From an epic documentary on female filmmakers to a quirky road trip through Bosnia, here are our picks for what to watch online...
Going to cinema might not be an option right now, but bringing the magic of the big screen directly into your home is – especially as more studios opt to release the latest films on VOD platforms instead. What better way to take refuge from the bizarre situation currently gripping our world than with a host of unique, inspiring, and entertaining films?
As always, we've assembled the best of what’s showing (read as: streaming) and gathered them here to make choosing a great film as easy as possible. Whatever you're in the mood for, WeLoveCinema has you well and truly covered…
New Releases…
Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema
Where to watch it: Various streaming services
Mark Cousins' landmark behemoth of a documentary, running at a whopping fourteen hours, charts a bold and brilliant path through the history of cinema, seen through the accomplishments of female filmmakers – many forgotten. Enlightening and absorbing, it works as an essential companion to his own The Story of Film.
The County
Where to watch it: Various streaming services
From the director of Rams comes this darkly comic tale set in Iceland. Its story concerns the exploits of dairy farmer, Inga, played by Arndís Hrönn Egilsdóttir, who decides to rally against the corrupt establishment who rule the land. Shades of the American western abounds.
Cassandro, The Exotico!
Where to watch it: MUBI
This short and sweet documentary hones in on the eponymous wrestler, Cassandro (real name: Saúl Armendáriz), best known for being the only openly gay champion of Mexico's exotico wrestling circuit. As directed by Marie Losier, the film offers an intimate, melancholy portrait of a truly larger-than-life character.
The Lovebirds
Where to watch it: Netflix
The Big Sick's director Michael Showalter has reteamed with that film's Kumail Nanjiani for a wacky murder-mystery co-starring Issa Rae. They're a couple whose relationship has lost its spark – that is until they're plunged headfirst into a criminal conspiracy. Like a modern update on Woody Allen's similar couple-in-crisis yarn Manhattan Murder Mystery.
Take Me Somewhere Nice
Where to watch it: MUBI
A Dutch teenager heads to Bosnia in order to meet with her dying father for the first time. Teamed with her cousin and his best friend, things don't quite go to plan, and the trio embark on an unruly, cross country road trip through the Bosnian heartland. A quirky, stylish, and deadpan debut from writer-director Ena Sendijarević, taking is cues from Jim Jarmusch's Stranger Then Paradise.
Still Streaming…
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Where to watch it: Various streaming services
Eliza Hittman's bold examination of US reproductive rights, Never Rarely Sometimes Always (not to be confused with a similarly-named Bill Nighy film) stars Sidney Flanigan as seventeen-year-old Autumn, who – following an unwanted pregnancy – sets out from her home state of Pennsylvania to New York with her cousin in tow to get an abortion. It's an uncompromising look at a broken system, with perfectly pitched performances.
What we said: “There is a sense here of the filmmaker striking the perfect balance between the alienated teen character studies of her past and a film with some genuine narrative heft (read our full review).”
The Orphanage
Where to watch it: MUBI
The second part in a planned five-part film series, Sharhbanoo Sadat's The Orphanage is nowhere near as downbeat as its dour title suggests; instead what we get is an immersive drama following the adventures of Qodrat (Quodratullah Qadiri) and his friends during their time at a Soviet-funded Afghan orphanage.
What we said: “A carefully constructed film full of hope and jubilation, yet appropriately melancholy, it’s a heartfelt ode to youthful imagination and a lost past (read our full review).”
The Whistlers
Where to watch it: Various streaming services
Romanian filmmaker Corneliu Porumboiu has made a career from purposely uneventful dramas satirising his native country's awkward bureaucratic systems. His latest, crime thriller The Whistlers, couldn't be more different. Set on La Gomera, an island in the Canaries, it follows a police officer tasked with infiltrating a crime syndicate by learning a secret whistling language, and unravels with a Tarantino-like playfulness.
What we said: “The Whistlers forgoes the dreariness of small offices and stacks of paperwork for a noir-ish thriller about a police officer – playful, pulpy, and packed with incident for incident’s sake (read our full review).”
New to Streaming…
Call of the Wild
Where to watch it: Various streaming services
Harrison Ford stars in this Disney adaptation of Jack London's classic novel, giving one of his best performances in years as a mountain man who teams with loveable CG pooch Buck for a series of nature-based adventures. A worthwhile diversion for the whole family.
