You’ve seen the best movies of 2020 lists from Indiewire and Rotten Tomatoes, and you’re already prepping your prediction for the Academy Awards. You might have Minari and Nomadland competing for the top spot, or a soft spot for one of Netflix’s string of 2020 releases. However, whilst you’re thinking about your picks, take a minute to think about what films you’ve seen from outside the U.S. There’s a whole world of incredible films out there, and 2020 has been just as good as any other. Read on to find 30 of the best international films of 2020 to help diversify your Academy Award picks. After all, Parasite is the reigning Best Picture champ.
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5 months into the year and we’ve already had a bunch of great international films premiere at film festivals and virtual cinemas across the world. With film festivals such as Sundance and the Berlinale going virtual, viewers have had the chance to watch World Premieres that they might not have otherwise been able to see if the premieres were confined to theater screenings. It’s a bittersweet plus for film fans. Read on to find 10 of the best international films from 2021 so far. Some are already available at cinemas physically and virtually, and look out for the rest in the near future.
10 Best International Films of 2021 So Far
1. Night of the Kings (Cote d’Ivoire)
Night of the Kings follows Roman, the latest arrival to an Abijan’s infamous MACA prison as he is forced to engage in a storytelling ritual with his life on the line. It’s got high stakes, theater, and even an appearance from shapeshifter Denis Lavant. But the focus is always on the story – a story that Roman has to keep telling to survive. It’s brilliantly original and beautifully simple, whilst offering plenty to analyze.
Read the full review here.
2. Pebbles (India)
In Pebbles one angry father takes his young son out of school to visit his mother’s village. However, when they find out his mother has already left, they begin a long walk home under the burning sun. It’s simple storyline is hard to look away from as the camera brilliantly captures both the inhospitable landscape as well as the tension between the unpredictably violent father and his cautious son. So, if you’re looking for a film which compacts pure cinematic energy with a hot and arid environment in 75 minutes, you need to watch this film.
Pebbles premiered at the 2021 edition of the Rotterdam International Film Festival where it won the Tiger Award.
3. Softie (Kenya)
If you’re looking for an observational documentary that follows a political activist trying to change a corrupt system by running for government whilst showing the effects this has on their family, Softie is the film for you. Boniface “Softie” Mwangi was drawn to political activism during his time photographing the post election violence in 2007. Now, he’s running for office in a regional Kenyan election. To succeed, he has to radically change a democracy tainted by corruption, violence, and mistrust.
Read the full review here.
4. Taming the Garden (Georgia)
Taming the Garden is a slow documentary about a billionaire’s project to create a garden of the grandest trees in his country. Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire, and former Prime Minister of Georgia, is the invisible villain of this film, as we follow his construction teams uproot trees from around the country to be transported across the seas to his home. The focus is not on his garden though, but the sublime images of the trees being transported and how they happened; the huge efforts of the construction teams and the locals caught in-between.
Read the full review here.
5. The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet (Argentina)
Dogs are everywhere. Before the pandemic, ownership seemed to be rising. Everyone either had a dog or knew someone who did, whether it was a neighbor or a colleague who brought their dog into work. Now, with everyone mostly still stuck at home, they’ve become even more popular. It’s within this context that The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet is set, a perfectly relevant, quietly funny Argentinian satire along the lines of Martin Rejtman.
Read the full review here.
6. The Pink Cloud (Brazil)
If there’s ever a movie that perfectly envisions the pandemic and quarantine, it’s The Pink Cloud. Made before COVID times, it follows Giovanna and Yago as their one night stand turns into a lifetime stuck together indoors as a poisonous cloud descends on the world. It’s probably one of the best portrayals of a relationship in lockdown.
Read the full review here.
7. Writing With Fire (India)
If you’re looking for an inspirational documentary that features a group of trailblazing women in India, watch Writing with Fire. It follows a group of Dalit women – Dalits being the lowest caste in the Indian caste system – that start a newspaper in Uttar Pradesh, one of India’s largest and most politically important states. The newspaper, Khabar Lahariya, stands out from others both because its written only by women and because of the emphasis on seeking out the truth no matter the stakes. It’s a great documentary for anyone interested in learning a bit about the current state of India and how to run a newspaper.
Read the full review here.
8. Stateless (Dominican Republic)
If you’re looking for a documentary that examines racism in the Dominican Republic’s past and present through two women campaigning at either end of the political spectrum, Stateless is the film you’re looking for. Like Softie, it’s another observational documentary that captures an activist outside the system fighting against corruption. However unlike Softie, it shows both sides of the fight against racism to highlight the contradictions of the ‘nationalists.
Read the full review here.
