38 Best Disability Stories to Watch (Page 3)

While it plays the standard beats of the musician biopic, Ray is a fairly entertaining biopic centered on Ray Charles, the man that pioneered soul music, mixing in rhythm and blues, jazz, and gospel into a brand new sound. It goes through plenty of the melodramatic moments familiar to the genre– the prior hardships, the drug addiction, and of course, the moments of musical bliss– and there are some fictionalized moments, but Jamie Foxx’s excellent portrayal and Charles’ tunes are able to carry the film all the way through. Though the way Charles was parented in childhood is a tough watch, and isn't the best way to parent, Ray sticks true to the singer’s life, with every scene personally approved by the legend before his death.

Genre: Drama, Music

Actor: Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Bokeem Woodbine, Carol Sutton, Chris Thomas King, Clifton Powell, Curtis Armstrong, David Krumholtz, Denise Dowse, Gary Grubbs, Harry Lennix, Jamie Foxx, Jedda Jones, Kerry Washington, Kurt Fuller, Larenz Tate, Patrick Bauchau, Paula Jai Parker, Regina King, Richard Schiff, Rick Gomez, Robert Wisdom, Sharon Warren, Tequan Richmond, Terrence Howard, Thomas Jefferson Byrd, Warwick Davis, Wendell Pierce

Director: Taylor Hackford

Rating: PG-13

Sincere and direct, Ana Rocha de Sousa’s debut feature is a tragic portrayal of an immigrant family in the United Kingdom. Known best abroad for her role in Love Actually, Lúcia Moniz shines as devoted mother Bela, who, along with Jota (Ruben Garcia) struggles to keep their family together. The couple and their three children, including the deaf middle child Lu (Sophia Myles), come under the scrutiny of social services, especially after the unexplained bruises. While at times heavy-handed, the film raises important questions on family separation and social services, especially with their limitations with children with disabilities.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Aaron Brookner, Ângela Pinto, António Capelo, Brian Bovell, Holly Horne, Jay Lycurgo, Jon Rumney, Kiran Sonia Sawar, Lúcia Moniz, Maisie Sly, Ruben Garcia, Sian Abrahams, Sophia Myles, Susanna Cappellaro

Director: Ana Rocha de Sousa

Rating: Not Rated

This film is immediately charming and spends ample time taking you through the mind of Goyo, to where you see where the wheels start turning in his head for each new interaction. It captures his infatuation, obsession, discomfort, and panic, without overdoing or over-explaining anything. Goyo himself (Nicolás Furtado) is an excellent heart of the show with his friendliness and sincerity, but stealing the show alongside him are his and Matute’s (Pablo Rago) solid sibling dynamic and Saula’s (Soledad Villamil) ice cold confrontation skills when you get to see it. It’s a very sweet film that avoids being cheesy, and I imagine Goyo himself would find this movie to be decent if he saw it.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Actor: Balthazar Murillo, Cecilia Roth, Diego Alonso, Nancy Dupláa, Nicolás Furtado, Pablo Rago, Soledad Villamil

Director: Marcos Carnevale

Champions is as formulaic as it gets, but it’s impossible not to smile watching it. It’s based on a 2018 Spanish movie of the same name, but it feels a lot like the 2023 Korean movie Dream too. In both (and indeed a lot of other) films, we follow a sad sack antihero who, by virtue of being exposed to less fortunate people, is magically transformed into a good guy who gets all the glory he wished for by the end of the story. You know where it’s headed and you even know how it gets there, so it’s devoid of genuine twists and thrills. But the ways in which it gets there, however familiar, are sometimes funny and heartwarming. If you can stomach the cheesiness and predictability of it all, then Champions comes as an effectively hopeful and feel-good film that’s worth tuning into if you want a light laugh. Otherwise, it's all familiar fluff you can skip for better fare.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Aaron Hughes, Alex Hintz, Alexandra Castillo, Alicia Johnston, Ashton Gunning, Barbara Pollard, Champ Pederson, Cheech Marin, Clint Allen, Cory Wojcik, Eddy Norman, Ernie Hudson, Heath Vermette, Jacob Blair, Jalen Rose, Jean-Jacques Javier, Joshua Felder, Kaitlin Olson, Kevin Iannucci, Lauren Cochrane, Lois Brothers, Madison Tevlin, Matt Cook, Mike Smith, Ryan DeLong, Ryder Dueck, Scott Van Pelt, Seán Cullen, Stephanie Sy, Vance Halldorson, Woody Harrelson

Director: Bobby Farrelly

Rating: PG-13

The premise is really exciting to jump into: Paralympic domination feels original, but the cartoonish crime underbelly is not at all the best wrinkle to add to the initial idea. The sports and family drama side of the action feels grounded, full of heart, and far from being fleshed out to a satisfying degree. In contrast, the dark world side of the action has a Hollywood emptiness to it, which is ironic because the premise is heavy enough on its own, only to be overcrowded by this sci-fi noise. It could do without a lot of the elements, but maybe all the bloat is intentional to move the story away from a political conversation and into a safer albeit uneventful one.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction

Actor: Bruno Gagliasso, Christian Malheiros, Danton Mello, Erika Januza, Gabz, Guta Ruiz, Jessica Córes, Klebber Toledo, Miguel Falabella, Miguel Nader, Nill Marcondes, Paulo Vilhena

Director: Afonso Poyart

Rating: R