seems like it wants its viewers to empathize with the rich Mark Zuckerberg-wannabe, rather than cathartically put him through the consequences. This makes the film feel as disappointing as the crypto promises, as viewers are lured into the film for this, but come out with another thing entirely.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Aus Greidanus, Hannah van Lunteren, Jonas Smulders, Kendrick Etmon, Leny Breederveld, Loes Schnepper, Manoushka Zeegelaar-Breeveld, Minne Koole, Raymond Thiry, Sabri Saad El-Hamus, Shahine El-Hamus, Tobias Kersloot

Director: Shady El-Hamus

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423. Bruiser, 2022

As a story, Bruiser isn't the most tightly written thing in the world, with a somewhat long-winded first half and a conclusion that feels too easy given the complicated things we learn about each character. But at its core, it remains impressively perceptive about how men perform their masculinity as a game of aggression and dominance—even if they feel that they're simply trying to protect the children closest to them. Bruise takes on quite a bit of suspense for a drama, as tempers slowly boil over and everybody involved in this supposed battle over who claims authority over a teenage boy reveals themselves to be right and wrong in equal measure.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Frank Oakley III, Gavin Munn, Jalyn Hall, Jay Santiago, Jonah Bishop-Pirrone, Kiah Alexandria Clingman, Moses Jones, Sarah Bock, Shamier Anderson, Shinelle Azoroh, Trevante Rhodes

Director: Miles Warren

Rating: NR

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424. Becoming King (2024)

	
As emotional and personal as it is, Becoming King is just too dewy-eyed and close to the source to have any bearing on those who are not all that interested in learning about the immersion process a Hollywood actor goes through. Jessica Oyelowo admittedly has an interesting story on her hands: that of her husband David Oyelowo (whose name literally means “respect the king”) fulfilling his seven-year dream of playing Martin Luther King, Jr. His journey is a combination of grit, talent, and what appears to be fate and destiny, and it is nothing short of inspiring, especially for aspiring actors. But there is an inherent bias in depicting this story as magical and heroic, without the thorny nuances other more distant filmmakers might’ve included. For one, it barely tackles class and race, and when it does, the discussions are short, superficial, and only in service to the real conflict of the documentary, which is whether or not Oyelowo achieves his acting dreams. It feels shortsighted in the way some passion projects can be, bolstered by limited funds and even fewer eyes to critique it. It’s well-meaning and personal, and it can serve as a helpful resource to those who want to know how to get into the industry. But for the general viewer, the documentary offers little more than standard information on the actor and his breakthrough film.Genre: Documentary
Actor: Ava DuVernay, David Oyelowo, Jessica Oyelowo, Martin Luther King Jr.
Director:  Jessica Oyelowo

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425. Bad Lands, 2023

	
Bad Lands isn’t exactly new. It has the romanticized con artist that manages to slip through the fingers of those more powerful than her, through quick wit and good sense. It has the successful con, and those that come out of the woodwork to take what they’ve stolen. The story isn’t even original, being based on Hiroyuki Kurokawa’s 2015 novel, Keiso. But it’s done well. It’s a well-executed character study focused on a grifter pushed into the business, and taking on a cold, ruthless mindset to survive. It juxtaposes her self-contained lifestyle with the skeevy, abusive tech billionaire ex and the police force he infiltrated. And it’s all the more powerful with Sakura Ando leading the story.Genre: Action, Crime
Actor: Canon Nawata, Junichi Okada, Katsuhisa Namase, Ken Yamamura, Koki Maeda, Mitsuo Yoshihara, Namase Katsuhisa, Noriko Eguchi, Ryosuke Yamada, Ryudo Uzaki, Sakura Andô, Yasumasa Oba, Yasushi Fuchikami
Director: Masato Harada

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426. Bad Education, 2023

With its wildly different shifts between the film’s chapters, Bad Education feels like it doesn’t know what to do with itself, like plenty of newly graduated teenagers. The first chapter holds such visceral revulsion that it first feels like it would be a serious cautionary tale, commenting on how, without guidance, teenagers will led each other astray. However, its next chapter takes a more comedic route as the kids try to escape from gangsters and the police. While director Kai Ko reveals an excellent sense of direction and imagery, his style feels like it’s been wasted on ill-thought intentions and a poorly written script. Bad Education at least has stunning visuals and a short runtime to get through it all.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Berant Zhu, Cheng Chih-wei, Chu-Ping Liu, Edison Song, Hong Yu Hong, Huang Hsin-Yao, Kai Ko, Kent Tsai, Kurt Hsiao, Leon Dai, McFly Wu, Ning Chang, Tzu-Chiang Wang

Director: Kai Ko

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427. Adrishya Jalakangal, 2023

Ordinary people don’t choose to join a war, but oftentimes, they are dragged into it, forced to fight, and become victims of it because of people in power. Adrishya Jalakangal takes this idea in a dystopic future, where war has turned India into a police state, and mixes in a watchman who’s able to talk with the dead. While the message is necessary and the idea is novel, the execution feels uneven, as the anti-war and magic realist elements feel like elements from what should be two separate movies. Alongside the sluggish pace and the dialogue that’s a tad too on the nose, it’s hard to get through Adrishya Jalakangal when it can’t decide what it wants to focus on.

Genre: Drama, Thriller

Actor: Indrans, Krishnan Balakrishnan, Nimisha Sajayan, Tovino Thomas

Director: Bijukumar Damodaran

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428. A Thousand Days, 2023

Fairly atmospheric, visually creepy, and with a unique premise, A Thousand Days had the potential to be a downright terrifying Indonesian horror film. There’s something here about how rich families are willing to sacrifice impoverished young women in order to save one of their own, especially with the way the Atmojo family hasn’t given the full job details to the three girls in this film. There’s something here as well about how various Indonesian ethnic groups treat each other. However, the way the film arranged its scenes, as well as the film’s casting, fails to match the terror of the original Twitter thread that inspired the film. These choices take away some of the scariness that would have made Sewu Dino totally terrifying.

Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Agla Artalidia, Ayez Kassar, Delia Husein, Gisellma Firmansyah, Givina Lukita, Karina Suwandi, Marthino Lio, Maryam Supraba, Mikha Tambayong, Pritt Timothy, Rantya Affandy, Rio Dewanto

Director: Kimo Stamboel

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429. Malbatt: Misi Bakara, 2023

	
After Black Hawk Down (2001), the casual moviegoer would have thought that the rescue operation was only conducted by American soldiers. In reality, it was a multinational effort, and Malaysia’s side of the story has finally been depicted in MALBATT: Misi Bakara. Surprisingly, it doesn’t play out as a straightforward, action-packed rescue mission– writer-director Adrian Teh does deliver the action, but the film also contemplates about the team itself: how they made sense of their opposition towards a country they shared religions with, and how they experienced the ignorance from American soldiers that didn’t even know where Malaysia was. While some introductory sequences falter, and the film fumbles certain green screen moments, MALBATT: Misi Bakara brings both the spectacle and the drama that makes it stand out from other depictions of the rescue mission.Genre: Action, Drama, History, War
Actor: Adlin Aman Ramlie, Adrian Teh, Bront Palarae, Dini Schatzmann, Fauzi Nawawi, Gambit Saifullah, Hairul Azreen, Iedil Putra, Musa Aden, Nafiez Zaidi, Paul Biddiss, Safwan Nazri, Shaheizy Sam, Shiqin Kamal, Syazwan Zulkifly, Taufiq Hanafi, Theebaan Govindasamy, Tony Eusoff, Virgile Mangiavillano, Yuna Rahim, Zahiril Adzim
Director: Adrian Teh

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430. Breath of Life, 2023

When injustice takes away the ones you love, and when what you relied on abandoned you, it can be hard to open up again. Breath of Life is a story of a man that has gone through this, a man betrayed by both God and the colonial powers that once celebrated his talents, but he finds new purpose when his hired househelp enters his life. While the cast is great, the choice to stick completely in English feels disarming, some of the events that follow go down cliche paths, and the solutions found feel contrary to its intended message. Breath of Life has an interesting point, but the themes don’t mix as well as they could have.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Ademola Adedoyin, Chimezie Imo, Genoveva Umeh, Wale Ojo