9. Come Here (Thailand)
Come Here is not the easiest film to follow. It’s slow art cinematic style isn’t conducive to a firm storyline. However, this doesn’t really matter as this is a film which you experience more than you follow. The unique soundscape and stylish black and white contrasts gives it a meditative tone. It feels like you’re just a dreamy fly on the wall following these four friends on holiday.
Come Here premiered at the 2021 edition of the Berlin International Film Festival.
10. Emptiness (Ecuador)
Emptiness is not a new story. The themes of the immigrant experience and human trafficking have been portrayed before in films such as I’m No Longer Here, Buoyancy, and Maria Full of Grace. However, the story in Emptiness just feels more authentic. There’s less melodrama and no violence or gangs which are intertwined into the stories of the films above. The immigrant’s experiences in Emptiness look less threatening, which highlights the invisible ordinariness of many human trafficking cases.
Emtpiness was selected as the Ecuadorian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards.
Let us know what your favorite films are by getting in touch with us on Twitter or by email.
Even though we’re now a year and a half into the pandemic, there are still a lot of a great international films being released on streamers and film festivals this year. Here are 5 more great international films from 2021 to add to our 10 Best International Films from 2021 So Far list we wrote back in May. Two of them are available to watch on Netflix and another is available to watch on Hoopla (for library members in the U.S.). The other two were screened at film festivals so look out for their release dates in the near future.
5 More Great International Films from 2021
1. The Disciple (India)
The Disciple might be our favorite film of 2021. It follows a struggling Indian classical musician in training with an aging guru from an enigmatic musical lineage. His journey is presented as a leap of faith in his existential search for meaning. It’s presented patiently with long musical takes cut with some memorable nighttime shots of Sharad biking home listening to his prized philosophical musings from his enigmatic hero. This film is a must watch as long as you’re ready to spare a bit of time to fully immerse yourself in Indian classical music.
Watch The Disciple on Netflix.
2. Sugar Daddy (Canada)
Musical Dramas Ema and Sound of Metal were amongst our favorite films from last year and Sugar Daddy felt more explosive than both of them. It follows a struggling artist that turns to a paid dating service to fund her music career. The standout is the lead actor, Kelly McCormack (who’s also the writer and producer behind the project), who gives one incredible performance. The music, craziness, and spiral of the lead make this film captivating. The only thing that we’d change is the misleading title.
Watch Sugar Daddy on Hoopla.
3. Landfall (Puerto Rico)
Landfall is a political documentary imbued with anger at the current state of Puerto Rico. It captures life in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, choosing to depict the current post-Hurricane tragedies instead of the actual Hurricane, and setting them within the history of U.S. imperialism. In doing so, Landfall presents a critique of disaster capitalism (see Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine) and the U.S. stranglehold on Puerto Rico and its ineffectual politicians.
Read the full review here.
4. The New Girl (Argentina)
The New Girl is an engaging coming of age story, as well as a protest movie along the lines of Made in Bangladesh and Salt of the Earth. It packs a lot into it’s relatively short run time (only 79 minute). It follows a transient migrating to an industrial region of Argentina to live and work with her brother. It highlights the privilege of crime – contrasting her experience stealing out of need vs. her brother’s smuggling to get rich. Plus there’s a union at the heart of the narrative to add to the anti-capitalist thread of the movie.
Read the full review here.
5. Nayattu (India)
Indian film is on a roll this year on the international circuit. To add to Pebbles, The Disciple, and Writing with Fire, here’s an engaging political thriller. It follows three police officers on the run after they get tangled in the death of a young man a few days before local elections. Whilst the political messages are a bit muddy, their escape and ensuing chase through rural India is exciting to watch. If you’re a fan of dark Hollywood thrillers along the lines of Fincher and Villeneuve, Nayattu is well worth a watch.
Watch Nayattu on Netflix.
For more of the great international films from 2021, check out our 10 Best International Films of 2021 so far list published in May. Also let us know what your favorite films are by getting in touch with us on Twitter or by email.
Cinemas were open for most of 2021 which meant two things for us:
- That we could watch films on the big screen
- That we also missed a lot of films on the big screen to look after an extra family member and play it safer with the quarantine
Therefore, most of the inclusions on this list are thanks to the ever improving international slates of streaming services like Mubi, Netflix, and Hoopla, as well as the accessibility of a lot of festival films this year. 2022 is looking like it will be a repeat, with streaming services continuing to diversify their international releases and festivals (see Sundance and Rotterdam) sticking to a digital only schedule to prevent the spread of the ever evolving COVID virus. However, before we get into 2022, here’s 30 of the best international films of 2021. Some names you’ll recognize, some you may not, but the good thing about pretty much all of them is that they’re mostly available to watch or have 2022 release dates.
