A Look Back at the Year in International Film
It can often take months between when a film debuts at a festival and when it is released online, but as we look back at the past year – and as we make our holiday watchlists -- we present some of the notable international films of 2023 already available to stream.
20 Days in Mariupol
(20 днів у Маріуполі)
As the Russian invasion begins, a team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol struggles to continue their work.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Ukraine • 2023
- Director Mstyslav Chernov
- Cast
- Genre Documentary, War
- Available on Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Hoopla
Afire
(Roter Himmel)
When a forest fire traps vacationers in a home on the Baltic Sea, tensions, sexual and otherwise, rise.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- • 2023
- Director Christian Petzold
- Cast Thomas Schubert, Paula Beer, Langston Uibel, Enno Trebs, Matthias Brandt
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
Ashkal
In Carthage's modern district, a charred body is found, initially deemed a suicide. Detectives Batal and Fatma question this conclusion. Shortly after, a teenager is discovered similarly dead nearby.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Tunisia, Qatar • 2023
- Director Youssef Chebbi
- Cast Fatma Oussaifi, Mohamed Grayaâ, Aymen Ben Hmida, Rami Harrabi, Ghalia Jebali, Adel Monam Khemis
- Genre Drama, Thriller
- Available on Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube
BlackBerry
The "true story" of the meteoric rise and catastrophic demise of the world's first smartphone.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Canada • 2023
- Director Matt Johnson
- Cast Glenn Howerton, Michael Ironside, Jay Baruchel, Rich Sommer, Cary Elwes, Saul Rubinek
- Genre Comedy, Drama
- Available on Hulu, AMC+, AMC Plus Apple TV Channel , IFC Films Unlimited Apple TV Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Spectrum On Demand, Kanopy
Infinity Pool
A couple on vacation venture outside the resort grounds and find themselves in a world of horror.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Canada, Hungary, France • 2023
- Director Brandon Cronenberg
- Cast Alexander Skarsgård, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman, Thomas Kretschmann, Amanda Brugel, John Ralston
- Genre Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller
- Available on Hulu, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, AMC on Demand
Passages
After Tomas begins an affair with Agathe, his marriage to husband Martin seemingly falls into disrepair.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Germany • 2023
- Director Ira Sachs
- Cast Franz Rogowski, Ben Whishaw, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Erwan Kepoa Falé, Radostina Rogliano, Théo Cholbi
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on MUBI, Apple TV, Fandango At Home
Riceboy Sleeps
Building a new life in the Canadian suburbs, a Korean mother and son struggle with a growing rift between them.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Canada • 2023
- Director Anthony Shim
- Cast Choi Seung-yoon, Ethan Hwang, Dohyun Noel Hwang, Anthony Shim, Jerina Son, Hunter Dillon
- Genre Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
Scarlet
(L'envol)
A WWI veteran returns to his French village, discovering his wife's death. Left to care for daughter Juliette, he witnesses her becoming a free-spirited woman.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Italy, Germany • 2023
- Director Pietro Marcello
- Cast Raphaël Thiéry, Juliette Jouan, Louis Garrel, Noémie Lvovsky, Yolande Moreau, François Négret
- Genre Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Hoopla
The Blue Caftan
(Le Bleu du caftan)
A middle-aged tailor and his wife find their relationship turned upside down by the arrival of a handsome new apprentice.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Morocco, Belgium • 2023
- Director Maryam Touzani
- Cast Lubna Azabal, Saleh Bakri, Ayoub Messioui, Mounia Lamkimel, Hamid Zoughi
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Strand Releasing Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
The Count
(El Conde)
A black comedy reimagining Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet as a vampire.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Chile • 2023
- Director Pablo Larraín
- Cast Jaime Vadell, Gloria Münchmeyer, Alfredo Castro, Paula Luchsinger
- Genre Comedy, History, Horror
- Available on Netflix, Netflix basic with Ads
The Cow Who Sang a Song into the Future
(La vaca que canto una cancion sobre el futuro)
Cecilia travels to her father's farm after he has a heart attack. Back in her childhood home, Cecilia is met by her long-deceased mother whose presence brings to life a painful past.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Chile, France, United States • 2023
- Director Francisca Alegría
- Cast Leonor Varela, Mía Maestro, Alfredo Castro, Marcial Tagle, Luis Dubó, Enzo Ferrada
- Genre Drama
- Available on Kino Film Collection, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Hoopla
The Eternal Memory
(La memoria infinita)
An intimate meditation on love and memory that observes a couple dealing with Alzheimer’s over a four-year period.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Chile • 2023
- Director Maite Alberdi
- Cast Paulina Urrutia, Augusto Góngora
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Paramount Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Paramount Plus Apple TV Channel , Apple TV, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube