If you’re looking for an entry point into the Cholombiano sub culture of Monterrey, you’ve come to the right place. I’m No Longer Here has the cumbia music, the dance crews, the slang, and the unique haircuts. The narrative bounces between Monterrey and New York as it follows Ulises from leading a crew in his Mexican hometown, to his new exile in New York to escape the gangs he was mistakenly mixed up in. In New York, he never fits in. He’s only at peace when he’s listening to cumbia or dancing. Otherwise, he’s alone in a world where local Latinos make fun of him and where the Americans that like him can’t communicate with him. Tune in for the music, dancing, and ‘fish out of water’ immigrant experience.
The Cathedral follows Lina, a young woman wandering Port Louis, the capital city of Mauritius. She interacts with friends and family around the city in a carefree manner which is only challenged (slightly) when her dancing catches the eye of a foreign photographer.
The Cathedral is based on a short story written by Ananda Devi. However, the tone of the film feels completely different from the reviews of the book which emphasize the hopeless poverty of the main characters. In contrast, the film has a very laidback island feel thanks to the light background music, sunshine, and warm colors. It also helps that most of the film follows Lina roaming around Port Louis, stopping at stalls to chat to vendors and catching conversations happening around her. Her wandering gives her and the film a very care-free nature – even the conflict that comes towards the end of the movie doesn’t feel that serious.
However, it does feel like The Cathedral is trying a bit too hard to be poetic. This is particularly noticeable in the two extra narrators that interrupt Lina’s narrative. One is a personified narrative voice of the city’s cathedral. It’s meant to give a poetic character to the city, but it comes across a bit unnatural for a film, as talking buildings are more expected in classroom historical documentaries or children’s shows. The other narrative voice comes from a foreign photographer. Like the cathedral, the photographer’s narrative voice feels strange because it interrupts Lina’s narrative at various points of the film. It’s also never diegetic – instead his narrative voice is layered over him taking exaggerated pictures of locals (which are also awkwardly voyeuristic). Because the two narrators interrupt the flow of the film and feel unnatural next to the film’s images, the poetic impact they’re intended to create doesn’t come across.
It’s also a bit uncomfortable how much Lina is fetishized. Everyone follows her – the camera, the photographer, and the cathedral. The cathedral speaks about how she is the light of the city and that she’d be missed if she ever left; the foreign photographer takes pictures of her dancing in the street without asking, whilst the camera follows her as if she’s the center of a fashion photo shoot. She’s heavily objectified and treated a bit like she’s a pretty bird flying around the city. She also isn’t given any depth. Her character development is overlooked in her care-free wandering character. Perhaps her character’s fetishization is a metaphor for a country still trapped in a web of colonial interests, however it’s more likely that it’s a byproduct of the director’s male gaze. So if you’re looking for a tour around Port Louis from a fetishized young woman, this film might be for you.
The laid back feel, whilst contrasting with the book reviews, at least makes The Cathedral an easy watch. It doesn’t feel too complex, but perhaps there are some deeper themes it alludes to from the book that doesn’t quite translate to the movie.
What to Watch Next
The Cathedral reminded me of a combination of 3 types of films:
The slightly cheesy slice of life sun-drenched dramedies like The Courtyard of Songs from Lisbon which present happy, dreamy city life by the sea.
Movies that bounce between casual conversations like Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and Cigarettes, which make you feel like a fly on the wall of a particular place.
Documentaries that exoticize it’s subjects like Sauper’s Epicentro (in this case it’s a pretty local girl instead of a group of local kids).
Watch the world with Netflix. Here’s 10 of the best foreign films on Netflix you need to watch right now!
As you’ll know if you have Netflix, there’s a lot of content! So it takes a lot of browsing to find good foreign films. Plus, the other problem is the Netflix reviews. When Adam Sandler films are the highest rated films on the entire platform, you know Netflix reviews can’t be trusted. So when you think you’ve found a good foreign film to watch with 4.5 stars, you may have ended up with a cheesy comedy!
That’s where we come in, we’re here to help you find the best foreign films on Netflix. We’ll save you browsing time and make sure you end up with a gem. Here’s 10 of our favourite foreign films on Netflix UK (hopefully some of them will be available elsewhere as well).
10. Hunt for the Wilderpeople (New Zealand)
This feel good comedy from Taika Waititi is the perfect film for a family night in. It stars Sam Neill (from Jurassic Park fame) and newcomer Julian Dennison, playing a grumpy old man and a juvenile delinquent respectively. You’ll get a sense of the fun in the trailer below. For more fun from Taika Waititi check out What We Do in the Shadows.
9. The Square (Egypt)
If you’re up for a thrilling political documentary, check out The Square. It documents the Arab Spring movement from the Tahir Square in Cairo, Egypt. You’ll feel like you’re right there. Perfect if you’re up for learning a bit about contemporary history.
8. Elle (Netherlands)
Do you want to be thrilled? Then watch Elle. In the opening minutes, Michele is raped by a masked assailant. She decides not to report it. I’ve cut the trailer below, but feel free to click through to watch the full trailer if you don’t mind spoilers. Just watch it – you won’t be bored!