Director: Bodunrin Sasore

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431. As If It's True, 2023

	
With their personal life offered for consumption, carefully curated for viewers and sponsors, the social media influencer has become a fascinating character to study, especially with the job becoming Gen Z’s top career aspiration. As If It’s True examines this character through Gemma Stone, using the fake relationship trope to examine the lengths to which she would cling to her clout. John Roger’s debut feature blurs the line between real and the fake, not just for Gemma and James but also for the viewers, and it brings up much to say about how this aspiration can ruin people. However, the lines are blurred too much, as the ideas don’t mesh cohesively as it could. As If It’s True is an interesting character study, but the film hasn’t allowed itself to see the human side of the people highly incentivized to be fake for views.Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Adrianna So, Angellie Nicholle Sanoy, Ashley Ortega, Jan Silverio, Khalil Ramos, Marnie Lapus, Rachel Coates
Director: John Rogers

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432. The Last Wife, 2023

	
Like its governor having many wives, The Last Wife has too many elements left unsatisfied. To its credit, it has lovely scenery, costumes, and set design that matches the era. With Linh forced into a marriage to pay off her father’s debts, reuniting with a childhood love, the film also had the erotic potential of Lady Chatterley’s Lover, with a thrilling second act twist that occurs when they get discovered. However, the film gets dragged down by the slow pace and random comedic scenes that don’t add to the thematic stakes, sometimes even distracting the viewer from the dismal conditions the titular wife is forced into.Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: De Ly Luu, Kaity Nguyễn, Ngọc Diệp, Quốc Huy, Thuan Nguyen
Director: Victor Vũ

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433. Street Flow 2, 2023

Just like with its predecessor, it can be surprising how sober Street Flow 2 is. You expect stories about street gang life to be of a certain tone, but these films are more interested in the emotional and philosophical struggle to respond to violence and poverty in a just and proper way. This sequel continues this conversation from a more stable (but therefore less interesting) position: youngest sibling Noumouké is no longer torn between the influence of his older brothers, as all three try to move forward as a united front. But without a more distinct dilemma driving the action forward, the film ends up spinning its wheels—and rushes to an incomplete ending that doesn't say enough about survival, lawfulness, or the African immigrant experience in France.

Genre: Crime, Drama

Actor: Alessandra Sublet, Alix Mathurin, Bakary Diombera, Cherine Ghemri, Foued Nabba, Georgina Elizabeth Okon, Jammeh Diangana, Kadi Diarra, Kery James, Krystel Roche, Mahamadou Coulibaly, Sana Sri

Director: Alix Mathurin, Kery James, Leïla Sy

Rating: R

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434. A Million Miles Away, 2023

A Million Miles Away sticks so closely to the Hollywood biopic template that it threatens to be less about José Hernández as a person with his own complexities and more about the idea of him as a one-size-fits-all inspirational figure. This isn't to say the film isn't effective when it really counts; Hernández is worth admiring not necessarily because of his ultimate success, but because how much he failed and got back up again. Director Alejandra Márquez Abella keeps the film's tone light and bouncy, flattening some of its more serious moments, but also helping make Hernández's long, hard road to space more of a process of discovery. It's easy, inspiring viewing that quietly tiptoes past harder questions about poverty and NASA's potentially discriminatory practices.

Genre: Drama, History

Actor: Ashley Ciarra, Blake Webb, Bobby Soto, Constantino Caso, Dylan Hall, Emma Fassler, Eric Johnson, Francisco Barreiro, Garret Dillahunt, Gerardo Trejoluna, Isaac Arellanes, Isabel Aerenlund, Jordan Dean, Jorge Briseño, Julio Cedillo, Julio Cesar Cedillo, Marilyn Uribe, Mercedes Hernández, Michael Adler, Michael Peña, Michelle Krusiec, Peter Theis, Rosa Salazar, Sam Harrison, Sarayu Blue, Steve Kisicki, Veronica Falcón, Xochiquetzal Martínez

Director: Alejandra Márquez Abella

Rating: PG

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435. Sound of the Police (2023)

The depressing reality when it comes to a documentary like Sound of the Police is that new, equally damning examples of state-sponsored violence—perpetrated by cops against vulnerable citizens—will likely continue to pop up at a pace that films just can't keep up with. And that eyewitness reports spread throughout social media will provide even more horrific (and necessary) images that movie studios may not be willing to show on screen. But while this film feels more like a basic crash course on racist American policing (touching on its roots in slavery, sympathetic media portrayals of cops, and the importance of cameras today), it still touches on most of the essential arguments that should leave anybody with a heart in disgust. There may not be much of a through line or a proper conclusion here, but it's still good to be reminded of the kind of tyranny that Black America lives through today.

Genre: Documentary

Director: Stanley Nelson, Valerie Scoon

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