30 Best International Films of 2021
(In a fairly flexible order)
30. Tote Abuelo (Mexico)
In her debut feature, Maria returns to her ancestral home in Chiapas to reconnect with her estranged grandfather. The slow pace of the documentary matches both the slow straw-hat making process, as well as Maria’s patient questioning that slowly unlocks her grandfather’s stories. Tote Abuelo is a humble, heart-warming documentary that depicts the passing of family history (positive and negative) from one member to another.
29. The Pink Cloud (Brazil)
If there’s ever a movie that perfectly envisions the pandemic and quarantine, it’s The Pink Cloud. Made before COVID times, it follows Giovanna and Yago as their one night stand turns into a lifetime stuck together indoors as a poisonous cloud descends on the world. It’s probably one of the best portrayals of a relationship in lockdown.
Read the full review here.
28. The Dog WHo WOuldn’t Be Quiet (Argentina)
Dogs are everywhere. Before the pandemic, ownership seemed to be rising. Everyone either had a dog or knew someone who did, whether it was a neighbor or a colleague who brought their dog into work. Now, since the onset of the pandemic, they’ve become even more popular. It’s within this context that The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet is set, a perfectly relevant, quietly funny Argentinian satire along the lines of Martin Rejtman.
Read the full review here.
27. Paris, 13th District
If you’re a secret fan of love triangles but actually an art-house film snob, Paris 13th District is for you. You have your art-house credentials, with Jacques Audiard directing and Celine Sciamma writing, as well as a smooth black and white film. But you also have a light, free-flowing script with lots of sex that doesn’t slow down, making it an easy watch for anyone wanting to tune out.
Read the full review here.
26. Zinder (Niger)
In the city of Zinder, Niger, in the heart of the Sahel, young people form gangs to deal with the lack of work and prospects. These groups called “Palais” come from the Kara Kara district, historically home to lepers and outcasts. Zinder-born director and activist Aicha Macky returns to her hometown to tell the story of this disenfranchised youth. It’s an intimate tribute to the youth of her country which offers a hopeful portrayal of those marked by the neighborhood they were born into.
Read the full review here.
25. Hive (Kosovo)
In Hive, a struggling widow starts making Ajvar to get by. Setting an example for self sufficiency, the town’s widows flock to her to share their grief and start healing. However their independence faces backlash from the patriarchy. This drama features an inspirational story about a group of entrepreneurial women fighting the odds to overcome the patriarchy and the trauma from the Kosovo war.
Read the full review here.
24. Bendskins (Cameroon)
Bendskins fits Wanuri Kahui’s ‘Afro-Bubblegum’ movement perfectly. The three stories of motorbike taxi drivers in Cameroon are fun, frivolous, and fierce. They depict ‘normal’ modern African experiences instead of the typical stories of poverty, disease, or war. It also features a bunch of homages to some of the most iconic African films such as Touki Bouki and Quartier Mozart. So if you’re looking for an easy-going dramedy set in Yaounde, check out Bendskins.
23. Writing With Fire (India)
If you’re looking for an inspirational documentary that features a group of trailblazing women in India, watch Writing with Fire. It follows a group of Dalit women – Dalits being the lowest caste in the Indian caste system – that start a newspaper in Uttar Pradesh, one of India’s largest and most politically important states. The newspaper, Khabar Lahariya, stands out from others both because its written only by women and because of the emphasis on seeking out the truth no matter the stakes. It’s a great documentary for anyone interested in learning a bit about the current state of India and how to run a newspaper. It’s no surprise it’s on the Academy Award’s Best Documentary shortlist.
Read the full review here.
22. Beginning (Georgia)
If you’re looking for a provocative transcendental film that captures a mother’s existential crisis you’ve come to the right place. Beginning uses slow pacing and a classic film look to shock Yana’s humble existence within a Jehovah’s Witness community in rural Georgia to the core. As her peace is shockingly disrupted, she’s forced to reevaluate her life as a mother as part of her remote community.
Read the full review here.
21. Son of Monarchs (Mexico)
A Mexican biologist living in New York returns to his hometown after the death of his grandmother. Unlike the urban jungle of New York, his hometown in Michoacán is surrounded by the Monarch Butterflies he studies. His isolation abroad forces him to contemplate his new identity, displayed on screen in vivid magical scenes and memories. Son of Monarchs is a brilliant character study of a lonely scientist abroad conveyed through his symbolic relationship with butterflies.
Read the full review here.
