Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for movies like La Bola Negra:
Nickel Boys
I’ve read pieces on Nickel Boys suggesting its unique style is either challenging or something you have to adjust to initially in order to be fully engrossed in the story. Some critics have even dinged it for such ambition, claiming its technical decisions – like telling the story almost entirely through literal first-person POV – create distance from the narrative. They argue that RaMell Ross‘ debut fictional feature sidesteps the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel it’s adapted from.
The Odyssey
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. There are certain movies that feel almost titanic as they happen. It was only a matter of time before someone adapted The Odyssey on a grand scale. And after Dunkirk further proved Nolan’s mastery of large-scale historical filmmaking, and Oppenheimer cemented him as arguably the most important blockbuster filmmaker working today, Homer’s epic felt like the biggest fish left in the pond.
Queer
Luca Guadagnino‘s Queer marks a rare misstep for the director, whose previous works often blend emotional nuance with bold stylistic choices. Here, his signature flair feels disjointed, leaving the movie struggling to find its footing between fragmented chapters and mismatched performances. While Queer does boast a few clever moments and ambitious ideas, it ultimately falters in its execution, making it one of Guadagnino’s least cohesive films.
Sing Sing
Few films in the 2020s have matched the emotional impact and resonance of Sing Sing. A deeply sincere and open exploration of how we channel our emotions into the things we care about most, while also examining how those same passions can serve as an escape from life’s pain points. The movie is a riveting drama that gently reminds viewers that, even within the broken systems we create, art has the power to both liberate and comfort.
Monster
Hirokazu Kore-eda juxtaposes his 2023 movie, Monster, against its own title. Naming your movie Monster instills an inherent sense of danger and hostility, and while Kore-eda’s latest film isn’t void of those emotions, it stills packs the same humanistic punch that has helped the writer/filmmaker gain such acclaim throughout the 21st century.
All of Us Strangers
Andrew Haigh’s All of Us Strangers emerges as one of the most quietly devastating and emotionally resonant films of 2023. From its opening scene, where Adam (Andrew Scott) and Harry (Paul Mescal) meet in the empty expanse of their apartment complex, the film invites viewers into a world filled with space, vibrant colors, and thoughtful design. Andrew Haigh, known for his work on films like Weekend and 45 Years, crafts a poignant narrative that explores the complexities of love, loss, and the haunting specter of the past. What transpires certainly stands as one of his best works yet as a director.
Train Dreams
Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar keep their hot streak going with Train Dreams, a frontier drama that does not chase incident so much as it chases mood. Their collaboration on Sing Sing showed how closely they can align image and feeling, and that carries over here. The new film is not a thematic follow up, but tonally and visually it feels of a piece, quiet and attentive, full of shots that guide emotion rather than announce themselves.
Mother Mary
Mother Mary constantly gestures toward depth without ever quite finding it. For some viewers, that ambiguity will likely be the appeal. For me, it resulted in a film that feels caught between two far more interesting versions of itself: a dazzling concert spectacle and an intimate character study. It never fully commits to either, and I wish it committed to option A.
Hamnet
Hamnet is uneven, sometimes too tidy and sometimes too hushed, yet it closes with a knockout. Jessie Buckley gives a performance that reframes everything around it, and Paul Mescal matches her once the material lets him. The last act is worth the price of admission on its own, a clean and crushing argument for how art can hold the unsayable.
Blue Heron
The very concept of memory sits at the center of Sophy Romvari’s fantastic feature-length debut Blue Heron. And not necessarily about how memory works, but more so about how it doesn’t. The vague, fuzzy recollection of specific moments in life that make up how you remember someone years and years later. Each memory may not even be specific, or concrete and absolute, but the collection of feelings coming together seemingly with duct tape to help you remember foundational people in your life who may not be with you anymore.
READ MORE: Movies Like Hamnet, Movies Like Train Dreams
