100 Years of Political Action
This week we present a century of films about revolution and resistance. They highlight protests and political movements around the globe that have embodied the struggle for justice, as well as some of the leaders who enacted change by championing causes bigger than themselves.
BPM (Beats per Minute)
(120 battements par minute)
A group of young activists desperately seek a cure for AIDS in 1990s Paris.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2017
- Director Robin Campillo
- Cast Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Arnaud Valois, Adèle Haenel, Antoine Reinartz, Félix Maritaud, Ariel Borenstein
- Genre Drama
- Available on fuboTV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Crackle, Pluto TV, VUDU Free, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel
The Young Karl Marx
(Le jeune Karl Marx)
A friendship that changed the world.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Belgium, Germany • 2017
- Director Raoul Peck
- Cast August Diehl, Stefan Konarske, Vicky Krieps, Olivier Gourmet, Hannah Steele, Rolf Kanies
- Genre History, Drama
- Available on fuboTV, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Crackle, VUDU Free, Freevee, Kanopy, Plex Channel
The Measure of a Man
(La Loi du marché)
Thierry, 51, has been unemployed for almost two years. But a new job confronts him with a moral dilemma.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2015
- Director Stéphane Brizé
- Cast Vincent Lindon, Karine de Mirbeck, Mathieu Schaller, Yves Ory, Xavier Mathieu, Noel Mairot
- Genre Drama
- Available on Kino Film Collection, Apple TV, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Pride
Gay activists and mine workers form an unlikely partnership to fight for their rights in 1980s London.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom, France • 2014
- Director Matthew Warchus
- Cast Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, Paddy Considine, Andrew Scott, George MacKay
- Genre Drama, Comedy
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Hoopla
The Square
During the Egyptian Revolution, young activists armed with determination, humor, and social media savvy fight for their country’s future.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom, Egypt, United States • 2013
- Director Jehane Noujaim
- Cast Khalid Abdalla, Dina Abdullah, Dina Amer, Magdy Ashour, Ramy Essam, Ahmed Hassan
- Genre Documentary, Drama, History
- Available on Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, Kanopy
No
In 1988, Chilean military dictator Augusto Pinochet calls a plebiscite on his presidency under international political pressure.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Chile, France, Mexico • 2012
- Director Pablo Larraín
- Cast Gael García Bernal, Alfredo Castro, Néstor Cantillana, Luis Gnecco, Antonia Zegers, Jaime Vadell
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Made in Dagenham
In the fight for equal rights, an ordinary woman achieves something extraordinary.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom • 2010
- Director Nigel Cole
- Cast Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Simon Nehan, Andrea Riseborough
- Genre Comedy, Drama, History
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Army of Crime
(L'Armée du crime)
Immigrant laborers become martyrs for the resistance as they carry out operations against the Nazis in 1943.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2009
- Director Robert Guédiguian
- Cast Simon Abkarian, Virginie Ledoyen, Robinson Stévenin, Lola Naymark, Adrien Jolivet, Pierre Niney
- Genre War, Drama, History
- Available on Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, YouTube, Tubi TV, VUDU Free, Kanopy, Hoopla
District 9
You are not welcome here.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- South Africa, United States, New Zealand • 2009
- Director Neill Blomkamp
- Cast Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, Sylvaine Strike, Elizabeth Mkandawie, John Sumner
- Genre Science Fiction
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
Hunger
The true story of Bobby Sands, a courageous IRA political prisoner who led hunger strikes in the Maze prison in 1981.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Ireland, United Kingdom • 2008
- Director Steve McQueen
- Cast Michael Fassbender, Stuart Graham, Liam Cunningham, Helena Bereen, Laine Megaw, Brian Milligan
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on AMC+ Amazon Channel, Plex Channel
Persepolis
The downfall of the Iranian Shah is just the start of Marjane Satrapi's struggle for freedom and belonging.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, United States • 2007
- Director Marjane Satrapi
- Cast Chiara Mastroianni, Danielle Darrieux, Catherine Deneuve, Simon Abkarian, Gabrielle Lopes Benites, François Jerosme
- Genre Animation, Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Spectrum On Demand
The Motorcycle Diaries
(Diarios de motocicleta)
Before he changed the world, the world changed him.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Argentina, United States, Chile • 2004
- Director Walter Salles
- Cast Gael García Bernal, Rodrigo de la Serna, Mercedes Morán, Mía Maestro, Jean Pierre Noher
- Genre Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
Danton
Danton and Robespierre fought together as friends during the Revolution, but become bitter enemies once Robespierre takes control.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Poland • 1983
- Director Andrzej Wajda
- Cast Gérard Depardieu, Wojciech Pszoniak, Patrice Chéreau, Angela Winkler, Roland Blanche, Alain Macé
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Criterion Channel
Gandhi
His triumph changed the world forever.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom, India, United States • 1982
- Director Richard Attenborough
- Cast Ben Kingsley, Candice Bergen, Edward Fox, John Gielgud, Trevor Howard, Rohini Hattangadi
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
The Battle of Algiers
(La battaglia di Algeri)
The revolt that stirred the world!
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Algeria, Italy • 1966
- Director Gillo Pontecorvo
- Cast Brahim Hadjadj, Jean Martin, Yacef Saadi, Ugo Paletti, Fusia El Kader, Samia Kerbash
- Genre Drama, History, War
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
Battleship Potemkin
(Броненосец Потёмкин)
Revolution is the only lawful, equal, effectual war. It was in Russia that this war was declared and begun.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Soviet Union • 1925
- Director Sergei Eisenstein
- Cast Aleksandr Antonov, Vladimir Barsky, Grigori Aleksandrov, Ivan Bobrov, Mikhail Gomorov, Aleksandr Levshin
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Criterion Channel, FlixFling, Klassiki, Max Amazon Channel, Kino Film Collection, Apple TV, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, Kanopy, Hoopla, Public Domain Movies, JustWatchTV