20. Riders of Justice (Denmark)
If you’re looking for a satire of Liam Neeson’s Taken franchise, look no further than Riders of Justice. It features Mads Mikkelsen as a soldier that returns home to console his daughter after his wife dies in a train crash. He gets embroiled in a revenge plot with a bunch of misfits that convince him the crash was planned. It humorously explores the one-dimensional male-leads in the slew of 21st Century revenge movies with the help of a group of nerds.
19. Taming The Garden (Georgia)
Taming the Garden is a slow documentary about a billionaire’s project to create a garden of the grandest trees in his country. Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire, and former Prime Minister of Georgia, is the invisible villain of this film, as we follow his construction teams uproot trees from around the country to be transported across the seas to his home. The focus is not on his garden though, but the sublime images of the trees being transported; the huge efforts of the construction teams and the locals caught in-between.
Read the full review here.
18. Softie (Kenya)
If you’re looking for an observational documentary that follows a political activist trying to change a corrupt system by running for government whilst showing the effects this has on their family, Softie is the film for you. Boniface “Softie” Mwangi was drawn to political activism during his time photographing the post election violence in 2007. Now, he’s running for office in a regional Kenyan election. To succeed, he has to radically change a democracy tainted by corruption, violence, and mistrust.
Read the full review here.
17. About Endlessness (Sweden)
In a collection of stylized vignettes, Roy Andersson captures the banal endlessness of humanity. The scenes vary from the everyday, such as a woman waiting at a train station thinking she’s been forgotten, to the brutally unforgiving, such as a man about to face a firing squad. It bundles historical scenes with others that could fit in our lives. In just under 80 minutes, these vignettes capture the absurdity of life.
16. Just Don’T Think I’ll Scream (France)
This is what happens when you lock a filmmaker in a room with a bunch of films and not much else. Just Don’t Think I’ll Scream is the documentary diary of Frank Beauvais, who moved to the country in search of love, but instead became lost in a kind of mid-life crisis. He documented his experiences in a voice-over supported by an incredible puzzle of images from the 4-5 films he watched per day during the 6 months he was alone for.
15. Days (Taiwan)
Slow film isn’t for everyone, but Tsai Ming-Liang’s Days is a great film to meditatively watch. It forces you to watch an excessive amount of dead time as characters go about their chores (you’ll never flash wash a salad again) and literally stare into the horizon. The reward for your patience is an erotic ending with a memorable musical conclusion.
14. Azor (Argentina)
Azor is Heart of Darkness style journey into the underworld of Swiss Banking in Argentina. Instead of a physical jungle, Yvan has to navigate the corrupt upper echelons of Argentinian society to find his missing colleague. Azor is one of the best written films of 2021, interpreted brilliantly by debut filmmaker Andreas Fontana.
13. El Planeta (spain)
Spanish language films are a gold mine for deadpan humor and El Planeta is no different. It follows a mother-daughter double team grifting their way through life in a contemporary Spain with apparently little opportunity (even the successful people have made it abroad). Watch for the muted laughs, kooky clothing, and to see a triple-threat debut director.
12. Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time (Hungary)
After setting a date with a Hungarian neurosurgeon in Budapest, Marta flies home after twenty years in the United States to meet him. She goes all in on their relationship but is met with confusion as the ‘love of her life’ ghosts her; both standing her up at her date and claiming that they’ve never met. The film converts Marta’s uneasiness into images as she, the other characters, and the audience all question her memory and what is real.
11. Faya Dayi (Ethiopia)
Faya Dayi is a trip of an Ethiopian documentary. It’s a fully immersive sensory experience into the highlands of Harar, Ethiopia with the help of Khat. The style accentuates our senses, making us feel like we’re there, but dulls our understanding of the plot (which is left vague). Instead of a linear, easy to follow narrative, we’re given a handful of strands to grasp at, until we give up trying to follow them and surrender to the meditative, poetic style. Watch this film in a dark room with a good sound system or headphones and drift along with it.
Read the full review here.
10. All Hands on Deck (France)
In All Hands on Deck, Felix persuades a friend to road-trip with him from Paris to the sunny South of France to surprise his dream girl who he shared a great date with a week earlier. The summer-time vibes set the foundation for the warm dramedy, which is taken to even warmer heights with the buddy-movie tropes, karaoke, and laid-back comedy. It’s a film that goes with the flow and will make you happy – a perfect movie to feel the summer whatever time of year.
9. Ascension (China)
No film can avoid a point of view, but Ascension avoids obvious political bias by observationally shooting a wide range of images of Chinese society without commentary. From workers toiling away in factories to influencers planning their next social media post, Ascension captures a selective cross-section that illuminates the growing class divides in China and the widening distance between the country and Communism.