7. Ip Man (Hong Kong)
If you’re into martial arts films, you can’t go wrong with Ip Man. Firstly, the action is quality. Secondly, there’s actually a half decent story-line. Lastly, it’s got Donnie Yen.
6. Son of Saul (Hungary)
If you want a more gritty version of Schindler’s List, this might be just what you are after. It follows a day and a half in the life of a Hungarian member of the SonderKommando (prisoners that were forced to dispose the gas chamber victims). If you don’t like the sound of that, at least watch the trailer below to get a taster for the incredible cinematography. More analysis here.
5. Let the Right One In (Sweden)
Who said you can’t make romantic horror films? Director Tomas Alfredson obviously doesn’t see any problems in mixing genres. It’s clever and original. So check it out if you dare!
4. District 9 (South Africa)
One of my personal favourites. District 9 is another genre masher; a science fiction film shot like a documentary. It explores humanity, xenophobia, and social segregation in an alternate 1982. If you haven’t seen it, watch it. If you’ve already seen it and didn’t think much of it, trust me and watch it again. You’ll also notice the direct influence it had on Arrival.
3. Under the Shadow (Iran)
Who’s up for another psychological thriller? This beauty starts in 1980s war-torn Iran. Everyone is evacuating Tehran as Iraqi missiles start landing all across the city. All except for Shideh and her young daughter who have been left alone in a spooky tenement building as her husband is away fighting in the war. Being alone like that in the middle of a war will affect your mind!
2. The Great Beauty (Italy)
The Great Beauty is Sorrentino’s tribute to Fellini’s La Dolce Vita. So much so it feels like an update of the classic – a contemporary ode to the city of Rome. Let it’s stream of consciousness style carry you along. Perfect for a relaxed night in.
1. City of God (Brazil)
Can anyone really argue with City of God at number one? It’s entertaining, brutal, and brilliantly shot. It’s also probably the most gripping film about drug-wars in the Rio de Janeiro favelas ever made. Also, the perfect film to watch if you’ve already finished watching Narcos. (For more post-Narcos suggestions check out this list). It also has one of the worst trailers out there (you can blame the early 00s for that).
If you think we’re missing some of the best foreign films on Netflix, leave us a comment!
Angolares are the oldest inhabitants of the island of São Tomé. Control of the island was wrested from them in the late 19th century, and their descendants have been reduced to a small fishing community sitting on the border of the sea and jungle. Sea and Jungle explores the tangled history of the Angolares and the island of São Tomé.
Sea and Jungle starts as a narrated documentary. The filmmaker, Ângelo Torres, talks through an introduction to the remote fishing village of Sao Joao dos Angolares in the southern part of São Tomé (the main island of São Tomé and Principe) alongside shots of village life. There’s only 2,500 people living here on this strip of land bordering the Sea and Jungle (Mionga Ki Ôbo). The narrated documentary start gives the viewer a foundational understanding of the place and heritage (these people are the oldest inhabitants of the island following their escape from slavery) before the filmmaker grounds us in some local interviews.
The majority of the interview subjects are part of the fishing community of the village. They tell stories of the sea to give us a living perspective of the island to add to the director’s introduction. Some are functional, like the fish saleswoman that details how she funds her entrepreneurial job, whilst some are more emotional, like the traumatic story from a fisherman that hasn’t gone out to sea for four years after a near death experience. There’s also an interview with the island’s godfather type – a white man who’s the go-to money lender for the island and literal godfather to 117 local children. His white skin is a sign that the Portuguese colonial legacy on the island perhaps hasn’t fully passed. Whilst the sequence of interviews doesn’t develop a story or any themes, the interviews with the locals give a more vivid depiction of life in Sao Joao dos Angolares.
Some of the interviews are broken up by improvisational dance and dramatic reenactments of some of the stories. These interludes add a dreaminess to the documentary that runs with the narrator’s musings and mystical interview questions. The dreamy, mystical tone makes the interviewee’s references to superstitions seem more normal. There’s the man who doesn’t each shark because it might be the shark that ate his father, the boat makers that cut the trees for the canoes on specific moon-lit nights, and the doctors that summon spirits to help them cure their neighbors. However, the creative dreaminess is not fully embraced – the filmdoesn’t go full Fausto in it’s originality. It also doesn’t focus one theme; jumping between local fishing stories, superstitions, historical narrative, and improvisational scenes which dilute the film’s focus. But if you’re looking for an interesting documentary capturing life from a small town on a small African island country, Sea and Jungle does it’s job.
What to Watch Next
There’s a few more interesting African documentaries that center on life by the sea. Golden Fish, African Fish opens a window on Senegal’s many fisherman whilst Batuque will let you listen to Cape Verde’s national music. Or for a dreamy docudrama from another island nation, check out Mauritius’ The Cathedral. In Search of Voodoo also does a similar job of capturing one aspect of a country’s culture.
You could also check out Inland Sea from Japan if you’re looking for more fishing related documentaries from around the world.
You have no excuses now. Here are a list of free world films that you can watch on YouTube right now. Enjoy!
We’ve split these free world films by continent so you can target the countries that are missing from your personal film map or if you want to visit a country on film 🙂 We will keep updating this as we go along, please let me know if you’ve found more great world films on YouTube, or if any of the links below aren’t working by commenting in the comment box below or emailing me here.
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