8.What Do We See When We Look At The Sky (Georgia)
What Do We See When We Look at the Sky is an enchanting summer romance along the quirky lines of La Flor, Whistler, and Amelie. After a chance encounter in the Georgian town of Kutaisi, pharmacist Lisa and footballer Giorgi set a plan for a date by the riverfront. However, as their appearance is magically transformed the next day, they lose both their job skills and their ability to recognize each other. As with true love, even with the change, they’re never far from each other in their wandering. If you’re looking for a slow dreamy romance by the river front, try this one.
7. The New Girl (Argentina)
The New Girl is an engaging coming of age story, as well as a worker protest movie like Made in Bangladesh and Salt of the Earth. It follows a transient migrating to an industrial region of Argentina to live and work with her brother. It highlights the privilege of crime – contrasting her experience stealing out of need vs. her brother’s smuggling to get rich. Plus there’s a union at the heart of the narrative to add to the anti-capitalist thread of the movie. It packs a lot into its relatively short run time (only 79 minute).
Read the full review here.
6. The Hand of God (Italy)
Paolo Sorrentino has a gift at making Italian city life look amazing and full of mad stories. This time, instead of Rome (see The Great Beauty), he dives into his own memories growing up in Napoli. The spontaneity and life of The Hand of God channels the spirit of Fellini whilst the richness colors and expansive shots of the city show Sorrentino’s mark. It’s a beautifully shot, lightly tragic, autobiography set in 1980’s Napoli.
5. Wheel of Fortune & Fantasy/Drive My Car (Japan)
Ryusuke Hamaguchi had not one, but two of the best films of 2021. Wheel of Fortune & Fantasy had the more intriguing stories (split into three parts), but Drive My Car had the benefit of time to fully build out another brilliant Haruki Murakami film adaptation (also see Burning). Both films are film drama at its best – you just get to pick if you’d rather short stories imbued with unlikely coincidences or a long brooding drama to fully immerse yourself in.
4. Landfall (Puerto Rico)
Landfall is a political documentary imbued with anger at the current state of Puerto Rico. It captures life in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, choosing to depict the current post-Hurricane tragedies instead of the actual Hurricane, and setting them within the history of U.S. imperialism. In doing so, Landfall presents a searing critique of disaster capitalism (see Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine) and the U.S. stranglehold on Puerto Rico and its ineffectual politicians.
Read the full review here.
3. Pebbles (India)
In Pebbles one angry father takes his young son out of school to visit his mother’s village. However, when they find out his mother has already left, they begin a long walk home under the burning sun. It’s simple storyline is hard to look away from as the camera brilliantly captures both the inhospitable landscape as well as the tension between the unpredictably violent father and his cautious son. So, if you’re looking for a film which compacts pure cinematic energy with a hot and arid environment in 75 minutes, you need to watch this film.
2. Sugar Daddy (Canada)
Musical Dramas Ema and Sound of Metal were amongst our favorite films from last year and Sugar Daddy felt more explosive than both of them. It follows a struggling artist that turns to a paid dating service to fund her music career. The standout is the lead actor, Kelly McCormack (who’s also the writer and producer behind the project), who gives one incredible performance. The music, craziness, and spiral of the lead make this film captivating. The only thing that we’d change is the misleading title.
Watch Sugar Daddy on Hoopla or Amazon Prime.
1. The Disciple (India)
The Disciple is our favorite film of 2021. It follows a struggling Indian classical musician in training with an aging guru from a rare musical lineage. His journey is presented as a leap of faith in his existential search for meaning. It’s presented patiently with long musical takes cut with some memorable nighttime shots of Sharad biking home listening to his prized philosophical musings from his enigmatic hero. This film is a must watch as long as you’re ready to spare a bit of time to fully immerse yourself in Indian classical music.
Watch The Disciple on Netflix.
HONORABLE MENTIONS FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL FILMS OF 2021:
I’m Your Man (Germany), Nayattu (India), A Cop Movie (Mexico), Aurora (Costa Rica), Identifying Features (Mexico), Liborio (Dominican Republic), State Funeral (Ukraine), The Last Shelter (Mali), The Woman Who Ran (South Korea), Hit the Road (Iran)
If you think we’ve missed a film from a list that you think is one of the best international films of 2021, please get in touch on Twitter or by email.
Better late than never! Here’s our favorite international films of 2022 which range from an Indian biopic/star vehicle for Alia Bhatt to a trio of +3 hour films from 3 separate continents.
12 of our top 30 were seen at the cinema as the theatrical film experience in 2022 was almost back to normal. New international films are given a pretty decent share of screen space in West Los Angeles, mostly thanks to the efforts of the Laemmle Theaters and The Nuart. There’s also a couple of bigger theater chains such as Cinemark and CGV that screen the latest big releases from the Indian, Korean, and Chinese film industries at a few of their locations. Outside of these theaters, international films also premiered at film festivals across the city such as AFI Fest, PAFF, and LALIFF amongst others. However, whilst most international films were easier to find theatrically, they weren’t easier to find on streamers as the streaming market became more split and the big names focused on U.S. releases vs. continuing to scout new international features. Mubi, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hoopla, Kanopy, and even Hulu have been streaming a good selection of new international films – we’ll see if HBO Max, Apple TV+, Paramount+, and Peacock join them in 2023.
30 Best International Films of 2022
30. Gangubai Kathiawadi (India)
An Alia Bhatt star vehicle. Gangubai Kathiawadi is the perfect film for her, and she is the perfect fit for Gangubai. Whilst it fails to pull off the conversion of Gangubai from prostitute gangster to feminist icon, its first half is memorable for its quest for vengeance through Mumbai’s criminal underworld. As a bonus, this film features some of the best songs of 2022’s movies.
29. Joyland
Whilst Joyland’s Queer Palm win promises a progressive or unique portrayal of Queerness, the film doesn’t really stretch any boundaries. Haider’s relationship with Biba, the only queer relationship in the film, is sacrificed for a melodramatic finale. However, Joyland is a technically faultless film – something you’d expect from a Cannes winner – and captures the dynamics of the patriarchy in Pakistan memorably.
Read the full review here.
28. EO (Poland)
Sure, the storyline in Eo is a bit clichéd, but there’s a reason why it’s in discussions amongst the best films of 2022: it’s amazing cinematography and sound. The vivid colors and striking sounds turn this Lassie Come Home replay into something that feels much more intense – like a Donkey version of Okja. I only wished the marketers conveyed this intensity in their PR, instead of this comforting image of Eo with carrots around his neck. It’s obviously more for the art-film crowd than for families.
27. Petite Maman (France)
Petite Maman is built around a beautifully mellow sci-fi premise which subtle depicts the fragile relationship between a mother and daughter. Whilst it manages to convey a lot of quaint emotion in its short runtime, it doesn’t celebrate the magic within it. This leaves the film feeling a bit flat to some, but quietly brilliant to others.
26. Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)
This is The Secret in Their Eyes if it was contained to the world of law. It examines the same historical moment in Argentina through the story of the lawyers that put the government on trial and also features Ricardo Darin. Even though the momentum from the thrilling lead up to the trial fizzles out once the film enters the courtroom, it’s always a pleasure to watch one of Argentina’s most iconic actors in their element.
25. All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)
This film is for all the fans of inspirational, patriotic war films. It shows the pointless brutality of war – crossing shocking violence alongside the bland bureaucracy that prolongs it. It also has a soundtrack that serves a similar purpose to a smoke-alarm running out of battery – its unpredictable, sudden loud drones make it un-ignorable. It prevents you from getting comfortable with all of the horrors present in this war film.
24. Murina (Croatia)
A psychological coming of age movie that features some extreme anxiety inducing scenes. The beautiful Adriatic coast masks the strained family relationships between Julija and her parents – a misogynistic dad and a fragile mother. The arrival of a foreign businessman with an ambiguous background and fortune brings the allure of an alternate future for Julija, but pits her against her family and everyone else against each other.
23. Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Mexico)
Genius at times and pretentious at others made Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths one of the most divisive movies of the year. Whichever side you fall on, there should at least be a universal appreciation of its originality. The sets and cinematography and the weird images they come together to create make this film brilliantly unique.
22. Il Buco (Italy)
Il Buco’s stunning landscape shots will push you to add Calabria to your travel wish lists. It follows a group of explorers in the 1960s as they descend into one of the World’s deepest caves in Southern Italy. It’s meditative pace, without any subtitled dialogue and natural sounds, creates a simpler world to contrast with the modern skyscrapers being built in Northern Italy. Il Buco is an ode to the eternal, calm beauty that nature and a simple life offer.
21. Happening (France)
Happening follows a similar path to Never, Really, Sometimes, Always. Like Autumn in the latter film, we join teenage Anne in the early 1960s as she finds out she’s pregnant and follow her quest to end her unwanted pregnancy. However, unlike Never, Really, Sometimes, Always abortion is illegal in the entire country, and Anne is forced to the underground for help. It’s also a little more raw, making it a harder, deliberately more uncomfortable watch.
20. Wet Sand (Georgia)
After Eliko is found hanged in a quiet village on the Georgian Black Sea, his granddaughter Moe comes to organize his funeral. Whilst Moe expects to be in and out of the village quickly, she’s confronted by a web of lies. The more time she spends in the village, the more secrets she finds. As with the best Iranian dramas (see Man of Integrity of A Hero), the tension builds and builds until something has to give.
19. Tug of War (Tanzania)
Tug of War is a beautifully shot, anti-colonial Tanzanian film inspired by Wong Kar Wai’s In the Mood for Love. It features sumptuously warm cinematography, a slow burning romance, and a fight for independence. The only criticism is that it may borrow a little too much from its obvious influences.
Read the full review here.
18. Saint Omer (France)
In Saint Omer a novelist attends the trial of a woman that killed her 15-month old daughter by abandoning her to the rising tide on a beach in Northern France. The more time our protagonist (and the audience) listens to the killer, the more drawn to her we are. Like the best classic horror films, Saint Omer draws on dread and hidden fears – in this case a fear of motherhood and fear of ones own violent capabilities. It’s a brilliant addition to the legendary tales of La Llorona and Rusalkia.
17. Great Freedom (Germany)
At the end of the Second World War, Hans is moved from the Nazi concentration camps to the prisons of Post-War Germany because of his homosexuality. Over the next few decades, he’s repeatedly imprisoned for his sexuality, but he manages to find some slim semblance of freedom and love in the prisons which is always cut short outside of them. Great Freedom is one of the best prison dramas you can watch.
16. Ponniyin Selvan: Part One (India)
The downside of Ponniyin Selvan: Part One is it’s a long set-up for what should be an incredible sequel. Despite this, the upsides are still numerous: the AR Rahman soundtrack, the Game of Thrones conniving and conspiring against the King, and shots of Southern India and South East Asia are just a few examples. Make sure you watch this film now before the hype arrives with the release of part two.
15. Leonor Will Never Die (Philippines)
Leonor falls into a coma when a television lands on her head, sending her into a dimension that floats between her dreams and reality. It becomes a story within a story as Leonor enters her own unfinished B-movie action script to fulfill her own hero’s journey. Leonor will Never Die is an endearingly quirky ode to the simple fun of 80’s action films.
14. Alcarras (Spain)
What Alcarras does brilliantly is tell a very specific local story in order to highlight how capitalism is affecting not just the Sole family, but the local community and many other people around the globe. It’s set completely in one small municipality in Spain centered one family, all played by non-actors from similar backgrounds to the family on screen, living on one farm. Whilst a multi-family or multi-country film might fail to generate sympathy for it’s characters because of it’s broad scope, Alcarras, in spending time with one family in one region, gives the audience more time and closeness to sympathize with not just them, but everyone negatively affected by capitalism around the world.
Read the full review here.
13. Lingui: The Sacred Bonds (Chad)
Mahamat Saleh-Haroun is one of the most brilliantly consistent directors working today. Every one of his films focuses on Chadian’s facing dilemmas, and all are extremely grounded because of the patient pacing of each of his films. Lingui: The Sacred Bonds follows Amina, a single mother helping her daughter seek an abortion when its condemned by both religion in law. Unlike Happening or Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always their journey is shared and not carried out alone, allowing for their bond to grow in the extreme circumstances.
12. Night of Knowing Nothing (India)
Night of Knowing Nothing combines reality with fiction, fantasies, memories, and a range of experimental plots, to create one of the most interesting protest documentaries of recent years. The narrative follows, L, a fictional university student writing letters to her lover. Their unravelling relationship, partly due to their caste differences, runs alongside documentary footage of student protests and police violence, and in doing so, becomes a metaphor for the country’s decline.
11. Bantu Mama (Dominican Republic)
Bantu Mama looks like your typical Film Festival fare, but it’s propelled by a brilliant soundtrack of regional African music and Dominican trap. Both genres mesh together to represent the cultural dialogue with Africa that Emma, the French-Cameroonian fugitive, opens to the Afro-Latino children that shelter her. The Pan-African cultural dialogue they create make Bantu Mama unique. It’s a lean, music-powered cultural exchange linking the underworld of the Dominican Republic to Africa.
Read the full review here.
10. Clara Sola (Costa Rica)
Clara Sola is the year’s most subtle anti-colonialist film. It follows Clara’s awakening as she frees herself from her conservative Christian family in remote Costa Rica to embrace the indigenous roots of her miraculous powers. It uses colors and nature brilliantly to depict her gradual awakening from society and its colonial inherited culture.
Read the full review here.
9. RRR (India)
There wasn’t a more entertaining film than RRR in 2022. Whilst other Indian and American films tried to capture out-do each other with more ridiculous action scenes, RRR threw 3 or 4 of the top action sequences of the year into it’s 3 hour run time. Sure, it could be described as nationalist and the villains are cliched, and yes the CGI isn’t perfect, but it’s pure entertainment with a bromance for the ages.
Read our review of the RRR experience here.
8. Saloum (Senegal)
Saloum is a high energy genre film that creates a team of mythical African revolutionaries and pits them against a paranormal ambush. Whilst this may seem like a ridiculous plot, it never feels it. Everything we need to know is told on the go and each of the three main characters feel like they have a long backstory which gives the film credibility. The only disappointment is it ends as quickly as it starts, leaving you wanting more.
7. No Bears (Iran)
For a film that holds no punches in attacking censorship and freedom of movement, Panahi’s latest is a joy to watch. It’s filled with a dry humor that pokes fun of the establishment whilst retaining a serious message. Just as much as this, No Bears is also a testament to the filmmaking drive of Jafar Panahi. No matter how many restrictions are imposed against him, he’s continued to make films and inspire others. We hope he, and the Iranian filmmakers imprisoned with him earlier this year will be released and the filmmaking bans rescinded.
Read the full review here.
6. Decision to Leave (South Korea)
Decision to Leave is one of the best modern noirs we’ve seen, complete with a very normal romance, at least in comparison to the director’s other movies. The brilliance in the film comes from the little things, such as the humorous clues of a brewing romance (including expensive sushi), and a hilarious way to take part in a knife fight. Park Chan-wook also uniquely meshes two shots into one to more efficiently convey the detective process. These innovative scenes along with the injections of humor make Decision to Leave immensely engaging to watch.
5. Girl Picture (Finland)
If you’re a fan of Booksmart, Girlhood, or even Worst Person in the World you should try this cute but not shallow coming of age movie from Finland. Whilst there are plenty of similar films, Girl Picture feels more natural and humble because it contains more depth to the dialogue between best friends Ronkko and Mimmi, and Mimmi’s young relationship with Emma.
4. Rewind & PLay (France)
Rewind and Play is an incredibly uncomfortable example of how the Black experience has been written out of history. Alain Gomis digs up the outtakes from an interview Thelonious Monk did with French state television in 1969. It reveals that behind what perhaps appeared to be a simple profile of a Jazz musician, is a heavily edited, whitewashed version of one of the genres largest names. His talent and experience is deliberately reduced to a few stereotypical nuggets to fit a white European audience.
Read the full review here.
3. Mr Bachmann and His Class (Germany)
A couple of years ago, Frederick Wiseman released City Hall, a long documentary that showed viewers footage from all parts of Boston’s city government to give a fairly complete view of what it is like to work in local government. Similarly, Maria Speth’s Mr Bachmann and His Class, spends 3.5 hours in and around Mr Bachmann’s class to give you the experience of being a fly on the wall in a German middle school. What makes it great is that its not just any class; Mr Bachmann’s is composed of migrant children adapting to Germany and Mr Bachmann’s unconventional methods (including heavy metal rehearsals).
2. Memoria (Colombia/Thailand)
At the opposite end of the cinematic experience spectrum from RRR is Memoria. It is just as necessary to watch this film in the cinema, and it may be the only place we’ll ever be able to see it as it continues its theatrical rollout. Like other Apichatpong Weerasethakul films, Memoria‘s plot is intangible. It’s not a film you follow easy; instead it gently guides you towards a calm ecstasy. Watching Memoria in the movie theater is a spiritual experience.
1. Trenque Lauquen (Argentina)
If you’re ready to sit down for a few hours to indulge yourself in some cosy, trivial Argentine mysteries, meet the latest film from El Pampero Cine, Trenque Lauquen. Like La Flor and Extraordinary Stories, Trenque Lauquen is indulgent storytelling. It’s as if the filmmakers of El Pampero Cine have been challenging each other to come up with new quirky mysteries to keep audiences interested for longer periods of time. Each of their films is like following a maze or river cruise full of pleasant surprises. Serious things happen in these films, but because of the relaxed tone, it never feels real-world serious. They’re there to simply entertain and nothing more, and they do this better than anyone else in the industry.
HONORABLE MENTIONS FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL FILMS OF 2022:
Pada (India), Inu-oh (Japan), Holy Spider (Iran), Monica, O My Darling (India), The Tsugua Diaries (Portugal), The Great Movement (Bolivia), Excess Will Save Us (France), Fire in the Mountain (India), Vikram (India)
If you think we’ve missed a film from a list that you think is one of the best international films of 2021, please get in touch on Twitter or by email.
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